Readings Today: Psalms 94-96, Galatians 2

There is so much about God in these passages and it blesses my soul to learn more and more about who He is. Here is a list of what I have seen regarding God. I will further elaborate as the Spirit leads me.

1.) He is God of vengeance
2.) He is judge of the earth
3.) He is Creator
4.) He chastens when necessary
5.) He rebukes if needed
6.) He teaches mankind knowledge
7.) He knows the thoughts of mankind
8.) He teaches
9.) He disciplines us
10.) He will not abandon His people
11.) He brings judgment
12.) He is our helper
13.) He is loving and kind
14.) He calms the soul
15.) He is our stronghold
16.) He is our refuge
17.) He is the rock of our salvation
18.) He is a great God
19.) He is a great King
20.) He is above all
21.) He owns the earth
22.) He is our Maker
23.) He loathed Israel for 40 years because of their disobedience
24.) He is to be feared above all gods
25.) Splendor and majesty are before Him
26.) Strength and beauty are in His sanctuary
27.) He reigns
28.) He judges fairly
29.) He is coming to judge the earth
30.) He gives grace

Yesterday I elaborated on each of His attributes. Today I want to elaborate more on OUR RESPONSE to who He is. In these Psalms David understood who God was. David's enemies were coming against him and He attributed God as his avenger. He acknowledged that God had been his help and without Him he would not have made it through. One of the passages that blessed me was when David said, "when my anxious thoughts multiply within me, Your consolations delight my soul." 

We all get anxiety from time to time. Some struggle more than others. Some use medication to help calm their anxieties. Anxiety can be very debilitating and overpowering. Here David mentions his anxiety "multiplying within me". The Hebrew word here for multiply here is rob, pronounced simply robe. It means an abundance, greatness and numerous. 

The word for consolations is tanchum pronounced tan-khoom and it means compassion, solace. It is meant to convey being comforted and bringing calm. God does this for us. When anxiety overwhelms us we can turn to Him for solace and He will bring calm to our soul. But the thought that comes to my mind is we have to allow Him to and believe and trust He is the answer. 

David admitted that God had been his stronghold; his refuge. The enemies of David were after him. He had reached the end of his rope many times. He battled extreme anxiety over it. But all through the worst of his battles he chose to trust God. He didn't just trust Him. He knew and believed by faith that God would take care of not only him, but his enemies as well.

David had a heart for God; a man after God owns heart. He responds to who God is in the middle of the toughest of battles. Here is a list of how to respond to who God is.

1.) Sing for joy to the LORD
2.) Shout joyfully to the rock of our salvation
3.) Let us come before His presence with thanksgiving
4.) Let us shout joyfully to Him with psalms
5.) Come, let us worship and bow down
6.) Let us kneel before the LORD our Maker
7.) Sing to the LORD a new song
8.) Sing to the LORD, all the earth
9.) Sing to the LORD, bless His name
10.) Proclaim good tidings of His salvation from day to day
11.) Tell of His glory among the nations
12.) Tell of His wonderful deeds among all the peoples
13.) Great is the LORD and greatly to be praised
14.) Ascribe to the LORD glory and strength
15.) Ascribe to the LORD the glory of His name
16.) Bring an offering and come into His courts
17.) Worship the LORD in holy attire (the splendor of holiness)
18.) Tremble before Him, all the earth
19.) Say among the nations, "The LORD reigns"

When I look at this list I reflect on the fact that NONE of us here on earth truly understand what David understood about God and His sovereignty. David's heart was so filled with gratitude. He couldn't give enough glory to the LORD. We don't even take the time to sing even one song to the LORD most days. We don't proclaim Him enough! I know for me my insecurities get the best of me. But that is only a sign of the pride in my heart. Nothing should stop me from proclaiming Him more in my life. Nothing should stop me from giving Him praise and honor for everything He has done for me. 

