Daily Devotionals
Daily Devotional: Psalms 27:6-10
Ps 27:6-10
6 Then my head will be exalted above the enemies who surround me; at his tabernacle will I sacrifice with shouts of joy; I will sing and make music to the LORD. 7 Hear my voice when I call, O LORD; be merciful to me and answer me. 8 My heart says of you, "Seek his face!" Your face, LORD, I will seek. 9 Do not hide your face from me, do not turn your servant away in anger; you have been my helper. Do not reject me or forsake me, O God my Savior. 10 Though my father and mother forsake me, the LORD will receive me.
James 5:13
13 Is any one of you in trouble? He should pray. Is anyone happy? Let him sing songs of praise.
God is not an emergency escape hatch and he is not Santa Claus. Far too many people pray when they have exhausted all efforts on their part to take care of their troubles. Another group seems to think that they can make a wish list and God is there to fill it like a doting grandfather. Neither of these extremes shows respect or trust in God. If there is any lesson to be learned from the stories of the Old Testament, it is that God is due our respect and reverence.
Respect does not always equate to formality or recitation of memorized rituals and prayers. In these we lose the heart of true worship. When Jesus told the woman at the well that we are to worship in spirit and in truth, it means we are to worship with genuine heartfelt praise and adoration. The worship of Israel that pleased God is often more akin to a celebration than the formalities of many of our assemblies. On the other hand, we can manufacture a pseudo emotionalism that appears to be praise but is only a façade with no real feeling. Another danger is to allow our emotions to control our thinking so that we leave the ways of God to worship the “golden calf” of our own imaginations.
Great and awesome is our God. You are the God who delivered Israel from bondage in Egypt and made a great people of only a few. You kept your word to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and fulfilled all your promises to them. You are the God who has delivered us from the bondage of sin and established us as the kingdom of your dear Son. You have kept your promises to bless all nations and make us your people who were not your people. For this we praise you O God. Fill us with a sense of your true power, your glory and your majesty. Even as you are holy, help us to be holy. As we become more like you, help us to know your love more and more every day so that we love others as you love us. Give us your sense of compassion and forgiveness so that we will be at peace with all those around us. Use me O Lord to be all you want me to be. I pray in the name of Jesus.
Robert
