Give thanks to God

"Thanks be to God for His indescribable gift." 2 Corinthians 9:15

 

It is a good thing for us to stop a while and count our blessings. When we do so, we notice how blessed we are, and this generates a natural response of thankfulness.

But we are not only thankful for material blessings – we are also thankful for God's saving grace, without which, we would be nothing.

Paul tells us, in verses 10 & 11 of today's chapter: "Now may He who supplies seed to the sower, and bread for food, supply and multiply the seed you have sown and increase the fruits of your righteousness, while you are enriched in everything for all liberality, which causes thanksgiving through us to God."

May you go forth into this day, thinking about today's verse, and with praise and thankfulness on your lips.

Trust in God with your entire heart

"Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He shall direct your paths." Proverbs 3: 5 & 6　

To trust in another is difficult for us humans. We tend to follow our own path. We feel secure with our own reasoning.

Solomon, the wisest man who ever lived, advises us to trust in the LORD. The LORD, when written in the Bible in upper-case letters, is the self-Existent, Eternal God, Jehovah. He depends on no-one else; His creatures (that's us) depend on Him for every breath we take.

And so, in the light of who God is, Solomon's counsel in today's verse makes good sense.

But there's more: we are advised to trust in God with all our hearts. The heart is the seat of our emotions. The mind is the seat of our intellect and reasoning. Notice how the verse indicates to trust with both the heart and the mind: it goes on to say, "do not lean on your own understanding."

To acknowledge God is to admit that He is the Supreme Being in the Universe; it means to include Him in our plans; to give Him the leadership of our lives.

And when we acknowledge Him in all our ways - in one hundred percent of our activities - He becomes the Director of our paths. The director of a company is the top person, the operations leader.

Today, as you include God in all of your plans, take note of how He leads and blesses you on the road of life.

God is our Shelter and Strength

"God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea." Psalm 46:1, 2.

When the troubles of life come upon us, and we need a place in which to take refuge, the Psalmist makes the positive statement that God is a safe place of shelter, and He is our strength.

In connection with the place of shelter, there are two identical refrains in the Psalm - verses 7 and 11: "The LORD of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge."

The LORD of hosts is the Commander of the armies of heaven (see Joshua 5:14 & 2 Kings 6:17).

The God of Jacob is the One who appeared at the ladder in Jacob's dream (see Genesis 28:12-15) to give Jacob comfort and hope - the One who promises us victory, the One who changed Jacob's name from "deceiver" to "overcomer", after he had wrestled with God (Genesis 32:22-30).

Because of the fact that God is very close to us (present) in times of trouble, and because He is our shelter and strength, we will not fear. Even if the unmovable things - the Earth - is removed; even if the mountains are carried into the middle of the sea (both of which are illustrations of large calamities that may come our way), the Psalmist gives us the assurance that we need not fear.

And so, you can confidently step into this new day, because "The LORD of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge."

God is, and all is well.

God is there for us

"Then Samuel took a stone and set it up between Mizpah and Shen, and called its name Ebenezer, saying, "Thus far the LORD has helped us." 1 Samuel 7:12

Our verse today comes at the end of a great victory for Israel over the Philistines. There was fear in the ranks of the Israelites (verse 7), when they heard that the armies of Philistia were gathered to attack them. They begged the prophet Samuel to continue asking God to save the nation from the hand of the Philistines, which he did while offering a lamb as a burnt offering to the LORD.

While he was offering the sacrifice, the Philistines advanced to start the battle, but then God moved in, in answer to the prophet's prayer. He "thundered a loud thunder upon the Philistines that day" (verse 10). The enemy became confused, and were overthrown by the army of Israel.

In the wake of the victory, Samuel set up a stone pillar, in remembrance of the help God had given them that day. This was a monument, no small stone. It was to remind them of God's deliverance then, and to let them know that He would be with them in the future. The word Ebenezer means "Stone of help".

Are you taking note of the times God has helped you in your emergencies? Remember, God will help you through each difficulty you face. No problem of yours is too big for Him to tackle, for He directs the affairs of the universe! Our help comes from the Lord.

