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Devotions

In the Morning!

by TerryLema

How delightful that Psalm 4, which speaks of our prayers in the night, is followed by Psalm 5, our prayers in the morning!  “In the morning, LORD, you hear my voice. In the morning I plead my case to you and watch expectantly.” [vs 3 HCSB]

The early morning hours are often when I hear God’s voice best. They are also times when I am comfortable, with little or no pain. I stay snuggled in bed, trying to stall having to rise and face the day. I am like David in that I “watch” or “wait” expectantly for God to speak to me.

If you read Psalm 5 today, you will find three things that should thrill your soul and make you want to shout in praise.  They are abundant love (vs 7), blessing (vs 12a), and favor (vs 12b).

Abundant Love (Multitude of Mercies as some render it). “I enter your house by the abundance of your faithful love.” God’s love, His mercies, are more than can be numbered. That is exactly what keeps us day to day. His mercies are great, they renew every morning. His love is too much to even comprehend.

We see His abundant love, multitude of mercies, in the enormous sacrifice made by our LORD and Savior so that we might one day have entrance into the very presence of God Almighty.

Blessing. “For You Lord bless the righteous one .…” In Scripture blessing usually connotes preference, happiness, God’s approval. It is difficult to define, but it is so wonderful to experience that security found in the “blessings” of our LORD. Blessings come to the righteous not because they are morally excellent, but because Christ Jesus, the sinless One, took our sin upon Himself so that “we might become the righteousness of God in Him.” [2 Corinthians 5:21]

Favor. “You surround him with favor like a shield.” Favor means goodwill, delight, acceptance. Might we say, “Grace?” It is all because of God’s Amazing Grace!

Thank you, LORD. Today our praise focuses on Your Abundant Love for us that brings us into Your presence. We thank you for your blessings and favor to us. Amen

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A Night Prayer

by TerryLema

Nighttime. Sometimes I welcome it. Sometimes I curse it. It is a welcome relief when I am physically exhausted and just need to “lay me down to sleep.” Other times I curse it when sleep will not come.

Psalm 4 is described as “A Night Prayer.” It is a prayer of David who proudly proclaims, “I will both lie down and sleep in peace….” [vs 8a HCSB]

How can David find such restful sleep when he admits in the first part of the prayer that exalted men insult his honor?  He can because of Who God is, and who he is in God.

He declares right off the bat that God “vindicates” him. [vs 1]

He also declares that the LORD has “set apart the faithful for Himself,” and that the LORD will hear when he calls to Him. [vs 3]

Then he remembers that it is the LORD which has put “joy” in his heart. [vs 7]

Vindication. It means to have our distress relieved. God hears us and He is gracious to us.

Set Apart. It means we have been separated by God for His own special purpose. It carries the idea of being wonderfully distinct.

Joy. And when we know that our God hears us, relieves our distress, and has separated us for His own special purpose, that fills our heart with God’s joy!

Thank you, LORD, today our praise focuses on our vindication and separation for Your special purpose. We thank You for the joy You have imparted to our hearts. Amen

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Confidence in Troubled Times

by TerryLema

Between now and Thanksgiving Day, November 24, I am spending time in the psalms. I am praising my Redeemer for Who He is and thanking Him for who I am in Him.

Yesterday, I started in Psalm 3, titled in my translation, “Confidence in Troubled Times.” And I praised and thanked the LORD for being a shield around me, my glory and the one who lifts my head.

David, who wrote Psalm 3, did not stop with just those three things. Before he finishes, he adds two more.

“I lie down and sleep, I wake again because the LORD sustains me.”  Then He adds, “Salvation belongs to the LORD ….” [vs 5, 8 HCSB]

Sustains! The word in Hebrew means, “to lean, lay, rest, support.” What a wonderful picture.

In this world where nothing is permanent, sometimes including relationships, the LORD is the One person we can always depend upon to support us. We can lean on Him when everything else is crumbling. We can lay our head upon His Breast when everything else is rocky and unstable. We can rest in Him when there is only unrest surrounding us. He is our support in troubled times.

Salvation! Deliverance, health, helping, welfare, victory, aid – all those things are wrapped up in that word.

Pretty soon we will be reading the Christmas story and we will hear the declaration of the angels to the shepherds, “Today a Savior, who is Messiah the Lord, was born for you in the city of David.” [Luke 2:11]

Thank you, LORD, today our praise focuses on You as our Sustainer and our Savior. We thank you for coming to us when we could not come to You. Amen

 

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Thanksgiving 2022

by TerryLema

Thanksgiving Day this year is November 24. That is 17 days from today. As Christians, our attention should be on praising and thanking our Savior every day, but I have talked to many a believer who has problems with praise and thanksgiving.

Their attention is often on the temporal things going on around them – all of which will pass away at some point. Our praise and thanksgiving to our eternal LORD, however, will never die. I believe our praises will echo through the ages of eternity.

