ALWAYS REMEMBER, GOD SAVES

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In Christ, Mark

The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

Lord, You are the God who saves me; day and night I cry out to You. May my prayer come before You; turn Your ear to my cry.

I am overwhelmed with troubles and my life draws near to death. I am counted among those who go down to the pit; I am like one without strength. I am set apart with the dead, like the slain who lie in the grave, whom You remember no more, who are cut off from Your care.

You have put me in the lowest pit, in the darkest depths. Your wrath lies heavily on me; You have overwhelmed me with all Your waves. You have taken from me my closest friends and have made me repulsive to them. I am confined and cannot escape; my eyes are dim with grief.

I call to You, Lord, every day; I spread out my hands to You. Do You show Your wonders to the dead? Do their spirits rise up and praise You? Is Your love declared in the grave, Your faithfulness in Destruction? Are Your wonders known in the place of darkness, or Your righteous deeds in the land of oblivion?

But I cry to You for help, Lord; in the morning my prayer comes before You. Why, Lord, do You reject me and hide Your face from me?

 From my youth I have suffered and been close to death; I have borne Your terrors and am in despair. Your wrath has swept over me; Your terrors have destroyed me. All day long they surround me like a flood; they have completely engulfed me. You have taken from me friend and neighbor — darkness is my closest friend.

Psalm 88

This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

Have you ever been in the depths of despair - depressed, forlorn, and nearly inconsolable? I know I have been. There were times back in that day when I wondered if the sun would ever shine again through the darkness, if joy would ever return and replace the painful aching within my heart.

Yes, those were days I pray I will never see again but now that I am in ministry, I can see how that experience equipped me to help people who are going through or who have gone through the same thing. And I definitely can relate to the words of the psalmist in the 88th Psalm. Through his words, we get a glimpse into how his hardship was negatively impacting his life. Look at all the difficulties he shares in just a mere 18 verses:

I am overwhelmed with troubles and my life draws near to death. I am counted among those who go down to the pit; I am like one without strength. I am set apart with the dead, like the slain who lie in the grave, whom You remember no more, who are cut off from Your care.

You have put me in the lowest pit, in the darkest depths. Your wrath lies heavily on me; You have overwhelmed me with all Your waves. You have taken from me my closest friends and have made me repulsive to them. I am confined and cannot escape; my eyes are dim with grief.

I call to You, Lord, every day; I spread out my hands to You. I cry to You for help, Lord; in the morning my prayer comes before You. Why, Lord, do You reject me and hide Your face from me?

Do You show Your wonders to the dead? Do their spirits rise up and praise You? Is Your love declared in the grave, Your faithfulness in Destruction? Are Your wonders known in the place of darkness, or Your righteous deeds in the land of oblivion?

 From my youth I have suffered and been close to death; I have borne Your terrors and am in despair. Your wrath has swept over me; Your terrors have destroyed me. All day long they surround me like a flood; they have completely engulfed me. You have taken from me friend and neighbor — darkness is my closest friend.

Can you feel the hurt and anguish and feelings of rejection in these words? The distress is so deep that the psalmist is even questioning whether God is hearing his cries, whether He was concerned at all with his circumstances. He even felt that all he was going through was being imposed by God, a punishment through which there would be no end until death came. Truly, the psalmist was depressed and weary from his struggles.

Maybe you’re reading this today and thinking that your present circumstances have you feeling a lot like the writer of this psalm. You’re fatigued from trying to make it through your day-to-day struggles and wonder if God will ever let it end. Maybe you, like the psalmist, are feeling like God has completely turned away from you and is disinterested in helping you out.

If so, if you’re relating a lot to the psalmist, let me offer you a word of hope. Actually, it’s not me offering it at all but rather the very disheartened psalmist you’re relating to. For it’s easy to get bogged down in the body and ending of this psalm and completely forget about the opening. Maybe you forgot what was written. Here it is:

Lord, You are the God who saves me.

Eight simple words, words that bring us nothing short of hope.

You see, the psalmist didn’t have a whole lot to hold onto but what he did have was the confidence and trust that God would save him. Even though he was suffering from doubts, nonetheless, the psalmist never forgot the fact that God saves. He saved then, He saves today, and He will save well into the future.

