TO SEE GOD’S MERCY

February 21

Psalms 119:64 The earth, O Lord, is full of thy mercy: teach me thy statutes.

Anyone who sees today’s’ world full of the mercy of God is in denial of reality. Since its very beginnings, murders, divisions, wars, theft and oppression have been the essence and mark of all great governments and empires. Men, women and children have had to fend for themselves in order to escape the cruelty of man’s inhumanity to man, as well as the ravages of poverty and diseases. To this very day, we have not yet learned to govern ourselves. We have not been able to create a peaceful and plentiful society without crime, fear and oppression, while still based on the elements of freedom..

Where is God’s mercy in all this?

If we look for God’s mercy in the works and creations of man we will not find it. But the realm of the creation of God is full of examples of His abundant mercies. Many of the street people I minister to have dogs. I sometimes see these dogs yelled at and even hit by their drunken angry masters. In spite of so much mistreatment, the dog stays ever so faithful to its master and provides him with the love and companionship he so badly needs. This is such an example of God’s mercy to man, creating for him an animal who is the epitome of loyalty.

I have traveled to many countries, and I have seen both the godly and the ungodly farmer benefit of the fruits of the earth, of the warmth of the sun, and of the blessing of the rain. Each, the unbelieving employee gets paid, maybe not as much as he would like but still gets paid in order to feed his family. We may understand an unbeliever not giving credit to god for his sustenance, but what is worse, is when God’s children benefit of their benevolent Father’s blessings and yet, do not even thank Him, because they accredit their well being to their own efforts.

Let us not by accrediting ourselves falsely miss seeing the blessings of God on our lives. Let us pray today that we may see all of God’s mercy around us and learn to find it in the simple fact that He does not deal with us according to our sins, but rather according to His abundant mercies.

MERCY: Undeserved forgiveness.

Psalms 103:8-12 The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and plenteous in mercy. (9) He will not always chide: neither will he keep his anger for ever. (10) He hath not dealt with us after our sins; nor rewarded us according to our iniquities. (11) For as the heaven is high above the earth, so great is his mercy toward them that fear him. (12) As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us.

YOUR PRESENCE, THE ULTIMATE REWARD

February 20

Psalms 119:63 I am a companion of all them that fear thee, and of them that keep thy precepts.

God enjoys our fellowship.
He is pleased in our company.
He wants to be with us like a best friend or companion, enjoying life together.
He wants it so much that he sent His own Son to give His life and restore our fellowship with Him.
He is like one who takes the blame for the divisive offense in order to preserve the relationship.

There is no doubt about God’s relationship with us. It is mentioned in the book of Revelations that God created us for His pleasure (Revelations 4:11).

Is there a doubt about our relationship with Him?

Do we look forward to the pleasure of being with Him? Do we have that same intensity of anticipation of desire when we think of being in His presence? When it comes in the way of other activities, does it involve a sacrifice on our part, or is it its own reward?

Do we have our fun or pleasure with those who ‘fear’ (Fear: have respect towards, revere) Him, or do we have our fun with the ‘worldlings’?
Do we look forward to our time with Him with the excitement of a child whose
Do we look at our time with Him something that we have to do and get over with so we can go have fun, or is He our ‘fun’ and pleasure, like we are His pleasure?

Looking at His children, we could easily deduct otherwise. It seems that time with the Father through His Word or through fellowship with those who ‘fear’ Him is something that has its own time and place. It is scheduled like a chore or a necessary duty. In any case, it is far from being looked upon as the ultimate goal, something we take pleasure in, as He has with us in our presence. Pleasure and enjoyment on the contrary would seem to be everything that has to do with the ungodly world.

This I pray today, that before persecution makes it harder for us His children to take part of the elements of the world, we can learn to draw our main pleasure from spiritual fellowship with God. God’s presence is the godly’s only reward. I pray that being with God through His Word and fellowship with his family becomes our only and ultimate sought reward.

Mat 22:35-37 Then one of them, which was a lawyer, asked him a question, tempting him, and saying, (36) Master, which is the great commandment in the law? 37) Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.

JESUS, THE MIDNIGHT VISITOR

February 19

Psalms 119:62 At midnight I will rise to give thanks unto thee because of thy righteous judgments.

Midnight, the hour of extreme darkness; it is the time when robbers go about their lewd business; the season when the prince of darkness lurks about so his deed won’t be manifest that they are evil. Midnight was the hour of the fall of Sardis, the city that was conquered due to the lack of vigilance of its soldiers (Revelations 3:3).

One rises to check the security of our home. He verifies that the bolts are fastened, the windows securely closed and the fire put out. Yes the house is secured, and the master of the realm soundly goes back to sleep. But even then, when the body is asleep, when we give up control, the prince of darkness lurks about to disturb our slumber, to depress our spirit and worry our thoughts with evil dreams. Let us at these times not just yield our trust in the apothecary’s pill to give us our sleep back. Let us rise and remember to give thanks to Him to whom we ought every peaceful blessing.

At the time of our ‘midnight’, Jesus’ presence rescues us through the midst of our praises, for He dwells in them (Psalms 22:3). He is the Bridegroom who comes at midnight (Mat 25:6) to rescue the Bride from the clutches of the evil one, to rapture her into His kingdom where she will no more fear, neither hunger nor thirst; where neither the sun nor the moon will hurt her anymore.

On that midnight season, the bride will surely and fully give thanks to Him who came to save her from her enemies through His righteous judgments. But today, at the time of our ‘midnights’, let us rise and praise Him in a thrilling and joyful expectation of the soon coming time when ‘midnights’ will no more be.

Matthew 25:6 And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold, the bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him.

THE WORD, THE OVERCOMING POWER

February 18

Psalms 119:61 The bands of the wicked have robbed me: but I have not forgotten thy law.

For decades now, the attacks on the Christian in the western world have been subtle, low-key, and mostly confined to the realm of the spirit. In our present twenty-first century, the enemy has risen the ante and we have now more Chrisitian persecution in the worlds as there was during the Roman empire. In countries of the Eastern world such as China, the Sudan, India, Nepal, persecution of Christians has been so intense that it renders it difficult to believe that Christians could be spared the Great Tribulation. We also have in the M.E countries where Christians are second-rate citizens, and who fell they have to take refuge in other countries to preserve their lives. .

For millenniums, world domination came from the East. It slowly shifting West where it has remained since the Greek Emperor, Alexander the Great, conquered the Medo-Persian Empire (Iran).

In our twenty-first century, even from within the very heart of our Western metropolises, the dogmas of Western and Christian civilization are challenged by Eastern Muslim concepts. What both camps seem to forget is that the next global government will come neither from the East nor from the West but from above, from Jesus-Christ the Son of God who will appear and humble all of man-kind’s arrogance by ruling the world, neither the Western or Eastern way, but the way it should have been ruled (Revelation 19:11; 19:15; 20:4; 20:6).

Before that happens, it is certain that the Church of God (the people of God) will be tested, that the forces of evil will be allowed to ‘rob’ the righteous, doing ‘him’ many injuries. During those days, the Salvation of the righteous will solely rest in the keeping of God’s Words as his testimony (Revelation 3:21; 12:11) and weapon against the forces of evil that will be determined to eliminate us. At that time it will be important to not allow the “bands of the wicked” to distract and intimidate us from following after the Spirit of our Lord and Savior with their scare tactics.

Friend, today, as we the see the world around us get darker and darker; as the ‘virtue-terrorists’ ‘bands of the wicked’ attempt to ‘rob’ us of our moral standards; as they try to steal our obedience to God’s Words; as their evil forces push to gain ground on our children through ungodly media; as our thoughts are bombarded with concepts contrary to the teaching of Jesus-Christ; now is the time to brandish the shield of faith and lift up the sword of His Word. It is at such times that we need to remember His Word; it is at such a time that we need not to forget His Law.

At such times, let us remember how Jesus Himself was surrounded by evil hordes in the desert of temptation as well as in the garden of Gethsemane (Matthew 4; Matthew 26). Let us learn from His example of fighting the prince of darkness and his bands with the power of God’s Word of Light.

Revelations 12:11 And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death.

TO BE QUICK IN OBEDIENCE

February 17

Psalms 119:60 I made haste, and delayed not to keep thy commandments.

“Sin in haste, repent at leisure” is so true of human nature. We are hasty in our sinful disobedience and it could be avoided if we’d just slow down, if we’d take the time to ponder on what we are doing. By contrast, when it comes time to doing right and godly things, we exercise ‘cautiousness’ to the point that we drag our feet.

Here are good examples. I often engage people in financially supporting God’s work through my ministry. Since I understand that people have a responsibility towards God for the money He has given them, I patiently subject myself to answering a myriad of questions, all for the purpose of proving the good reason for which they should make a donation. My question is, do those same people practice the same slow scrupulous sort of financial responsibility for everything they spend the money God gave them, or is it only reserved for the donated dollar? Do they easily, quickly and carelessly spend their money when it comes to non- philanthropic expenses?

Another point on this issue is that we quickly endorse the judgment of a doctor or psychologist with no questions asked, but we feel that we have to go slow and check motives before endorsing the godly counsel of a pastor who may convict our souls. Oh, of what a wicked nature we are, applying different standards in every situation as it suits us (Proverbs 20:10)

Delayed obedience will become total disobedience. Once we have been told in the Word what to do, let us joyfully haste in owning the privilege of having received His commandment. Let us not be quick and thoughtless in sinning, while slow and doubtful in obeying the commandment of the Lord.

1 Samuel 21:8 … because the king's business required haste.

FEAR NOT THE ‘WRIGGLING’.

