Author: David Short

Psalm 103:8 (102:8 LXX)

The Lord is compassionate and merciful,
Slow to anger, and abounding in mercy.

Encouraging Words…

What a blessing it is to serve a God who is loving, compassionate, and merciful. One of the ways that He shows these traits to us is by the people that He puts in our lives. Today my mother celebrates her birthday. She is a godly woman who has lived her life in a way so as to try to adopt these traits as her own. She is loving, compassionate, and merciful and I am truly blessed to be able to call her, “Mom!” I love you mom and pray that God will grant you many years!

Baruch 2:29-35 (LXX)

“If you do not obey My voice, truly this very great multitude of people will become a small number amidst all the nations where I shall scatter them. For I knew they would not obey Me, because they are a stiff-necked people. But in the land of their exile their hearts will turn back, and they will know that I am the Lord their God, and I will give them a heart and ears that obey; and they will praise Me in the land of their exile and will remember My name. They will turn from their stubbornness and their evil deeds; for they shall remember the way of their fathers, who sinned against the Lord. And I shall bring them again to the land I swore to their fathers—to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob—and they will rule over it, and I will multiply their numbers, and they will not be diminished. And I shall establish an everlasting covenant with them to be their God, and they will be My people; I shall never again remove My people Israel from the land I give to them.”

Encouraging Words…

We can read this passage looking back as a story of the exile of the Jewish nation…or we can read it looking forward as a promise, a prophecy of what is going to happen to the Church, the Bride of Christ. We live today in exile in a foreign land. We yearn to be with our Lord in His eternal kingdom, the one truly promised to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. And we are reminded here what we must do to prepare ourselves to make it to this kingdom and to bring as many of our neighbors with us as possible. We must stop living our lives in exile as if this is that best that their is and keep our hearts and minds focused on our true home. Glory be to God!

Lamentations 3:52-54

“You heard my voice;
Do not hide Your ears from my supplication.
You drew near at my call on the day I called upon You.
You said to me, ‘Do not fear.’
O Lord, You pleaded the case for my soul;
You redeemed my life.”

Encouraging Words…

Even though the hard times of our lives are usually due to the consequences of our own sins, our own propensity to turn our backs on our Lord, He still comes into our lives to redeem us and restore us into relationship with us. Our Lord Jesus Christ redeems us in His love, grace, and mercy. Thank You, Lord Jesus, Thank You!

Luke 8:16-18

“No one, when he has lit a lamp, covers it with a vessel or puts it under a bed, but sets it on a lampstand, that those who enter may see the light. For nothing is secret that will not be revealed, nor anything hidden that will not be known and come to light. Therefore take heed how you hear. For whoever has, to him more will be given; and whoever does not have, even what he seems to have will be taken from him.”

Personal Challenge…

Wow! Amazing how the scriptures read differently when pursuing them through Eastern lens. We have all heard the child’s song, “This little light of mine, I am going to let it shine!” I have always assumed that it was based on this passage, but there does not seem to be a connection here. Here we are told that the light is there to reveal those things in our lives that need to be removed, those hidden sins, thoughts, and desires. It is the light of Christ, illumined through the Holy Spirit, that will reveal those things that need cleaning. And the more of that light that we have shining into our lives, the more light we get to reveal even more that needs to be cleansed. Glory be to God! Shine on, sweet Jesus, shine on!

Psalm 146:1-2 (145:1-2 LXX)

Praise the Lord, O my soul.
I shall praise the Lord while I live;
I shall sing to my God as long as I exist.

Personal Challenge…

It is so easy to get trapped in the busy-ness of life and forget that we owe our entire existence to our Lord. Praise You, oh my Lord, for you are my life! You are my all! And I sing of Your glories, mercy, and grace!

Judith 8:14 (LXX)

You cannot plumb the depths of the heart of man, nor grasp the thoughts of his mind. How then do you expect to search out God, who made all these things, and come to understand His mind or comprehend His purpose? No, brothers! Do not provoke the Lord our God to anger.

Personal Challenge…

We, the modern, western world, are so arrogant thinking that we can force God into a box of our own definition and then thinking we understand all that He is and knows. We pursue knowledge with the intent to be all-knowing, when only God is. We pursue wealth and prestige with the intent to have others look up to us and therefore be worshipped when only God deserves worship. And yet God Himself became lower than us and became incarnate so that we might become eternal. God forgive us in our pride and arrogance thinking that we could know all of Your thoughts and ways. God help me to be humble before You and my fellow man so that as I fall down to my knees in humility others may see only You standing in my stead. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner!

O Lord Jesus Christ, thank You for blessing our marriage through the sacrament of Holy Matrimony.
When we stood together before Your Holy Altar, we invited You to come and bless us.
We claim Your Holy Presence in our marriage this day and every day.
You are the Source of Love.
Keep pouring Your love into us through the Holy Spirit.
Help us to stay close to You.
Help us to prefer one another in love,
To consider it a privilege to be able to serve one another
Until we see You face to face.
Help us to be kind to each other, tenderhearted,
Forgiving one another as You have forgiven us.
Never let the sun go down on our anger.
Grant us always to see our own faults
And not to judge each other.
Open our eyes to the best in each other.
Let patience reign supreme in our hearts.
Give us hope to brighten life,
And joy to lighten sorrow.
May our home be a haven where spiritual values are treasured and
Holy principles are modeled.
Gladden us with Your grace and peace that with one heart we may
Praise and glorify You.

Amen.

Happy Anniversary Laura…

Luke 9:23-24

Then He said to them all, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will save it.”

Personal Challenge…

If we take the word of God literally then we will read this verse as saying that we must die physically for Christ when the situation to that occurs and not any other way. But losing our lives can, and must, happen every moment of the day. We must develop a practice of putting God and others before ourselves…denying our wants, desires, and even needs sacrificially for Him. This is taking up our cross daily, this is denying ourselves, this is dying for Christ. Our salvation is a never ending process and not a one time event. Glory be to God!