Psalms 32:8 (31:8)

“I will give you understanding, and I will teach you in the way you should walk;
I will fix My eyes on you.”

Encouraging Words

When we give our lives over to our God, truly submit to Him and His will, we will see great things happen in our lives. These will not be great things as the world defines them, but great as God does. He will give us understanding. He will teach us in the way that we should walk, the way of life eternal. He will fix His eyes on us and will always be there with us and for us, as we traverse life’s journey. Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!

John 8:31-32

Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, “If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.”

Personal Challenge

It is important for us to note that Jesus tells us that to be His disciples we are to abide in His word, in Him. Are we focusing our lives to be followers of Jesus Christ or are we more focused on being Protestant, Catholic, or Orthodox? If we are truly following Him, yielding our will to His, spending time in prayer, studying the scriptures and worshiping Him with fellow believers, then we are abiding in Him and practicing that relationship in whichever Christian faith practice that He draws us to. That is how we will experience His freedom. Glory be to God!

Psalms 31:23-24 (30:24-25)

Love the Lord, all you His saints,
For the Lord seeks out truth,
And He repays those who act with great arrogance.
Be courageous, and let your heart be strengthened,
All who hope in the Lord.

Encouraging Words

As followers of Jesus Christ, we are His saints, His living saints, and representatives of His Good News for all of mankind. He knows the truth of what lies hidden in our hearts and will flush out any arrogance that comes between us and Him. Because our hope is in Him, we can be courageous and be strengthened in our heart, Praise be to God!

John 8:12

Then Jesus spoke to them again, saying, “I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life.”

Encouraging Words

Our world seems to be getting darker all the time. Throughout the history of mankind, all civilizations seem to devolve into a state of darkness and despair. However, over the last 2,000 years, Jesus has continued to shine through as the light of the world, the light of life. All that we need to do to be bathed in that light is follow Him. Glory be to God!

Psalms 31:1-5 (30:1-6)

In You, O Lord, I hope; may I not be ashamed forever;
In Your righteousness deliver and rescue me.
Incline Your ear to me;
Rescue me speedily;
Be to me a God who protects me,
And a house of refuge to save me.
For You are my strength and my refuge,
And for Your name’s sake You will guide and sustain me;
For You will bring me out from the snare they hid for me;
For You are my protector.
Into Your hands I shall entrust my spirit;
You redeemed me, O Lord God of truth.-

Encouraging Words

Why would you be a follower of Christ? What does Christianity have to offer you? I have heard these questions and many more like them. We all have something or someone that we put our faith in. It is how we are wired, or as a Christian would say, created. I put my faith in Jesus Christ, the Son of God, just as the author of this psalm did. Why? Because my God delivers and rescues me in His righteousness. He listens to me. He rescues me. He protects me. He is my house of refuge. My strength comes from Him. He guides and sustains me. He pulls me out of the snares of life that have been set for me. He is my protector. He redeems me. I am not ashamed to put my hope in Him and to entrust my spirit to Him. Glory be to God!

John 8:7-9

So when they continued asking Him, He raised Himself up and said to them, “He who is without sin among you, let him throw a stone at her first.” And again He stooped down and wrote on the ground. Then those who heard it, being convicted by their conscience, went out one by one, beginning with the oldest even to the last. And Jesus was left alone, and the woman standing in the midst.

Personal Challenge

Have we become a society that no longer has a moral compass, a godly conscience, to guide us? Worse yet, have those of us who proclaim to be followers of Christ lost so much of our understanding of who He is, and what He has taught us, that we are no different than the world around us? God created us to know the difference between right and wrong. He created us with the ability to seek the truth and run from a lie. As true followers of Christ we can learn even more about how to be beacons of light of His truth and shine it into the world. It is time for us to drop our stones and to walk away from those who are perpetrating lies and conspiracies for their own good. It is time for us to be convicted by our conscience and to do the right and godly things, Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!

Psalms 30:11-12 (29:12-13)

You turned my lamentation into dancing for me;
You tore up my sackcloth and clothed me with gladness,
That my glory may sing praise to You,
And not be pierced with sadness;
O Lord my God, I shall give thanks to You forever.

Personal Challenge

Throughout our lives we will have events that will alter the course of our life journey. Sometimes these are positive. Sometimes they are negative. In all cases, the course is changed and will never be restored. What we can do is turn to our Lord and seek His guidance on the new course. Only through Him will our lamentation turn into dancing and our sorrow be turned into gladness. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner!

John 7:37-38

On the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink. He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.”

Encouraging Words

It still amazes me that God chooses to use us His, followers, as His means to share His gospel, the good news. We are still sinners and so often mess up in being His emissaries. And yet, He not only trusts us to do this important job, but He gives us what we need to do in it. Jesus promised us that if we believe in Him rivers of living water will flow from our hearts bringing His power to quench the thirst of those in need. Glory be to God!