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Psalms 3:4-7

But You, O Lord, are my protector,
My glory and the One who lifts up my head.
I cried to the Lord with my voice,
And He heard me from His holy hill.
I lay down and slept;
I awoke, for the Lord will help me.
I will not be afraid of ten thousands of people
Who set themselves against me all around.

Encouraging Words

I am not alone as I journey through life. My Lord, my Father, the Giver of Life is always with me in the midst of my journey. No matter what happens, whether it be a stressful situation at work, an unexpected financial hardship, an argument with a loved one, you name it, I know that I can rely on my Lord to walk through the situation with me. This does not mean that I can ignore the situation. In most, if not all cases, I am a key contributor to the situation and because of that, I have to work through the consequences of my choices. Sometimes these consequences are as painful as the situation. But I must own my responsibility and work through to a point of resolution. The beauty of being a child of God is that He will be there with me as I do the right thing. Glory be to God!

Genesis 3:7

Then the eyes of the two were opened, and they knew they were naked. So they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves coverings.

Personal Challenge

Doesn’t this verse show the true nature of sin? There is certainly something to be said, positively, for the value of protecting the innocence of our children, as well as for ourselves. Once a sinful thing is made known to a person, the enemy forever has a foothold in their life. Adam and Eve were innocent and had no clue that they were living naked in the garden. They had the light of God clothing them and protecting them. But when they followed the temptations of the enemy and had their eyes opened then everything charged. There is so much in this world that is trying to make it into our hearts and minds to win us over to worldly ways. It is imperative that we guard and protect our hearts, minds, eyes, and ears from being bombarded by those things that will lead us away from our Lord’s side and out of His light. It is even more important that we protect our children and our children’s children from this bombardment. We cannot afford to get numbed to the things of the world and end up sacrificing the things of God.

Psalm 1:1-3

Blessed is the man
Who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly,
Nor stands in the way of sinners,
Nor sits in the seat of the troublesome;
But his will is in the law of the Lord,
And in His law he meditates day and night.
He shall be like a tree
Planted by streams of waters,
That produces its fruit in its season;
And his leaf shall not wither,

Genesis 1:5b

God called the light Day; the darkness He called Night; and there was evening and morning, one day.

Encouraging Words

Even at the very beginning of creation, God had us in His mind. He is all powerful and could have created everything at once. However, knowing that we, the crown of Has creation, would be finite and limited, He chose to break His creation down into finite increments so that we could follow in His footsteps. By giving us a day, evening, and morning, He gave us a cycle that we could live within. We can do our work throughout the day and then rest through the evening as we prepare for our next day. This is no accident. God designed creation to work in such a way that we could easily function within that same cycle of work, rest, work, rest until we reach that seventh day of full rest on the Sabbath. This shows me just how much God loves us. Enough to set the entire rhythm and capability of His creation so that it will support us, sustain us, and bless us. Glory be to God?

2 Timothy 4:18

And the Lord will deliver me from every evil work and preserve me for His heavenly kingdom. To Him be glory forever and ever. Amen!

Encouraging Words

When Jesus told His disciples that He would be with them, even to the end of the ages, He was not just speaking idle words. When He prayed for us and asked that our lives guarded, protected and joined together in unity, He was not just doing that for the show. Jesus is our Great Shepherd! He is our Mighty King! He keeps His promises. We can run to Him in the midst of every trial and tribulation knowing that He will take us in His arms and deliver us and preserve us. It is never Him that departs from us when the going gets tough, but it is us who try to deal with life on our own and therefore the ones who depart from Him. What a blessing it is to be able to go through life knowing that the creator, the Everlasting, the Omnipotent, loves me so much that He gave us His only Son so that we would never be separated from Him, no matter how much I mess up. Glory be to God!

Titus 1:1

Paul, a bondservant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ, according to the faith of God’s elect and the acknowledgment of the truth which accords with godliness,

Personal Challenge

The concept of being a bondservant is a concept that we are not familiar with today. Here is the note about bondservants from the Orthodox Study Bible…

In the Roman world, a bondservant (Gr. doulos) was in an unenviable position: he had no name, rights, will, or even time of his own. But in the world of the OT, a bondservant was often the king’s right-hand man—one of the most honored titles. Moses and other OT prophets were the bondservants of the Lord. Paul, of course, knew of both usages. An apostle, “one sent out,” was a New Covenant equivalent to a bondservant.

Paul had both the old world and the new world definitions in his thoughts when he wrote this letter to Titus. He knew that his life was fully given over to his Lord and that he would do anything or go anywhere for his Lord. As I look at my own life and my desire to be a good Christian, a man after God’s own heart, I must admit that I am nowhere near living my life this way. What a goal to strive for. What a journey to launch on. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner,

1 Timothy 6:20-21

O Timothy! Guard what was committed to your trust, avoiding the profane and idle babblings and contradictions of what is falsely called knowledge— by professing it some have strayed concerning the faith.

Grace be with you. Amen.

Personal Challenge…

Those of us who claim to be followers of Christ have a daunting responsibility. We have been entrusted with the teachings of our Lord and those whom He has established over the centuries to by our leaders and guides. If we abuse these teachings or try to change and adapt them to fit our own knowledge, or hide them away so that no one else can receive them, then we have betrayed that trust. We are responsible and accountable for those around us that we have lead astray from the faith. We do this sometimes by proclaiming false interpretations of Gods’ truth. What is worse than this, though, are the times that I have said things or done things that have caused those around me to deny Christ because I have represented Him poorly. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner!

Ephesians 4:31-32

Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice. And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you.

Personal Challenge

Righteousness is not something that just happens to us or given to us just because we claim to be a follower of Christ. Righteousness comes into our lives through the work that we do to become righteous and godly. We have to work diligently to remove bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, evil speaking, and malice from our lives, especially our hearts, This is never easy work either. We must set ourselves aside and strive to be kind to one another, tenderhearted, and forgiving. this too is difficult and challenging. When Jesus told us to love our neighbor as we love ourselves, this is what He meant. This is the path to righteousness and theosis that we are all on. This means that when I see something going on around me that offends me or frustrates me that I look for the opportunity to exhibit righteousness. Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!