God saves. As Christians, we know this through our belief and trust in Jesus Christ. Through Him, God brought us salvation, offering His only Son as an atoning sacrifice on Calvary’s cross to redeem us from our sins that would have condemned us otherwise. Through the shed blood of Jesus, all who place their faith and hope in Him are instantly justified or rather made just-like-I-had never sinned. Jesus’ victory over death at His resurrection brought the same victory to whoever receives Him as Savior and gains their own part of the salvation inheritance of eternal life. And it is that victory all Christian have that brings us the hope to make it through any and all of life’s challenges. Nothing can defeat us. No problem in life is greater than the God who will rescue us from the adversity according to His will. And nothing can take away the hope and love we have in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Friends, God never promised us life would be easy. He never promised us that we wouldn’t face trials and tribulations. But He did promise us that He would save us if we only trust in His Son Jesus, the Way and the Truth and the Life – the only way to God the Father.

Next time, you’re feeling bad like the psalmist, always remember as he did what’s most important.

God saves,

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

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IN CHRIST = IN JERUSALEM

Can I pray for you in any way? Send any prayer requests to OurChristianWalk.com. 

In Christ, Mark

The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

The Lord built his city on the sacred hill; more than any other place in Israel He loves the city of Jerusalem. Listen, city of God, to the wonderful things He says about you:

“I will include Egypt and Babylonia when I list the nations that obey me; the people of Philistia, Tyre, and Ethiopia I will number among the inhabitants of Jerusalem.”

Of Zion it will be said that all nations belong there and that the Almighty will make her strong. The Lord will write a list of the peoples and include them all as citizens of Jerusalem. They dance and sing, “In Zion is the source of all our blessings.”

Psalm 87 (GNT)

This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

 Are you a Christian? Have you accepted Jesus as your personal Savior, receiving the gift of eternal life from God? If so, then you have been born again in two ways:

First, you have been born again into a new life as a new creation (2 Corinthians 5:17) as you walk in the ways of Christ vice your own. The things the world would have you do have been replaced by the things Jesus did for He is the Way and the Truth and the Life (John 14:6) and we’re expected to live as He did. After all, the root word in Christian is Christ and once we’re born again, our new identity is in Jesus.

Second, when we are born again, we are born anew into dual citizenship. We are worldly citizens of whatever nation, state, county, or city/town we reside but we gain a spiritual citizenship in Jerusalem, not the current holy city of Jerusalem in Israel but the new Jerusalem soon to come when Jesus returns. Consider this passage from the Book of Revelation:

Then I saw “a new heaven and a new earth,” for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. ‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death’ or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.”

He who was seated on the throne said, “I am making everything new!” Then he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.”

He said to me: “It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. To the thirsty I will give water without cost from the spring of the water of life. Those who are victorious will inherit all this, and I will be their God and they will be my children. But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars—they will be consigned to the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death.”  Revelation 21:1-8

Friends, this is a vision of what will happen when Jesus returns for those dead and alive in Him. When we are born again into Him, we automatically granted victory over death just as Jesus defeated it when He was resurrected on the third day and later ascended to the heavens to live with His Father, our Father. One day, all Christians will dwell there in the New Jerusalem after this world is no more. What an awesome future we have awaiting us! 

As we look at the 87th Psalm, specifically written as a praise of Jerusalem, we find the psalmist writing incredibly prophetic words, words that held one meaning for him but eternal meaning after Jesus lived and died. Let’s look at this psalm:

The Lord built his city on the sacred hill; more than any other place in Israel He loves the city of Jerusalem. Listen, city of God, to the wonderful things He says about you:

“I will include Egypt and Babylonia when I list the nations that obey me; the people of Philistia, Tyre, and Ethiopia I will number among the inhabitants of Jerusalem.”

Of Zion it will be said that all nations belong there and that the Almighty will make her strong. The Lord will write a list of the peoples and include them all as citizens of Jerusalem. They dance and sing, “In Zion is the source of all our blessings.”

One thing we find from both this scripture and the earlier one from Revelation is that whether old or new, Jerusalem is the beloved city of God. In fact, the psalm tells us that God loved Jerusalem, built on a sacred hill, more than any place in Israel.

