Psalms 51: 1-5

We All Need Forgiveness

Many years ago I recall my niece having a purse full of what you might call spiritual reminder cards. She offered me one, and it said something about being a sinner. I half smiled not sure what she was trying to tell me and said, “So you think I’m a sinner?” Her response was correct, but at the time I wasn’t far into my true faith walk so wasn’t really sure what she meant. She replied, “We all are.” 

I have learned much since those days, and am grateful to her and many others in my life who have been examples of God's grace. We can't do this without others. We can't grow by ourselves. We can't learn about all God has for us without connecting with others who are farther along than we are. Once I began associating with other Christ followers who had been "in the word" for years, I began learning what I didn't know I didn't know. Now, the more I know, the more I know I don't know. :) 

One thing I DO KNOW however, is that forgiveness is the key to peace within my heart. 

Forgiving others who have hurt us is very freeing.

Luke 6:37 Judge not, and you will not be judged; condemn not, and you will not be condemned; forgive, and you will be forgiven

Forgiveness is powerful.

Mark 11:25 And whenever you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against anyone, so that your Father also who is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses.

Forgiveness can be given even when it is not requested.

Ephesians 4:32 Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.

We may need to forgive again and again.

Matthew 18:21-22 Then Peter came up and said to him, “Lord, how often will my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? As many as seven times? Jesus said to him, “I do not say to you seven times, but seventy times seven.

We all need forgiveness from the Lord.

1 John 1:9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

Read/Listen to Psalm 51:1-5

Matthew 28: 20

                “And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

What a beautiful thing. We are never alone. Even if the broken road we are on is not what we had planned, we do not journey on our own. Though at times we may feel lonely because our loved ones are far away, or have gone home to be with the Lord, we can always share moments with our God. That place of peace amidst this hectic and corrupt world awaits us. This quiet, tranquil place lies within us. It is not a specific location, it is anywhere, for whatever is happening in our life, we can talk with Him, cry with Him, share a beautiful sunset with Him, walk through the snow with Him, drive to work with Him, have lunch with Him, cry out to him in pain, share our grief with Him, love and laugh with Him. He has told us time and again; “Surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

The bible reminds us of God’s presence in our lives in multiple places, and in different ways. Why then, do we seem to forget?

John 8: 12: Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”

Matthew 7:7: Ask, and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and it will be opened to you.

Psalm 23:1-6; A Psalm of David; The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows….

Proverbs 3:5-6 Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him and he will make straight your paths.

Let us be reminded of His unfailing love, and simply “be with Him” throughout our day. It’s so comforting to have a friend by our side.

Listen to/Read Matthew 28:20

Prayer is Building

Psalm 94:18-19 (NIV) 
 When I said, "My foot is slipping," your love, O LORD, supported me.
 When anxiety was great within me, your consolation brought joy to my soul.     

There is a very good chance that we will have a mountain to climb in the very near future.  We may be on level footing right now, moving forward putting one foot in front of the other with hardly any ups or downs on the road.  We can breathe normally, progress on our journey without having to stop and catch our breath or wipe the sweat from our brow.  Enjoy this path, relish in the ease with which you are able to move forward, for this will not last forever.

As sure as the snow will be here in another five months, there will also be hills to climb, steep valleys to descend and maybe even a small mountain to negotiate.  Got your climbing shoes on?  Did you bring your rope?  There will be times you are going to need special gear in order to survive the obstacles you are sure to encounter.

It is during these times when we might find ourselves crying out to God, "My foot is slipping," and when finally we make it over the hurdle we realize it was God's love, His care and protection that has seen us through such times. Your mountain will be different from mine.  The huge hurdle in your life may deal with relationships and finances.  My hurdle may require that I survive a bout with cancer, or financial ruin.

Either way, it is through God's faithful attention to us, to those times when our foot is slipping, that He rescues us. He makes a path for our climbing shoes to grab hold of.so we can take the next step.  He supports us as we move forward, He loves us as we fall back, He brings us joy in all this.  We serve a pretty amazing God, don't you think?

Psalms 94, 95, 96

Prayer is Shouting -- Oh, LORD, keep us safe

Psalm 13:5-6 (NIV) 
 But I trust in your unfailing love; my heart rejoices in your salvation.  I will sing to the LORD, for he has been good to me.  

Those times in life when we are bombarded with troubles and feel lost and alone, those are the times to turn to the Book of Psalms.  There doesn't seem to be anything David hasn't experienced; no fire he hasn't walked through. And like David, we too have seasons of trial, days of desperation and sadness.  We can find it all in Psalms.  We can also find words of peace and love and forgiveness in these pages.

David's woes were often brought about by his own behavior.  We can relate to this as well.  Many times we look back with regret and wish we could do some things over again. We learn from these errors, just like the king did, but we still must suffer consequences.  We are forgiven when we repent but that doesn't take away the penalty.  Just as a lawbreaker must pay a fine or perhaps serve some time in jail even after confessing.

