Friday... I love this word, I need this word and He gives me this word.

Friday... I love this word, I need this word, and He gives me this word.

This word comes up, hopefully, each time I put my debit card into a machine at checkout and put the information it asks for in it. I alway wait with a little bit of anxiety until the word shows up on the screen. It is the word, approved. I love that word. It gives such relief. It means success. We constantly want and need approval, don't we?

The writer of Psalm 90 in verse 17 (NLT) says, "And may the Lord our God show us approval and make our efforts successful. Yes, make our efforts successful."

Starting in verse 12 of this same Psalm, the writer says, "Teach us the brevity of life, so that we may grow in wisdom." This year that we have just gone through surely helped us to realize that, didn't it?

He goes on, "O Lord, come back to us! How long will you delay?" I'm sure we have prayed that many times in this past year. "Take pity on your servants! Satisfy us each morning with your unfailing love, so we may sing for joy at the end of our lives." And this is so good, "Give us gladness in proportion to our former misery! Replace the evil years with good. Let your servants, see your work again; let your children see your glory."

And here it is again, "And may the Lord our God show us his approval and make our efforts successful. Yes, make our efforts successful!"

That is a very good prayer for us to pray today, isn't it? Oh Lord, please show us your approval and please make our efforts successful! May we live the life that you have called us to live, that Your Son died for us to live. Oh, God, may it be so! Yes, yes! #todaysbeginning

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Tuesday... It is so worth it. It really is!

Tuesday... It is so worth it. It really is! Look at this, Proverbs 5:21-23 (CEV) says, "The Lord sees everything, and he watches us closely. Sinners are trapped and caught by their own evil deeds. They get lost and die because of their foolishness and lack of self-control." That is true of so many. Now look at this, Luke 15:1-7 says, "Tax collectors and sinners were all crowding around to listen to Jesus. So the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law of Moses started grumbling, 'This man is friendly with sinners. He even eats with them.' Then Jesus told them this story: If any of you has 100 sheep, and one of them gets lost, what will you do? Won't you leave the 99 in the field and go look for the lost sheep until you find it? And when you find it, you will put it on your shoulder and carry it home. Then you will call in your friends and neighbors and say, 'Let's celebrate! I've found my lost sheep.' Jesus said, 'In the same way there is mo...

Friday... Yes, we need them. We really do

Psalm 8:3-4 (NLT), "When I look at the night sky and see the work of your fingers - the moon and the stars you set in place - what are mere mortals that you should think about them, human beings that you should care for them?" Friday... Yes, we need them. We really do. No, not the fact that I can go out my front door and look out at night at the marvels of the sky. I can do that and it is amazing and it takes my breath away each time I see it. Yes, that is a fact but the reality of who did that and the wisdom and the faith that I have to believe that and to marvel that the one who did that cares about me makes such a difference in how I live my life. Yes, God really does. That is so wonderful for us to believe. And that is why faith and wisdom are so important. Now whatever belief you have at how that marvel happened must also be believed through faith. And the sad thing to me is that more and more people have been taught that there is no God and therefore he did not have a h...

Monday... Three ifs and two thens. They go together!

Monday... Three ifs and two thens. They go together! They really do. And this is what caught my attention this morning as I was reading Proverbs 2. Verse 1 (NRSVUE) says, "My child, if you accept my words and treasure my commands within you." Verse 3 (NIV), "Indeed i f you call out for insight and cry aloud for understanding, Verse 4, and if you look for it as for silver and search for it as for hidden treasure, Verse 5, then you will understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge of God." And verses 9-11, " Then you will understand what is right and just and fair - every good path. For wisdom will enter your heart, and knowledge will be pleasant to your soul. Discretion will protect you, and understanding will guard you." There will always be some effort we must do, some ifs for the thens to be realized in our lives. So many of us want to understand without the ifs. But the thens are so worth, so very worth the effort. Verses 5-6 in the Ampli...

Todays Beginning

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