We are selfish people. We bring God into our little box here and there and heaven forbid we step out of our comfort zones. Our lives are filled with so many excuses as to why we can or cannot praise Him each and every day. A person can work 10 hours a day and use that excuse. But even while we are working we can somehow muster up a small thank-you to God in the midst, can't we? If we can take a bathroom break then we can find even a few minutes to pray in the midst of our day. Lunch time? Break time? But what I see is most people take that time to get on their phones and check facebook or whatever else they do. Point is that NONE of us have an excuse not to give God the glory due His name. David is an example of what a heart for God is like. It is not selfish. It is God-feared and God-focused.

I have reflected on all of this first and foremost to speak to my own heart. Do I truly desire a relationship with God that David had? Or am I content with the hum-drum of daily life and bringing God out of my box when I am ready? Many insights to ponder from today's reading.

O God Most High... Maker of heaven and earth...God of my salvation and Lord of my life... I give you praise today. I bow at Your feet for truly You humble me and cause my heart to seek You more and more as I read Your word.  I fail you every single day, Father God and my heart grieves over it. Father, I desire to have the passion that David had in his heart for You. Teach me, LORD... show me. Purge the evil thoughts of my heart and transform my mind to think as You would have me to think. Help me, Father to bring You glory. Purge the selfishness out of my heart, O God. I receive Your forgiveness for my sins and mistakes and I thank You for calming my anxious thoughts as You did for David. I submit to You today my entire being to change me and mold me into the woman you would have me to be. I bless Your holy name. Amen.

Who God Is Based on Psalm 91-93

Today's reading is from Psalm 91-93 and 1 Peter 5. One way I have found to enhance my walk with God is to pay attention to where I put my focus and allow His Spirit to lead and guide me. It is not always easy for the flesh truly enjoys to rule over me. One way to stay focused on God and not myself is as I read His Word I find first and foremost a question I ask myself is, what have I learned about God or Christ in the Word today. In order to have a good relationship with someone one must get to know that person. The same is with God. The only way to grow closer to God is to get to know Him and the way to get to know Him is through His Word. As I go about my day I must keep in the forefront of my mind and heart WHO God is. By doing that I know WHO it is Who leads and guides me and WHO it is I can trust with my whole heart. I cannot fully trust someone I do not know. It is easy to say we believe IN God. We live knowing He is there. BUT...without a relationship with Him believing IN God stops right there. It is mere religion and formality. A real relationship with God is not only believing IN God because He is there,  but believing HE IS GOD. He is LORD. He is sovereign over our lives. He is trustworthy. But many times we do not live as though we KNOW HIM and know that He is trustworthy. We try to live life on our own merits without giving it all to Him. And that is something I am not ok with. I don't want to live the formality of the Christian life with just a belief IN God. I want to truly KNOW Him. So my focus in my Bible time will be first and foremost WHO God is and getting to know Him more as LORD of my life. 

I will begin with my first reading in the Old Testament in Psalms 91-93. So what I have learned today in these passages about God are the following.

Psalm 91:1-2
In these verses there are four names of God: 
     Most High (Elyon -Sovereign Ruler)
     Almighty (Shaddai -All-Powerful)
     LORD (Jehovah - the existing One)
     God (Elohiym - the One true God)

He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say to the LORD, "My refuge and my fortress, My God, in whom I trust!"

Without typing out the entire Psalms I will list based upon my reading of these verses, my understanding of WHO God is or WHAT God does.

1.) He is my security.
2.) He is my refuge; my protector.
3.) He is trustworthy
4.) He is my deliverer
5.) He is faithful
6.) He punishes evil
7.) He provides guardian angels for protection
8.) He answers prayer
9.) He is my rescuer
10. He provides salvation
11.) He will not abandon me
12.) He is loving and kind
13.) He is creator
14.) He is forever
15.) He causes the righteous to flourish
16.) He is upright
17.) There is no unrighteousness in Him
18.) He reigns
19.) He has clothed and girded Himself with strength
20.) He firmly established the world
21.) His throne is established from old
22.) He is everlasting
23.) He controls the waters of the earth
24.) He is holy

Now I will reflect upon all of these attributes and how I can trust Him because of them.

