LifeLink Devotional

Monday, November 25, 2019

Isaiah 36:7   And if you say to me, “We are depending on the LORD our God”—isn’t he the one whose high places and altars Hezekiah removed, saying to Judah and Jerusalem, “You must worship before this altar”?

When Isaiah wrote the thirty-sixth chapter of his book, King Hezekiah was reigning in Judah. The king of Assyria, Sennacherib, had invaded the land and was attacking all the fortified cities. Sennacherib sent his commander with a large army over to Jerusalem. Hezekiah sent a delegation to meet them. The Assyrian commander made these statements:

• Why are you so confident?
• You claim to have strength but we see no evidence of it.
• You say you have allies but they are weak and powerless against us.
• You claim to trust in your God, but you have stopped worshiping Him and have adopted other gods.

It’s this last statement that hit me hard. The enemy of God, with no faith in the One True God, was attacking God’s chosen people. This ungodly king recognized that God’s covenant people have rejected their faith in God alone. He saw that God’s people were more concerned with pleasing people than they were with loving Jehovah. They saw worship of God as an obstacle to survival in the world. They believed fitting into their culture would be better served by not serving God.

I received a Facebook post from a young man who has been called into ministry. He asked me to watch a video that challenged him. It was from the later years of David Wilkerson’s life as he preached on the subject of anguish. Not a popular word, is it? The video touched my heart, especially at one point when this statement was made – What anguish it must bring to the heart of God when He sees that the Bride He was preparing for marriage to His Son has instead been married to the world.

My friends, as followers of Christ, why are we so easily persuaded to make friends with the world and adopt its standards? Why do we continue to see our faith in Jesus Christ as an obstacle to acceptance with the world rather than a means of bringing true life to the world? Why have we chosen to become adulterous in our spiritual lives and have a fling with the world? It is time for us to be recognized by our faith. It is time for us to find pleasure in doing the Lord’s work rather than finding more ways to find pleasure from the world.

Pastor John

P.S.  Happy Birthday to my brother Steve.

LifeLink Devotional

Friday, November 22, 2019

Have you ever heard the expression, “Keep your chin up”? Sure you have. My need to know things sent me to the internet to find out where that expression originated. According to one site, the first use of was in the Pennsylvania newspaper The Evening Democrat, October 1900, under the heading Epigrams Upon the Health-giving Qualities of Mirth:

“Keep your chin up. Don’t take your troubles to bed with you – hang them on a chair with your trousers or drop them in a glass of water with your teeth.”

The unfortunate thing is that I couldn’t find one reference to this idiom that gave any reason why we should be able to keep our chin up, other than the reference to the possible health-giving benefits of mirth. That’s sad. People know the value of a positive attitude, but fail to find the real motivation for one.

In my study of Isaiah, this section looks ahead to the promised return of the King and the establishment of His kingdom on the earth.

Isaiah 35:3-4    Strengthen the feeble hands, steady the knees that give way; say to those with fearful hearts, “Be strong, do not fear; your God will come, he will come with vengeance; with divine retribution he will come to save you.”

Here I find my motivation for releasing worry and fear. Here is the encouragement we need to be strong. God is coming to redeem us and to set the world straight. Peace will reign because the Prince of Peace will be on His throne. That sufficiently motivates me to keep my chin up.

Read carefully the rest of this thirty-fifth chapter of Isaiah. You will find great encouragement to press on. You will find the hope you need to be determined to finish the race of life strong. You will discover the joy of knowing that Jesus is coming to save you.

Isaiah 35:1-10
¹    The desert and the parched land will be glad; the wilderness will rejoice and blossom.  Like the crocus, ²it will burst into bloom; it will rejoice greatly and shout for joy.  The glory of Lebanon will be given to it, the splendor of Carmel and Sharon; they will see the glory of the LORD, the splendor of our God.  ³Strengthen the feeble hands,  steady the knees that give way; ⁴say to those with fearful hearts,  “Be strong, do not fear;  your God will come,  he will come with vengeance;  with divine retribution  he will come to save you.” ⁵Then will the eyes of the blind be opened  and the ears of the deaf unstopped.  ⁶Then will the lame leap like a deer, and the mute tongue shout for joy.  Water will gush forth in the wilderness and streams in the desert.  ⁷The burning sand will become a pool, the thirsty ground bubbling springs.  In the haunts where jackals once lay, grass and reeds and papyrus will grow. ⁸And a highway will be there; it will be called the Way of Holiness.  The unclean will not journey on it; it will be for those who walk in that Way; wicked fools will not go about on it. ⁹No lion will be there, nor will any ferocious beast get up on it; they will not be found there.  But only the redeemed will walk there, ¹⁰and the ransomed of the LORD will return.  They will enter Zion with singing; everlasting joy will crown their heads.  Gladness and joy will overtake them, and sorrow and sighing will flee away.

