Freedom Found Only In You
Psalms 119:41-48 41 May your unfailing love come to me, LORD,
your salvation, according to your promise;
42 then I can answer anyone who taunts me,
for I trust in your word.
43 Never take your word of truth from my mouth,
for I have put my hope in your laws.
44 I will always obey your law,
for ever and ever.
45 I will walk about in freedom,
for I have sought out your precepts.
46 I will speak of your statutes before kings
and will not be put to shame,
47 for I delight in your commands
because I love them.
48 I reach out for your commands, which I love,
that I may meditate on your decrees.
I have a cat that is supposed to be an indoor cat. Yet, with every chance he gets he does a door dash, and he slips just out of my reach. What he does not know is the inherent danger in his momentary freedom. Just to the north of us are packs of coyotes. To the south is a fairly busy street where the speed limit for our neighborhood is routinely ignored. Along with these dangers are birds of prey and who knows what else. My cat’s freedom is illusionary. The freedom we have in Christ is not.
When we go beyond just believing and become intentional disciples, people who have determined to follow the Good Shepherd no matter the cost, then we experience true freedom.
Today is a good day to transform from being a believer into becoming a disciple, one who considers every word spoken and every action taken in light of the cross.
May we each make a practice of choosing Jesus instead of the world, for it is in Jesus where true freedom is found.
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
The Faith of an Intercessor
So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” – Isaiah 41:10
And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.” – Hebrews 10:24-25
“Therefore, confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.” – James 5:16
But those who hope (wait upon)in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on (mount upon) wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary; they will walk and not be faint.” – Isaiah 40:31
But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently.” – Romans 8:25
As I prepare for my weekly prayer meeting, I consider what builds up my faith so that I can pray more effectively.
I begin with asking the Holy Spirit to open my eyes to the needs of people, to prevent me from distraction, and give me the words to say according to the Scriptures. I then commit myself to prayer, often praying a particular scripture out loud, for I believe God loves to hear His words spoken back to him
I have just recently begun keeping up with my prayers with the following chart:
My prayer list
Name: ____________________
Need __________________________ __________________________
Scripture I’m holding onto:____________________
Date I started praying:_________________
Answer and date (even partial):__________________
May we commit ourselves to lifting others up, and as we see God move may our faith be made stronger each day so that we may be effective warriors in God’s kingdom.
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Seek Me Early
Proverbs 8:17
17 I love those who love me, and those who seek me diligently find me.
Isaiah 55:6 6 Seek the LORD while he may be found, call upon him while he is near;
When I was nineteen I, along with a handful of teens from church, visited three nursing homes along with two people who were housebound. We did this every Saturday from 9-4. Mrs. Schwarz delivered the Bible lesson, and our little group sang hymns and Southern Gospel songs.
Wherever I hear today’s scripture, my mind goes back to those early days when we were dedicated to delivering God’s message in Word and song and my heart is warmed.
Seek God early
Many years later I was the pastor in charge of the older congregation. I visited Assisted Living homes and private homes of folks who could no longer attend church services, and I was delighted to once again carry God’s Word, serve Holy Communion and listen to stories of people whose youth had long since passed.
Seek God early
Now it is I who am old and I wonder if I reach the point where I can no longer attend church if there will be someone to bring the Word to me. But until then, I will continue to get up early, read the Word, commune with the Father, Son and the Holy Spirit, and give thanks with a grateful heart that I have had a relationship with the One, True and Living God, and that I have had the privilege of serving Him by serving His people.
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
My flesh will rest in hope
Psalms 16:7-11 7 I will bless the LORD who has given me counsel;
My heart also instructs me in the night seasons.
8 I have set the LORD always before me;
Because He is at my right hand I shall not be moved.
9 Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoices;
My flesh also will rest in hope.
10 For You will not leave my soul in Sheol,
Nor will You allow Your Holy One to see corruption.
11 You will show me the path of life;
Do you ever wake up wondering why get up today? Some of us have no choice. Others may have sick days at work, but I don’t think any of us have call in tired days.
Whether we got up this morning ready to take on the world or we’re hoping to keep a low profile, we can know, believe and understand that God is our refuge and our strength, a very present help in trouble.
Last night we had a meeting at church called “Sisterhood.” This was our third monthly meeting focusing on knowing the spiritual gifts the Holy Spirit has given each of us and discerning how we are to use them for the building up of the body.
I had looked forward to this meeting all day, but as the time approached my body just felt worn out. But I went anyway. Can any of you relate? I just could not let my body prevent me from receiving, and hopefully giving, a blessing.
May we determine we will keep God ever before us so that our hearts are glad and our glory rejoices, and we soldier on as long as we can.
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
The Word Applied
Psalms 119:105-106 105 Your word is a lamp to my feet
And a light to my path.
106 I have sworn and confirmed
That I will keep Your righteous judgments.
Psalms 119:159-160 159 Consider how I love Your precepts;
Revive me, O LORD, according to Your lovingkindness.
160 The entirety of Your word is truth,
And every one of Your righteous judgments endures forever.
If you have been reading the Bible long, you will recognize Psalm 119 as the lengthiest chapter in the Bible. It is written as an acrostic poem to call attention not just to the importance of reading God’s Word but studying it so that we might understand it and apply it to our lives.
As children we sang “thy Word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path.” We memorized scripture, but do we truly understand the significance of the Bible in our lives? The world in which we live can be murky, and without a brightly shining lamp we can veer from the path. (I refer to it as the pathway of holiness.) But after we surrender to Jesus, we are no longer walking in darkness but in the light of His mercy and love.
It is crucial that we are connected to a church that implements a plan to lead us from the basic fundamentals of reading Scripture to understanding and applying it to our lives.
If we have a navigation system on our car but do not utilize it, then it does us no good. Likewise, if we simply read the Bible but fail to adhere to the instructions therein, we will become stuck in the rut of legalism, missing the love, mercy and grace we so desperately need.
May we stay in the Word, grow in the Word, and flourish in the Word, remembering Paul’s advice to Timothy, “2 Timothy 3:16-17 16 All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, 17 that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.”
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen
Seeking Holiness 