Forget Not His Benefits

Amidst the storm I have felt your peace,

In your embrace I feel my fears release. 

In your light my darkness flees,

Your goodness, Oh Lord, will never cease!

You healed me when I was sick,

My thoughts, my words, my deeds you fixed. 

You consecrated me and set me apart,

Now from Your love, will I never part. 

You bring joy to every mourning,

And heartfelt praises for You are unending. 

Your grace never leaves me forgotten,

So I offer my praise unbroken. 

Praise the Lord, my soul, and forget not His goodness,

Surrender to Him, He will impart His righteousness. 

Obedience He seeks, and not your sacrifice;

Trust Him, His grace will suffice!

The Character of Those Who May Dwell With the Lord

Psalm 15 (NKJV)

We all know the life of David. He's fallen so many times and each time he ran back to the Lord. And the Lord calls David , 'A man after My own heart'. In Psalm 14:1, a lack of respect for God and His laws was the worst kind of ignorance, as far as David was concerned. The person who rejected God was considered the biggest fool of them all. And in Psalm 15, he shares what God expects out of us. We are humans and are bound to fall. That doesn't make God love us any less. His love is unconditional and doesn't change. But we can always strive to be the kind of people whom God seeks and loves.

1. He who walks uprightly : walking in accordance to God's word.

2. And works righteousness : truth in action.

3. And speaks the truth in his heart : truth in emotions, intentions behind the words and actions and thoughts.

4. He who does not backbite with his tongue : truth in speech, openness with one another and uplifting each other.
The 2nd, 3rd and 4th points imply honoring God and pleasing Him through our actions, thoughts and words.

5. Nor does evil to his neighbour : does not conspire.

6. Nor does he take up a reproach against his friend : loves unconditionally with a clean heart and forgives the wrong done to him.

7. In whose eyes a vile person is despised, But he honours those who fear the Lord : he is careful to fellowship with the right people. The fine balance of such a person's judgement is effectively described. Since his behaviour os consistent, he also knows whom to reject.

8. He who swears to his own hurt and does not change : true humility. If he has said something or committed something, and things suddenly take a turn in disadvantage of him, he doesn't change his words, but abides by it. His deliverance will come from God.

9. He who does not put out his money at usury, Nor does he take a bribe against the innocent : he does not demand money by taking advantage of others, specially in their difficult times. He is honest in his dealings.

He who does these things shall never be moved. 

The Sleep of Holy Confidence

Psalm 3:5 (NKJV)

I lay down and slept;

I awoke, for the Lord sustained me. 

David was being hunted down by his son. His life was sought after by his own people. Was he scared? Yes! He was scared and went into hiding. Yet, his confidence was in the Lord. David was not only scared, but also hurt emotionally. There was a turmoil within him. In spite of it all, he chose to trust the Lord. He could confidently rest and find his peace in the Lord. He was sure that the Lord would never fail him. He was assured that his redemption would only come from the Lord; just like Peter in Acts 12. 

David had to be alert because of his enemies; but knowing that the Lord was his righteousness and justice, he chose to rest. When he awoke, the Lord had honoured his faith by keeping him safe and secure from his enemies. The Lord was his shield, his glory and the lifter of his head! David cried out to the Lord, and the Lord heard him from His holy hill. (Psalm 3:3,4)

The Righteous Person

In today's world, being righteous would certainly not be considered as swag! It would sound more like a person committing crime by not following the standards of this world. But what does the Bible say about a righteous person? How does God view the righteous person?

Psalm 1:1 

Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked

Nor stands in the path of sinners

Nor sits in the seat of the scornful

1. Walking in the  counsel of the wicked. Counsel means direction or helpful suggestions. Everytime that we receive counsel, we need to first seek God's will in it before accepting the counsel. It is important to discern the counsel coming your way. It is important what we receive and feed our minds with, because it determines the course of our life. Continuously accepting advice from the ungodly (people who don't walk in submission to God and His word), will only lead to destruction. It is better to stay away from people who don't follow the word of God and those who take us away from the truth. 
2. Standing in the path of sinners. You cannot fellowship with a sinner and avoid staying away from sin. Our company, people with whom we fellowship, matters.  
3. Sitting in the seat of the scornful. Spending time with people who dishonour God is as good as dishonouring God ourselves. This will only make us forget God's goodness and walk against the will of God. And, for God, obedience is better than sacrifice. (1Samuel 15:22)

Psalm 1:2-3

But his delight is in the law of the Lord; and in His law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by the streams of river, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither, whatever he does prospers. 