War in Heaven

"And war broke out in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon and his angels fought, but they did not prevail, nor was a place found in heaven for them any longer. So the great dragon was cast out, that serpent of old, called the devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was cast to the earth, and his angels were cast out with him." Revelation 12:7-9

This was the first war in the Universe. The angels took sides - good versus evil. God tells us in the Scriptures of the origin of evil - see Isaiah 14:12-15 & Ezekiel 28:12-15. Pride entered the heart of Lucifer, the covering cherub, the one who stood closest to God. He was created perfect, but he began to covet the position that only God could have; he wanted to be like God. And so he spread his poison among the perfect angels of God, and eventually gained loyal angels to his side. And war broke out in heaven. We have reason to believe, from Revelation 12:4, that he drew with him a following of one third of the angels in heaven.

Michael, translated in the Hebrew, is "who is like God". There is only One who is like God, the Father. He is Jesus Christ. Jesus is the Commander of the angels who remained loyal to God.

We are not told how the battle was fought, but the good news for us is that Satan did not prevail - he lost the battle - he was cast out of heaven. He lost his place there, and he has lost every battle in the fight between good and evil since.

Christ will be victorious in the final battle, also. I choose to march under His banner. How about you?

God supplies strength for the weary

"He gives power to the faint and to them that have no might He increases strength." Isaiah 40:29

Today's verse is part of the prophet's anthem of praise illustrating God's power and might, found in verses 25 through 31. Read it and discover how great our God is!

Have you ever felt like the task is greater than the strength available? Then today's verse is for you!

The words " the faint" in our verse refer to those who are fatigued or exhausted. It's the kind of exhaustion that comes from a wearisome fight. When the battle of life has been too much for you, and your strength is gone - when you feel like you can't carry on, take hold of the promise in today's verse and know that God gives power to those who sense their utter weakness.

Your strength will return as you look to Him to renew it. By the way, the word "increases" appears to indicate a gradual return of strength, building up reserves until the warrior is fully strengthened for battle. How awesome is that!

Christ suffered, so that we can be healed

"But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement for our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed." Isaiah 53:5

In this verse, the prophet Isaiah foretells the suffering of Jesus, the "Lamb slain from the foundation of the world." (Revelation 13:8)

John the Baptist introduced Jesus as "the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world." (John 1:29)

Again, as we see what Jesus did for us, to bring us forgiveness and peace, we get a glimpse of the golden thread of grace that runs through the entire Bible. Notice, four times in the verse, His interaction with us - 'He' and 'our/we'.

He was wounded because of our revolt.

He was crushed because of our wrong-doing.

He was punished so that we might have peace.

He was whipped so that we might be healed of sin.

The verse starts with the punishment Christ endured for our revolt and wrongdoing - then ends with His gifts to us of peace and healing. What grace! What love!

It's easy for us to casually read today's verse and miss the blood. In the Garden of Gethsemane, the night before He was killed, Christ wrestled with the prince of darkness and His sweat was like drops of blood, oozing out of His skin, and falling to the ground. The mob handled Him roughly; the soldiers struck Him, beat Him and whipped Him, opening wounds from which His blood flowed; the crown of thorns, thrust upon His head, caused more blood to flow. And finally, the nails in His hands and feet drained what little was left, as He hung on the cross.

But it's the blood that gives us life! The entire sanctuary service, given to the Israelites in the wilderness, pointed to Christ, the Lamb. (See Leviticus.) The slain sacrifice and sprinkled blood in that service was a symbol of the salvation that He offers, and pointed forward to Christ's death for us. What a fitting metaphor - "For the life of the flesh is in the blood." Leviticus 17:11 & Deuteronomy 12:23. "…and without shedding of blood there is no remission." Hebrews 9:22.

John the Revelator brings greetings from Jesus Christ - the One who loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood. (Rev 1:5) This is heaven's forgiveness!

Today, as you think about Christ's agony and suffering, and the wonderful gift His spilled blood brings to us all, may you accept that gift and experience the peace and healing He gives.