Because He is my security I can have confidence knowing He is keeping me in the palm of His hand. He will never let me go and that is very comforting considering all the evil in this world. 

Because He is my refuge I can go to Him and rest when the noise of this world invades my heart and mind. People are untrustworthy, but God is my refuge when people hurt me or betray me.

Because He is trustworthy it doesn't matter if people are not. The only One who truly matters with my heart is Him. 

Because He is my deliverer I know He will not leave me in a sinful state when I sin. He delivers me from myself. He delivers me from the things in my heart and mind that are ungodly or with things I struggle with. I just have to trust Him and give it all to Him.

Because He is faithful I can trust Him 100%. Nobody on this earth is faithful to anyone or anything. People hurt us and disappoint us, but He is always faithful to keep His Word to us.

Because He punishes evil I can rest in the fact that I do not have to take on that task. It is easy for us humans to want to strike back. Make them pay, so-to-speak. Take revenge. Why should I do that knowing God will take care of it for me?

Because He provides guardian angels for protection I can feel safe. I never really stopped to ponder having a "guardian angel". I have to wonder how many times I was saved from disaster or even death because of this protection from Him. 

Because He answers prayer I can feel confident when I pray. I can trust that no matter what prayer I pray He will answer in some way. Many times I struggle with prayer. Sometimes it is hard to find the words to convey. But in those times I just sit at His feet because He already knows my heart without me saying one word. He knows when I struggle to pray and why. 

Because He is my rescuer I know I can turn to Him for help anytime. He will rescue me from the things that bring harm to my life; including my own selfish and wrong decisions.

Because He provides salvation I know that one day I will see Him face to face and leave this cruel world for a better place.

Because He will not abandon me I am secure in my faith. There were times in my life I abandoned Him when going through dark times. He never ever abandoned me. He waited patiently for me to learn my lessons and come back to Him. Just like the prodigal son.

Because He is loving and kind I know that I can trust Him with my heart. I can also learn from Him how to pattern that; how to show love and kindness to others.

Because He is Creator I never have to wonder where I came from or where I am going.

Because He will exist forever so will I.

Because He causes the righteous to flourish I can take comfort in that He wants the best for me. He wants me to flourish in my life and not bring me harm.

Because He is upright I never have to worry He will do me wrong. Living in this world people hurt us and do evil. God is upright and there is no evil in Him so I never have to worry about God hurting me or treating me like some people do.

Because there is no unrighteousness in Him I can trust in His goodness and faithfulness. He will always do what is right for me and by me.

Because He reigns I understand He is LORD over my life always and forever.

Because He has clothed and girded Himself with strength He is strong enough to carry me in all my weaknesses and when I lose strength. I can trust in His strength when I am weak.

Because He firmly established the world I can trust in His sovereignty. He is Creator and owner of this world and nothing happens without Him allowing it. 

Because His throne was established from old (always) and He is everlasting,  I can trust Him as King of my life. He always existed and will forever exist. I will never have to worry that God will not be there.

Because He controls the waters of the earth it is proof to me of His Sovereignty. He is always in control of everything and every situation. So when I go through hard times or hard situations, though it may hurt, I can rest in the fact that He knows and understands and He is allowing it all for His purpose and sometimes for my growth.

Because He is holy I can have reverence for Him and learn to be holy as He is holy. I cannot compare to His holiness nor will I ever fully understand the magnitude of it. But I can choose to respect it and live accordingly. 

I will not go into 1 Peter 5 today as this has gotten rather lengthy. 

