Author: David Short

Psalms 56:2-4 (57:1-3)

Have mercy on me, O God, have mercy on me,
For my soul trusts in You;
And in the shadow of Your wings I will hope,
Until lawlessness shall pass away.
I will cry out to God most High;
My God who is my benefactor.
He sent from heaven and saved me;
He gave over to disgrace those who trample me down. (Pause)
God sent out His mercy and His truth,

Encouraging Words

God is in all of His creation. If we slow down and look close enough, we will see Him and His handiwork every­where. The image of us hiding under His wings like a mother bird guarding and protecting her chicks is so powerful for this is how tender He is with us. Glory be to God!

Psalms 55:4-5 (56:3-4)

I will not fear by day,
But I will hope in You.
I will praise God with my words all day long;
In God I hope; I will not be afraid; what will flesh do to me?

Encouraging Words

We have nothing to fear for we can put our hope in our God. There is nothing that anyone or anything can do to us that extends beyond the power of our Lord and our place in eternity with Him. Because of this we praise Him and should honor Him all day long. Glory be to God!

Psalms 54:23-24 (55:22-23)

Cast your care upon the Lord,
And He shall support you;
He will never allow the righteous to be moved.
But You, O God, will bring them down into the pit of decay;
Men of blood and deceit
Shall not live even half their days.
But I will hope in You, O Lord.

Personal Challenge

It is so easy to fall for the lies of our enemy and shift our hope from our God to the things of this world, this temporal life. We can cast our cares, every single one of them on our Lord, for He will support us and protect us. God even cares about the little, minuscule things in our lives because He cares for us. Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!

Psalms 54:17-18 (55:16-17)

Psalms 50:19 (51:17)

A sacrifice to God is a broken spirit,
A broken and humbled heart God will not despise.

Personal Challenge

What does God really want from us? Does He want us to go through the fast perfectly? Does He want us to attend every possible church service that is available? Does He want our tithes, offerings, and almsgivings? While all of these things are good and worthy of doing, this is not what He really wants from us. He wants us to come to Him with our spirits, our self-centered will, broken and contrite before Him. He wants our hearts to be broken and humbled before Him. Because if we do not come to Him this way, then all of our actions, our sacrifices, are just for show and not for Him. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner!

Psalms 50:3-6 (51:1-4)

Have mercy on me, O God, according to Your great mercy;
And according to the abundance of Your compassion, blot out my transgression.
Wash me thoroughly from my lawlessness
And cleanse me from my sin.
For I know my lawlessness,
And my sin is always before me.
Against You only have I sinned
And done evil in Your sight;
That You may be justified in Your words,
And overcome when You are judged.

Personal Challenge

As we, the Orthodox Christians, continue through our journey through Lent, we are continually reminded of how sinful we are and how much we need Ged’s mercy. Only through the saving grace of our Lord Jesus Christ can we be freed from the bondage of death and sin. But our redemption does not stop with His death and resurrection. It starts there and we must willingly and continually run to Him confessing our sins and seeking His forgiveness. If we do not recognize and acknowledge our sins then we are destined to repeat them and live in the swine pits as the prodigal son did. Lent is a time for us to examine our lives, identify our sins, and to confess them to our Lord and to one another seeking mercy, forgiveness, and cleansing. If I have offended anyone, either intentionally or unintentionally, please forgive me! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!

Psalms 45:12 (46:11)

The Lord of hosts is with us,
The God of Jacob is our protector.

Encouraging Words

The more we get to know our Lord, the more we realize that He is always with us. We realize that in those times that we feel like He has abandoned us, that is really us that have abandoned Him. We also learn that because He is always with us, He is also there to protect us out to guide us on this journey through life. Glory Be to God!

Psalms 45:11 (46:10)

Be still, and know that I am God;
I will be exalted among the nations;
I will be exalted in the earth.

Personal Challenge

Sometimes this is the hardest thing to do…being still. We get so caught up in this busy life and all of the trappings of the world around us that we forget to slow down, eliminate all of the noise, and be still in the presence of God. If we want to know Him, we will find Him in those still, quiet times. He does not care about fanfare and regalities. He cares about us and desires to walk with us in His garden as He did with Adam and Eve. Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!