Read the Bible in a Year (11JUL19)

DAILY REMINDER – Today, July 11’s Bible reading is Psalms 140-145.

NEXT DAY REMINDER – Tomorrow, July 12’s Bible reading is Psalms 145-150. May God bless you with the reading of His WORD. 

PSALMS MOMENT – (11JUL19) “I pour out before him my complaint; before him I tell my troubles” (Psalm 142:2). How many times have you just sat down and gave God a list of your complaints? So many things can and does go wrong in life where we just need to pour them all on the Lord. The Bible says, “Casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you” (1 Peter 5:7). Jesus invites us to throw all of our worries, concerns, anxieties, and heartaches on Him because He can handle them all. Many of us run the risk of having high blood pressure, migraines, strokes, or some other health ailment when we take on too much stress. Nevertheless, there is One person who we can give it all to who will never get sick regarding our concerns. We can rely on the Lord to handle every situation that perplexes us, and know that He will bring us out to an expected end. The psalmist told the Lord about his troubles because He was the only One who could help him during his time of need. Oftentimes, after we have taken things to friends, family, and loved ones, we must still take it to the Lord because people can not always help with finding a solution to life’s problems, but God definitely can. On top of that, He does not get tired of you regardless of how many times you come to Him. Whereas, people may have their limitations, God never does. Whatever you may be going through right now, take it to Jesus and watch Him make a way out of no way. Something to ponder….

QUESTION OF THE DAY - (11JUL19) Do you have a hard time accepting “righteous” rebuke? The psalmist wrote, “Let a righteous man strike me with kindness; let him rebuke me – that is oil on my head” (Psalm 141:5). Let’s be honest – most of us would probably say that we hate to be rebuked. Even as a child, we come into the world not wanting to be scolded. Yet, the psalmist wrote that he embraced the rebuke of the righteous and it was like a special anointing for him. Why is this? When we err as believers, how else are we to know the things of God and what displeases Him unless we are told rather that is in His WORD, His servant, or direct revelation from the Lord himself. The psalmist would have rather known the ways of the Lord than to have strayed away from Him blindly. The Apostle Paul wrote to the Hebrews of his day this message regarding the discipline of the Lord, “In your struggle against sin, you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood.  And have you completely forgotten this word of encouragement that addresses you as a father addresses his son? It says, ‘My son, do not make light of the Lord’s discipline,  and do not lose heart when he rebukes you,  because the Lord disciplines the one he loves,  and he chastens everyone he accepts as his son’ ” (Hebrews 12:4-6). The Apostle Paul was letting the Hebrews know that many of them had not been martyred yet as they were battling against evil. Yet, they were to accept correction and discipline, for it allowed them to live in holiness. Those who are believers in Christ have become heirs with Him. Therefore, God rebukes us when we are in error because we are His children and are not illegitimate and independent of Him.

The Lord is just and fair in all His ways. He does not leave us to our sins without giving us a way of escape and correcting us so that we can know where we went wrong. Just as a parent rebukes a child to guide him/her in the right way, the Lord does the same for us. We live in a society that many people do not want to be told that they are wrong. Even in the church, many Christians are quick to quote, “Judge not…” without fully understanding that we are to hold each other as believers accountable for the things that we do. It is not judging to tell someone what the Word of God says. It saves them from sin and pulls them back towards the way of Christ. When we can learn to accept being corrected, then we take on the mantle of humility where the Spirit of the Lord is able to do wonders in our lives. Something to ponder….

PSALMS MOMENT – (11JUL19) “…The Lord is trustworthy in all he promises and faithful in all he does” (Psalm 145:13b). Sometimes we may have a hard time trusting in the promises of God – especially when they do not happen right away. We want what we want, when we want it, and do not like to hear that dreaded four-letter word – WAIT. Yet, God says that His word never returns to Him void, but sometimes, we may question as to if that WORD will ever come to pass.

Abraham was given the promise that he and Sarah would have a child, but they waited a total of twenty-five years before they received the child of promise. You can possibly imagine that Sarah thought that she would never have a child because she was well into menopause, and yet, God opened her womb where she was able to conceive. The Lord had a promise that He had to keep, and He was not about to allow His Word to not be fulfilled. God’s promises are true, and His checks of promise will never bounce due to insufficient funds. They may be post-dated, but you can guarantee that they will be cashable at the appropriate time. Therefore, we can stand firm in the promises of God, for He has never broken one yet. Something to ponder….