Sometimes we struggle with praise and thanksgiving because we just do not know where to begin. So, I thought for the next 17 days, let’s go back to some basics. If you want to know about the wonders of God, one of the best places to start is in the Psalms. They often tell us about who God is and what we are in relation to Him. They plainly express praise and things for which to be thankful.

Psalm 3 in my translation is titled, “Confidence in Troubles Times.” That pretty well sums up why we should be reading Psalm 3 in our day! After expressing the scorn of the foes, David reminds us, “You, LORD, are a shield around me, my glory, and the one who lifts up my head.” [vs 3 HCSB]

God is our shield “around” us. To me that says He protects us in every direction. North, south, east, west, no matter where our foes try to attack, God is our shield.

He is also our “glory.” I am an almost 76 years old woman of little consequence to this world. I will have little acclaim or honor from this world when I leave it one day. But my God – He is my glory! When I enter His presence, when I proclaim “I am a child of God and I have come home,” all heaven will rejoice! Not because of what I have done, but because of Whose I am.

And my God “lifts up my head.” The world will try to beat me down, but it can only do so much. When the LORD lifts up my head, I see Him in all His glory and know that I am His!

Thank you, LORD. Today our praise focuses on You as our shield, glory, and the lifter of our head! Amen

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Joy & Gladness!

by TerryLema

I realized that I may have been a bit negative in a few devotions lately, and I do not want to dwell in negativity. Yes, our nation (society) is shaky at times. Yes, politics have become divisive. Yes, we do have personal times of trials and adversity.

But … BUT! We are not to dwell in the negative. We are to live in joy and serve with gladness.

“The Lord reigns! Let the earth rejoice; let the many coasts and islands be glad …. Light dawns for the righteous,
gladness for the upright in heart. Be glad in Yahweh, you righteous ones, and praise His holy name.” [Psalm 97:1, 11-12 HCSB]

“Shout triumphantly to the Lord, all the earth. Serve the Lord with gladness; come before Him with joyful songs.” [Psalm 100:1 HCSB]

While the Scriptures speak of adversity and tribulation, they also speak of rejoicing, and light, and gladness, and joy. They remind us that “The LORD reigns!” 

They remind us that, “Yahweh is good, and His love is eternal; His faithfulness endures through all generations.” [Psalm 100:5 HCSB]

As believers, we serve a good God whose love is eternal and whose faithfulness endures. What joy that should bring to our hearts! We, as the redeemed of the LORD (YAHWEH), alone can rejoice no matter what is going on around us (or even in us!).

The problems, the issues, the distresses of this life are limited. They will not (cannot) follow us into the presence of our Faithful, Good, Gracious, Loving, LORD! Hallelujah! Amen!

So, Today: I rejoice because You, LORD, reign! I will spend my day in rejoicing in You and serving You with gladness.

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Violence

by TerryLema

I am appalled at what I am seeing and reading in my daily news. Violence in our nation is rapidly becoming a way of life. If we do not like another person’s stance on a particular issue, we now regard that person as an enemy, one that needs to be silenced. And violence is becoming an acceptable means to that silencing.

We see violence in our streets, on our roads, in our homes. We see it on our campuses, in our workplaces, in our cities and in our government. You cannot post something on social media that another finds offensive without getting a backlash of nastiness.

We are supposed to be a “civilized society.” I thought that meant solving our problems apart from violence. Apparently, not. But then while I am appalled, I am not surprised. Violence has been around since God created mankind. Genesis, Chapter 6, tells the story of Noah and the violence that was on the earth during his day.

“Then the Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And the Lord was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart …. The earth also was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence.” [6:5-6, 11 NKJV]

The violence we are experiencing is not something new. It is not something outside of us. It is not even because of the issues we face … it is because “the thoughts of [our hearts are] only evil continually.”

Until our hearts are changed, nothing changes. We are as “uncivilized” as they were in the days of Noah when God saw the great wickedness of mankind and was “sorry that He had made man[kind] on the earth.”

God sent Jesus to open to us the way to change our hearts. But we must allow Him to do so.

Thank you, LORD, for the way provided in Christ Jesus our Savior and LORD. I pray for revival in our nation.

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Another List!

by TerryLema

The same day that I found the list in Matthew 5 that I wrote about yesterday, I found another one in Psalm 1. This one is not quite as nice. It also begins with the word, “Blessed.”

“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.” [vs 1 NKJV]

The Holman Christian Standard Bible translates it this way. “How happy is the man who does not follow the advice of the wicked, or take the path of sinners, or join a group of mockers!”

Notice the downward progression?

It begins with heeding the counsel or advice of those who do not belong to the LORD God Almighty. Every day we are bombarded with that kind of advice. It comes in the workplace, in educational institutions, it tempts us through various media, it woos us by lies and falsehoods. It promises, but never delivers.