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotional

Thursday, November 21, 2019

My hope is built on nothing less, than Jesus blood and righteousness.

The words of this grand old hymn are ringing in my head.

I dare not trust the sweetest frame, but wholly lean on Jesus’ name.

No matter how sweet and inviting the world looks, it will not last, nor will it satisfy.

On Christ the solid Rock I stand, all other ground is sinking sand. All other ground is sinking sand.

As I contemplated the application of these truths to my life, I was reminded by the Holy Spirit of the additional verses of that song.

When darkness seems to hide His face,
I rest on His unchanging grace.
In every high and stormy gale,
My anchor holds within the veil.

No matter how dark the world begins to look around me, and how severe the storms of my life become, I know I stand secure in Christ. Why? Because His Word NEVER fails. His promises are ALWAYS fulfilled. In Christ our hope is secure!

His oath, His covenant, His blood,
Support me in the whelming flood.
When all around my soul gives way,
He then is all my Hope and Stay.

Then the final verse came to my mind. It fixed my eyes where they are supposed to be all the time – on the coming of Jesus to reclaim what is rightfully His. Since I am His, I will be a part of the Lord’s worldwide reclamation project.

When He shall come with trumpet sound,
Oh may I then in Him be found.
Dressed in His righteousness alone,
Faultless to stand before the throne.

At this point of remembering this song, I discovered the thirty-fourth chapter of Isaiah. It is the beginning of the conclusion of the story for this section, and describes God’s judgment on man’s sin and rebellion. Isaiah gets our attention in verse one.

Isaiah 34:1    Come near, you nations, and listen; pay attention, you peoples! Let the earth hear, and all that is in it, the world, and all that comes out of it!

Isaiah then begins to describe the incredible day of the Lord’s vengeance (verse 8) which culminates in the enemies of God being destroyed and the people of God being restored in a transformed physical world.

As I was reading, a line from verse four jumped off the page and reminded me of another song – one that hitchhiked on the previous song still being sung in my spirit. The line is the clouds be rolled back like a scroll. As a part of God’s judgment of sin and redemption of the physical world, Isaiah describes the transformations of nature that will take place. As the stars of heaven dissolve, and the sky rolls up like a scroll, I am reminded that there’s nothing in this world upon which I can stand. But because I stand on the Rock of Jesus Christ, it is well with my soul.

When peace, like a river, attendeth my way,
When sorrows like sea billows roll;
Whatever my lot, Thou has taught me to say,
It is well, it is well, with my soul.

Though Satan should buffet, though trials should come,
Let this blest assurance control,
That Christ has regarded my helpless estate,
And hath shed His own blood for my soul.

My sin, oh, the bliss of this glorious thought!
My sin, not in part but the whole,
Is nailed to the cross, and I bear it no more,
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul!

And Lord, haste the day when my faith shall be sight,
The clouds be rolled back as a scroll;
The trump shall resound, and the Lord shall descend,
Even so, it is well with my soul.

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotional

Wednesday, November 20, 2019

Think back to a time when you experienced a victory in your life that overwhelmed you with joy. Now, how long was it before the heaviness of life returned to your heart? It seems that no matter how great the victory, it only produces temporary happiness, and ultimately does nothing to satisfy the longing of our hearts for meaning and purpose. How sad it is for those of us who put our hope in human accomplishments.

But there is a victory coming someday that will satisfy every longing of our human hearts. For many of us the victory is already being experienced in our spirit. Greg Jennings, after his Green Bay Packers won their last Super Bowl, looked up and around at all that was happening and declared in front of a worldwide audience, “Glory to God.” As great as that thrilling victory was, it was not to be compared with the awe we have for Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior.

Look up and around, for the day of the Lord is coming with greater majesty and splendor than any football game could produce. Jesus is coming, and when He does, He will fill the world with the spectacle of His presence. The blessings of His victory will satisfy us for all eternity.