Now who were considered part of the city’s population? Well, this is where the psalmist shared what God had to say about the subject:

“I will include Egypt and Babylonia when I list the nations that obey me; the people of Philistia, Tyre, and Ethiopia I will number among the inhabitants of Jerusalem.”

Of Zion it will be said that all nations belong there and that the Almighty will make her strong. The Lord will write a list of the peoples and include them all as citizens of Jerusalem. They dance and sing, “In Zion is the source of all our blessings.”

In other words, God knew a day was coming when Jerusalem would not solely be inhabited by the Jews. For He was soon to send His only Son to live and walk among His people, bringing a new covenant of salvation – a covenant that would make eternal life within the grasp of all people, Jew and Gentile alike. All people of all nations have the opportunity to receive the gospel of Jesus Christ and choose whether they will accept or receive Him as Savior. For those who do place their faith and trust in Jesus, God will write their names in the Book of Life and they will become part of the first census of the new Jerusalem when Christ returns.

So when that day comes and the new Jerusalem becomes a reality, how will Christians, the new residents, respond to their new home?

Well, the psalmist writes that they will dance and sing, proclaiming their new home as the source of all blessings. Looking at Revelation again, we can see what some of those blessings will be:

He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away. He who was seated on the throne said, “I am making everything new! To the thirsty I will give water without cost from the spring of the water of life. Those who are victorious will inherit all this, and I will be their God and they will be my children.”

No more pain or suffering or hardship or death. Nothing that this word brings upon us will exist anymore. We will only have peace and joy and love forever as we dwell with God the Father and Jesus, our Savior.

Being born again in Christ brings us a new life in the here and now but it also grants us access to a rich inheritance which includes a home one day in the new Jerusalem. Thanks be to God for the amazing hope He gives us through this truth.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

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THE POWER OF DECLARATION

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In Christ, Mark

The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

You, Lord, are forgiving and good, abounding in love to all who call to You. Hear my prayer, Lord; listen to my cry for mercy. When I am in distress, I call to You, because You answer me.

Among the gods there is none like You, Lord; no deeds can compare with Yours. All the nations You have made will come and worship before You, Lord; they will bring glory to Your name. For You are great and do marvelous deeds; You alone are God.

Teach me Your way, Lord, that I may rely on Your faithfulness; give me an undivided heart, that I may fear Your name. I will praise You, Lord my God, with all my heart; I will glorify Your name forever. For great is Your love toward me; You have delivered me from the depths, from the realm of the dead.

Arrogant foes are attacking me, O God; ruthless people are trying to kill me — they have no regard for You. But You, Lord, are a compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness. Turn to me and have mercy on me; show Your strength in behalf of Your servant; save me, because I serve You just as my mother did. Give me a sign of Your goodness, that my enemies may see it and be put to shame, for You, Lord, have helped me and comforted me.

Psalm 86:5-17

This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

July 4th, 1776. It’s an important day in American history, the day that the first 13 colonies boldly proclaimed independence from British rule and came together as the United States of America. The intentions were stated in what was called the Declaration of Independence, a formal description of why the colonies were breaking away and going it on their own. If you read the text, you’ll see that there was a clear lay out of the oppression the colonies were under and that requests to the King of Great Britain for redress had gone unanswered. And so the colonies made it clear where they stood and in doing so displayed the power of declaration.

Within this declaration, we can find God referred to. Consider these lines:

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.

We, therefore, the Representatives of the United States of America, in General Congress, Assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions, do, in the Name, and by Authority of the good People of these Colonies, solemnly publish and declare, That these United Colonies are, and of Right ought to be Free and Independent States.

And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor.

Truly, there was little doubt that the colonies were placing their faith, hope, and trust in God.

So how powerful was this powerful moment of declaration? Well, every year we celebrate that day on the 4th of July or what we call Independence Day.

You know, as I thought about this, I couldn’t help but think about the salvation that I, and all who have placed their faith and trust in Jesus, have gained. For through our Savior, we all have experienced our own spiritual independence days, days when we became new creations (2 Corinthians 5:17) and received an eternal hope that no one will ever be able to take away from us. And just like those 13 colonies some centuries ago, we too should be using the power of declaration in our own lives, consistently proclaiming what we have gained through our salvation and the blessed relationship we have with our Lord.

