THANKFUL

Tuesday, June 21, 2022

Lord, how could the psalmist’s friends not notice his changed life? Since he humbly fell before You, pleading, “For the honor of Your name, O Lord, forgive my many, many sins,” (Psalm 25:11), You miraculously changed him on the inside.  He incessantly told anyone with ears of Your amazing, transforming grace. Friends and his closest buddies rejoiced at his 100 percent commitment to serve You.  Another group especially rooted for him. That group still exists today.

The prideful and conceited were rooting for the psalmist’s downfall. Skeptical of his new way of living, they mocked him, saying religion is for the weak—be your own self. What they couldn’t understand is the psalmist did try being ‘his own self,’ which led to disappointments and an unfulfilled life.

Most God-fearing leaders rejoiced and gave You thanks for Your mercy. Sadly, some arrogant religious elites thought their ecclesiastic background made them judges of Your mercy. “It’s not genuine,” they must have fumed. “How dare this man go to God without going through us first!” Did they compare notes?  “He didn’t do ‘A,’ ‘B,’ or ‘C,’ therefore, he can’t be a believer!”

The psalmist reacted to their taunts the way You intended. He ignored them, counting these naysayers as irrelevant. He refused to put up with their nonsense. “I will not endure conceit or pride,” he wrote, (Psalm 101:5). He found that his personal relationship with You, Lord, now the center of his existence, gave him a fulfilled life.

Lord, hear my earnest prayer: may the spirit of pride and conceit never gain a foothold in my spirit as our relationship grows deeper. May it be the same for all Christ-followers today. Amen.

Monday, June 20, 2022 

Lord, in solidifying his relationship with You, the psalmist re-ordered his behaviors to reflect his changed life. One major change involved no longer listening to certain people. These were not necessarily bad people, just flawed by not heeding that 9^th Commandment ‘false witness’ thing.    

“Did you hear about …” they whispered in his ear.  They blindly judged others without knowing their story. “Can you believe they would …” Their words ran down people. “Listen to this! I heard …” How they ‘killed’ their neighbors with their tongue! “I heard a juicy tidbit about …”

Gossip! One of the devil’s favorite pastimes he introduced mankind to. And how easily Christ-followers fall into this subtle habit too. Your Holy Spirit awakened the psalmist to his guilt in this destructive habit. He vowed to change. “I will watch my ways and keep my tongue from sin,” he said in repentance. “I will put a muzzle on my mouth …” (Psalm 39:1). He got serious about shedding this sinful practice, realizing how gossip unjustly degraded people. No more spreading ‘false witness’ against others not able to defend themselves against ‘misinformation.’  “I will not tolerate people who slander their neighbors,” he declared, (Psalm 101:5).  

Another truth became clear to the psalmist: gossips cannot be trusted. If they gossiped about others to him, what were they saying about the psalmist behind his back?  

Lord, help me reject gossip when I hear it. And put a muzzle on my mouth when I’m tempted to repeat misinformation. Amen.

Friday June 17, 2022  

Lord, the ancient psalmist listed things to avoid if he were to maintain the integrity of his walk with You. His list is valid today as it was then. Had his world gone insane as today’s world? Were people as delusional then as they are now, ignoring reality, biology, and sound judgments to embrace the absurd?  Of course, the devil was as active then as he is today. The psalmist ordered his soul: “I will reject perverse ideas and stay away from every evil,” (Psalm 101:4).

Satan worked tirelessly on the psalmist’s mind to draw him into his world of darkness. Much like today, the devil works overtime, repeatedly spreading lies that defy logic and reason. Pity those poor souls seeking relevance, but void of spiritual values. They cannot see their desperate need for You in their life. How easily they fall for every cockamamie idea the devil comes up with.

For believers, Satan’s lies are obvious, but for unbelievers, the truth remains hidden. Most lies are subtle, mixed with just enough half-truths that make the devil’s lies sound legitimate. Christ-followers see through Satan’s charade.

Lord, help us discipline our minds and lives to stay close to You. The more we experience Your Love and Grace, the easier we keep far from “perverse ideas” that lead to “every evil.”  Amen.

Thursday, June 16, 2022

Lord, the psalmist realized if he were to maintain the integrity of his relationship with You, he needed to distance himself from some people who seemed to thrive in vulgarity and crudeness. To these hardened degenerates, nothing was sacred. Attempts to share the grace of God and His compassion for their redemption from sin only brought personal vilifications and mocking of all things holy.  

