THE LOVE OF MONEY

1 Timothy 6:9-10

But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and harmful lusts which drown men in destruction and perdition. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, for which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.

Personal Challenge

It is important to understand that throughout the Scriptures, as well as the entire history of Judaism and Christianity, there has been nothing in the teachings that say that money or wealth is bad. To the contrary, it is taught that wealth, when used properly is a good gift from God. It is the love of money that is what leads to corruption and departure from the graces of God. Hoarding, desiring more, abusing others either with it or in the pursuit of it, and a myriad of other mindsets and behaviors related to wealth are what we are seeing rampant in society and culture today, including within institutions that call themselves Christian. This never bodes well for the individuals or the societies that they build on these practices. Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord have mercy!

LIGHT IN THE DARKNESS

Psalms 111:4 LXX (112:4)

For the upright, light springs up in darkness,
For he is merciful, compassionate, and righteous.

Encouraging Words

It does not take much light to beat back the oppression of darkness. We are reminded here by the Psalmist that if we live upright lives then God will shine His uncreated light into the darkness of this world that surrounds us. He does this out of His love for us and helps us in our attempts to be upright by also blessing us with mercy, compassion, and righteousness. Glory be to God!

WISDOM AND UNDERSTANDING

Psalms 110:10 LXX (111:10)

The beginning of wisdom is the fear of the Lord;
A good understanding is in all who practice it.
His praise continues unto ages of ages.

Personal Challenge

Worldly wisdom and knowledge is of no value if it is not tempered with godly wisdom. We gain our godly wisdom through yielding our will to God’s and humbling ourselves before Him. He gives us the wisdom that surpasses all earthly knowledge. As we practice exercising this godly wisdom we begin to develop an understanding that is beyond this earth. As we follow our Lord’s leading in this way we will praise Him unto ages of ages. Glory be to God!

LOOK AROUND

Psalms 110:4 LXX (111:4)

He made a remembrance of His wonders;
The Lord is merciful and compassionate;

Encouraging Words

Our Lord who is merciful and compassionate has made it easy for us to recognize Him and His handiwork. We must be willing to open our eyes, both of our body and our heart, to see His wonders around us. He has written His character and love on all aspects of nature, whether in the beauty of a cloud, the chirp of a bird, the cooing of a baby, or a plethora of events going on around us every moment of every day. This is His remembrance of His wonders for us, His creation. Glory be to God!

MERCY

Psalms 108:21-22 LXX (109:21-22)

But You, O Lord, O Lord, deal mercifully with me for Your name’s sake,
For Your mercy is good.
Save me, for I am poor and needy,
And my heart is troubled within me.

Encouraging Words

One of the traits that we have been created with is the ability to show mercy to another. This is part of our being created in the image of God because He deals with us mercifully all the time. His mercy is good and ours can be too. We have a choice to humble ourselves before God and others so that we can give sincere mercy or to abandon mercy and be harsh and self-serving. We must constantly choose wisely. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner!

Saint of the Week

St. Cyprian of Carthage

SING AND BE GLAD

Psalms 103:33-34 LXX (104:33-34)

I will sing to the Lord all my life;
I will sing to my God as long as I exist;
May my words be pleasing to Him,
And I shall be glad in the Lord.

Personal Challenge

Life can be tough. Sometimes it weighs heavily upon us. We can manage these tough times by singing unto the Lord. We can sing praises. We can sing supplications. We can even sing dirges that elicit our challenges. Singing unto our Lord opens our hearts to receive the gladness that He has for us. Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!

MERCY AND RIGHTEOUSNESS

Psalms 102:17-18 LXX (103:17-18)

But the mercy of the Lord is from age to age upon those who fear Him,
And His righteousness upon children’s children,
To such as keep His covenant
And remember His commandments, to do them.

Command With a Promise

The Psalmist reminds us that if we fear God and keep His covenant then He will respond with mercy and righteousness. When we fear God we are not afraid of Him or cowering under His greatness. We are admiring Him with awe and respect for who He is. Keeping His covenant is yielding our will to His will by loving Him and loving our neighbor. The promise fulfilled by living this way is that we will see, and receive, His mercy for ages to come. He will pour out His righteousness upon us and our children and their children. This is the God that we choose to follow. Glory be to Him.

COMPASSION AND FORGIVENESS

Psalms 102:10-13 LXX (103:10-13)

He did not deal with us according to our sins,
Nor reward us according to our transgressions;
For according to the height of heaven from earth,
So the Lord reigns in mercy over those who fear Him;
As far as the east is from the west,
So He removes our transgressions from us.
As a father has compassion on his children,
So the Lord has compassion on those who fear Him,

Encouraging Words

Compassion and forgiveness are so important to have in our lives. God models this for us over and over. We are constantly the benefactors of this love from Him. However, it does not stop here. He expects us to show compassion and forgiveness to those in our lives. Glory be to God!

COMPASSIONATE AND MERCIFUL

Psalms 102:8 LXX (103:8)

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

Encouraging Words

The God that followers of Christ worship, the God of the Holy Scriptures, both Old Testament and New Testament is compassionate and merciful. He is not the god that is worshipped by Christian nationalist and MAGA-minded people. Their god is angry and judgmental who hates the immigrants and those who don’t fit their vision of their definition of normal. God, the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, loves and cares for every human being, regardless of their color, mindset, political belief, or any other measure of humanness. He desires that His followers feed the hungry, clothe the naked, welcome the foreigner and immigrant, take care of the orphan and the widow, and love everyone. Living this way is the only way we can proclaim to be His followers. Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!