As we look at the remainder of the 86th Psalm, we see the psalmist giving us a great example as to how to go about announcing all that God has done for us. It’s something that we should want to eagerly tell others about as we consider just how good God has been, how good He is, and how good He is still yet to be in our lives. Let’s look at some specific declarations in this psalm and see how we too can apply them:

1. You, Lord, are forgiving and good.

While we were still sinners, Christ died for us (Romans 5:8) freely given by God as a living sacrifice to pay the price for our transgressions. In that act, God’s forgiveness freely flowed to all mankind, their debts not held against them eternally as long as they received Jesus as Savior. Indeed, the Lord is forgiving and good.

2. You, Lord, are abounding in love to all who call to You. You are a compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness.

The scriptures make it clear: God is love (1 John 4:8). We won’t ever experience true love and compassion outside of Him and we will never love right without allowing Him to love through us. That love, when received and given through God, is abundant and, as 1 Corinthians 13:13 tells us, never fails.

3. When I am in distress, I call to You, because You answer me.

You may not always have someone in this world to help you when you are in need but God is always available and we should be turning to Him. After all, who could help you any better than God Himself? The good news is that God is with us, only a prayer away, and He’s always ready to respond to our petitions in a way that relates to His will.

4. Among the gods there is none like You, Lord. For You are great and do marvelous deeds. No deeds can compare with Yours.

Israel had witnessed many miraculous events that underscored the amazing power of God through deeds that only He could pull off. Certainly since then, God has continued to display His magnificence over and over and over again. Indeed, there is no god like our God Almighty, the Maker of heaven and earth, the God who is ever with those who place their faith and trust in Him.

5. You have delivered me from the depths, from the realm of the dead.

Without the salvation God offers through His Son Jesus, we are destined for death and the depths of the lake of fire. But through Christ, we have deliverance from death to life, and not just any life but life eternal. Because of this, we, like the psalmist, should be declaring, “I will praise You, Lord my God, with all my heart; I will glorify Your name forever.” For no one but God is worthy of all our honor and glory and praise.

6. You, Lord, have helped me and comforted me.

Think of every time you were in need of help and God made the way for you. I know in my life I can’t count how many times He has done this. It’s a great comfort and peace for me to know that no matter what life might try and bring, I am able to get through it because God, my very present help in times of trouble, is always there to get me through. I hope you can relate.

So there you have it. Six declarations taken from one psalm.

Are there others we could come up with?

Absolutely, and we should. For friends, God is forgiving and good, loving and compassionate, always with us, great and mighty, delivering and saving, helping and comforting, but He’s so much more. Truly, there is no one like our God so let’s make sure we declare that powerfully to everyone we know now and forever!

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

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PETITIONS FOR DAILY LIVING

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In Christ, Mark

The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

Hear me, Lord, and answer me, for I am poor and needy. Guard my life, for I am faithful to You; save Your servant who trusts in You. You are my God; have mercy on me, Lord, for I call to You all day long. Bring joy to Your servant, Lord, for I put my trust in You.

Psalm 86:1-4

This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

David. A shepherd boy chosen by the Lord to be king of Israel.

David. A writer of many psalms.

David. A man after God’s own heart.

David. A sinner who fell short of the grace of God.

David was all of these things and as we look at the opening verses of the 86th Psalm, we see his words reflect who he was – and in many ways, who we are as well. In his writing, we can pinpoint five specific petitions for daily living. They are as follows:

1. Hear me, Lord, and answer me, for I am poor and needy.

Our daily relationship with God in predicated in large by our conversations we hold with Him.

I have always held that communication is the lifeblood of relationship. In other words, we simply must communicate to relate to others. When two parties stop speaking, relationship dies like a body that would experience the stopping of a heart and the subsequent flow of sustaining blood.

We can’t expect to have a relationship with God if we never communicate with Him.

We get a sense that David fully understood this for he asked for the Lord to hear him and so his prayers were being lifted up. And David eagerly looked for the Lord to respond and complete their relationship by speaking to him. You see, David saw himself as he was, poor and needy, in want of the riches that come from God and His goodness, grace, and love.

As we lift up our prayers every day, let us ask for God to answer us and grant us the treasures that come from having a relationship with Him.