February 16

Psalms 119:59 I thought on my ways, and turned my feet unto thy testimonies.

When a goldsmith puts gold into the crucible and the fire begins to work, the dross begins to wriggle. As the dross is eliminated, the gold becomes quieter until at last its surface is so calm that the refiner sees his own face reflected in it. It is at that time that he puts out the fire and stops this purification process.

When we reflect upon the Word of God, sometimes its makes us squirm with discomfort. It makes our soul meditate upon its ways. It provokes a desire for a change of heart, a sense of repentance; a need to turn back from our old ways and move towards the new ones the Lord has for us. This my friend, is the ‘wriggling’.

When our heart makes contact with God’s Word, it should cause it to ‘wriggle’; to ponder, to think on its ways. This ‘wriggling;’ should not be a cause of fear. It is simply the Lord’s chiding upon our soul. It is His gentle training, His remodeling of the chambers of our heart. He will not impose His way though, He will patiently plead with us for every change until the tabernacle of our heart is conformed to His Tabernacle, so He can make His home in it.

Let’s give him this permission to change us and to remodel us. Let’s allow Him to transform us into His image so He can see Himself in us. We have the assurance that He will be more through us than we could ever be without Him.

Hebrews 3:7-8 Wherefore (as the Holy Ghost saith,) To day if ye will hear his voice, (8) Harden not your hearts, as in the provocation, in the day of temptation in the wilderness:

GIVE HIM FULL ACCESS

February 15

Psalms 119:58 I intreated thy favour with my whole heart: be merciful unto me according to thy word.

God’s children of the past looked forward to the coming of the Messiah. God’s children of today look back at the saving blood of the Lamb. The common element to both is the knowledge that we are sinners and that to approach God we need the sacrifice of the innocent atoning lamb. We cannot in fact entreat God’s mercy (undeserved forgiveness) unless we are aware, with our whole heart, of our inherent doomed state.

But how much is our ”whole heart”? How much mercy do we really need?

He already knows what’s in our heart; but as the ‘gentleman’ that He is, He will not intrude. He will not impose Himself nor His will into our lives without our permission. He waits until we are ready. He will only look in the chambers that we open to Him. We are the ones who give Him permission to get involved, even to take over certain areas of our lives. He will not go, nor interfere where He is not wanted.

May we learn to “entreat” the LORD fully. May we call upon Him without reservation. Let’s open our bedroom doors and our windows. Lets’ give Him full unreserved access to the closets, the kitchen, the cellar, and the attic. In the yieldedness of our soul, and confident knowledge that according to His Word He will treat us mercifully, let’s allow Him to open every drawer; let’s pull every curtain of our life.

Isaiah 1:18 Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.

THE LORD MY PORTION

February 14

Psalms 119:57 Thou art my portion, O LORD: I have said that I would keep thy words.

As the victorious soldier returns with the loot rejoicing; as the conquering emperor meditates on the prospects of his conquests; so let us rejoice at the gain of your name, of your love, and of your Spirit.

What in this world is more lasting, more true, more real and more sound to body and soul than the Lord, His Spirit and His Words. The Levites did not receive a plot of land as inheritance in Canaan (Joshua 14:4). Their portion was the Lord, His Words and His service (Numbers 8:11). The merchantman gave all that he had to purchase the precious pearl of God’s Spirit (Matthew 14:36). The treasure-seeker yielded all his other possessions to buy the land where God’s treasure laid (Matthew 13:44). All these truly believed that God was their portion, His inheritance was their wealth, and His Spirit was their strength.

Let them that perish fight over the perishable loot. Let them that die fight over corruptible treasures. Let them of this world rejoice at its prince’s temporal dainties. Let foolish men fight for lands, countries, power and wealth. My only kingdom, my only homeland is an everlasting and eternal one built by the Great King and Creator of the universe Himself.

I will rejoice and find my pleasure, my inheritance, and my portion in His Name, and in His Name only. My country is New Jerusalem. My people are bound together in the shed bloodline of the Son of God Jesus-Christ. As we, like the Levites, renounce the possession of a temporal perishable land in this world, we inherit a better eternal and incorruptible one in the Kingdom of God.

Philippians 3:8 Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ,

SHADOW IS PROOF OF SUNSHINE

February 13

Psalms 119:55-56 I have remembered thy name, O LORD, in the night, and have kept thy law. (56) This I had, because I kept thy precepts.

It is easy to remember the name of the Lord when in the light, when everything goes well. The difficulty we have is to remember Him in the same way when it is dark; when everything goes wrong. God puts us in the dark to prove to us that He is light: that all a time of shadow proves is the presence of the sun somewhere.

There are times when the darkness in our lives can be so thick that it seems to own substance. It is at such times though that light is most noticeable and appreciated. In the complete darkness, even a candle can be seen from very far. During such somber times, we are often tempted to stray, but if when in the deep of night, we remember the Lord, He will be that candle. He will light our path and help us keep His instructions with integrity.

We cannot chase the darkness of night on our own. All we can do is turn on the light, the light of His name, the lamp of His Word, and the darkness will flee away on its own.

Never doubt in the dark what God has spoken in the light. He has promised that He will be with us and never forsake us; that He will carry us so we do not dash our foot against a stone.

Let us remember His Name and His promises when in the dark and He shall be more to us than a light and better than a known way.

Hebrews 12:2-4 Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God. For consider him that endured such contradiction of sinners against himself, lest ye be wearied and faint in your minds. Ye have not yet resisted unto blood, striving against sin.

YOUR WORDS, THE SONGS OF MY PILGRIMAGE

February 12

Psalms 119:54 Thy statutes have been my songs in the house of my pilgrimage.

When the children of Judah where exiled in Babylon, people came to them wanting to hear one the songs of Zion. They wanted to know about the place the God of heaven had so miraculously given to His Children. It pained the exiled to sing songs from Jerusalem, because even though the rebuilding of the Temple and the restoration of the city was prophesied in their books, it reminded them so much of home which at the time laid in ruins (Psalms 137).

During our exile on this earth, Jesus has gone to prepare a place where we will eventually live again with Him (John 14:3), and this place, my friend, doesn’t lie in ruins. It is the New Jerusalem, which is described in details in many passages of the Bible (Revelations 21-22). We need to look forward to it with the joy of the pilgrim who has finally attained his goal. We need to daily encourage ourselves with the sweetness and safety its songs. Hopefully, someone will then come along and ask us to sing to them one of the songs of ‘Zion’ that tells them about the beautiful place God has prepared for them that love Him.

We are pilgrims and strangers in this world for only a short time as. Our native land, the Kingdom of God is much better than any of the realms this world has to offer. Knowing that, with godly pride, let’s remind ourselves of where we are from and most of all, of where we are headed,. It won’t be long now. Someday soon our soul will leave this earth-bound clod and reside in its eternal home.

What are the songs if our earthly pilgrimage? Are they the songs that glorify the Spirit of God so people want to know more about His Kingdom? Or are they the songs that glorify this decadent world of man?

Ephesians 5:19 Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord;

THE BLOOD THAT WILL BE REQUIRED

February 11

Psalms 119:53 Horror hath taken hold upon me because of the wicked that forsake thy law.

The ungodly, the rebellious and the proud laugh at the idea that one day they will have to account for their actions. Those who defiantly refuse the atoning blood of Jesus as payment have no clue of what awaits them. For as high as heaven is, so deep is hell; as beautiful His Kingdom is, so ugly is hell; as agreeable the scent of the kingdom of God, so suffocating the stench from the abyss.

This is the horror that should take us “because of the wicked”. The horror that awaits those who, when the day is done, may not be found in the Book of Life (Revelations 20:15). Today, they defiantly spread themselves like the “green bay tree” (Psalms 37:35), they rage and imagine a vain thing (Psalms 2:1), but He that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh: the Lord shall have them in derision. Then shall he speak unto them in his wrath, and vex them in his sore displeasure (Psalms 2: 4-5).

Is there someone in such a case? Do we have a friend, a relative who has not yet come to the breaking point of repentance? Because of it, has horror taken us at the thought of what will happen to our kin and acquaintance if when all is said and done, they do not find Jesus? has “horror” taken us at the thought of facing the Lord with the knowledge that we were one of those who knew that person, and were therefore partly responsible to show them the way?

We cannot push one coming to the knowledge of their Savior: it is a work of God. What we can do is pray like everything depended on prayer (because everything does depend on prayer), and be a fervent partner of concern with God who always answers the “effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man” (James 5:16). We can also along with our prayers, be a sample that God can use to draw them into the fold.

Ezekiel 3:17-19 Son of man, I have made thee a watchman unto the house of Israel: therefore hear the word at my mouth, and give them warning from me. When I say unto the wicked, Thou shalt surely die; and thou givest him not warning, nor speakest to warn the wicked from his wicked way, to save his life; the same wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at thine hand. Yet if thou warn the wicked, and he turn not from his wickedness, nor from his wicked way, he shall die in his iniquity; but thou hast delivered thy soul.

YOUR TESTIMONIES MY CONFIDENCE

February 10

Psalms 119:52 I remembered thy judgments of old, O LORD; and have comforted myself.

As we go through our daily routine, it is easy for us to get things out of perspective, to get to a point where we can’t see the forest for the trees. We can get wrapped up and busy addressing daily issues and lose focus of the “big picture”: the spiritual perspective. This is a wicked plot devised by the enemy to put us in a frame of mind where all we see is the perpetual pouring out of our own efforts, while we foolishly forget that the Lord is the one actually doing it all.