Once heeded, it takes us down the path of sin. That path is wide and full of darkness and leads us away from our God.

When it comes to completion, we end up in fellowship with the scornful and mockers of all that is holy and good.

James outlines the same progression in his letter.  “Each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed.  Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death.” [James 1:14-15 HCSB]

Today: Thank you, LORD, that you interrupted my downward progression and have set me on the path of righteousness through Christ my Savior and LORD.

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by TerryLema

I make lists, grocery lists, to do lists, things I want to think about lists, thoughts for devotions lists, all kinds of lists. I could say I do it because I am extremely organized, but lately I do it more so because I am old. (Remember that sign of being old from the October 29 devotion that said, “you forget at least one thing every day.”) Yep, that’s me.  So, I make lists.

I was reading in Matthew 5 recently and found a list. That lists begins the Sermon on the Mount. Verses 3 through 11 list a number of conditions wherein we are blessed. I like the way the Holman Christian Standard Bible translates them.

It begins “the poor in spirit are blessed …” and then goes on. “Those who mourn are blessed … the gentle are blessed … those who hunger and thirst for righteousness are blessed … the merciful are blessed … the pure in heart are blessed … peacemakers are blessed … the persecuted for righteousness are blessed ….”

It ends with blessings for the insulted, persecuted and falsely accused.

That is quite a list. It is not a list to which most aspire. I wondered as I read that list what response we’d get if we applied it to the 100 most successful people in the USA, or to politicians, or to the rich, or to celebrities. (The list could go on.)

Yet, note the blessings for people who do aspire to those qualities. The kingdom of heaven is theirs, they are comforted, they have an inheritance, they are filled with the righteousness of God, they are shown mercy, they will see God, they will be called sons of God, the kingdom of heaven is theirs, and they will have a great reward in heaven.

When you think of that list in the terms of the blessings, maybe it is a list that we should embrace and aspire to throughout our lives.

Thank you, LORD, for the blessings that are ours both in this life and in our eternal life in Your presence.

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Thanksgiving! Revised?

by TerryLema

Thanksgiving month has arrived. So grateful! I have so much in my life that is difficult, but I also have so much in my life for which to be thankful. And, of course, when I start to count my blessings, I find they far outweigh the trials.

This year inflation is hitting hard. I read that turkeys will cost 75 percent more this year than last. Gas prices are still way too high compared to last year, so traveling will cost more. I heard cranberries are in short supply. That doesn’t bother some people – and I already grabbed some I found in the store. They are waiting in the freezer for the day!

We might have to revisit the way we celebrate Thanksgiving this year, with what we cook, who we gather with, and what we do. It can still be, however, a day we offer thanks for all we have in this country, for all we have as the people of God.

God loves us. He has pledged His fidelity to us. We are His children. If we have nothing else for which to give thanks, we can thank Him for loving us and calling us to His side. Even when we walk through dark valleys, He is with us. (Psalm 23:4)

Thanksgiving is more than a holiday; it is more than a holiday-month. In Ephesians 5, there is a section in my Bible titled consistency in the Christian life. Part of that section reminds us that we are to “be filled by the Spirit: speaking to one another in psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, singing and making music from your heart to the LORD, giving thanks always for everything to God the Father in the name of our LORD Jesus Christ.” [vs 18a-20 HCSB]

That sounds like every day to me!

Today: Thank you LORD for filling me with Your Spirit. May I sing and praise You with all my heart!

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Halloween

by TerryLema

It is Halloween. The last day of October. Tomorrow, we enter the month of Thanksgiving and soon it will be the Christmas month. The days are flying by, but I can’t say I am sad to see Halloween go. Just not a fan. My walk is so much more pleasant when the neighbors replace their dark decorations with the lights of Christmas (although in my neighborhood that may take several weeks or an entire month to accomplish).

The weather has finally turned to fall. We had a horribly hot summer, breaking all kinds of heat records even in the month of September. The warm temperatures lasted into October. Even the trees held on to their green leaves weeks longer than normal. But finally, the fall has arrived and with it the brilliant colors as the leaves turn from green to reds, oranges, and yellows.

I love fall. I love sweatshirts and sweaters. I love walking in the afternoon, rather than trying to get out early in the morning before the heat descends. I love the early nightfall, rather than the sun finally setting at 11 PM. I look forward to the change back to normal time, with more light in the mornings.

But that is me. So many others are bemoaning the coming winter months and lack of sunshine and warmth. They love the spring and summer and hate to see it depart in the fall.

Isn’t God gracious? We each have a season to savor.  And while it may depart and give way to one that we are not fond of, we know it will be back.  My beloved fall will give way to winter (my second favorite season). Then winter will yield to spring, and summer will come again. For now, I will enjoy my favorite time of year, my favorite season.

Today: Thank you LORD, that each of us are given a “favorite time of year,” to enjoy the beauty and wonder of Your creation, and to praise our Creator.

 

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