2. Guard my life, for I am faithful to You.

David had no shortage of enemies, those who would like nothing more than to kill him and assume the throne of power over Israel. He knew he needed protection and thus he faithfully called on the greatest Guard he knew, the Lord Almighty, his Protector, Redeemer, and Friend.

We too face many dangers in the course of our lives, many of which we take for granted. I mean, just getting in the car and driving around the city I live in places one in peril. This is why I pray every day while I’m on the road, asking the Lord to protect and deliver his faithful servant to his destination safely. I pray you do the same.

3. Have mercy on me, Lord, for I call to You

David wasn’t always obedient to God’s word. He fell into temptation and the end result was adultery, deception, and murder. He showed us that even a man after God’s own heart, a man chosen by God for greatness, can fail and fall if they’re not careful. Anyone can be swayed the wrong way and commit sinful acts, acts that leave that person pleading for the mercy of God. Such was the case with David. Such should be the case with any other sinner who has yet to repent and get their life right with their Lord.

4. Save Your servant who trusts in You. You are my God.

Like David, we’re all sinners that fall way short of God’s favor. Without a Savior, we’re destined for destruction at the hands of God’s wrath. This is why we, like David, should be praying for salvation if we don’t already have Jesus Christ in our life, and thanking God for His salvation promise if we have accepted Jesus, placing our full faith and trust in Him and Him alone as Savior. It is the richest gift from God that we have.

5. Bring joy to Your servant, Lord, for I put my trust in You.

Finally, when we relate to the Lord, praying and receiving His guidance, experiencing His protection and mercy and salvation, we can’t help but be taken to a place of joy. This joy comes from realizing all God has done for us, all He is presently doing, and considering all He is yet to do for us, including the eternal life awaiting us at this life’s end through Jesus Christ His Son. This joy is exceedingly abundant and sustaining when we live our lives in obedience, trusting in God as we comply with His word, will, and way.

Five daily petitions nestled in four verses of scripture. Isn’t God’s word amazing in what it gives us to live? May this message be a blessing to you today and always.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

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THE FRUITS OF OBEDIENCE

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In Christ, Mark

The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

I will listen to what God the Lord says; He promises peace to His people, His faithful servants — but let them not turn to folly. Surely His salvation is near those who fear Him, that His glory may dwell in our land.

Love and faithfulness meet together; righteousness and peace kiss each other. Faithfulness springs forth from the earth, and righteousness looks down from heaven. The Lord will indeed give what is good, and our land will yield its harvest. Righteousness goes before Him and prepares the way for His steps.

Psalm 85:8-13

This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

Call me a dreamer but I yearn for a world portrayed by the psalmist at the end of the 85th Psalm, a world overflowing with the abundant harvest of fruit bore from an obedient population of God’s people. Maybe you crave this as well.

For picture a world full of peace and love and faithfulness and righteousness and goodness and, most of all, salvation. Maybe we’ll never see this kind of world until the day we abide with God and Jesus forever but we should never discount the fact that we can have this kind of world right here and right now on earth.

It’s definitely within our reach but it will only become reality if ever man and woman become obedient to the Lord, obedient to His word and obedient to what that word calls us to do.

Consider the prayer Jesus taught us. What did He say we should pray for?

“Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your name, Your kingdom come, Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” Matthew 6:9-10

The psalmist starts this passage with a simple proclamation:

“I will listen to what God the Lord says.”

The first step of obedience is to listen to God, to receive His word whether written or by way of His still small voice. How will we know what God wants if we don’t first listen? And if we’re going to have any chance of having our prayer for God’s kingdom to come on earth as it is in heaven then we have to listen to and then submit to His will.

You see, it’s just not enough to listen. We need to take action once we receive what God is telling us to do. Consider this word of God that underscores this fact:

Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. James 1:22

This is the essence of obedience. First, realizing we need God’s help to live right. Second, turning to Him for His guidance and listening intently to His direction. And finally, putting His direction into action, not just merely listening to the word but doing what it says.

So what happens when we do this?