Isaiah 33:20    Look upon Zion, the city of our festivals; your eyes will see Jerusalem, a peaceful abode, a tent that will not be moved; its stakes will never be pulled up, nor any of its ropes broken.

In our study of Isaiah, in chapter 33, here’s what the Lord says the world will be like after His return. This is what we truly long for with all our hearts:

• Peace and Permanence – verse 20 – a peaceful abode, a tent that will not be moved; its stakes will never be pulled up, nor any of its ropes broken.
• Powerful leadership – verse 21 – There the LORD will be our Mighty One.     
• Protection – verse 21 – It will be like a place of broad rivers and streams. No galley with oars will ride them, no mighty ship will sail them. Broad rivers refers to the borders of the land being uncrossable by any enemy.
• Justice and Righteousness – verse 22 – For the LORD is our judge, the LORD is our lawgiver, the LORD is our king; it is he who will save us.
• Complete trust in God alone – verse 23 – Your rigging hangs loose: The mast is not held secure, the sail is not spread.     
• Plenty of provisions for every person’s needs – verse 23 – Then an abundance of spoils will be divided and even the lame will carry off plunder.
• Perfect health and well-being – verse 24 –  No one living in Zion will say, “I am ill”;     
• The forgiveness of all sin – verse 24 – and the sins of those who dwell there will be forgiven.

Go ahead – celebrate your human victories. But don’t let any of them become more important than the victory that is already yours in Jesus Christ, and will be fully realized when He returns. That’s a victory you can celebrate every day of your life and one that is eternally more significant.

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotional

Tuesday, November 19, 2019

Humility.

It is the exact opposite of what the world teaches. Since we were born, we have been bombarded with the message that we must excel. We must do everything in our power to become the best that we can be. We must win at all cost. We must get our own way in everything. We must strive with all our might to exceed the popularity, power, and position of everyone close to us. We believe that the true measure of our worth is in the value of our possessions.

Isaiah 33:10   “Now will I arise,” says the LORD. “Now will I be exalted; now will I be lifted up.”

Pastor Leith Anderson, in a sermon he preached in 1999 called The Height of Humility, told this story:

It was a strange bicycle race. The object of this race in India was to go the shortest distance possible within a specified time. At the start of the race, everyone cued up at the line. When the gun sounded all the bicycles, as best they could, stayed put. Racers were disqualified if they tipped over or one of their feet touched the ground. And so they would inch forward just enough to keep the bike balanced. When the time was up and another gun sounded, the person who had gone the farthest was the loser and the person closest to the starting line was the winner.

Imagine getting into that race and not understanding how the race works. When the race starts, you pedal as hard and fast as you possibly can. You’re out of breath. You’re sweating. You’re delighted because the other racers are back there at the starting line. You’re going to break the record. You think, “This is fantastic. Don’t let up. Push harder and faster and longer and stronger.”

At last you hear the gun that ends the race, and you are delighted because you are unquestionably the winner. Except you are unquestionably the loser because you misunderstood how the race is run.

Jesus gives us the rules to the eternal race of life. The finish line is painted on the other side of our deaths, right in front of the throne of God himself. There you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous. The winning strategy for this life and for all eternity is caring about others and not about ourselves. It is letting others go first and not pushing to the front. It is giving without the expectation of getting in return. It is to be humble, like Jesus.

When the Green Bay Packers were last in the Super Bowl, two managers of local businesses illustrated the difficulty of humility. Both told similar stories of personal greed that required them to show Godly humility.

In both stories, an employee was scheduled to work the closing shift on Sunday night, meaning that they would have to miss the big game. In the first instance, after unsuccessfully trying to find someone to take her place on her shift, the employee sent a text message to her boss simply stating that she quit. She decided that the game and being with her friends was more important than her job. She will regret that. If not now, then most certainly later when this kind of selfish behavior brings her to rock bottom. Her decision is most likely going to result in her boss, also a huge Packer fan, to have to work and miss the game.

The second story is similar. The employee didn’t quit, but made life so miserable for everyone around her by her whining and complaining that she deserved to be fired. Instead, her boss and huge Packer fan, and a Christian, stepped up to the plate and volunteered to work for her. He said he wanted to be the bigger person. I told him he was being the Godly person.

Scripture is clear that God will arise and be exalted, and bring us with Him, when we renounce self and trust Him to be our Provider and Protector. It’s not what we learn from the world, but it is what results in ultimate glory – for Jesus and for us. Remember His words?