If we only would take the time to pause from our feverish activities; if we would but sit back prayer and meditation; all the ways in which our dear Jesus is the One who does all the work for us would suddenly appear. We would get excited as we see the manna He sent, as we realize that all we have to do is go collect it. Fear, tension and pressure would roll off our backs as we receive His faithful care and abundant blessings.

Today, if we feel distressed and overwhelmed, if we feel alone, with no one to turn to, let’s take the time to count our past, present and future promised blessings. Let’s open our eyes to all the ways in which our gentle Lord is with us, and let it be His gift of comfort for us.

His gift is not that He doesn’t let bad things happen to us, but that he is always with us when they do.

Psalms 42:6 O my God, my soul is cast down within me: therefore will I remember thee from the land of Jordan, and of the Hermonites, from the hill Mizar.

THE WORD OUR REFUGE

February 9

Psalms 119:51 The proud have had me greatly in derision: yet have I not declined from thy law.

The proud; the arrogant; the ungodly; those who in spite of their insignificance think they are masters of their fate; those who refuse to recognize the ways of God in the world or in their lives, always deride those who are Godly. They love to deride and put down the ones who do acknowledge their need and dependence on their Lord. They unleash their cruel mockeries as a weapon to lash our hearts. Through their bluff and blackmail, they attempt to torture our souls into surrendering to their humanist cynicism. Misery loves company, so their goal is to get us to join them in their hell-pit.

It’s everywhere. It’s in the songs; it’s in the movies. It’s in schoolbooks, in the magazines. They even disguise themselves with light to better deceive us into being swayed by their evil propaganda.

This, friend, is the world of today. This is the world we live in--a world where more than ever before, faith in the God of the universe is under attacks by the father of lies. Our only safety, our only sanity, the only way we will not ‘decline’ is to stay filled with His Words. We need not to go and fight the lies, the mockery, and the derision. This is what satan would have us do: leave our secure position to fight him against whom really we really have no strength. Our only hope is to stay fastened to the Word of Light as unto our eternal refuge.

2Peter 3:3 Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts,

Proverbs 18:10 The name of the LORD is a strong tower: the righteous runneth into it, and is safe.

THE WORD OF COMFORT

February 8

Psalms 119:50 This is my comfort in my affliction: for thy word hath quickened me.

These are some of David’s afflictions. He had to repent from his deception and of the murder of Bath-Sheba’s husband. He lost his first son. He was afflicted by a loathsome disease. His daughter was raped by one of his sons his son who in turn was murdered by Absalom, his other son. He fled Jerusalem in disgrace in front of this very very Absalom who led as coup against him. In the midst of all this, and without the help of modern psychology and mood-altering drugs, he kept the faith to run his kingdom and fight his surrounding enemies.

David protected the house of Israel against its enemies with the same integrity and courage as when he protected his father’s sheep against wild animals. He came to a time when he lost the innocent child-like faith he inherited from his father and indulged in disobedience. The consequential results of his actions drove him to the limits of his heart’s endurance. This ‘limit’, is where he found his God in a new and mature way. He had learned the age-old lesson, “when all you have left is God, you suddenly realize that God is enough”; and when all we’ve got left to stand on is the Word, we realize then that the Word is enough.

When he was discouraged and weary of the battle is when the prophet Elijah heard the small voice of the Lord was renewed (1 Kings 19:12-13). When after fasting for forty days and forty nights, Jesus, in His physically weakened state has a face-to-face confrontation with Satan, it is the Word that gave our Savior the strength to withstand the tempter (Mathewt 4:1-11).

Afflicted? Depressed? Sad? The same Word that “quickened” King David also “quickens” us. His Word is His gift. His gift is His power, His promise of strength and comfort.

Colossians 3:16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.

THE WORD OF HOPE

February 7

Psalms 119:49 Remember the word unto thy servant, upon which thou hast caused me to hope.

At certain times in our lives, a Word comes to all of us that causes us to hope in God’s purpose. It’s a Word that brings with it the courage to challenge high seawaters and bring God’s ship to port. This Word compels us to leave the comforts of Ur and of Egypt (Genesis 12:1; Hebrews 11:27)) and go walk paths unknown with the sole purpose of following and honoring the God that created and called us to His greater purpose.

When life’s road is long and hard, we tend to forget the Word that caused us to hope. As we climb the mountain of His will, we lose sight of the heavenly vision, of the goal that propelled us to endanger life and limb for the ideal of God, and we want to return to comfort and security.

At such times my friend, my fellow pilgrim, let us look into the book of Promises. Let us inspire and encourage ourselves with the stories of old, of how God supplied for His children on the road to Canaan. Let us remember how He honored those who did not trust in the uncertain riches of mammon, but put their confidence in Him who owns the cattle on a thousand hills (Psalms 50:10). Oh, how the book of Promises will renew our vision as we read of those who did not trust in their own arm for salvation, but who totally and fully trusted in the Lord their God who had sent them.

Is God dead? Can He repeat today the same wonders He has done in the past Is He the same yesterday, today and forever (Hebrews 13:8)? Oh, my friend, He is more alive today that ever. Let us dare to trust Him, dare to challenge Him to keep His promises. We will see Him as a bridegroom coming out of his chamber, and, rejoicing as a strong man to run a race (Psalms 19:5). We will see Him ready at any moment to impress us his beloved bride with the power of His might and the bounty of His wealth.

Hebrews 12:1-2 Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us, Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.

OBEDIENCE BECAUSE OF LOVE

February 6

Psalms 119:47-48 And I will delight myself in thy commandments, which I have loved. (48) My hands also will I lift up unto thy commandments, which I have loved; and I will meditate in thy statutes.

At a time when there were so many commandments to obey; at a time when religion was based on a cold legalistic and ritualistic blind application of rules; when to obey the commandments was “yoke” (Acts 15:10); even at that time David delighted in God’s commandments. He proclaimed to love meditating upon them.

Today, the heavy yoke of legalism in the commandment is lifted. Yet, in this day of voluntary obedience we follow Him reluctantly. It should make us ashamed of ourselves.

David followed God joyfully for something he was hoping to get. We follow Him for something we’ve already received when we gave our hearts to the Lord. We should therefore obey in a spirit of extreme gratitude and thanks, putting our heart unto His commandment out of love.

Here are some questions we can ask of ourselves:
Do I follow Him out of love or out of duty?
What is His commandment for me today?
In what way does He want me to be of service for Him today?
Can I say, ‘yea’ and ‘amen’ without reservations to the answers of these questions?

John 14:15 If ye love me, keep my commandments.

FULL TESTIFYING POWER

February 5

Psalms 119:46 I will speak of thy testimonies also before kings, and will not be ashamed.

We cannot successfully inspire others to be dependant on the Word of God if we ourselves are dependant on carnal strength. We cannot effectively encourage others to compare their lives with the Word, when we gage ourselves by the standards of the world. We cannot fruitfully tell others of the Kingdom of God when we do not portray its attributes in our lives. Unless we are citizens of the Kingdom of God in everything we do and say, our miserable attempts to obey the Great Commission will only be as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal 1 Corinthians 13:1. So how do we get this full testifying power where we are not ashamed? It comes from the strength of daily partaking of the divine nature; From the assurance that our prayers are heard and answered; from personally experiencing the power of the Word of God.

Then and only then, will we not be ashamed in our testifying.
Then and only then will the Lord be able to use us to bring His Name to the precious souls. If we stay close to Him, He will bring us to the kings, the governors. He will bring us to the world changers. These people can discern between religious hypocrisy and sincerity in men. Then and only then will the Word of our testimony match with the excellency of the power it describes.

Therein is our responsibility within the Great Commission. Will we shame the Gospel through a weakened and adulterated presentation, or can we concur with David and not be ashamed as we present Him to the kings of this world?

1 Corinthians 2:4-5 And my speech and my preaching was not with enticing words of man's wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power: That your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God.

FREEDOM WITHIN GOD'S BOUNDARIES

February 4

Psalms 119:45 And I will walk at liberty: for I seek thy precepts.

Many feel that walking in the way of God is too prohibitive. They find too many restraints therein. They forget that going through the straight and narrow gate of the Lord frees them from the boundaries of natural man. It brings them to a limitless dimension where they become partakers of His divine nature, where the limits are the limits of God Himself.

On the other hand, those who blatantly refuse to go through the narrow gate make a spectacle of their ‘freedom’. They vaunt of their indulgences. They freely display and make a show of their so-called liberties. And while they arrogantly think to bring offense and vexation on those who have wisely chosen the way of God, one morning, as they wake up, they find themselves caught in the trap that they have se for themselves, prisoners of their vain and foolish lust and greed.

O foolish humans that we are. Do we think that by building wings of steel we accede to flight? Do we believe that by role-playing in our foolish and vain games we become whatever it is that we pretend to be? When will we realize that only by following the Lord God and Maker of the Universe will we find the ultimate freedom we are looking for? Only by shedding our vain humanity at the hole of the Needle gate (Matthew 19:24) will we be liberated not only from the trappings of the world, but from the desires and lusts that daily seek to own us.

Here, within the Light of the Holy of Holies of the Sanctuary of God, the world looses its glitter and temptation looses its shine. Sickness becomes beauty for ashes (Isaiah 61:3) and death the door to heavenly dimension where boundaries are but a thing of the past (1 Corinthians 15:55).

John 8:36 If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.

KEEP HIS TRUTH FOREVER

February 3

Psalms 119:43-44 And take not the word of truth utterly out of my mouth; for I have hoped in thy judgments. (44) So shall I keep thy law continually for ever and ever.

One of the most testing elements of Christian life, and one that has brought many to renounce their faith, is that prayers sometimes don’t seem to be answered.

