Monday... So, what is going to happen today?

Psalm 73:24 (NLT), "You guide me with your counsel, leading me to a glorious destiny."

Monday... So, what is going to happen today?

I was listening yesterday morning to a pastor that I had when we lived in California. It was his sermon that he gave the first Sunday after New Years. Earlier this week I also was listening to him tell of how they were doing all they could to get as much as they could out of their building because they were afraid of a fire destroying their church.

I heard this week that a church where my father was an assistant pastor when I was very young, this week burned down.

Earlier in this Psalm the writer honestly says in verses 2-3, "But as for me, I almost lost my footing. My feet were slipping, and I was almost gone. For I envied the proud when I saw them prosper despite their wickedness. They seem to live such painless lives; their bodies are so healthy and strong. They don't have troubles like other people; they're not plagued with problems like everyone else."

But what a difference a week can make.

Now my heart goes out to all of those people no matter who they are who have lost their homes in the fires this past week in Los Angeles. We as humans do not know what is going to happen, do we? But there is someone who does.

Psalm 73:24 (NLT) says, "You guide me with your counsel, leading me to a glorious destiny."

Again the Psalmist in their honesty says in verses 13-14, "Did I keep my heart pure for nothing? Did I keep myself innocent for no reason? I get nothing but trouble all day long; every morning brings me pain."

And that is the way that so many live, even Christians.

But the Psalmist doesn't stop there. In his honesty before God in verses 21-22 he writes, "Then I realized that my heart was bitter, and I was all torn up inside. I was foolish and ignorant - I must seem like a senseless animal to you."

So what is going to happen today and how am I going to handle it?

The Psalmist goes on. Verses 23-24 says, "Yet I still belong to you; you hold my right hand. You guide me with your counsel, leading me to a glorious destiny."

He continues. Verse 25 says, "Whom have I in heaven but you? I desire you more than anything on earth." Now we need to realize that this is earth. This is not heaven. In the Lord's Prayer we are told to pray, "Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven." We must realize that God's will is not always done here on earth. God's perfect will is done in heaven. And this is not heaven. We must not blame God for the fires in LA. But he can use them.

Verse 26 continues, "My health may fail, and my spirit may grow weak, but God remains the strength of my heart; he is mine forever."

And verse 28 is so good. It says, "But as for me, how good it is to be near God! I have made the Sovereign Lord my shelter; and I will tell everyone about the wonderful things you do." Even in the midst of the fires.

Yes, there were churches that burned down and good, good people lost their homes. Yes, "My health may fail, and my spirit may grow weak, but God remains the strength of my heart; he is mine forever." And "But as for me, how good it is to be near God! I have made the Sovereign Lord my shelter; and I will tell everyone about the wonderful things you do."

So, what is going to happen today? That is a very good question. Yes, yes! #todaysbeginning

Thursday... Maybe we need this word today.

Psalm 57:1b (NIRV), "There I will stay until the danger is gone." Thursday... Maybe we need this word today. There are words in life that give us confidence no matter what we are facing. Now we have to believe them in order for them to have an impact. David wrote Psalm 57 while he was in a cave hiding from Saul who wanted to kill him and he says in the last part of verse 1, "There I will stay." It was a safe place and Saul didn't know that he was there. But he doesn't stop there. With confidence he said, "There I will stay until." And until is definitely a word of faith and confidence. "There I will stay until the danger is gone." Do we need that today? Let me give you the whole verse. In verse 1 David says, "Have mercy on me, God. Have mercy on me." And that is a great place to start in times of trouble. Maybe that is what we need to pray today, "Have mercy on me, God. Have mercy on me." It is so great to have someone...

Tuesday... We just have trouble listening.

1 Corinthians 13:7 (NLT), "Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance." Tuesday... We just have trouble listening. Over in Jeremiah 25:4 (NLT) it says, "Again and again the LORD has sent you his servants, the prophets, but you have not listened or even paid attention." And Jeremiah went on to tell what was going to happen. There will be consequences if we do not listen to what God says through his Word. Now the Apostle Paul over in 1 Corinthians was having a problem with some professed Christ followers who were having trouble at listening. And we too can have problems at listening. We can think that being a Christ follower means we do a lot of finger pointing and we give up on people who don't do what we say. We can even do that in our families. But Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 13:7 (NLT), "Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance." In verse ...

Friday... It is so exciting but wait a minute.

Proverbs 19:2 (NLT), "Enthusiasm without knowledge is no good; haste makes mistakes." Friday... It is so exciting but wait a minute. This time of the year is so exciting. We get our paycheck from work and then we head to the store or Amazon and buy and buy and buy all those presents and then our check is gone Proverbs 19:2 (NLT) says, "Enthusiasm without knowledge is no good; haste makes mistakes." But buying gifts can be so much fun and seeing how happy they are when opening those presents makes us feel so good. But then verse 3 says, "People ruin their lives by their own foolishness and then they are angry at the Lord." Now for some that is their life. They get money and they spend it on their wants with no thought of what needs to be paid. An important lesson that we have learned is just because you have money in the bank doesn't mean you must spend it. But our enthusiasm takes over. But the problem is when it is gone and there is no money to pay th...

Today's Beginning

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