Daily Devotionals
Daily Devotional: Psalms 146:1-4
Ps 146:1-4
Praise the Lord. Praise the Lord, O my soul. I will praise the Lord all my life; I will sing praise to my God as long as I live. Do not put your trust in princes, in mortal men, who cannot save. When their spirit departs, they return to the ground; on that very day their plans come to nothing.
Col 3:3-6
For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory. Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry. Because of these, the wrath of God is coming.
Praise the Lord for he is good! Praise the Lord for he is patient! Praise the Lord for he is trustworthy in all things! When we understand that God is trustworthy by his very nature, he cannot pretend or lie, or even fail to keep his promises. As the kids sing, there is nothing too big for him, nothing too wide or high for him. Nothing was made that Jesus did not have a part in making and he now sustains all things.
Too often we put our trust in our understanding of Scripture. We put our trust in our keeping of his Word. We put our trust in the fact that we have isolated the things that matter to God, and we know how to follow them correctly. While we must study the Bible and learn what pleases God and live for him according to his will, our faith must be in him and not in ourselves and in our thinking and doing.
For some this is because they do not believe that God has really given his Spirit to live in them and help them. In failing to allow the Spirit to actively live in us, we quench the power that God has for us to help us and mold us into his image. It is by the Spirit that we learn to love. It is his power that gives us self-control. It is his work that grows patience in us. We need his help to imitate the spirit of Jesus.
Paul says for us to pray about everything and not to be anxious about anything because the Lord is near. James tells us that when we draw near to him, he will draw near to us. Like Peter, reach out and take the hand of Jesus to pull you from the stormy waves that drowned us in fear and doubt. Trust God, he loves you!
O Lord my God, I stand in awe as I see your mighty works, your infinite wisdom in all creation around me. Modern science and medicine and their accomplishments are amazing but at best, they are just figuring out how to use what you have already created and shared with us. You are an awesome God. What amazes me the most about you and about Jesus, is that you know me, and you love me, even in my weakness and my sometimes stubbornness. I thank you and I praise you! Use me to serve you by serving others. I pray in the name of Jesus my Lord.
Robert