Prayer for some of us sometimes becomes a deferred hope that makes our heart sick (Proverbs 13:12). We then stop keeping God’s Laws, and thereby we cannot testify anymore of His goodness. Eventually, the Word of Truth is taken away from us as well as the incentive to keep His commandments. What a devilish vicious circle. My own son told me one time in his young adult years, “Why pray, since God doesn’t answer?”. The devil knows this and we can be sure that he uses it to the utmost.

God always answers our prayers, but in His great wisdom, He does not always answer them our way. Oh, how thankful I am that God does not answer all of my prayers. The great sadness is when those who go through such trials cannot find help to understand either God’s great wisdom in His apparent silences or the answer tht He has given, one they may have missed. Thank God, in Heaven all scores will be settled and we’ll understand everything, even through misty eyes (Revelations 7:17; 21:4).

For God’ sake, for our children’s sakes, for our sakes, let us not allow the enemy to take out of our mouth the truth that God is merciful and that He answers prayer. Let us continue to hope in His judgments, even when our finite minds do not understand, and do not grasp His infinite wisdom. Armed with this confidence, let us then be inspired to follow His Laws and commandments in which we know have a good reward.
Matthew 7:9-11 Or what man is there of you, whom if his son ask bread, will he give him a stone? (10) Or if he ask a fish, will he give him a serpent? (11) If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him?

JESUS, OUR SOLE VINDICATION

February 2

Psams 119:41-42 Let thy mercies come also unto me, O LORD, even thy salvation, according to thy word. (42) So shall I have wherewith to answer him that reproacheth me: for I trust in thy word.

Though we are Christians, we are not perfect. Though we are Christians, we battle to keep our virtue and integrity. And because we are Christians, our vindication does not come from the battles we win or loose, from the things we do or don’t do, but from the battle the Lord has won, from the things Jesus has done.

When the world looks at us, they see frail, miserable, weak and dependant people. They see a people of little strength against the many influences of the world. They might even see sometimes a people who seems to give in to personal weaknesses. But at the end of the day, when the time comes to settle the accounts, all God sees in them is the stain of the blood of Jesus-Christ the Lamb of God on their hearts.

Therefore let us trust in this Word of promise (John 1:29). Let us brandish it like a flag in the face of the accusing world and of the condemning enemy. As the colors of His banner, let us set it on our armor (Psalms 60:4; SOS 2:4) that all may see, and proudly proclaim that no, we do not have to justify ourselves to them nor to the evil one (Rom 8:1). The ruling of sin and death over us is over with. This is a new day, the day of the new covenant when everyone who comes to Christ shall be saved, even in spite of themselves.

Proverbs 24:16 For a just man falleth seven times, and riseth up again: but the wicked shall fall into mischief.

LIFE IN HIM

February 1

Psalms 119:40 Behold, I have longed after thy precepts: quicken me in thy righteousness.

There is cause and effect. It is only as long as we desire, long after His precepts, we can expect to be quickened* in His righteousness.

We seem to be ‘quickened’ or ‘made alive’, ‘strengthened’ by the things we ‘long for’, our desire. If we long for the vanity and glitter of the elements of the world, this is what becomes our life. Sad to say, the glories and vanities of the world are ephemeral, and we will rust, mold (Matthew 6:19-21), or even burn with them when on the Lord’s day, our works are tried by fire (1 Corinthians 3:13-15).

As Christians, if it is not His righteousness that quickens us, then whose? Our own? No righteousness will stand before the throne of God on that final day but that of the Son of God.

Let us therefore pray daily that our affections would be set on the things above, (Colossians 3:2) and not on things on the earth. Only by longing after his precepts we will be quickened in His righteousness.
Jeremiah 29:13 And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart.

THE BLOOD THAT CLEANS

January 31

Psalms 119:39 Turn away my reproach which I fear: for thy judgments are good.

Oh, the sin that sticks to us like a burr. Oh, how past transgression likes to butt in to buffet and vex our soul and try the grace of God in us. We know so well that our guilty feeling is right because God’s judgments are good and we deserve to be chastised.

How long has it been, how deep are these ‘old files’ buried? Would we listen to one who would dare to bring up these records to the forefront of our soul? Do we have the courage to bring them up and expose them to the forgiving grace of Jesus?

Why should we pay any attention to the devil, the accuser of the Saints who tries to subject our hearts to his own unrepentant and therefore unforgiven state? Nay; but he has no place in us (Ephesians 4:27). We will face him lifting the blood of the Christ who died and resurrected for us and we will live (Numbers 21:8). We will look unto the brazen snake as unto the Son of God made sin for us (John 3:14). We will look him straight in the face and shout, “Jesus took my sin for me.” Again, “Jesus took my sin for me.” And again, “Jesus took my sin for me.” There now, the is weight lifted; the reproach taken away.

Our every stripe, our every lash, and our every burn from the fiery lake, He has taken upon Himself. When we come to Him in His appointed time, He will not sternly look at us and say, “What have you done”, but seeing the imprint of His blood on the side posts of our heart (Exodus 12:7) He will say, “Enter thou into the joy of Thy Lord” (Matthew 25:23).

2 Corinthians 5:21 For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.

THE ANCHOR OF OUR VIRTUE

January 30

Psalms 119:38 Stablish thy word unto thy servant, who is devoted to thy fear.

Some of us, some more than others, are prone to doubt God’s Word; we have a natural tendency to doubt his promises of care and support. It is true that these days, from all sides wherever we go, we are incessantly bombarded with alternative concepts. If we are not on-guard against them, these erode at our faith and trust in the Lord. Sad to say, the most common scenario is that our virtue gets trampled upon and we don’t even realize it. We continue our life in a humdrum fashion until something wrong happens which serves as a catalyst to expose our waning spiritual condition. Tragedy in our lives often renews in us the lost fear of the Lord.

The good news is that if we have an inner devotion to the fear of the Lord, we will be able to see it. Unless our soul is ‘seared’ (1 Timothy 4:2) by a self-justifying spirit of rebellion, if we live close to the Lord, He is able to show us when our faith sinks under the pressures of the world.

May then God help establish his Word, his promises and his spiritual principles in our hearts. May they be anchored, keeping our ship unmovable against the raging and roaring influences that would sink it in doubts. May his Word be the ‘fact’ and the ‘amen’ to each and every situation coming our way. And with all these, may the peace that passes all understanding reigns in us as a testimony of the hope that is in us (1 Peter 3:15).

2 Peter 1:4 Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.

WE BECOME WHAT WE FEED OUR SPIRIT

January 29

Psalms 119:37 Turn away mine eyes from beholding vanity; and quicken thou me in thy way.

The continual watching of ungodly sights and hearing of foul sounds numbs our senses to evil. When we constantly subject ourselves to them, we actually train our spirit to be comfortable with them. We fight against the God-given Holy Spirit in us who, by the means of our conscience, would normally reject them.

How sad, how pitiful, how pathetic it is when we vex, and abuse the Spirit of God in us through our deliberate subjection to worldly vanities. Eventually, we numb our senses and we cannot discern good from bad and right from wrong anymore. Our conscience becomes eared (1 Timothy 4:2) and we cannot recognize the voice of His Spirit anymore. Ultimately, we do not even feel when God is grieved within us.

O how those worldly vanities sap the strength and spirit out of us so we become soul-less, spirit-less humanoids easily reachable to be used by Satan. Like King David in this passage, let us honestly, sincerely and without reservations, ask the Lord to ‘turn away’ our eyes (as it seems we cannot do it ourselves) from beholding and loathing at the prideful and vain sights and sounds of the world, so He can ‘quicken’* us.

*Quicken: to make alive.

Psalms 25:15 Mine eyes are ever toward the LORD; for he shall pluck my feet out of the net.

Psalms 101:3 I will set no wicked thing before mine eyes: I hate the work of them that turn aside; it shall not cleave to me.

TO COVET OR NOT TO COVET

January 28

Psalms 119:36 Incline my heart unto thy testimonies, and not to covetousness.

The tenth commandment of the Instructions* given to Moses on Mt Sinai tells us, “Thou shalt not covet” Exodus 20:17. In the New Testament, Paul the Apostle tells us to “covet earnestly the best gifts”1 Corinthians 12:31. Is there a contradiction here on the attitude towards coveting?

* The word ‘Torah’ generally translated by ‘Law’, actually means ‘intruction’.

--The first instruction is relevant of the physical realm, the second instruction of the spiritual. --The first cautions, the second instructs. --The first is a negative instruction, the second, a positive. --The fist tells of the dangers of coveting the wealth from the world, the second tells of the blessings of coveting the gifts of the Spirit.

God must have known that as human beings created from the elements of the earth, earthly things would become a pull and exercise power over us. We can see it in the case of our lust for junk-food, wealth, sex, and in the character corrupting influences brought by power and fame. Coveting them is natural, but it is bad for us. To resist that tendency, our hearts need to be consciously ’inclined’ to desire the spiritual blessings that only God can give.

This inclination to desire spiritual blessings is not natural to us, and the devil knows it. He uses us every trick of his evil trade to sidetrack us using the carnal elements he knows we fall so easily for. Paul, also warns us that the carnal always fights against the spiritual, and that the two are in constant enmity. (Romans 8:7).

In order to keep our loyalty focused on his material and carnal realm, the devil constantly bombards us with his concepts through the sights and sounds offered us by the ‘media-sirens’ of the world. The only way to be ‘rehabilitated’, to be reformed from the infatuations and addictions to his ‘virtual-world’, is to prioritize our life and constantly bathe ourselves in the very real and tangible Spirit of the Lord, “praying without ceasing” (1 Thessalonians 5:17), and in studying to show ourselves approved unto God” (2Timothy 2:15)

Let us despise the wicked ‘virtual-reality’ the prince of the power of the air lays before us, and let us actively and aggressively pursue the spiritual gifts God has set for our well-being.