“I hate all who deal crookedly, [immorally]” he said in disgust. “I will have nothing to do with them,” (Psalm 101:3). Prayers for their salvation were mandatory, but separations from their influence was necessary.

Surely today, with the Gospel being spread throughout the world and multitudes are coming to You, these godless attitudes have diminished, haven’t they?  Sadly, no. Evil is still rampant in this broken world. As Christ-followers, may we be faithful to pray for these poor souls, whose arrogance to Your amazing love and grace has blinded them of their eternal destiny.

Forgive me, Lord, since most times I’m so put off by their amoral behaviors I’ve failed to ask You to intervene in their lives. People prayed for me, so Lord, keep reminding me that for some lost souls, I may be the only one praying for them.

That’s sobering. Amen

Tuesday, June 14, 2022

Lord, when the psalmist chose to live all-in for You, he knew it would come with a price: relentless spiritual assaults by the enemy of his soul. He prepared for the attacks In keeping with his new godly lifestyle, the psalmist laid out ahead of time how he would react to temptations and trials. These self-mandates to maintain the integrity of his relationship with You are solid foundations for Christ-followers today. How significant that the first discipline he employed was “I will refuse to look at anything vile and vulgar,” (Psalm 101:3).  

As evil and wickedness abounded in the psalmist’s time, so it remains today. Christ-followers are constantly pressured to conform to the world’s standards. Lord, to protect our minds from ungodly influences, help us refuse to consider, or even mentally entertain, anything vile, vulgar, or anything that raises itself against You and Your precepts. May we be cautious of appealing websites, or alluring chat rooms that the enemy would deceptively entrap us.

Today’s culture that calls evil good and good evil is nothing new, (Isaiah 5:20). What our minds dwell on determines how we respond when life’s stuff hits us. And it will hit all of us — no exceptions. Will we panic and be overwhelmed because we see all things as vile, vulgar and defeated? Or instead, will our souls remain peaceful, because Your goodness, grace and mercy are all we see?

You gave us a surefire way to guard our heart against all things vile and evil, but it take discipline on our part. Philippians 4:8 instructs us to think on all things good, noble, righteous, pure, holy, and the list goes on. Here we can ask again: “You are gonna help me, aren’t You, Lord?”

Lord, may we see only You in all things.

Monday, June 13, 2022

Lord, what a relief. Although still plagued with flaws and imperfections, when the psalmist realized how You proclaimed him blameless after putting faith in You, Your grace led him to true spiritual freedom that adhering to religious rules never brought. His life changed. And what better place to begin his all-in-for-You godly life than in his own home, with those closest to him. He put down a stake: “I will lead a life of integrity in my own home, (Psalm 101:2).

Lord, we pray every Christ-follower understands how Your grace impacts our lives as well. Hopefully, those closest to us rejoice and give thanks to You for our transformation? Or maybe they raise an eyebrow when we state from this time forward, we will be different? Perhaps they’d heard similar claims before, like the many claims I’ve made. “You are gonna help me, aren’t You, Lord?” I cried.

“Of course, I’ll help. You cannot live this godly life by your human efforts.”

Let my changed life be obvious. I will live a Christ-centered life of integrity that honors You. No more wishy-washy faith —I want to be the real deal. No more publicly saying one thing and privately doing the opposite — no one likes a hypocrite. May I be genuine, Lord — less judgmental opinions, more grace and forgiveness. Absolutely no sanctimonious virtue-signaling, but may all believers develop a deeper relationship with You, Jesus, so we can share with those in our world this love You have given us.

Friday, June 10, 2022

Lord, I want to live a blameless life before You, but try as I may, even with Your Holy Spirit’s influence, at times I still struggle with issues that keep me from a blameless life. If only I could be spiritually strong like the saints of old.  Despite their circumstances, surely they lived blameless lives. You are gonna help me, aren’t You, Lord? (Psalm 101:2).

Scripture reveals the truth that no saints of old, or present, or future—no one who is human— lives blameless. The Apostle Paul wrote extensively on this subject. “It happens so regularly that it’s predictable,” Paul wrote to the Romans. “The moment I decide to do good, sin is there to trip me up. I truly delight in God’s commands, but it’s pretty obvious that not all of me joins in that delight. Parts of me covertly rebel, and just when I least expect it, they take charge.”

Paul described his frustration. “I’ve tried everything — nothing helps. I’m at the end of my rope. Is there no one who can do anything for me? Isn’t that the real question?”