Father God...You who are Mighty and righteous. Your lovingkindness is great and You are trustworthy and faithful. I give you praise for who You are. You are worthy of all glory and praise. Thank You for Your word today and for showing me more of who You are. Help me, Father God, to use these attributes you have shown me today in my daily life. When life gets tough and hard times come, help me, Father to remember who You are and that I can fully trust You in ever area of my life. I acknowledge I sin every single day and I thank You for Your forgiveness and I take comfort in the blood of Jesus that has taken away all of my sins... past, present, and future. Lead and guide me today and always and help me to walk in Your Spirit and truth always. Amen.

 Psalm 1

Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, 
Nor stands in the path of sinners,
Nor sits in the seat of the scornful;

But his delight is in the law of the LORD,
And in His law he meditates day and night.

He shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water,
That brings forth its fruit in its season,

Whose leaf also shall not wither,
And whatever he does shall prosper.

The ungodly are not so,
But are like chaff which the wind drives away.

Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment,
Nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous.

For the LORD knows the way of the righteous,
But the way of the ungodly shall perish.

The greatest privilege we have as Christians is to worship and praise God which the Psalms teach us how to do. In verse 1, it says how blessed we are we when we choose wise counsel. A life question would be, where do I take counsel from? Wicked counsel in our lives produces sin. If we listen to the ungodly counsel it could lead us astray and against the will of God. In this world today, most people do not walk in godly counsel, but in counsel from wicked people who are against God. 

When it says "man" in verse 1, it speaks of a person. The comparison here is the godly and the ungodly. When it mentions "walking" the context is "walking beside, standing with, or sitting beside". The righteous person here speaks of one who is in the world, but unaffected by the world.

In verse 2, it mentions delight being in the law of the LORD. And in His law he meditates day and night. A life question would be, what do I delight in? What is the forefront of my life? What do I take pleasure in? How do I feel about the Holy Scriptures? 

When a person has their delight in the things or the way of God they do not find enjoyment with wicked people, but finds enjoyment in the things of God, particularly the Word of God. 

When it speaks of the law of the LORD here it is referring to the Pentateuch, which are the first five books of the Old Testament. The Hebrew word for law expresses the idea of God pointing out the path for life in fellowship with Him. 

Meditates means "to mumble or to speak to oneself". Biblical meditation is focusing the mind on Scripture. 

He shall be like a tree... The tree has been firmly planted, well-watered and is valuable and productive. The righteous person is valuable and productive to God. God finds pleasure in the righteous person. 

The ungodly are like chaff... the ungodly have no stability.

The path... there are two ways to live; two choices in life to make. Only one way leads to God. Where it says the the LORD KNOWS the way of the righteous... it means the righteous person has a deep commitment and relationship with the LORD. They are walking in fellowship with God and refusing to embrace the ungodly things in life. The focus for the righteous person is pleasing God and God's focus is on the them in a personal relationship. 

Personal Reflection

Sometimes my "delight in the LORD" is faulty. Hard times come and just like anyone else it is easy to take my focus off of God and focus on the situation at hand. It is easy for a Christian to say they trust God. But how is that trust? Is it trusting God fully at all times 100%? Or is my trust like the double-minded person, here and there or for specific times only? If my delight remains on the LORD and the things of God, then when the challenges of life come, I will be grounded and be able to remain steadfast trusting Him in every single situation. My desire is to be like that tree planted and is standing firm and prospering and producing good fruit.

Today's meditation was a combination of my own personal thoughts and some Bible study along with it and using study notes to reflect. Thank you God for Your Word and for helping me to examine where my delight truly is. Amen. 

One of the books in my readings today is from Lamentations. Jeremiah was crying out to the Lord because the people would not repent and he was feeling the repercussions of it. He was pleading with God. In the midst of the darkness he was feeling he focused on God and comforted himself by remembering what God had done for him. 

Lamentations 3:20 - 26

Surely my soul remembers and is bowed down within me. 
This I recall to my mind, therefore I have hope. 
The LORD'S lovingkindness indeed never cease,
For His compassions never fail. 
They are new every morning;
Great is Your faithfulness.
"The LORD is my portion," says my soul,
"Therefore I have hope in Him."
The LORD is good to those who wait for Him,
To the person who seeks Him.
It is good that he waits silently for the salvation of the LORD.

