Daily Devotionals
Daily Devotional: Psalms 96:1-6
Ps 96:1-6
1 Sing to the LORD a new song; sing to the LORD, all the earth. 2 Sing to the LORD, praise his name; proclaim his salvation day after day. 3 Declare his glory among the nations, his marvelous deeds among all peoples. 4 For great is the LORD and most worthy of praise; he is to be feared above all gods. 5 For all the gods of the nations are idols, but the LORD made the heavens. 6 Splendor and majesty are before him; strength and glory are in his sanctuary.
1 Peter 1:3-5
3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade-kept in heaven for you, 5 who through faith are shielded by God's power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time.
PRAISE THE LORD! We praise the Lord because he is God, and we also praise him because he is good. His power and his wisdom are above our ability to grasp with our fleshly minds. Consider the workings of the human body or the interworking of the food chain in the wild and we see the wisdom of God in action. To see the heavenly bodies (and to know that there are probably that many more out there that we do not see), and then to consider how these all work in such precise harmony that their movements can be predicted for hundreds of years, declares that God is the supreme intellect, and he has created it all.
But life is hard. Too often I see my life as a mess. There is so much strife, hatred, and bitterness in this world and at times it is overwhelming. How can I sing praises to God when so many are living in fear and there is so much wickedness all around me? Someone I love (or maybe I) am suffering from cancer or some other terrible disease or someone I love dearly has just passed from this life.
When we give ourselves completely to God, we will find lasting joy and peace in our hearts. The more completely I give myself to God, the greater my joy. Jesus found peace with himself and with the Father when he gave up himself and all the glories of heaven to come to earth to serve us. When we serve, we find joy.
Lord God, open my eyes to see the feet that need to be washed. Give me the opportunity to encourage the person who is about ready to give up on serving you or who is even ready to give up on life. Fill me with your compassion and love so that it overflows to all those with whom I come in contact today. Help me give up myself to you and to your will so that I, along with Paul, can truly say that it is no longer I who lives, but Christ Jesus lives in me. I need your strength to do and to be what I know you want me to do and to become. In Jesus name I pray.
Robert
