Daily Devotionals
Daily Devotional: Psalms 104:31-35
Ps 104:31-35
31 May the glory of the LORD endure forever; may the LORD rejoice in his works--32 he who looks at the earth, and it trembles, who touches the mountains, and they smoke. 33 I will sing to the LORD all my life; I will sing praise to my God as long as I live. 34 May my meditation be pleasing to him, as I rejoice in the LORD. 35 But may sinners vanish from the earth and the wicked be no more. Praise the LORD, O my soul. Praise the LORD.
Phil 4:8-9
8 Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable-if anything is excellent or praiseworthy-think about such things. 9 Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me-put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.
Jesus said that our actions begin in our hearts. Our speech is a reflection of what is in our minds. Peter tells us to get our minds ready for action to do the will of God and Paul says we are to be renewed in our minds as we offer our bodies as a living sacrifice. It is so important that we make the focus of our thoughts that which is holy, pure and in accord with the mind of God.
One of the greatest compliments in all of scripture is when it is said that David was a man after God’s own heart. He had learned (as Jesus later practiced) to make the will of God his own will. Everything was measured (in his mind) by the standard of God and not by his own. He had learned to love that which was good and right and to hate sin. He lived to please his Lord.
We too can have a heart like David. As with David, we will not always live up to that perfect standard and we will give in to sin. But with a heart like David, as soon as we see sin in our lives, we confess it and turn from it instead of trying to make excuses for it or trying to defend that which we know is wrong. When Jesus is our Lord, we follow his teaching and the examples he left for us. In doing this we bring honor to him. Praise the LORD, O my soul. Praise the LORD.
I praise you O God, from the depths of my soul I give you praise. Create in me a pure heart, a loving spirit and a submissive attitude to your will. Help me love that which is right and good and to hate sin which is an affront to you. Give me the wisdom and strength to live my life in accord with your word and to have a heart that is in tune with your will. Forgive me when I fail to be all you want me to be and give me a forgiving spirit toward others. Please be with those who are sick and those taking treatments and give your healing, your peace and your comfort to all who are struggling. I pray in the name of Jesus my Lord and Savior.
Robert