All of us go through hard times; some severe and some fleeting. Sometimes we may feel like God is not there and His presence is void in our lives. Sometimes it feels like God is just silent and we will never hear from Him. Sometimes our own darkness and pain can cloud us spiritually and we find ourselves not wanting to pray or study His word. I am encouraged by Jeremiah here in that his focus was on the goodness of God even in the midst of the dark times he was facing. And what is worse for him was that he was right with God and the suffering he was going through was a result of the people. He did cry out in agony, yet here he is focusing on the blessings of God. I wish I had the faith Jeremiah had here. I find myself in hard times sometimes pulling away and retreating to self-pity. My desire for prayer and the Word are affected because i have allowed myself to focus on the hard time rather than trusting God fully and remaining joyful. 

Those words in this passage "surely my soul remembers"  ministered to me as a reminder that when hard times come to look back and allow my soul to remember the blessings and the times God has come through over and over. It also says because he recalled to his mind what God had already done, it brought him hope. And then such comforting words came after that.

The LORD'S lovingkindness (his mercy) NEVER cease. It never stops coming. God does run out of it. This is so comforting!

For His compassions never fail. They are new every morning. Such comfort knowing that every single day I awake to face my day... no matter what I face... God is compassionate with me. He doesn't withhold it from me. 

Great is Your faithfulness. Even when I am not faithful His is great. There are many things in my life that I am not faithful to God in. Sin clouds our minds and unless we live in a constant state of repentance we will fail Him every single day. I cannot say great is my faithfulness to Him because I am a flawed human being. Only God's faithfulness is great.

The LORD is good to those who wait for Him, to the person who seeks Him.

A lot of things in life involve us just waiting on God. How many prayers do we pray that we feel goes unanswered and we give up praying about it? We are to remain faithful to Him in the waiting. God does not give up on us and neither should we give up on God in even the tiniest areas or our lives.

... to the person who seeks Him...

What exactly is involved in "seeking the LORD"? I looked this up in the Hebrew meaning. One of the meanings is to ask; specifically to worship. To seek deity in prayer and worship.

I found that very interesting because normally when you think of the word seek you think of inquiring about something or going after something. But the meaning here is more than just asking or inquiring, but it involves the method of seeking God. IN PRAYER AND WORSHIP.

When asked the question, do you pray and worship? One can say of course I do. Do you seek God? We can flippantly say of course we do. But the question for myself is: Do I truly seek Him through prayer and worship? How is my prayer life? Do I live my life worshiping God on a daily basis? If I am not, then I am not truly seeking the LORD. 

This also brings me to the thought of what do we seek? A sports fan might seek the next game diligently. It becomes their passion. Or perhaps a person will seek fame and fortune and become blinded to what is truly important. My point is we seek wholeheartedly what our heart's desire is. 

We would have much stronger and less worldly Christians if we truly sought the LORD diligently and committed doing this through diligent study of His word and prayer. 

Final heart check question for me: What am I passionate about? What am I seeking? If my answer is not the LORD then I am committing idolatry because anything above Him is just that. 

