Daily Devotionals
Daily Devotional: Psalms 35:24-28
Ps 35:24-28
24 Vindicate me in your righteousness, O LORD my God; do not let them gloat over me. 25 Do not let them think, “Aha, just what we wanted!” or say, “We have swallowed him up.” 26 May all who gloat over my distress be put to shame and confusion; may all who exalt themselves over me be clothed with shame and disgrace. 27 May those who delight in my vindication shout for joy and gladness; may they always say, “The LORD be exalted, who delights in the well-being of his servant.” 28 My tongue will speak of your righteousness and of your praises all day long.
1 Peter 2:1-3
1 Therefore, rid yourselves of all malice and all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander of every kind. 2 Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation, 3 now that you have tasted that the Lord is good.
If we want to be happy and enjoy life, we must heed these last verses. When we allow our hearts to be filled with malice, deceit, hypocrisy, envy and slander it will destroy us mentally, emotionally and (most of all) spiritually just as surely as untreated cancer will destroy our bodies. But Peter does not just tell us to rid ourselves of these but goes on to tell us how to do it. We are to crave spiritual milk and by it to grow up in our salvation or to mature spiritually.
As we allow the Holy Spirit to live in us and change us we will see this happening to us. The result (or fruit) of the Spirit living in us is love and joy and peace. This is the peace of God that Paul says is beyond our comprehension. But the Holy Spirit cannot flourish in our lives if we ignore his word and starve our souls from a drought of his spiritual food. If we fail to drink the living water of Jesus, we will falter along the way or even die from thirst. We are warned to not quench the fire of the Spirit. So as the deer pants for water and the newborn baby craves milk, we are to have a desire that will not be ignored to fill up on the word of God and then by reason of practice, grow up in his salvation.
Thank you Lord God for loving me and providing a way for me to be your child in Jesus your Son. As I declare that your name is Holy in all the earth, help me live in such a way as to show my recognition of your absolute holiness. Fill me with your Spirit and teach me your way. Show me your path and give me your wisdom so I will put the heavenly things above the perishing things of this world. Lord, I thank you for the friends you have put in my life that help me serve you and grow closer to you. Some of these friends are suffering today and I ask your comfort, your relief and your blessing on them. I pray in the name of Jesus my Lord.
Robert