I find faith and fortitude as I read and take in all the rich wisdom and experience written and recorded for us in this book.  Even more than this I find truth.  In a world filled with lies and deception, integrity is a treasure to guard and to thirst after. "And the words of the LORD are flawless, like silver refined in a furnace of clay, purified seven times. (Psalm 12:6)

During times when few speak from the heart, it is refreshing and necessary to hear words of truth.  Even if those words convict us and bring us to our knees. It is good to think of these things and to vow to practice them.  Today, the Fourth of July, is a perfect day to reflect on the LORD, as our forefathers did when they formed this country which we celebrate.

Psalm 11, 12 and 13

Ephesians 1:15-23

We refer to our heart as we refer to our soul. It is the center of our being without which we cannot survive. The heart beats and blood pumps and we breathe in and breathe out. Our heart is the core of our existence. The seasons when we are at our lowest, when we are in pain and hurting, it is our heart that is breaking. The crushed heart is causing our agony.

Ephesians 1:18 (NIV)
I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints...

By the same token, when we are happy and content, peaceful and serene, it is our heart that is at rest. It is as though our heart were a being with feelings and emotions. We sometimes even give the heart credit for any wisdom and strength we may possess. But, it is the words-the eyes of your heart-that have my attention.

I often refer to my "mind’s eye," but just what are the eyes of the heart? If you go to Biblegateway.com and perform a keyword search using heart as your key word, you will be busy all day reading the results. If you turn to Psalms and seek that same word you will see what I mean. There are hearts that hope and change; hearts which leap for joy or wait for the LORD. There are hearts that are pierced, are filled with joy and those that meditate. I think you get the picture.

Paul was praying for his followers, his brothers in Christ, that their hearts would be enlightened, that they could grasp all that is waiting for them in glory.  Sounds like a great thing to pray for.

Read Ephesians 1:15-23

Listen to Ephesians 1:15-23

Psalm 56:9-11

I have spent a lot of time reading from the Book of Psalms and have found they speak loudly to me. They convict me, console me and challenge me.  King David, the author of most of the Psalms, had lots of troubles, even though he is considered to be, "A man after God's heart."  He struggled greatly over the years with sin, as we all do.

David had this wonderful relationship with God.  He could cry out to Him for help when he felt his very life was threatened.  He could turn to Him and beg forgiveness for his sins.  He could be himself before God, and never fear God's rejection.  He knew God because he stayed close to Him.  He seemed to hold a steady conversation with His Lord, baring all of his heart to the One True God.

God wants us to have this kind of relationship with Him.  He wants to hear from us all the time.  He desires our adoration and love and respect.  He wants us to worship Him 24/7.  During the months I was alone in northern Wisconsin I learned to lean on Him every day.  I lived a fairly isolated existence during this season, and I spoke to God all the time.  First thing in the morning I would communicate with Him by writing in my journal all my fears.  I discovered they were many.

It took a while for me to understand the need to surrender these fears to Him.  I wasn't afraid being alone, I wasn't spooked or anything like that.  No, my fears usually were related to my finances.  I was so secure for the past 5 years or so that I feared having to go back to my previous ways of living paycheck to paycheck.  God took me to task for that and taught me to give up control of these things to Him.  I have to admit, that is still a struggle for me, but I am working on it.

During this time I kept asking myself, "what is the worst that could happen?"  I seemed to come up with the same answer, "nothing could be worse than what I had just been through."  My finances, or rather my fear of not having any, took on a new perspective. The Psalm 56:11 words spoke to me.

"In God I trust and am not afraid.

    What can man do to me?" 

These words help me daily when I worry about something that God has under His control.  I know He doesn't need any help from me.  You too, have probably faced a few giants recently and can ask the same question, "what can man do to me?"  Freeing isn't it?

This week I am writing on six favorite verses. Each of these verses God used to speak to me in some way during the first five months of this year.  I would love to hear from each of you, about your favorite verses, and how God used them to show his love in your life.  Feel free to comment below or if you prefer, you can email me here.

Read Psalm 56:9-11 here

Listen to Psalm 56:9-11 here

Psalms 23

Life with God...... It can't get any better than that!

"The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.
He makes me lie down in green pastures,
He leads me beside still waters.
He restores my soul.
He guides me in paths of righteousness
for his name sake.
Even though I walk through the valley
of the shadow of death, I fear no evil,
for you are with me; your rod and your staff,
they comfort me.
You prepare a table before me
in the presence of my enemies.
You anoint my head with oil;
my cup overflows.
Surely goodness and love will follow me
all the days of my life,
and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever."
AMEN!
My bible states that this is the most famous Psalm it contains. As I read it, I have the vision of a kind, caring and gentle shepherd. Too many of us imagine God as demanding and powerful. Well, though he has power beyond our imagination, he posesses love and compassion we are unable to comprehend. Isn't this the God you hope to spend your eternity with?