Friday... He said this about him and He will about us too.

The Apostle Paul was speaking to a group and talking about the past history of the Jews and he said this in Acts 13:22 (NLT). He was talking about the first two Kings of Israel and Paul said, "But God removed Saul and replaced him with David, a man about whom God said, 'I have found David son of Jesse, a man after my own heart. He will do everything I want him to do." Wow, what a thing to say about a man.

Well from that great recommendation, I have spent a lot of time in the book of Psalms of which King David wrote so many. David, of whom God said, "I have found David son of Jesse, a man after my own heart." God believed in him and used him, even though he was imperfect.

Well, I also read this morning one of his Psalms, Psalm 86 and over the years of reading this Psalm, I have highlighted a big portion of it. Look at verse 11 (AMP). David, a man after God's own heart wrote this. He said, "Teach me your way, O Lord, I will walk and live in Your truth; direct my heart to fear Your name [with awe-inspired reverence and submissive wonder]." The NLT says, "Teach me your ways, O Lord, that I may live according to your truth! Grant me purity of heart, so that I may honor you." That is what God wants from us.

Yes, David blew it on the purity of heart part but he came back to God to the point that God said, that David was "a man after God's own heart." David blew it but he didn't stay there. He repented. He suffered some consequences of his sin but he came back.

He goes on, verses 12-13 says, "With all my heart I will praise you, O Lord my God. I will give glory to your name forever, for your love for me is very great. You have rescued me from the depths of death."

God also used Paul. Now Paul had started by killing people who were believers in Jesus. But Jesus revealed himself to him and Paul changed direction, God changed his name from Saul to Paul and he wrote a big portion of the New Testament. He too was rescued from the depths of death. He repented of his evil ways, he asked for God's forgiveness and God forgave him and used him. And He wants to do the same with us. It just takes a heart turing from it's wicked ways to a heart that is after God's own heart.

As David says, "With all my heart I will praise you, O Lord my God. I will give glory to your name forever, for your love for me is very great. You have rescued me from the depths of death." And He wants to do the same with you. Just confess your sins and change direction from going away from God to following God and walking and living in His truth and asking Him to direct your heart to fear His name "with awe-inspired reverence and submissive wonder." and by giving glory to His name forever, for His love for me is very great.

God said, "I have found David son of Jesse, a man after my own heart. He will do everything I want him to do." And He wants to say the same thing about us too and He will if we do everything He wants us to do. Yes, yes! #todaysbeginning

Monday... He did it by Himself

Isaiah 44:24b (AMP), "I am the Lord, Maker of all things. Who alone stretches out the heavens, Who spreads out the earth by Myself." Monday... He did it by Himself. Many have a tendency to think very highly of themselves and what they can do. Oh we do have great ability but we are not the source. Yes it is important to have self-confidence but we are limited. The prophet Isaiah in 44:9-10 (NLT) says, "How foolish are those who manufacture idols. These prized objects are really worthless. The people who worship idols don't know this, so they are all put to shame. Who but a fool would make his own god - an idol that cannot help him one bit?" Now later in verse 24 (AMP) he writes, "For the Lord, your Redeemer, and He who formed you from the womb says, 'I am the Lord, Maker of all things, Who alone stretches out the heavens, Who spreads out the earth by Myself.'" I love that. "By Myself." Now we do need confidence but we are foolish to ma...

Friday... We have this hope of expectancy.

Psalm 5:3 (NLT), "Listen to my voice in the morning Lord. Each morning I bring my requests to you and wait expectantly." Friday... We have this hope of expectancy. Now David found a great way to start his day. He says in Psalm 5:1-3 (NLT), "O LORD, hear me as I pray." And that is a great place to start. It really is. Morning sunrise He goes on, "Listen to my cry for help, my King, my God, for I pray to no one but you." And that is so important. We don't try to pump ourselves up by ourself. No, we pray to no one but you, God, my LORD, my King. Now this relationship with God is so, so very important. And then David says, "Listen to my voice in the morning, LORD. Each morning I bring my requests to you" And that is so great. And then he says, "and wait expectantly." Yes, we have this hope of expectancy. We are experienced. That is what a relationship with God and a moment by moment connection does. It makes a difference in our daily wa...

Friday... Yes, we can know this to be true.

Psalm 12:6 (NLT), "The Lord's promises are pure, like silver refined in a furnace, purified seven times over." Friday... Yes, we can know this to be true. Maybe this is what you want to say in this day in which we live. Psalm 12:1-2 (MSG) says, "Quick, I need your helping hand! The last decent person just went down, all the friends I depend on gone. Everyone talks in lie language; lies slide off their oily lips. They doubletalk with forked tongues." Do you ever feel that way?" Have you found that to be true? Well David the writer of this Psalm continues and says in verse 6 something to encourage us, to lift us up, to give us hope. Psalm 12:6 (NLT) says, "The Lord's promises are pure, like silver refined in a furnace, purified seven times over." The Message Paraphrase says verses 6-8 this way, "God's words are pure words, pure silver words refined seven times in the fires of his word-kiln, pure on earth as well as in heaven, God, keep ...

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