The first will be last, and the last will be first. Anyone who loses his life for My sake will find it, but whoever strives to keep his life will lose it.

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotional

Monday, November 18, 2019

Have you ever felt like you can’t get over the consequences of your past even when you try to do right?  Frustrating, isn’t it? Our past has a way of catching up with us, and when it does it usually overpowers us.

That was the story of the nation of Assyria. They were a treacherous nation that was despised by the other nations of the world. They not only conquered lands, but terrorized people. They were brutal in their tactics. It was going to catch up to them. The day would come when Assyria would try to relax and enjoy the fruit of their conquering. What they had done to others would be returned unto them no matter how much they announced that their terrorist days were done.

Isaiah is praying that the attacks would stop and be reversed. He knows that because of their sin the nation of Israel has deserved the punishment that has been inflicted upon them by the Assyrians. He also knows that their past will overwhelm them and that they have no power to stop it. So he cries out to God and says,

O LORD, be gracious to us; we long for you. Be our strength every morning, our salvation in time of distress. (Isaiah 33:2)

When our past catches up with us, we need to humble ourselves and cry out to God. We cannot stop the consequences of our sin. Only Jesus can. His mercy and grace are the only thing that can give us the victory over the past. He is our strength and salvation in time of distress.

After Isaiah asks for grace from the Lord, he begins to proclaim the promises of God and declare the Lord’s attributes. He starts with faith, and announces what He knows will happen based on who he knows God to be. This is what Isaiah said, and can be a model to us all as we pray and declare the glory of the Lord:

• There is no one greater than the Lord – At the thunder of your voice, the peoples flee; when you rise up, the nations scatter. (verse 3)
• The Lord will restore us and bless us – Your plunder, O nations, is harvested as by young locusts; like a swarm of locusts men pounce on it. (verse 4)
• The Lord will be exalted in the land and bring peace –  The LORD is exalted, for he dwells on high; he will fill Zion with justice and righteousness. (verse 5)
• The Lord is faithful and can be trusted –  He will be the sure foundation for your times, (verse 6a)
• The Lord will provided everything we need – a rich store of salvation and wisdom and knowledge; (verse 6b)

Isaiah then says one more thing. He gives us the key to victory over our past and the hope of blessings in the future. He says,

the fear of the LORD is the key to this treasure.

The fear of the Lord can easily be defined this way:

Father Exalted And Revered.

That leads me to ask these questions –

• “In my life, is the Father exalted and revered?”
• “Do I believe that I can deliver myself?”
• “Am I expecting God to deliver me from my past and my sin based on my own merit or on the work of Jesus Christ on the cross?”
• “Do I expect God to bless me and believe I deserve it, or do I fear God and trust Him with every part of my life regardless of the blessings promised, just because He is worthy?”

O LORD, be gracious to us; we long for you. Be our strength every morning, our salvation in time of distress.

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotional

Friday, November 15, 2019

All around us things are anything but normal. Political unrest. Financial uncertainties. Global warming or cyclical weather patterns?  Peace of mind is a past tense experience for many. Worry is building. Fear is replacing faith.

Life has been good for a long time for most of us in America. There have been ups and downs and some financial and political storms, but we have always weathered them. We have been trained by history to believe that this too shall pass. So we tighten our belts for a time, make some adjustments to our lifestyle, and plan for the day when it’s over and we can get back to living the way we dream to live.

Well guess what? One of these days the storm won’t pass. Listen – I’m not trying to ruin your day or be the gloom and doom man, but the truth is that God’s Word says there is a time coming when the storm will not pass. These preliminary storms are not supposed to strengthen our resolve to survive and get back everything we may have lost. They are to get our attention and turn our hearts towards God so that we learn to trust Him and experience His peace no matter what the storm may bring.

Isaiah 32:10   In little more than a year you who feel secure will tremble; the grape harvest will fail, and the harvest of fruit will not come.

The prophet Isaiah speaks to people who had become complacent about their faith and dependent upon their culture for their value and purpose.