Matthew 6:21 For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.

TO DELIGHT IN HIS COMMANDMENTS

January 27

Psalms 119:35 Make me to go in the path of thy commandments; for therein do I delight.

One time I heard someone pray a similar prayer. A person who was so discouraged with her own efforts to overcome a certain weakness in her life, that she was ready for God to do anything, and I mean, anything, to help her. She prayed something to this effect, “Lord, please, do anything, absolutely anything, you have to do in my life in order that I’d be delivered from this temptation. It hinders my walk with you, my walk with my brothers and sisters, as well as my testimony of being your child. I give you leave Lord to do whatever it takes to deliver me.”

I coned this the ‘Whatever-it-takes’ prayer.

How much we want to go in the path of His commandments has a lot to do with how much we want it. And how much we want it has a lot to do with how much we delight in them. One day, during the course of a class, I gave my students a description of the peace, beauty and spiritual cleanliness that will be in the millennium; I explained how we will then live closer to the creation and to the Creator. One of them who very much enjoys the spiritual and technological pollution of this didn’t even seem excited about it. He was disappointed. The prospect of life without its present-day three-ring-circus of travel, communication and entertainment seemed to him dreadful. He delighted in the ways of the world so he couldn’t appreciate the ways of the Lord.

May God help us to delight in the Lord, in His ways, in His commandments, and in His Spirit, so we can pray with a whole and sincere heart, Make me to go in the path of thy commandments.

Isaiah 45:11 Thus saith the LORD, the Holy One of Israel, and his Maker, Ask me of things to come concerning my sons, and concerning the work of my hands command ye me.

RELIGION VS LIVING FAITH

January 26

Psalms 119:33-34 Teach me, O LORD, the way of thy statutes; and I shall keep it unto the end. (34) Give me understanding, and I shall keep thy law; yea, I shall observe it with my whole heart.

Paul said that the natural man does not receive the Law of God; that our carnal mind is in enmity with the mind of God.

It takes work to learn the Law of God. It doesn’t come naturally because we do not rationally understand it, but yet to obey it in a robotic ritualistic fashion would defeat its main purpose which is to train and teach our hearts and spirits into His ways.

Without properly understanding the way of His statutes, we miss the point. This is what the prophets and Jesus were constantly telling the religionists of their days, that they followed the letter of the Law and not the Spirit of it (John 6:63; 2 Corinthians 3:6), and that was because they did not understand His statutes with their hearts, they only knew the “letter”!

Those who are satisfied with only following in a ritualistic fashion are not only cheating God of His due from our hearts, but also they are deceiving their own selves with the spirit of “religion”. Their type of adherence to the Word resembles more the ways of paganism than the ways of God. Do they do that because they are afraid of the cost of truly understanding what God expects of them, and thereby would be responsible for it (John 9:41)?

May God help us to give God more credit for giving us not just a religion, but a ‘living faith’ leading us into the wonderful knowledge of His person in an intimate and real fashion.

John 6:63 It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.

LET HIM ENLARGE YOU

January 25

Psalms 119:32 I will run the way of thy commandments, when thou shalt enlarge my heart.

Sometimes the Lord puts in our hearts burdens that seem greater than us. He blows upon us the wind of a commission, of a duty with dimensions that our flesh and carnal mind cannot endorse. At such times, we are made to feel the need for more of Him to accomplish the tasks He has laid upon us.

If our feet were free to run; if our bodies were able to fly, if by a miracle the limitation of age and physical weakness were to disappear, oh, how we would run to do His bidding. With such abundance of energy and zeal; with such love, tears, blood, sweat and self-denying oh yes we would go.

Such a miracle is possible, such a miracle exists for people like you and me, because the aptitude, spontaneity, and promptitude of the feet are solely dependant on the position of the heart towards our Lord. We can ask Him. We can ask Him to enlarge us. We can ask Him to enlarge our soul so our feet can run to do His will with all that His heavenly grace provides.

If we let Him, He will enlarge our heart (Oh how it hurts). If we let Him, He will push the walls of our soul (Oh how it robs us). If we let Him, He will take us to the heavenly realm of invisible evidence (Oh how it scares us), of the substance of things hoped for (Oh how it humbles us) (Heb 11:1). If we let Him, He will take us out of our comfort zone, and keep us comforted by His presence.

When we finally yield the controls, when we take our hands off of destiny He would write for us, the simple insect that is our life lights up the valley as the summer firefly and our caterpillar turns into a soaring butterfly bringing its heavenly touch to all around him.

2Corinthians 4:7 But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us.

THE TRUE COURAGE OF DEPENDANCY

January 24

Psalms 119:31 I have stuck unto thy testimonies: O LORD, put me not to shame.

Oh the brave heart of David. It takes a lot of bravery; it takes a lot of strength to stick to God’s testimonies. It takes a lot of courage to continue trusting Him through seeming defeats while we contend with un-reached goals and what we are tempted to qualify as ‘unanswered’ prayers. It takes a supernatural element of faith to hang on to God’ Word of promise and be assured of His support just because we know He has done it in the past.

Some have boldly declared that it is the coward and the weak who lean on faith, those who are unsure of themselves and who need a crutch. How ironic. In David we have a soldier; a man who has lived in the battlefield; been a fugitive; spent his life on the brink of very real dangers. David’s life hardly testifies that of a self-concerned coward but yet, he confesses utter dependency to God.

The heart of a brave man can be more wounded by shame than by any of man’s evil weaponry, but David despised the shame (Hebrews 12:2 ) and endured the cruel mockings (Hebrews 11:36) of the proud and conceited reprobates. In the eyes of the other nations around him, he seemed to lean on a God with no name, no face, no Temple, nor any of the religious elements which in their eyes constitutes the strength and greatness of a god. In spite of the mockery, David stood for the honor of the Almighty God expecting Him to extend and prove Himself. As a result, God honored him and proved wrong the spiritual and physical forces of evil that tried to withhold him. .

Sometimes, God takes us to a place where He is the only One who can help us against the forces of logic, carnal wisdom and rational thinking. Sometimes He asks us to walk on limb and saw it off. Those times are times to learn to utterly trust Him and sing the following song:

"Cheer up, ye saints of God--there's nothing to worry about--
Nothing to make you feel afraid--Nothing to make you doubt!
Our God has never failed, so why not trust Him and shout!
You'll be glad you trusted Him tomorrow!"

2Corinthians 3:5 Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think any thing as of ourselves; but our sufficiency is of God;

CHOOSE THE WAY OF TRUTH

January 23

Psalms 119:30 I have chosen the way of truth: thy judgments have I laid before me.

We do not stumble on the way of truth by accident. Unless we know the Truth we are looking for, we don’t recognize it, and oh, so many have it right by them, and shamefully discard it as they would a common lie. We must study, we must learn and then, we must intelligently, consciously and actively choose the way of truth. We must take a definite concrete executive action that ‘chooses’ the way of truth, and very often, it first has to do with rejecting the way of falsehood.

--It is not enough for a gardener to love flowers; he must also hate the weeds that threaten to choke his flowers.
--It is not enough for one to love fresh vegetables; he must also hate the slugs and worms that destroy the crop.
--It is not enough to love truth; we must also hate lies that pervert his mind and supplants it in our hearts.

We must be militant, yes we must be militant in aggressively ‘choosing’ the way of truth by constantly laying the judgments of God before our heart. As darkness can’t stand the Light and flees from it, so does the spirit of lying flee when the Truth of God’s judgment in His Word comes to us as we read and study it.

Let us today militantly choose the way of truth; let us stop compromising with the wicked judgments and ways of this world and with open hearts and mind lay God’s judgments before us.

2Corinthians 6:14-18 Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness? And what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel? And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you, And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.

PURE REFLECTION IN THE WORD OF TRUTH

January 22

Psalms 119:29 Remove from me the way of lying: and grant me thy law graciously.

As imperfect human beings living in the lower dimension of humanity, our perspective of life, of history and of the universe is rather incomplete. Our sight and understanding of our environment is easily affected by misplaced zeal, cynical indifference, incomplete knowledge or emotional irrationalism. Yet at times, in spite of it all, we can claim such assurance, and such definite surety. But in this media ruled age when every minute of the day fills our eyes and ears with someone vying for our attention, loyalty and opinion, it is for lying attitudes to influence us. Therefore, since we are often deceived unawares, our only protection against the way of lying is not in our own ability to judge, assess and process, bit in the realm of prayer, asking for God to remove from us the influences that would lead us astray.

God has graciously granted the request in this prayer, not only for King David who originated it, but also for the whole world. Jesus died so the Holy Spirit could live in us (John 14), so the Law could be written in our hearts (Jeremiah 31:31-33) and guide us into all truth (John 16:13).

Let us therefore honestly and sincerely look into the law of the Christ of God as laid out in the Gospels and in the epistles. Let us compare ourselves with the pure Commandments of love, honesty, sincerity, generosity, integrity and humility. Let us do it without fear. Let us allow their pure light and fire to purify our soul, burn the dross that cumbers our heart and show us His healing truth.

James 1:23-25 For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass: For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was. But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed.

BEAUTY FOR ASHES

January 21

Psalms 119:28 My soul melteth for heaviness: strengthen thou me according unto thy word.

The Hebrew word employed in the original text here is more like ‘drip’, or ‘distill’ rather than ‘melt’. C. Spurgeon wrote, Tears are the distillation of the heart; when a man weeps he wastes away his soul.