Morning Devotion

Readings: Jeremiah 7:1- 8:22, Psalm 118:1-4, Proverbs 27:5-6, Colossians 2:1-23

Today's reading in Jeremiah is where Jeremiah gives his first sermon to a backslidden Israel. The Lord's rebuke is strong because the people have forsaken Him and are worshiping idols. God's wrath is manifest as well as His grieving heart. I cannot fathom how God grieves over His people, but I can fathom the grief I feel when people I love turn their backs on God. Especially with my own adult children. As a parent you spend years trying your best to raise them up to love the Lord and to be examples to them of Christ. Some turn their backs on God and live in rebellion against Him. Such is the case of my own adult children. I pray for them continually and they keep getting further and further away from God. I use to blame myself. I use to question where did I go wrong? Where did my husband and I go wrong? Could we have been better examples? Of course we could have! But this does not justify the heart of why our children have chosen to live a life apart from Christ. John 6:44 says, 'No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him...' All this time focusing on what I did wrong was me trying to be the Holy Spirit in their lives. Father God has to draw them to Himself. It is not any effort or mistake on my part. If the Father draws them, they will seek Him and receive salvation. They cannot run from God Almighty when He draws them to Himself. When He draws them they receive salvation. Did they make a "so-called" decision at some point in their lives? Maybe they did. Was it genuine? Only God knows. But I firmly believe that when one is truly drawn by God and receives salvation it is forever. There is no turning back to the world or walking away from God. If the Spirit is leading, one cannot walk away from God. Yes, we have flesh. We make mistakes. And we may taste the world and not walk as we should in Christ. But never do we forsake Him if we are truly born-again. And a truly born-again Christian cannot love his sin and not repent and turn from them. Not if they are drawn by God. So many people walk around living life apart from God and are deceived into thinking just because they "made a decision" as a kid, they are forever saved. Salvation is not about making a decision. The Bible says Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved. The word believe does not mean make a lip-sync decision and then live your life like you please. A truly born-again believer makes a life-time commitment to Christ. No turning back. No living like you please. All throughout life one may fall short along their spiritual journey, but never ever is there a forsaking. One cannot be unborn again. My New Testament reading today has a verse that sums this all up.

Colossians 2:6-7

As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, rooted and built up in Him and established in the faith, as you have been taught, abounding in it with thanksgiving.

I love how this begins. 

As we have received Christ Jesus the Lord.
So walk in Him.
Rooted and built up in Him.
Established in the faith.
As you have been taught.
Abounding in it with thanksgiving.

Looking back on the night God drew me to Him and I embraced His love and grace and was saved, I remember how I received Him. I hadn't had any concept whatsoever of God and a relationship with Him. But one night at a Baptist revival "I was taught" what the gospel was all about. In one night only, my life was changed. When I received Him I was full of joy and peace and love for Him I had never experienced. This verse tells us to continue to walk in Christ just as we first received Him. We are to be rooted and built up in Christ as our journey continues and we grow. We are to become ESTABLISHED in our faith. NO TURNING BACK. And we are to always abound with thanksgiving that God drew us. He chose us. He doesn't stop drawing us because once we are saved we have the Holy Spirit. If the Holy Spirit is truly in us we simply cannot forsake the Lord.

Almighty Father God,
Thank you for your Word and for reminding me today of Your great love for me. I am beyond thankful that You chose me and saved me from the pit of destruction. I am thankful that I have been truly born-again. Thank you for reminding me of the day you called me to salvation. Help me O God, to walk in that joy I felt that day. Thank you for helping me to grow day by day in this journey called life. May I always have a thankful heart and be mindful of who You are in my life. Amen.

 Morning Devotion

Readings: Jeremiah 1:1-2:37, Psalm 116:5-14, Proverbs 27:1, Philippians 3:1-21

Jeremiah 1:5a
Before I formed you in the womb I knew you...

In this verse the LORD is speaking to Jeremiah and letting him know that He had a plan for Jeremiah even before he was born. He had planned for Jeremiah to be a prophet to proclaim a message to backslidden Israel.

God did not just know Jeremiah before he formed in the womb, but he also knew us as well. God had a special purpose for Jeremiah and set him apart from the time he was conceived. God has a purpose for each and every one of us as well. God knew before I was conceived that I would choose Him. God granted me faith to believe upon the Lord Jesus Christ. God knew the age I would believe. He knew what my circumstances would be. 

What is interesting to me is it says here before I formed you. Before we have bodies and are put in our mother's womb, God knows us. We have a soul that existed before we were even formed. While I will never fully understand all of this concept, it really puts into perspective how important we are to God. We may not believe that our lives matter or we may think we don't have a purpose in life. But God did not  make a mistake when he formed us. 