We experience the fruits of obedience. What are they? Well, the psalmist painted this picture of how our world might look:

Love and faithfulness meet together; righteousness and peace kiss each other. Faithfulness springs forth from the earth, and righteousness looks down from heaven. The Lord will indeed give what is good, and our land will yield its harvest. Righteousness goes before Him and prepares the way for His steps.

What an amazingly beautiful poetic depiction of what could happen in every land as a result of full obedience to God’s guidance for life as we experience a harvest of love and faithfulness, righteousness and peace, goodness and salvation as God’s glory is revealed in its fullest measure. And as the Holy Spirit exercises full power in the hearts of obedient believers everywhere, we also find in Galatians a list of other fruits we’ll reap, gifts like joy and forbearance and kindness and gentleness and self-control (Galatians 5:22-23).

Friends, we need to be in prayer over this every day as we look at the world we live in. We can’t give up hope that we can change our world one heart at a time as we turn toward God in repentance and a renewed obedience for His will to be done in our lives and here on earth as it is in heaven.

One thing is for sure. God has worked greater miracles than turning this world around in the right direction. And even if we won’t do it on our own, there will come a day when Jesus will return and the kind of world we’re talking about will happen even more magnificently than the psalmist could ever frame in words. It’s something that all believers in Christ can look forward to as we try and change our world in the here and now, sowing the seeds that will bear the fruits of obedience.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

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A BASIC PLEA

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In Christ, Mark

The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

You, Lord, showed favor to Your land; You restored the fortunes of Jacob. You forgave the iniquity of Your people and covered all their sins. You set aside all Your wrath and turned from Your fierce anger.

Restore us again, God our Savior, and put away Your displeasure toward us. Will You be angry with us forever? Will You prolong Your anger through all generations? Will You not revive us again, that Your people may rejoice in You?

Show us Your unfailing love, Lord, and grant us Your salvation.

Psalm 85:1-7

This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

What questions would you ask God if you could today in your present circumstances?

As we read the opening verses of the 85th Psalm, we find the psalmist asking more than his fair share of questions to the Lord based on the present circumstances of his day. They included:

Will You be angry with us forever? Will You prolong Your anger through all generations? Will You not revive us again, that Your people may rejoice in You?

The psalmist clearly indicates that the Israelites had sinned in some way and fallen out of God’s favor. And as he asked God for restoration and a subsiding of His displeasure, he also wondered how long it would take for God to once again forgive and set aside His wrath.

The psalmist clearly knew that God had shown His willingness to forgive through multiple displays of mercy and grace to past generations of the Israelites. Surely God would do the same for the Israelites of David’s time. But when? When would the Israelites find revival again, a place where they once again could be in a spirit of rejoicing instead of despair and hardship? The questions ring clear.

But note that at the end of this passage, the psalmist chooses to end the questioning and instead make one simple plea:

Show us Your unfailing love, Lord, and grant us Your salvation.

Eleven simple words but words we should use in our prayers every day. Call it a daily plea.

Here’s how the psalmist could have structured his words in a way that would use the plea more effectively:

Set aside Your wrath and grant us Your favor once more Dear Lord.

Show us Your unfailing love, Lord, and grant us Your salvation.

Forgive our iniquities and grant us Your mercy and grace we pray.

Show us Your unfailing love, Lord, and grant us Your salvation.

Restore us and deliver us from Your displeasure.

Show us Your unfailing love, Lord, and grant us Your salvation.

And guide us in Your ways everlasting God so our ways might be pleasing in Your sight.

Show us Your unfailing love, Lord, and grant us Your salvation.

Amen.

One basic plea because it sticks to the most fundamental things we need from God. His love and His salvation. Strip away everything else you have in life and as long as you have God’s love and salvation then you are set. Nothing else matters.

We should ask God for His love and salvation and when we receive it, we should thank Him for it. Too often, God grants us His love and salvation and we remain silent, despite receiving the greatest gifts known to mankind. If you gave someone a gift of value, you would expect at least some expression of gratitude in return. If you didn’t receive it, you would get offended.

Don’t think God doesn’t get offended too. And so when the psalmist wondered when God would remove His displeasure from Israel, perhaps God’s answer would be, “Whenever you and your people choose to honor me with your gratitude for the deep love I give you and the salvation promise I have offered.”  You see, love goes both ways. We can’t plead to God for His love when our behavior is sinful and warrants His anger and disciplinary action.