The picture here is of a great warrior king wasting his soul in tears; a picture of great vexation of heart and spirit. King David, this great contender of kings and giants; this righteous challenger of the armies of the heathen, had such great love for his Lord. It is said that those who know great love also know great sorrow. David’s soul melted in tears of sorrow for the distress and vexation of his spirit, because he cared.

The biggest plague of our modern society is indifference. Indifference makes us not care about things; indifference makes not want to get involved because involvement and caring hurts. Caring causes pain. Caring causes vexation of heart and soul and spirit. We don’t like to hurt and we equate hurt with negative feelings. But God has meant for us to hurt sometimes because hurt is good for us. Hurt edifies our soul, matures our character, builds our spirit, and strengthens our faith.

Pain and hurt is meant to cause us to desperately call onto God, and remind Him of His Promises of comfort to us through His Holy Spirit. Hurt brings us close to His Spirit.

In our times of heartbreak, in our hour of sorrow, when our heart aches so much that we feel that it’s going to burst out of our chest, let’s remember God’s Promises and asks for His strengthening. He will never fail to be there for you.

Hebrews 7:25 Wherefore he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them.

WE GET THE FIRE FROM SITTING AT HIS FEET

January 20

Psalms 119:27 Make me to understand the way of thy precepts: so shall I talk of thy wondrous works.

Up to the time Jesus resurrected, the disciples were indecisive in their faith. They understood it somewhat with their heads, but their heart wasn’t illuminated yet. This is the reason why they were cowardly and not able to stand strong when Jesus was captured. They deserted Him. Peter even denied to know Him three times (Matthew 26:72).

After Jesus resurrected, things were different. He met two of the disciples on the road to Emmaus. And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, he expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself. After breaking bread in front ot them, Jesus disappeared and we are told that, …their eyes were opened, and they knew him; and he vanished out of their sight. And they said one to another, Did not our heart burn within us, while he talked with us by the way, and while he opened to us the scriptures? (Luke 24). Later, Jesus appeared to 500 of the disciples (1 Cor 15:6) being seen of them forty days, and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God: (Acts 1:3).

It is after this time spent in the presence of the LORD. It is after they sat at His feet learning from Him for forty days. It is after they were taught by the Lord Himself all the things pertaining to the Kingdom of God that the disciples became the fiery evangelists that changed the world, each one suffering persecution for the sake of Jesus’ name and the kingdom of God. What happened?

When we finally get it. When we finally understand the height, the depth, the length and the width of our salvation. When we dare to fathom the mercy and the love He has for us. When we finally realize everything that transpired from the beginning of creation so that we, little us today, can be the recipient of this most wonderful gift, it become an irresistible evangelical power within us that cannot be stopped or it will blow up like Krakatoa. The way the disciples changed from their cowardly attitude and died for their faith is the greatest proof of the resurrection. They would never have had the conviction; they could never have done it without that tangible undeniable evidence.

Oh my friend, we want to learn to earnestly and sincerely testify of our faith? We need to spend time with Him sitting at His feet listening to Him expounding all the marvelous things concerning the kingdom. As we understand the way of His precepts, this evangelical fire then will come naturally, and we will talk of His wondrous works.

Romans 10:17 So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.

WHAT CAN WE HIDE ANYWAYS

January 19

Psalms 119:26 I have declared my ways, and thou heardest me: teach me thy statutes.

Dear child of God, my friend, my brother; shall we declare our ways to our Lord?

Oh yes, He knows it all and sees it all; but with all due respect, He will not ‘steal’ information not volunteered to Him. Let’s now reach down deep at the bottom of our heart. Let’s use a scraper. Let’s peel off anything that clings to the walls of our soul, and expose that which we fear to be declared. Let’s make ourselves utterly naked in the sight of our Lord. Let’s make a free will offering of the transparency of our soul. Oh no we shouldn’t fear. He is as gentle as a dove; His cooing refreshes our weary soul.

See Him now. He puts on gloves of gentleness. He carefully and gently lays out all the parts of our heart, the part we have voluntarily given Him. He stands in privileged gratefulness. He looks at every part with judgment and mercy. Now He cries; now He intercedes; now He takes upon Himself every injustice, every ache, every hurt, and the pain that He sees. He makes an atonement for all selfishness, for our every proud thought, and each contending ways.

He now applies the balm of Gilead, this famous balm that heals and softens. Its regenerating qualities flow from the Lord’s mouth and from His tears. It lubricates and softens His tender hands of love as He retrains every part of our soul to stand upright again, as he sets in the statutes of His Holy Spirit within the walls of our heart.

Oh yes; oh yes we can trust Him with our soul. Oh yes we can trust Him with our heart. We can trust Him to gently engrave in it His statutes.

Proverbs 3:6 In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.

THE REGENERATED LIFE

January 18

Psalms 119:25 My soul cleaveth unto the dust: quicken thou me according to thy word.

How low is unregenerate man; he scurries about the world solely concerned with earthly matters:
--He has no notion of a spiritual life; he exists for the sole purpose of eating, drinking and making merry.
--His thoughts are prisoners to earthly concerns; with personal needs, lusts and personal appearance.
--He doesn’t know the heavenly ‘retributor’, so his morals are earthly and sensual.
--He can only rise as high as his poor human brain can conceive.
--He has no concept of spiritual reality; his life begins, exists, and ends on earth.
--He lives for himself; his life’s accomplishments are given to moth and rust; and he dies for nothing.
--Like a worm, his soul truly ‘cleaveth’ to the dust.

How different is the spiritual man; his main concern is the heavenly realm.
--He lives on the spiritual realm; his life reflects a balance of heavenly and earthly concerns.
--His thoughts are free from the demands of the world; they look up above, to the needs of his soul, and with how to please his Lord.
--He knows that God renders every man according to his deeds, so he lives by the law of His Lord.
--His goals are as high as what God can conceive.
--He lives in preparation for spending eternity in Heaven; his life reflects that he is only a pilgrim on earth.
--He lives for his Lord; his life’s accomplishments last for eternity; he dies as a witness of the cause of Christ leaving a seed for future generations.
--The cocoon of the death of this life can’t hold him; he resurrects to fly to the heavenlies.

What makes the difference between the unregenerate and the regenerate man?
The regenerate man is ‘quickened’ by God’s Word.

Let our lives reflect the costly gift of regeneration given to us freely by Jesus-Christ the Son of God.

1Corinthians 15:19-20 If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable. But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept.

RUN TO THE SWORD

January 17

Psalms 119:23-24 Princes also did sit and speak against me: but thy servant did meditate in thy statutes. (24) Thy testimonies also are my delight and my counsellors.

Abraham overcame the five kings of the valley by obeying the Word of God. Joseph won Pharaoh with the wisdom and integrity of the Word of God. Moses also challenged a pharaoh with the strength of the Word of God. Joshua, and the judges conquered their enemies by following the Word of God. Daniel won a king to salvation by opening the Word of God. Paul of Tarsus changed the face of the world proclaiming the Word of God. Martin Luther stood up to princes and kings, with the sole authority of the Word of God, and won!

Today, the princes of darkness speak against the righteous. They connive tricks to make us fall, or at least to control the damage we cause to their ‘cozy’ little kingdom. They have pulled out all the stops in their efforts to drown the people of God.

Shall we fight the devil on our own? Run yes let’s run. This is not our fight; the devil is really is not fighting against us, he is fighting against the Lord and our sole weapon and protection, is Him. So let’s run, yes let’s run. Not from him as though in fear. Is a soldier coward because he runs to his sword in time of attack? So run to the two-edged sword of the Word that defeated the devil 2000 years ago with the joy, anticipation and expectation brought by the assurance of great victories, and fight.

Psalms 18:10 And he rode upon a cherub, and did fly: yea, he did fly upon the wings of the wind.

A LIFE THAT REMOVES THE REPROACH

January 16

Psalms 119:21-22 Thou hast rebuked the proud that are cursed, which do err from thy commandments. (22) Remove from me reproach and contempt; for I have kept thy testimonies.

Do you know someone whose life seems to be a never-ending strand of wrong decisions? One who never fails to go against God and conscience? One whose head is proud,’ bloody and unbowed’? It is wise to watch and be warned, oh yea Child of God, to watch and be warned. At the end of our lives, we will see it. We will either see the matured evil fruit of all our self projected futile labors, or worse yet, the dry, parched, famine-stricken, lonely barrenness of a life passing away and taking with it a bad dream that cries to be forgotten. We hear in this passage the pronouncement of the divine curse against ‘proud’.

If we watch, if we learn from the wisdom of the sages, we find a lesson, yea a parable as we read the epitaph on the tombstone of the unbowed.

When the day of ‘reproach’ and ‘contempt’ comes, bringing with it endless accusations and condemnations, let us contend with the evil one, the accuser of the saints. Let us, donned in the full armor of God (Ephesians 6:13) wave at him the precious sword (Ephesians 6:17) with the Words of the contract established by God, the contract signed in the blood of His precious Son. Let us now live a life that will answer the devil and say, “Not so, foul fiend; get thee behind me Satan. I rebuke you and all your accusations. I have kept His testimonies; the blood of the Holy Son of God is on my soul; I have not loved my life unto death; Jesus bought and paid for all my sins, and even now He stands at the right hand of the throne of God interceding and atoning for my mistakes”.

Revelations 12:11 And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death.

AT HOME. . .

January 15

Psalms 119:19-20 I am a stranger in the earth: hide not thy commandments from me. (20) My soul breaketh for the longing that it hath unto thy judgments at all times.

