Daily Devotionals
Daily Devotional: Psalms 100:1-5
Ps. 100:1-5
1 Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth. 2 Worship the LORD with gladness; come before him with joyful songs. 3 Know that the LORD is God. It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, the sheep of his pasture. 4 Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name. 5 For the LORD is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations.
Col. 3:15-17
15 Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. 16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God. 17 And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.
Remember the life of the apostle Paul and all of the conflict and persecution he endured for Christ. Before that he was the ring leader of the Jews who were trying to stamp out that new group among them that claimed to follow one called Jesus. If anyone knew what turmoil was all about, it was this Paul. Yet, he is the one who wrote so much about peace and being at peace.
He knew that we serve a God of peace. His Savior was called the Prince of Peace and prayed that his peace would be given to his followers. Paul also knew that the more thankful for what we have and the more we express that gratitude to God, the more peace we would have within ourselves. This was because he knew that one cannot be thankful to God without believing that God is the giver of all things and is in control. He learned to be content in every circumstance.
When we begin to name our blessings, all the times God has helped us and the many times he has delivered us from harm, it is easy to be thankful. Most of us live in a country that affords us an abundance of material things. We have so many other Christians in our lives who encourage us. But most of all, in Christ we have been forgiven by the blood of Jesus and are the children of God!
Father and God, what a blessing it is to be your child, to be forgiven of all the sins I have ever committed against you and to be able to talk to you at any time. You love me and care about me – not just the whole world in general – but you care about me as an individual person among the masses. Thank you for Jesus, his life, his death and his resurrection on my behalf. I am so grateful that he is not only my Savior but also my brother and my friend who will always be with me. Give me greater faith to always trust you in all things. I pray in the name of Jesus.
Robert