Tremble, you complacent women; shudder, you daughters who feel secure! Strip off your clothes, put sackcloth around your waists. The fortress will be abandoned, the noisy city deserted; citadel and watchtower will become a wasteland forever, the delight of donkeys, a pasture for flocks, till the Spirit is poured upon us from on high, (my emphasis) and the desert becomes a fertile field, and the fertile field seems like a forest. Justice will dwell in the desert and righteousness live in the fertile field. The fruit of righteousness will be peace; the effect of righteousness will be quietness and confidence forever. My people will live in peaceful dwelling places, in secure homes, in undisturbed places of rest. Though hail flattens the forest and the city is leveled completely, how blessed you will be, (my emphasis) sowing your seed by every stream, and letting your cattle and donkeys range free.

There is only one reason that the storms of life, whether in nature or in your personal life, continue to rage – we are not seeking God with all our heart. We are more in love with the world than we are with God. We are more in love with ourselves than we are with God. We do not love Jesus with all our heart because we reserve sections of it for the pleasures of the world. We do not love God with all our mind because we allow the lust of the flesh to captivate our thinking. We do not love God with all our soul because we still seek to satisfy our need for acceptance and value with the approval of people. We do not love God with all our strength because we so easily give in to the temptations of sin. And as a result, there are storms.

My friends, the storms will continue to come because the power of sin will continue to dominate the world and keep people from turning to Jesus. But those storms must not turn our hearts from the love of God. In fact, in the life of one who truly loves God, the storms draw us closer and we experience more grace and more peace. May the storms today, whatever they are and wherever you are, turn your eyes upon Jesus. Every storm is God’s megaphone through which He is shouting, May I have your attention?

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotional

Thursday, November 14, 2019

 After almost 67 years of personal experience with the uncertainty of weather, I still let it dictate my attitude far too often. It bothers me that I complain about what I cannot control, when I could be thankful for what God controls. The sun came up again today. It will set again tonight.  The seasons come and go with consistency.  The furnace is working. I have shelter from the weather when it changes.

The nation of Israel went through a lot of “weather” changes, if by weather we mean political and spiritual issues. When they obeyed God, He upheld His covenant of blessing with them. When they disobeyed Him, He upheld the consequences stated in the same covenant. God always fulfills His covenants.

In chapter thirty-one of Isaiah, God continues to discipline His people for their rebellion, and also declares the punishment that will fall on the nation of Assyria for rejecting Jehovah. Then in chapter thirty-two God gives a great statement of hope – a King will reign in righteousness.

Isaiah 32:1-2  See, a king will reign in righteousness and rulers will rule with justice. Each man will be like a shelter from the wind and a refuge from the storm, like streams of water in the desert and the shadow of a great rock in a thirsty land.

From a historical perspective, this refers to King Hezekiah, whose reign was one of righteousness and peace. But from a spiritual and prophetic perspective this promise declares the coming of Jesus Christ as King. What joy I find in these words – Jesus is a shelter from the wind, a refuge from the storm, a stream of living water that nourishes and brings life to the desert places, and the rock that provides shade and protection from the scorching sun of sin.

Jesus stabilizes my life when the winds of adversity blow against me. He protects me from the storms of crisis and gives me peace during them. When the thirst of my soul is no longer satisfied with the water of the world and my pursuits have dried up like the sands of the desert, a spring of living water bubbles up from within and satisfies my every longing. And when the stress of life saps my energy like the heat of the noonday sun God invites me into the shade of His presence and I find rest.

Look closely at the passage. God declares that under the righteous reign of Christ, we are to be shelters from the wind for others who are unstable. We are to be a place of refuge and peace for those around us who are being battered by the storms of life. We are to be like streams of fresh and refreshing water for those who are not finding satisfaction from the ways of the world. We are to be the place of shade and rest for those whose strength has been sapped by the scorching sun of sin.

We are the representatives of the righteous King to those living in a weary land. Just as Jesus is our shelter in the time of storm, so are we to be a place of protection for our friends and neighbors when they are being pounded by the winds and waves of adversity.

How I praise God for being my Rock, my Refuge, my shelter. Yet I wonder how well I am representing those things to others around me.

Lord, make me a servant to others, no matter who they are, that they may see your love and the hope of glory in me, and discover the peace in you they deeply desire.

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotional

Wednesday, November 13, 2019

Isaiah 30:27  See, the Name of the LORD comes from afar, with burning anger and dense clouds of smoke; his lips are full of wrath, and his tongue is a consuming fire.

Henry Blackaby, in his magnificent study entitled Experiencing God, makes this statement –

When God speaks, what you do next reveals what you believe about God.

