Daily Devotionals
Daily Devotional: Psalms 117:1-2
Ps 117:1-2
Praise the LORD, all you nations; extol him, all you peoples. For great is his love toward us, and the faithfulness of the LORD endures forever. Praise the LORD.
Phil 4:4-7
Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Praise the Lord! What a way to start a new day! With all the trouble in the world and with all the diseases around us and with all the hatred and bitterness, it is easy for us to be down and out about life in general. But God has given us all we need to be happy, to be at peace and to rejoice always. We find this in his Son, Jesus Christ who loves us and will always be available to lift us up.
Some things are very simple in the big picture but in everyday life, they become more complicated. The reason for disease, the reason we have hatred, the reason there are so many problems is because of sin in the world. God made a perfect place for people to live but we messed it up because of our sin. It stays messed up because we all still sin. The end result is ultimately death for all of us.
This does not mean that every bad thing that happens in my life is the result of my sin. It also does not mean that just because someone seems to be on top of the world, that they have no sin. After all, it was not for his own sin that Abel was killed by his brother. So, it may be that the problems in our life are caused by the sins of others or it may just be that they are not the direct result of sin at all but are the result of a series of things that just happen in an imperfect world.
But to have meaning in life, to have an inner peace that is beyond understanding, to have joy that is with us no matter what the circumstances we find around us, we must put our trust in Jesus Christ and live for him. The whole reason we live on earth is to love, respect and serve God through Jesus Christ, striving to live according to his will, knowing that we will face him in judgment. Praise the Lord!
O Lord God, my heavenly Father, I am so thankful for your love shown to me in Jesus Christ. Thank you for offering him as a substitute sacrifice for my sin so I can be counted righteous in him. Help me use your grace to avoid sin and to live for you to the best of my ability. Be with the leaders of our nation, as well as those of other countries, so that we can live in peace and serve you without fear of being persecuted. If persecutions come in my life, increase my faith so I will never be ashamed to be known as a Christian. In the name of Jesus I pray.
Robert
