Daily Devotionals
Daily Devotional: Psalms 67:1-7
Ps 67:1-7
1 May God be gracious to us and bless us and make his face shine upon us, Selah 2 that your ways may be known on earth, your salvation among all nations. 3 May the peoples praise you, O God; may all the peoples praise you. 4 May the nations be glad and sing for joy, for you rule the peoples justly and guide the nations of the earth. Selah 5 May the peoples praise you, O God; may all the peoples praise you. 6 Then the land will yield its harvest, and God, our God, will bless us. 7 God will bless us, and all the ends of the earth will fear him.
Rom 15:13
13 May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.
In his letter to the Romans, Paul tells of those who refuse to acknowledge God or serve him as God, even though they have been given plenty of evidence of his existence and his goodness by the things that he has created. He says they serve that which has been created instead of the creator. So mankind has fabricated in their minds all kinds of gods but each is impotent, mute and blind. All of these gods exist solely for the purpose of either catering to the whims of those who espouse them or to punish those who do not please them. They offer no hope, no joy and no peace except that which can be found without them.
Our God is a God of love and compassion. He seeks only what is best for all of mankind and has provided all we need for eternal happiness. Every command he has given and every part of his will that has been revealed to us is for our good and never to “get us” or pay us back for some misdeed that we have done.
Instead of this, God has provided the only thing that can appease his wrath and satisfy his justice. He has provided a person with a perfect life; a life that never experienced sin and always followed his will and then he has given that life as a sacrifice in the place of our sinful life. He has given his Son to live as one of us and then die for us. In this way he is both just because sin is punished and he is the justifier because he provides the atonement for our sin. He made Jesus, who knew no sin, to be sin for us so we can be made righteous in him.
O God, I praise you and extol your holy name. You alone are God and you are the creator and sustainer of all that is in my life. Thank you for providing a way for me to be able to be your child and to be in fellowship with you as you forgive me from all sin through the blood of your Son. Increase my faith as I seek to serve you in every way. Give me a pure heart as I learn to love as you love me. Help me be as forgiving to others as you are to me. Take away all selfishness and fill my heart with compassion. Use me in your way and your will. I pray in Jesus name.
Robert