At home we take off the armor.
At home there is no fear.
At home the heart rests at ease.
At home everything is clear and understood
Because,
At home is where we are with ‘kin’.
At home we’re first-class citizens.
At home we take off our shoes.
At home we sit in the armchair, rest our legs for a while.
And
At home is where we are free to serve those we love; those we care for.
At home is where we receive fair, true and unbiased judgment from God.
At home we partake of the loving merciful abundance of the great Father.
At home we love God freely, even in extravagance
Because
At home, we are not strangers.
Home—home, to the home of our soul is where we all seek to go. . . to return.

Any one who loves God is an alien to this world. We are foreigners, pilgrims and strangers on this earth (Hebrews 11:13-16).

There was a time, oh, a long time ago when ‘Home’ was on this earth--East of Eden (Genesis 2:8). God put us there, until such a time it seems that we had to learn to appreciate how good we had it, by having home taken away from us. Out of mercy and to foster hope, through the Holy Spirit Jesus gave us a spiritual connection with ‘Home’, but one day, ’home’ will return to us in all its glory, and we will live in it forever. (Revelations 21:1-4).

(Isaiah 64:4 ) For since the beginning of the world men have not heard, nor perceived by the ear, neither hath the eye seen, O God, beside thee, what he hath prepared for him that waiteth for him.

CAN WE STAND TRUTH?

January 14

Psalms 119:18 Open thou mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of thy law.

In the Hebrew tongue, this expression ‘open thou mine eyes’ has a much stronger meaning. It is more like “shamelessly expose, denude, make naked”.

How much can we stand to look at the naked Truth of God in the face? Before Jesus finally declared God unto us, no one had even seen God (John 1:18). The seventy elders who accompanied Moses on Mt Sinai could not even stand to hear the sound of His voice, so much so, that they pleaded with Moses to be their mediator, a mediator that was later replaced by Jesus (Ex 20:18-19; Deut 18:15-19; Acts:3:22-23; Acts 7:37).

God spoke with Moses’“face to face’, and after one such encounter, Moses’ face shone so that he had to put a “vail” on it. (Ex 33:11; 34:29-35). Since this event was in pre-crucifixion times, still being in their un-atoned sinful state, it is understandable that the Children of Israel could not stand to see the glory of God no, not even on the face of Moses, a man from among them.

What about today? Do we still need to cover the brightness of the truth of God with a “vail” so we don’t have to look at it, don’t know it and can live in denial of its requirements? Can we truly ask God to denude, reveal and expose His truth to us? Do we put ourselves in the spiritually yielded position of listening’ hearing, receiving and learn His wonderful truth?

Psalms 51:6 Behold, thou desirest truth in the inward parts: and in the hidden part thou shalt make me to know wisdom.

OUR PRAISE FROM HIS BOUNTY

January 13

Psalms 119:17 Deal bountifully with thy servant, that I may live, and keep thy word.

Oh, for the beauty and integrity of a life that is dependant on God and God alone.

The word ‘dependant’ has a bad connotation today. Someone who is ‘dependant’ is assumed weak, incomplete, insufficient, needy, restricted in movement, curbed in personal freedom, with a ‘cramped’ ‘style’. Have we forgotten that life itself comes from the bounty of its executor? He, and He only gives us the dependency that gives life, liberates and strengthens.

A new Christian asked me once how is it that by submitting to God instead of to our own wishes and wants, we find freedom. The concept of being free through submission sounded contradictory to her. I just had to explain to her that because God is so much bigger and powerful than we are, that we by comparison are very small and limited, so by yielding to Him instead of ourselves, we take part of His divine nature, and obtain the freedom a life on a bigger or spiritual plane offers; a life beyond the narrow confines of our limited human nature.

Yes, Lord, do deal bountifully with us. Our lives depend upon it. Incline your heart to our poor and weak human nature. Understand that when in abundance we are tempted to forget You, and that when in lack we are tempted to curse You. So please, deal with us mercifully that we may live and keep Your Word; that we may praise you forever.

(2 Peter 1:4) Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.

DIVE IN HIS WORDS

January 12

Psalms 119:16 I will delight myself in thy statutes: I will not forget thy word.

Soon after the giving of the Torah at Mt Sinai, a man was put to death by the congregation because he was gathering sticks to make a fire. He had apparently ‘forgot’ the law that forbade him to make a fire during the Sabbath (Numbers 15:32-36). To help the children of Israel to remember His statutes, the Lord instituted that they should wear four fringes laced with a thread of blue on each of the four sides of their garments. The thread of blue is supposed to remind them the Commandments of the Word (Numbers 15:37-40).

Thanks to Jesus who shed His blood as atonement for our sins, we have been restored into the presence of God. The Holy Spirit within us has the Word of Commandment engraved upon our hearts instead of upon stones. Jesus also promised that the Holy Spirit will ‘remind us’ of all things (John 14:26). In essence, we should not have a problem ‘forgetting’ the Word any more right? But is reality so?

Many of us seem to be afflicted with “selective memory”. The things we like and care for, we tend to remember easily; while the things we like less and don’t care so much for, we seem to ‘forget’. Regularly delighting in the Word, daily diving in its unsearchable depths, is the key to heal a ‘poor memory’.

The Word is like a vast sea. Staying near the shore, we can be amused for a while wading in the waves or even venturing out swimming a little further. But if we are to discover the treasures of darkness (Isaiah 45:3), we must lose sight of the shore, dive in and put ourselves at the mercies of God. Only then can we enjoy a lifetime of adventure and discovery while studying the Word.

May God help us to venture out by faith and discover the delights of His Word. May we be blessed with unforgettable experiences that will draw us back for more.

Col 3:16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.

STUDY HIS WORDS,HAVE RESPECT UNTO HIS WAYS

January 11

Psalms 119:15 I will meditate in thy precepts, and have respect unto thy ways.

How many times do we quickly brush aside a piece of advice, suggestion or idea, to later realize that it was key to solving a stubborn issue? How many times do we carelessly discard checks and premonitions, to sadly later realize that we ‘knew it’ all along?

Today, it is normal not to pay attention to the words of man, or to even be doubtful and unsure about our personal premonitions, checks and feelings. Too many people talk unprayerfully about too many things and generate vain ideas that lead us astray, sometimes even in our thinking pattern. Should we act towards God’s Word with the same incredulity?

Many people utter doubts about the authenticity, accuracy, veracity, righteousness and wisdom of the Word of God. All we have to do is dig a little deeper at their argument and very soon we find the evidence of ignorant, immature thinking based on bigoted bias conceptualities. On the other hand, when we meditate on the Word of God with a totally honest and good heart (Luke 8:15) it never fails to generate respect for the ways of the Lord.

“Lord, help us to not be guilty of not finding respect for Your ways because of our ignorance and lack of meditation on It.”

2Ti 2:15 Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.

THE PRICE OF THE PEARL

January 10

Psalms 119:14 I have rejoiced in the way of thy testimonies, as much as in all riches.

Let’s imagine a great penury; years of deprivation, cold and hunger. Let’s imagine our wives and children at the throes of suffering and sickness due to lack of resources. Suddenly as if by miracle, like in the famous story of Ali-Baba, fate seems to turn. We now possess everything we need and even want. Our problems are now solved. No more tears, no more hunger, no more sickness, no more deprivation. One problem though; as in the famous story, these treasures are stolen. They are sweet, but forbidden waters (Proverbs 9:17).

Then comes the Son of Man with one pearl, one measly pearl in the midst of so much wealth; one pearl that He would give us for free, as a forever gift. Oh, but this was no ordinary pearl, bought from the corner store jeweler. This pearl was not found in the midst of the common sea. It was not refined in simple fire like mere silver or gold. This pearl came from the treasures of the Master Jeweler; shaped in the dark cave of trying experience. It was refined in the furnace of affliction (Isaiah 48:10) and was purchased with the shed tears and blood of the Son of God. This one pearl also carried with her promises for this life; it carries promises of joy and sorrow; abasing and abounding (Philippians 4:12), sweetness and bitterness. It also carries the key to the kingdom of God in the next life.

But Lord, it is such a small pearl compared to these other treasures. Do you really expect me to let go of the loot of my life for this… one pearl? Do you really want me to choose what seems such an uncertain future against the present visible assurance of sufficiency? Why, what makes that pearl worth more than all these riches?

“My son” he says, “The value of the pearl is not in the pearl itself; it is in what it took to acquire it. Is anything more precious than the blood, life, and suffering of the Son of Man?”

Proverbs 10:22 The blessing of the LORD, it maketh rich, and he addeth no sorrow with it.

GRATEFULNESS FROM THE HEART

January 9

GRATEFULNESS FROM THE HEART

Psalms 119:13 With my lips have I declared all the judgments of thy mouth.

The head of a household at the morning meal had asked the blessing as usual, thanking God for a bountiful provision. Immediately afterward he began to grumble about the hard times, the poor quality of food he was forced to eat, & the way it was cooked.
His little daughter interrupted him.
"Father," she began, "do you suppose God heard what you said a little  while ago?"
     "Certainly," he replied confidently.
     "And did He hear what you said about the bacon & the coffee?"
     "Of course"--not quite so confidently.
     "Then, Father, which did God believe?"

Oh, it is so easy to declare God’s righteous judgments in our lives by repeating our memorized “catechism”. When we are on guard of the public eye, how religious, oh how righteous we can sound, how pious can we appear. But the truth about ourselves really comes out when we are ‘alone’, in our familiar surroundings, when we are not so much aware of the presence of others. Then we are known, if only by our conscience, and certainly by our Lord and maker of our substance who already knew, whether we are really thankful for the righteousness of the judgments, for the will of God in our lives, for what He allows to be ‘dished out’ to us.

