Daily Devotionals
Daily Devotional: Psalms 49:1-9
Ps 49:1-9
Hear this, all you peoples; listen, all who live in this world, both low and high, rich and poor alike: My mouth will speak words of wisdom; the utterance from my heart will give understanding. I will turn my ear to a proverb; with the harp I will expound my riddle: Why should I fear when evil days come, when wicked deceivers surround me--those who trust in their wealth and boast of their great riches? No man can redeem the life of another or give to God a ransom for him--the ransom for a life is costly, no payment is ever enough--that he should live on forever and not see decay.
James 1:9-11
The brother in humble circumstances ought to take pride in his high position. But the one who is rich should take pride in his low position, because he will pass away like a wild flower. For the sun rises with scorching heat and withers the plant; its blossom falls and its beauty is destroyed. In the same way, the rich man will fade away even while he goes about his business.
Life is short. The wise man said we live for a while and then we die. The older I get, the shorter the years become and what has been a lifetime, is now only a brief memory. No matter what one may achieve or what we may accumulate, we will soon be forgotten by most of the people we know, and the world we once knew will continue without us. What we have changed will be changed again and what has always been, will continue to be. From what we see, it is useless.
But what we do not see with the physical eye is what we must see by faith for us to understand the meaning of it all. We are here on earth to honor God and we do this by following his will as revealed in his word. As we devote our lives to him, we find that we give more of self to others and look to their wellbeing instead of our own. Joy and peace are only found in Christ and are enhanced by serving others.
Life is short. Enjoy today. Help someone else find joy today. Share the love of Jesus and his salvation with anyone who will listen. Teach a child to love by showing them love. Teach them respect by showing them respect. Listen. To the birds. To the child. To the person who is angry. To the one who is hurting. Be quick to hear, slow to speak and slow to anger. Listen. Think. Say “thank you” more. Listen.
O Lord God help me listen more, listen better, and think about what I hear. Help me learn to keep my mouth shut more and to become angry less. Replace my anger and my frustration with love and compassion. Open my ears to listen to your presence all around me and my eyes to see your great love and concern for me. Help me share that love with others. Open my heart to understand your will for me and give me strength to do it. I humbly pray in the name of Jesus.
Robert
