Saturday, June 26, 2010

Be a Little Kinder

A few days ago in my Quiet Time, a sentence jumped out at me.  "Today, be a little kinder than necessary to family members, friends, and total strangers." (365 Devotionals From Psalms for Women, page 169)

"Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you." (Ephesians 4:32)

God has called us as believers to be different.  What if today - this week - we tried to be a little kinder than is necessary to everyone with whom we interact?  I think people would notice and wonder why.  It is easy to be kind to those who are kind to us, but not so easy to those who are unkind.

Let the love of Jesus overflow from your heart to others.  Be a little kinder than is necessary and everyone will be blessed - most of all you!

Tuesday, June 15, 2010

My Deliverer, the LORD

In Psalm 18, God had delivered David from his enemies - Saul being one of the chief persecutors and pursuers of harm to David.  David's response to God's deliverance was thankfulness.  He recognized the fact that it was the LORD who delivered him.  "I love You, O LORD, my strength.  The LORD is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer, my God is my rock in whom I take refuge.  He is my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold." (Psalm 18:1-2)  Notice David's use of the personal pronoun my.

Many times difficulties in our lives draw us closer to God.  We realize we can't handle the big things without Him.  (In reality, we can't handle the small things either.)  Our response should be one of praise and thankfulness when we realize God is our strength, rock, fortress, deliverer, shield, stronghold, salvation and much, much more.  He truly is All-Sufficient.  Let's depend on Him for deliverance and strength.  Let's make Him our refuge and be grateful.  God is a very personal God.  He is my God, my deliverer.  If you are His child, He is your God and your deliverer.

Friday, June 4, 2010

Delight Yourself in the Lord

"Delight yourself in the LORD and He will give you the desires of your heart." (Psalm 37:4)  I love this verse!  Think about what it means to delight in something.  When we delight in something, it gives us great pleasure, joy and satisfaction.  I delight in my family, my friends, a delicious meal, completion of a project or task, a clean house, weeded flower beds, etc., etc.

Do I delight in the Lord?  Yes!  Maybe not as consistently as I should, but yes, I do delight in Him.  When you delight in Him, He gives you a promise - "He will give you the desires of your heart."  What a great promise!  The crux (heart, truth) of this verse is when we truly delight in Him, our desires change.  His desires become what we desire.  It is not about getting what we want.  It is about the changing of our hearts and minds to align with His.  When we delight in Him, we have right/righteous desires.

"Delight yourself in the Lord,." and watch your desires change.

Serving Him,
Kay Martin