Oh Lord, help us not to be like the hypocrites who appear righteous on the outside, while inside are full of envy, doubts, complaining and murmuring (Matthew 23:27). Help us to declare the righteousness of your judgments with our mouth and with our heart; in the presence of others, but from a heart that is truly yielded and grateful for all Your bounty.

Psalms 51:6 Behold, thou desirest truth in the inward parts: and in the hidden part thou shalt make me to know wisdom.

HIS WORDS, THE ONLY REDEMPTION

Psalms 119:11-12 Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee. (12) Blessed art thou, O LORD: teach me thy statutes.

Throughout history, religions have conjured up many absurd inventions to help us fight against sin, to help us be victorious against the lusts that war in our members (James 4:1). This Word of God through David is clear though. As Jesus taught Martha when Mary sat at His feet cradled by His Words, “one thing is needful” (Luke10:42).

David knew of our sinful nature. “I was conceived in sin” he declared, and “in iniquity have I been made” (Psalms 51:5). He knew that keeping from sin had nothing to do with our personal efforts; that it could only be achieved by a miracle of the grace of God. He tried to impart to us in his songs that our sole part in it was to walk close to Jesus daily. Since He is without sin (Hebrews 4:15), if we walk close to Him, it is impossible for us to go astray.

Jesus is His Word, and His Word is Him. We must hide His Word in our heart; we do this by memorizing It. We must let it occupy our thoughts and make It the essence of your daily ‘conversation’. We must determine to hide It in the chambers of our being like a treasure we hold dear. The Word will then be our map, our light and our ‘safety net’ against the tempting detours of the evil one.

Proverbs 6:20-22 My son, keep thy father's commandment, and forsake not the law of thy mother: Bind them continually upon thine heart, and tie them about thy neck. When thou goest, it shall lead thee; when thou sleepest, it shall keep thee; and when thou awakest, it shall talk with thee.

FEED MY LAMBS

January 7

FEED MY LAMBS

Psalms 119:9-10 Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? By taking heed thereto according to thy word. (10) With my whole heart have I sought thee: O let me not wander from thy commandments.

Having a heart yielded and close to God is always a struggle for youth. When encamped in Sheshem, the hot and young sons of Jacob caused their whole tribe to have to leave the Promised Land Jacob had fought so hard to return to (Genesis 34). The young prodigal son wanted to enjoy his inheritance ahead of the appointed time (Luke 15:11-32).

Inexperience, in its young and virgin innocence spares a life from the cynicism that experience and age uses to caution it. It carries in itself an irresistible attraction, and at times, unbeknownst to them, God uses that premature sense of invincibility to accomplish His purpose in and through young people. The devil knows it, so works very hard and plays on their inexperienced sense of emotions to make them go astray from the path of God.

Rational and logical thinking will not help the youth to make wise and godly decisions. We as parents, pastors and teachers cannot even use our rational, logical and cautious ways to tell them what are wise and godly decisions, because God is not rational nor logical. His ways are not our ways (Isaiah 55:8-9). The only way a youth can make sure not to stray from the clean path of God’s will in his life is to stay close to the Lord, and harmonize his mind, spirit, heart and walk according to the Spirit of His Word.

As parents, teachers and mentors of the next generation, the most important gift we can give our children is a love for God’s Word. The most essential habit we can instill in them is a dedication for daily study and memorization. The greatest knowledge we can impart to them is to know how to use the Word as a guide to their lives.

John 21:15 So when they had dined, Jesus saith to Simon Peter, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me more than these? He saith unto him, Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee. He saith unto him, Feed my lambs.

WITHIN GOD'S EARSHOT

January 6

WITHIN GOD’S ‘EARSHOT’

Psalms 119:8 I will keep thy statutes: O forsake me not utterly.

During an interview regarding the 9-11 tragedy, Jane Clayson, host of Early Show, asked Anne Graham Billy Graham's daughter, "How could God let something like this happen?" Anne Graham proceeded to give an extremely profound and insightful response. She said, "I believe that God is deeply saddened by this, just as we are, but for years we've been telling God to get out of our schools, to get out of our government and to get out of our lives. And being the gentleman that He is, I believe that He has calmly backed out. How can we expect God to give us His blessing and His protection if we demand that He leave us alone?"

In the Word above, King David acknowledges the conditional elements of getting answers to prayers, of not being forsaken by God. This old time warrior who saw many battlefield dangers often had his life on the line at the sole mercy of God. He knew that one cannot benefits of God’s sheltering hands of protections while at the same time living far away from Him. David knew that we cannot expect God to honor His promises of protection in our lives if we live in disobedience to the loving guidance He set before us.

Oh how like children do, we like to run far from His range so we can claim that we don’t hear Him. He won’t shout. He won’t run after us. It is our responsibility to stay near and close and not like Peter, hours before the cruscifixion, follow afar off (Matthew 26:58). In our daily walk, do we stay within God’s ‘earshot’ of obedience and of the keeping of His statutes?

Psalms 143:9 Deliver me, O LORD, from mine enemies: I flee unto thee to hide me.

BREAD THAT LOOKS LIKE A ROCK

January 5

BREAD THAT LOOKS LIKE A ROCK

Psalms 119:7 I will praise thee with uprightness of heart, when I shall have learned thy righteous judgments.

Do we know what to praise the Lord for? Do we know what to thank Him for? Jesus wondered if we sometimes might mistake the bread He provides us for a stone, and that the fish He may give us for a serpent (Luke 11:11-13).

Now, what about that recurring problem we often struggle with? What about these annoying issues in our lives that are not working out? This disease that is not going away, this or that weakness, which makes us desperately cling to the grace of God (2 Corinthians 12:7-9). Could these be the bread and fish Jesus promised? Bread and fish we can’t see because of partial blindness, because we look at them with the eyes of flesh instead of with the eyes of the spirit?

George Matheson, the well-known blind preacher of Scotland, now with the Lord, said: "My God, I have never thanked Thee for my `thorn'! I have thanked Thee a thousand times for my roses, but never once for my `thorn'; I have been looking forward to a world where I shall get compensation for my cross as itself a present glory. Teach me the glory of my cross; teach me the value of my `thorn'. Show me that I have climbed to Thee by the path of pain. Show me that my tears have made my rainbow."

When we apply ourselves to learn the righteous judgments of God; when we learn what He considers to be the right and blessed events in our life; when we finally come to the point where we give up the controls and trust Him for what He gives or withholds; when we learn to totally yield our lies and sprit to Him, then, oh yes then, the bread and fish that He gives us are revealed to us in all their heavenly glory, even through disguised in rocks and serpents; then we are able to praise Him for His many blessings.

1Thessalonians 5:18 In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.

THE REMEMBRANCE OF HIS TESTIMONIES

January 3

THE REMEMBRANCE OF HIS TESTIMONIES

Psalms119:2-4 Blessed are they that keep his testimonies, and that seek him with the whole heart. (3) They also do no iniquity: they walk in his ways. (4) Thou hast commanded us to keep thy precepts diligently.

When God asked the children of Israel for their exclusive worship, He first reminded them that He was the God that had done for them more than anyone else could have ever done. In essence, He gave them His ‘credentials’, His ‘resume’ (Exodus 20;2-3).

We may not be one of those who crossed the Red Sea as on dry land. We may not be either one of those who ate manna, food out of God’s hand in the desert; who drank water out of a rock. We may not have witnessed the leading cloud by day, and the enlightening fire by night. We may not have trembled at foot of the fiery mount of God, nor at the depth of His judgments against those who arrogantly defied Him. We are witnesses to greater than that--we are witnesses to something about which even the angels hush. We are witnesses to our own redemption and salvation, not from Egypt, but from the clutches of the devil who would have us ensnared and enslaved in the fear of death. We are witnesses to coming out of death and into life. We are witnesses to, and have followed the only one who can, and delivers us from the ‘pharaonic’ oppression of addiction, sickness, wickedness and from all the other fruits of hell: the Lord Jesus-Christ. He is the One who faithfully takes care of supplying our needs even in time of ‘desertic’ penury. He helps us fight our own demons of doubt and fear and takes us by the hand into the Promised Land of sabbatical fellowship.

These are our testimonies. We must seek and remember them daily for thereby we are blessed. We must not forget them, but we must continually bring them back to our mind; this helps us do no iniquity and to walk in His ways. This is the key to Godly purity: to meditate on His testimonies, that is why He commanded us to keep them diligently.

Joshua 1:8 This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.

THE BLESSED

January 2

THE BLESSED

Psalms 119:1 Blessed are the undefiled in the way, who walk in the law of the LORD.

How different from the cry we hear today! The media sirens of the world seem to sing a very different song. They tell us of the happiness of the worldly reveler. They glorify the great achievement of self-indulgence. They proclaim the glory of independence so-called. They glorify the virtue of self-determination. They teach us to be assertive, regardless of right or wrong. Today by contrast, just because the soul that is yielded to God is concerned about right and wrong, it is looked upon as weak, simple, dependant, oppressed.

Jesus said it. He said that in their generation, the children of the world are wiser than the children of Light (Luke16:8). Paul affirmed it. He said that God chooses the poor, foolish, weak and despised nothings of the world to prove its foolish prideful arrogance (1 Corinthians 1:27-28).

Now my friend; will we choose to listen to them? We live in evil times where the bad is proclaimed good and the good proclaimed bad. Will we give heed to their foolish evil proclamations? Will we be lulled by the sweet song of the sirens of Babylon and cause the boat of your life to crash against sharp reefs? Or will we adhere to the love and grace of the songs of Zion; stay the course in the instruction of God’s Word, and make it safely blessed the harbor?

James 1:27 Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.