Daily Devotionals
Daily Devotional: Psalms 116:15-19
Ps 116:15-19
Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints. O Lord, truly I am your servant; I am your servant, the son of your maidservant; you have freed me from my chains. I will sacrifice a thank offering to you and call on the name of the Lord. I will fulfill my vows to the Lord in the presence of all his people, in the courts of the house of the Lord — in your midst, O Jerusalem. Praise the Lord.
Eph 2:1-2, 4-5
As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions — it is by grace you have been saved.
Praise the Lord! We have been delivered from death! In Jesus we must fulfil our vows of love and adoration in the courts of his house. Where two or three are gathered to worship the Lord, he is in their midst and what better place for us to be than in that group. We come together to worship our God, but we also come together to encourage and teach each other. In doing this, we lift up the hands of those who are struggling as we share our lives with each other.
But our gathering is not so we can check a box. It is not just to bow down to some tradition. It is not so we can make someone else happy. Some seem to think that the act of coming together earns us points with God; this is not true. It is not for entertainment, and we will get out a service in proportion to what we put into it.
Being with each other does give a special feeling of camaraderie, which is just another way of saying we are family, having fellowship with each other. While I am thankful for the internet and the ability to live stream our services. This allows some people to be a part of the service that could not otherwise do so, but it is not the same as the physical contact and genuine fellowship. This is why people go to live concerts instead of just watching the video, or why they go to a ball game in person instead of watching it on TV. It is just not the same.
O Lord God, my heavenly Father, I am so thankful for your love and your grace that allows me to be made righteous in Jesus Christ. Thank you for his blood that has washed me clean from sin and delivered me from the bondage of Satan. Help me remember that with every blessing comes opportunity and with each opportunity comes responsibility. Give me wisdom, strength, self-control, and compassion to fulfill each responsibility you have given to me. I praise you for your goodness! Be with our nation and give us leaders who trust in you. I pray in the name of Jesus.
Robert
