This is a revision of a devotional that I sent out the first Sunday that we had to close last March 15th because of this “strange new [novel] corona virus.” I felt that this message is even more apropos for today than it was last year. Enjoy!
................................................................. .........................................
March 15, 2020 [revised 1/31/2021]
Good morning brothers and sisters!
This was the gorgeous view from my dining room window yesterday morning [3/14/20] as I said good morning to my Lord. The beauty of the rising sun illuminating those vapor trails and the morning mist was breathtaking! Martha and I felt compelled to step outside to get a better look. It's in those morning conversations with the Lord over coffee and His Word that He tells me that I am His own and then picks me up and sets my feet upon the Rock for another day on the planet! The devotional from yesterday's Our Daily Bread [3/14/20] seemed very apropos for what our nation and our world is going through right now: “The heading of Psalm 63 notes that David wrote it “when he was in the Desert of Judah.” Though in a less than desirable—even desperate—situation, he didn’t despair because he hoped in God.“ You, God, are my God, earnestly I seek you; I thirst for you . . . in a dry and parched land where there is no water” (v. 1)….Uncomfortable situations can confuse us, but they need not derail us when we cling to the One who loves us(v. 3), satisfies us (v. 5), helps us (v. 7), and whose right hand upholds us(v. 8)... Because God’s love is better than life...” Arthur Jackson
Yes, Christ followers can truly be a voice of hope in a hopeless world! As children of God you and I possess what everybody is looking for but sadly, most never find - PEACE! And that peace of God surpasses our collective abilities to understand it all! [Philippians 4:7] As we watch our culture crumble and the world seemingly falling apart at the seams, let us remind each other that our Lord Jesus encouraged his followers (including you and me) with these words: "Now when these things begin to happen, look up and lift up your heads, because your redemption draws near.” [Luke 21:28] ..."These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have over-come the world." [John 16:33] Beloved, you’ve heard me say repeatedly that we're watching prophecy unfold before our very eyes! What an exciting time to be alive! Last year, the president declared Sunday, March 15, to be a National Day of Prayer saying, "We are a country that, throughout our history, has looked to God for protection and strength in times like these." That was a good word from the president but isn't it sad that we only seem to turn to God "in times like these"? In that precious old hymn, In the Garden, the chorus declares, "And He walks with me and He talks with me, and He tells me I am His own, And the joy we share as we tarry there, none other has ever known!" It's only when we walk with Him and talk with Him along our daily journey through life, not just on Sunday, that we experience that joy we share with Him and realize that His "peace that surpasses all understanding" is guarding our hearts and minds through Christ Jesus! [Philippians 4:7] So my dear brothers and sisters, as we prepare to face the days ahead that God's Word told us are coming, and as we endure this second, hopefully short, closure due to covid-19, let us not only pray for an end to this crisis but let us also pray for revival in our hearts and others. Let us pray as David did, "Search me, O God, and know my heart; Try me and know my anxieties; And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting." [Ps 139:23-24] and as we give voice to the joy, hope and peace we have in Christ Jesus, that others will be drawn to their knees in surrender, not to fear, but to the Lordship of Jesus the Christ! Nancy Dorais said to me this time last year, "Could it be that that is exactly what our sovereign God has in mind through this time of affliction?" Hmmm! Selah!
Have a blessed day, walk with the King, and tell others The King Is Coming! Blessed be the Name of the Lord! Amen.