The only thing that a righteous person longs for, is the presence of God. Meditatingon God's word (spending time to understand theword of God in order to live in accordance to the standards of God) is of utmost importance. It becomes easier for such a person to avoid listening to people who guide him/her against what God wants. Such a person won't mock God, even if it seems like everyone else does.  

God's Spirit is the river that flows by you and offers you all the life and strength you need. When you receive your life from the Holy Spirit, you're always able to succeed in God's eyes, even if everything around you seems out of control. 

Repentance 2 Restoration

Job 42.

We all know the story of Job; his suffering and then his wonderful restoration. The way to that restoration wasn't easy. It was painful and required Job to do one thing : Repent. He had to humble himself before the Lord in order to be restored. 

Throughout the book of Job, you will see conversations between him and his friends. Job continues to question what has he done to deserve this suffering and his friends continue to condemn him instead of comforting him. Finally when the Lord speaks, Job repents before the Lord and suddenly finds a sense of peace within himself. He doesn't find the need to justify himself any longer. He realised God's truth and His ways of working. He repented and prayed for his friends, only then was he restored. Repentance frees us and makes it easier for us to pray for all those who hurt us. 

Job 42:10 NKJV

And the Lord restored Job's losses when he prayed for his friends. Indeed the Lord gave Job twice as much as he had before.

Acceptance of our faults and true repentance brings restoration of God's peace and joy in our lives. The need for justifying ourselves doesn't arise, because we realise that truth, in itself is justified. We find easier to pray that God blesses those who are against us rather than praying for God to give us justice, because we can rest in the fact that God is just and knows best what to do and when to do it.

Luke 6:28 NKJV

bless those who curse you, and pray for those who spitefully use you.

Walking in repentance and humility, and walking in His truth will lead us to the restoration God has planned for us. 

James 4:10New Living Translation (NLT)

10 Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up in honor.

Be Careful Little Mouth!

She maybe a victim of hatred

He may be suffering with a aching heart;

Let not your words make the wound even more difficult to heal,

Be careful little mouth, what you speak!

Her situation might be lifeless 

He might have lost everything;

Let your words not bring darkness and death,

Be careful little mouth, what you speak!

Whenever you speak let love and life flow out of thee,

Let uplifting and encouraging thy motive be.

May what you speak keep their candles burning bright

May you not blow off their light,

Be careful little mouth, what you speak!

Do not be haughty for where you stand

Forget not thy humble beginnings

For God is just and to Him matters the heart that serves,

Abel's offering He considers

So speak kindness and grace

Strengthen and uplift the weak,

Oh be careful little mouth, what you speak!

Broken and Stronger!

There are days when we feel frustrated, hurt by words and actions, shattered and completely broken. Those are the days when we go into the "pity mode"; days when we remember how good we have been and that we deserve to be treated better. It's completely natural to think that way.

I felt that way a couple of days back and I cried. Later I prayed. Whereas, I should have prayed in the first place. God asked me a question, 'Is your crying making things any better for you?' And I knew deep within, that crying only worsened things. I was crying over something that I felt bad about and was stuck there. I continued to remain in that hurt whereas the person who hurt me didn't even care. In doing so I ended up increasing my heartache rather than feeling better.
Just then, God reminded me a couple of dreams I saw about my situation. And I realised that when the dreams God shows about our storms come to past, we need to stop pitying ourselves and not cry much over it. Instead, stand up in prayer and ask God to lead. Face it. We need to thank God for the victory He will give us.

We need to trust God and His justice. Even though situations seem unfair, our God is not unfair. Understanding this truth will help you retain your peace and deal with things in the love of Christ. There might be times where you will be required to stay patiently in the situation you are and see God's deliverance. At other times, you may be required to move on letting go of what or who hurt you. When you let go of the unwanted, you will see growth in certain areas that were previously a stumbling block for you.

Let God heal you. He can only do so when you surrender your all to Him. When you are broken, He makes you stronger.