He echoed the psalmist plea, “You are gonna help me, aren’t You Lord?”

“The answer, thank God, is that Jesus Christ can and does!” Paul answered his own question. “He acted to set things right in this life of contradictions where I want to serve God with all my heart and mind, but I am pulled by the influence of sin to do something totally different,” (Romans 7:21–23 MSG).

Oh, how that describes me. But for all Christ-followers, You see us as blameless because we’ve trusted that Jesus paid for our sins. We are so thankful there is nothing wrong with Your eyesight, Lord.

Thursday, June 9, 2022

Lord, in his zeal to live all-in for You, did the psalmist overcommit himself when he promised, “I will be careful to live a blameless life,” (Psalm 101:2). Realizing his weaknesses, I wonder if no sooner had the words left his lips that he thought, “What in the world did I just vow?” He knew living a blameless life was impossible. Did the devil rub his hands together in glee, saying, “Oh yeah? We’ll see,” and then party with his demons preparing attacks? Acknowledging the weight of his commitment, the psalmist did what hopefully most of us would do. He turned to his true source of strength. “You are going to help me, aren’t You Lord?”  (Psalm 101:2, part B). And oh mercy! Did You ever help, Lord!

What enabled a person to live blameless before You, in the psalmist day still works today for imperfect, flawed people who have a heart for You, God. All who believe that You are who You say You are, and You reward anyone who seeks You, and trust that Your Son Jesus paid the penalty for our sins, You declare as blameless, and righteous, (Genesis 15:6; John 3:16,17). You even claim us as Your children and invite us to come to You anytime. You said we could call You “Daddy” (John 1:12,13 ).

That’s good news for believers. Because sin and unrighteousness cannot be in Your presence, when You see us, our flaws and failures are nowhere to be found — You see only Jesus’ righteousness.  

Lord, I love how You always spoil the devil’s party. You rock, Jesus.

Tuesday, June 7, 2022 

Lord, the psalmist wrote his “I will” psalm instructing believers how to be all-in for You and live fully in Your care and grace.  

“I will sing of Your love and justice, Lord. I will praise You with song,” (Psalm 101:1).

The psalmist recognized he needed to change his tune. Perhaps we too should see how in tune we are with You, Lord. Do the stresses of everyday life dominate my mind, causing me to sing “gloom, despair, and agony on me!” instead of “Our God Reigns”? How about the real or perceived pressures of some leadership role I may play? Do I cause those under my care to sing, “Take this Job and Shove It” instead of “Where You Lead I will follow”? Raising kids? That’s an entirely different story. No more “We’re poor little lambs who have lost our way. Bah, Bah, Bah.” but “I sing blessings over my gifts from God.”

Lord, all who are breathing have experienced these situations in some form. I certainly have.  Thankfully, as Christ-followers, You gave each of us Your Holy Spirit who helps us discipline our minds to think on Your goodness amid life’s chaos.

Lord, may I stay in tune with the songs of Your heart. I will speak and sing of Your goodness and Your redemptive plan for fallen man.  And Lord, for all You have done for me and my loved ones, how can I sing any other tune besides Yours? Amen

Monday, June 6, 2022

Lord, in the psalmist determination to forsake his “hot one day, cold the next” walk with You, he ordered his soul to change course. Psalm 101, the “I will” psalm, records his new disciplines. It’s noteworthy that the first step he chose was to change what he says about his circumstances. Instead of whining and complaining about the negatives in his world, as he [we] are tempted to do, he made a commitment before God.  “I will sing of Your love and justice. I will praise You with songs,” (verse 1).  

Lord, at first did the psalmist find this easy? Probably not. For most folks, myself included, singing and praising You in good times is a snap. However, for most folks, again myself included, grumbling is our default when confronted with difficult times or when sudden, unexpected interruptions detour our plans.  But the psalmist found that as he praised You, the seriousness of these earthly, temporary trials began to fade. When You opened the psalmist eyes to see his circumstances as You see them, what seemed like a mountain to the psalmist he now saw a just a mole hill.  Praising and worshiping You brings our soul and spirit into the warmth of Your presence, soothing whatever fears our inner self may have.  Following the psalmist plan to sing and speak of Your steadfast love, Your goodness and mercy as we declare Your grace, Jesus, that redeemed us from our sins, we’re reminded of this one great assurance—whatever our circumstances, You’ve got this, Lord.

Amen