With brevity and precision that statement dissects our hearts. Here are some things God spoke that brought initial unrest to my soul, followed by the peace of God from knowing my faith was strengthened.

• God spoke and said, Whoever calls on my Name shall be saved. Whoever believes on the One and Only Son of God shall have everlasting life. If we will confess our sins, God is faithful and just to forgive us for those sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

So why is it that we still live under the bondage of sin, struggling with it, seeking counseling for it, and in some cases resolving to just live with it? Do we really believe God to be who He said He is and able to do what He said He would do?

• God spoke and said, I have qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light. For I have rescued you from the dominion of darkness and brought you into the kingdom of the Son I love, in whom you have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

So why is it that we still live with such connections to the worldly kingdom? And why is it that we still struggle to qualify ourselves in the eyes of others, giving them the right to define us and approve us? Do we really believe who God is and what He said He would do?

• God spoke and said, See, I am coming, with burning anger and dense clouds of smoke; my lips are full of wrath, and my tongue is a consuming fire. You will sing…your hearts will rejoice…for I come to shatter your enemies and deliver you.

Then why is it that we get so bent out of shape about what’s wrong with our world? What do our grumbling and complaining and critical spirits say about who we believe God to be?

• God spoke and said, Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

So why do we still worry? What does that say about who we really believe God to be?

• God spoke and said, If you have the faith of a small mustard seed, you can say to a mountain, move from here to there, and it will move.

So far as I know, God has never asked anyone to move a mountain, but He has asked us to do some pretty out-of-the-ordinary things in our lives. You have heard Him speak to you about those things before. They may involve a career choice, a call to ministry, a sacrificial gift to a church, or one of a million other possibilities. The point is, you have heard Him speak to you. He gave you His direction and purpose for that time of your life. Did you obey? If not, what does that say about who you really believe God to be?

When God speaks, what you do next reveals what you believe about God.

Pastor John

LifeLink Devotional

Tuesday, November 12, 2019

The thirtieth chapter of Isaiah is one of contrasts. In it we see the rebellious nature of man and the gracious nature of God. Our pride seeks to protect us from looking at the reality of our nature. Our hearts long to know the depths of God’s grace. The truth is, the magnificence of God’s grace towards us cannot be fully comprehended unless we also understand the depths of our depravity. It is where sin abounds that grace abounds more.

Our default position is to avoid any focus on our faults. We grade our spiritual condition on a huge curve of comparison. So many people are worse than us, and very few are better, so we believe we are in no real danger of flunking. But when compared to the holiness of God, all of us fail, and all of us need forgiveness, and none of us can save ourselves. This is the truth that makes the grace of God so grand.

Isaiah 30:15  This is what the Sovereign LORD, the Holy One of Israel, says: “In repentance and rest is your salvation, in quietness and trust is your strength…”

The contrasts between our condition and God’s compassion in this passage have really spoken to my heart this morning. May they bless you as well. You may want to open your Bible and follow along. Please read each point carefully and make the personal applications the Lord has for you today. I guarantee that it will bless you with a deeper appreciation of God’s grace.

Man’s Rebellious Nature (verse 9):

• We tend to devise and pursue our own plans rather than God’s – verse 1
• We seek protection and provision from the world and not from God – verses 2-5
• We build ourselves up in our own eyes by oppressing others – verse 12
• We make ourselves look good to others by lying about who we are – verse 12 (Note the serious consequences of not being honest about who you are – verses 13-14)
• We even reach a point where we don’t want to hear the truth anymore and reject all attempts by God to help us – verses 10-11

Now notice God’s Grace:

• God longs to be gracious to us even during our worst rebellion – verse 18
• God rises above our stubbornness to be compassionate towards our needs – verse 18
• God reveals truth to us through adversity and trouble – verse 20
• God walks with us constantly and gives us specific direction – verse 21
• God provides for our every need and will bring out the best in everything He gives us – verses 23-24
• God will heal all the wounds of our suffering – verses 25-26

I know we are all very busy, and that taking time out for lengthy devotions every day is difficult. I’m thankful that you take the time each day to even consider reading what the Lord has shared in my heart. But I would encourage you to take some additional time today to really let God’s Word speak to you by studying this chapter. The result will be a good grasp on the reality of our own sinfulness, so that the splendor of His grace will shower us with rejoicing in our salvation. After all, God has said,

“In repentance and rest is your salvation, in quietness and trust is your strength…”

Pastor John