And what is sad is people who do not think twice about abortion. Life is more than our bodies. Life begins with God and a soul. And wicked human beings today want to try and destroy the life God has formed to bring into this world. 

It is very encouraging to me knowing God has a plan and a purpose for me before I was even formed in the womb. I have days that I sometimes feel discouraged due to the handicaps I have. The health issues I have faced all of my life sometimes causes me to question my existence. I find myself asking God what purpose do you have for me? The enemy comes in and tries to convince me I am of no use because of my limited mobility. I have to recognize the lies of the enemy and allow God to wash those thoughts out of my mind. 

2 Corinthians 10:5 Casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ.

Surprisingly the answer on how to do this is also found in today's reading.

Philippians 3:13b-14
But one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.

I can sit back and dwell on the past and how I got to the point of being handicapped and allow the enemy to discourage me and tell me lies. Or I can choose to forget past mistakes and reach forward to what God has in store for me no matter what handicaps I face. He has a plan even when our bodies are limited. We are never useless to God unless we choose to be. 

God can and does use every single person on this earth for His purposes. We may not see it or know it. Many believe they are in control of their own lives. But God is sovereign and He has control. 

So in conclusion, I am in awe knowing that God knew me personally before I was born. He knew the handicaps I would face in life. Yet He chose me.

Gracious Heavenly Father,
Thank you for my life. Thank you for choosing me to be your servant. Amen.

Morning Devotion

These devotions I post will not be my usual inductive bible study nor any sort of expository study of His Word. It is simply devotions; whether it be in the morning or evening or the wee hours of the night. It is meant for me to reflect on life itself and see things in His Word that speak to me personally or give me something in life to reflect on; hence the word devotion. For my daily reading I use The MacArthur Daily Bible which John MacArthur designed for the Bible to be read in one year. Each day there is a reading from the Old Testament, Psalms, Proverbs and the New Testament.

Reading for today: Isaiah 65-66, Psalm 116:1-4, Proverbs 26:28, Philippians 2:1-30

Isaiah 65:2-3a

I have stretched out My hands all day long to a rebellious people, who walk in a way that is not good, according to their own thoughts; a people who provoke Me to anger continually to My face...

 All throughout the Old Testament the nation of Israel rebelled against the LORD many times. They were not faithful to God as God was faithful to them. These particular verses stuck out for me as it brought my mind to how this world is today. 

A rebellious people
Who walk in a way that is not good
According to their own thoughts
A people who provoke Me to anger continually to My face

We can easily say oh, this is how unbelievers live. And while that is true, I began to ponder that believers today find themselves in this same boat from time to time. I believe every single person in life goes through some sort of rebellion against the LORD in their lives. We are all flawed human beings. We want what we want many times in our lives. There is not a believer on this earth that can say they walk perfectly before God and live completely 100% in obedience to Him. Praise God for grace and mercy! So for me personally, I ask myself these questions based on these words above: Am I rebellious in any area of my life toward God? Am I walking in a way that is not good according to my own thoughts rather than trusting God? Do I provoke God to anger by my lifestyle or my actions or even my thoughts? There is a light at the end of the tunnel if we find ourselves in this sort of rebellion against God. It's called forgiveness. The beauty of being a Christian is that we don't have to continue in rebellion. We can receive forgiveness from the LORD. As believers we have the Holy Spirit to convict us and show us where we are at fault. An unbeliever has no concept that they are rebelling against the LORD. Until the Spirit of God convicts them they walk in darkness and rebellion. And unfortunately this is how most of the world is living. 

Sovereign Father God,
Thank you for showing me today through Your Word how a rebellious heart brings you grieve and provokes You to anger. Thank you for showing me the areas of my life that I need to reflect on. Thank you for placing a stronger burden on my heart to pray for our nation who desperately needs You. Amen.