Friends, God expects us to turn our lives away from sin and toward Him. When He searches our hearts and sees that this has happened, then and only then will He consider restoring us into His favor. And so as we pray our daily prayers, here’s one other plea from the psalms to add to the one today. It is as follows:

Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting. (Psalm 139:23-24)

Combine this with the eleven words from the 85th Psalm and you get something like this, an extension of our basic plea:

Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting. Show me Your unfailing love, Lord, and grant me Your salvation.

If we speak these words from our heart every day, we can be assured that God will do just as we ask Him to do. He will test us and expose the offensive ways within us. He then expects us to be rid of them and follow His lead on the way everlasting, the narrow path that Jesus spoke about that leads to life, and not just any life but life eternal (Matthew 7:13-14). When we commune with God in this way, asking Him to lead us ever more toward righteousness and away from wickedness, then we can be confident that we will feel the full extent of His love and approval as we seek to glorify and honor Him in all that we do.

That’s the place where we all should want to be. We can if we just exercise one heartfelt, genuine basic plea each and every day.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

PS: Please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it.

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THE BEST PLACE TO BE

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In Christ, Mark

The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

Better is one day in Your courts than a thousand elsewhere; I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of the wicked. For the Lord God is a sun and shield; the Lord bestows favor and honor; no good thing does He withhold from those whose walk is blameless.

Lord Almighty, blessed is the one who trusts in You.

Psalm 84:10-12

This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

Life offers us lots of options as to where we can spend our time. For a majority of people, most of their time is spent in one of two places: at work or at home. There are some exceptions but for the most part, people typically fit into one of these two categories.

We are always abiding somewhere. That is for certain.  But who are we abiding with, that becomes the real question. Are we abiding with the world or are we abiding with the Lord? Are we living more in the worldly dimension in our lives than in the spiritual?

This is a question we need to carefully consider. For the world has a way of drawing is in with all its allures and trappings. We have more to choose from than we have time for and if we’re not careful, we’ll schedule and plan the Lord right out of our daily lives. In other words, we choose to live elsewhere than in the courts of the Lord.

It seems the problem of falling victim to the world’s seductions was not reserved for our present day. For as we look at the closing words of the 84th Psalm, we get a sense that the same exact problem existed in ancient Israel. Look at the words of the psalmist:

Better is one day in Your courts than a thousand elsewhere; I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of the wicked. For the Lord God is a sun and shield; the Lord bestows favor and honor; no good thing does He withhold from those whose walk is blameless.

Lord Almighty, blessed is the one who trusts in You.

The psalmist came to learn that there was no better place to dwell than in the presence of the Lord Most High, a place where there was always light and warmth like the sun, protection and security as the Lord shields us from danger. Why would we want to reside anywhere else?

But there is more. The psalmist doesn’t simply stop here in illustrating the benefits of spending our time in the presence of the Lord. Look what else he highlights:

1. We gain favor and honor.

The Lord favors those who place their faith and trust in Him, honoring their faithfulness with His own in return.

2. We gain good things.

When we live in the Lord’s presence, we will walk in His ways. And when we walk in His ways, we will be living in the kind of righteousness He desires from us, walking as blamelessly as we can possibly walk in our humanity. Further, since God’s word is truth, then this word of the Lord from the psalm tells us that the Lord will withhold no good thing from the one who walks blamelessly. It makes sense. Walk in the ways of the Lord and you will experience the fullest measure of His goodness. Who wouldn’t want that?

3. We will be blessed.

Experiencing God’s goodness will just be a part of the blessings we experience when we place our faith and trust in Him and Him alone, choosing to reside in His presence and His courts every second of every minute of every hour of every day. Remaining in the Spirit of the Lord no matter where we are produces a rich abundance of blessed experiences as we watch His almighty power work in, through, and around us.

Friends, yes, the world offers us many places where we could choose to spend our time but we’ll never find a better location than living and abiding in the Lord. It’s where we’ll always find favor and honor, protection and security, goodness and grace, and the blessings that come from placing our full faith and trust in Him.

Live with the Lord every day. It has been, is, and will always be, the best place to be.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

PS: Please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it.

Send any prayer requests to OurChristianWalk@aol.com