Day by Day

[Soldier4Christ]

"Foolish Drink"

Psalm 102:9 "For I eat ashes as my food and mingle my drink with tears."

Did you get fooled today? If not, count yourself lucky. I once mistakenly drank from a cup holding a crushed-out cigarette. When we cut ourselves off from the forgiveness of sins Christ won for us, it's as if we see the butt in the can but drink anyway! That would be foolish!

That God would lovingly bestow His grace and mercy on those who willingly turn away may seem foolish, and in a sense it is. From God's Word: "But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. He chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things-and the things that are not-to nullify the things that are, so that no one may boast before Him. It is because of Him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God-that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption. Therefore, as it is written: "Let him who boasts boast in the Lord" (1 Corinthians 1:27-31).

[Soldier4Christ]

"Un-Eclipsable Love"

Psalm 102:1-2 "Hear my prayer, O LORD; let my cry for help come to You. Do not hide Your face from me when I am in distress. Turn Your ear to me; when I call, answer me quickly."

Through the smoke and dust she cried, "Lord, help me!" But no help came. Did God not hear? The smoke blotted out the sun like a solar eclipse. Did it also eclipse God's sight? Then a figure appeared, a fireman who had come came to her rescue. God had heard and answered her cry for help!

There are times when it seems God does not hear. We cry out for help and no help comes-at least not right away. But God does hear. Help does come. How can I be sure? "Don't you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? We were therefore buried with Him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life" (Romans 6:3-4).

Christ's cry on the cross causes God to turn His ear toward us. Our cries to God are heard through Jesus Christ. Of that you can be sure!

[Soldier4Christ]

"Rejoice, Be Glad"

Isaiah 66:10 "Rejoice with Jerusalem and be glad for her, all you who love her; rejoice greatly with her, all you who mourn over her."

For centuries, this Sunday has been known as Laetare, the Latin word for "rejoice." And what a great word is "rejoice!" It adds emphasis to the simple word "joy."

As we travel through the sometimes-somber season of Lent, there may be little "joy" to be found, much less reasons to "rejoice." Yet, it is on Sundays we remember that Jesus Christ rose from the dead. Nothing else offers more reason to rejoice than Christ's resurrection and the assurance that we will live forever because of His sacrifice.

This is the message of the Church. Though sometimes "the Church" causes us pain through scandal or controversy, Jesus is the Lord of the Church. He died for her-that is, for us-and rose again to give us the message of joy and hope. The Church has been given the powerful Gospel of Jesus Christ, and in spite of the failings of people, the Good News of Jesus is still powerful and brings joy.

[Soldier4Christ]

"The Guilt-less Tongue Sings"

Psalm 51:14 "Save me from bloodguilt, O God, the God who saves me, and my tongue will sing of Your righteousness."

The crowd turned at the sound of the approaching airplane. A cheer went up as it touched down on American soil. The first of the released prisoners poked his head out and the crowd cheered again. Tears of joy were flowing down his face. As he kissed the ground, the crowd cheered yet again. As the newly released prisoners gathered, the crowd joyfully sang, "God Bless America! Land that I love!"

We are not home yet…
So close your eyes with me
And hear the Father saying, "Welcome home."
Let us find the strength
In all His promises to carry on--
He said, "I go prepare a place for you."
So let us not forget,
We are not home yet.


Until our heavenly Father welcomes us home, let us remember that God has removed our sin through Jesus Christ.

[Soldier4Christ]

"Pure Heart - Steadfast Spirit"

Psalm 51:10 "Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me."

We live in a cynical age. It seems like everyone has a personal agenda or is motivated by self-interest. We have a difficult time understanding the concept of a "pure heart." I consider it to be a heart without malice, one that motivates us to carry out acts of love and compassion without any thought of reward or recognition. But that's tough to find today.

Perhaps just as rare is a "steadfast spirit." It is hard to remain hopeful and retain a positive spirit, one that is not moved to despair. A "steadfast spirit" is that which sustains us through difficult times.

In worship we ask God for a pure heart and a steadfast spirit. By the next day, it might seem that our request has been denied. But God, working through the Holy Spirit, does indeed renew our hearts and spirit. He sustains us through His Word and He comes to us in the bread and wine at His table. He does indeed grant our request.

[Soldier4Christ]

"Sin is Against God"

Psalm 51:5 "Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me."

"Aha! I got you, Pastor!"

He said this to me during a new member class. We had been studying the doctrine of original sin and had reached the proof text of Psalm 51:5.

"I don't have a choice! I was born sinful. How can a good God punish me for something I have no control over?"

Good question. It can be the ultimate excuse. Yet the Bible is very specific about sin. Left on our own, we're doomed, but many of us try to excuse our sin anyway. "My parents got divorced." "I was abused." "My dad was an alcoholic." While these tragic events do impact our adult lives, they do not excuse our sin.

The Bible is also very specific about God's love. He sent His Son, conceived by the Holy Spirit and born to the Virgin Mary, to suffer and die on the cross-all because we cannot do anything to save ourselves. Yes, we are conceived and born sinful. But thanks be to God that through Jesus' death and His resurrection we are "recreated" as forgiven children of God. Through Jesus we have new life!

[Soldier4Christ]

"Sin is Against God"

Psalm 51:4 "Against You, You only, have I sinned and done what is evil in Your sight, so that You are proved right when You speak and justified when You judge."

"I'm not hurting anyone but myself."

I've heard this many times as I've confronted one person or another about a drug or alcohol problem. Perhaps, at times this is true-that when we sin, we aren't hurting anyone except ourselves. But if we think that, we've forgotten something.

When we sin, we sin against God. Think about it. Perhaps you've heard it in church or read it in the Bible-when we die we will stand before the judgment seat of God. Not the people we may have sinned against, not our own judgment seat, but the judgment seat of God. Our sin has hurt God and He is perfectly justified in punishing us for our sin.

But out of mercy, compassion, and unfailing love, God sent Jesus Christ to take the punishment for our sin upon Himself. Therefore, when we stand before the judgment seat of God, we will be declared innocent and be taken into heaven. May this remain your focus during the remainder of our journey through the Book of Psalms.

[Soldier4Christ]

"Always There"

Psalm 51:3 "For I know my transgressions, and my sin is always before me."

The consequence of David's murder and adultery would be with him his whole life. Though he married Bathsheba, they had to live with the death of the child they conceived in adultery.

Many times, the consequences of our own sins stay with us. There are times when just the memory of a sin I've committed is enough to bring me down. Does that mean God hasn't forgiven my sin? No. God does forgive, and in His forgiveness He forgets. He "remembers y our sins no more" (Isaiah 43:25). That's an infallible sign of a great and perfect God. His forgiveness is so perfect and so complete that the sin He forgives no longer exists. Except … in our memory.

David admits his own human failings-failings we all have. But even though we may remember our sins, that does not mean God hasn't forgiven them. He has, for the sake of Jesus' death and resurrection. This is assurance we can cling to whenever we're overcome by feelings of despair over our sin. And this assurance is rock solid!

[Soldier4Christ]

"Gutsy Move"

Psalm 21:1 "Have mercy on me, O God, according to Your unfailing love; according to Your great compassion blot out my transgressions."

The background of Psalm 51 is most interesting: King David wrote this psalm after committing both murder and adultery in the infamous event known by some as "The Bathsheba Scandal."

Even after David murdered had Bathsheba's husband and fathered her child out of wedlock, David asked God to forgive his sin. David knew that God's love is unfailing and that He is a God of great compassion.

These are important lessons for us, too. Though David first tried to hide his sin, he ultimately repented and confessed his sin to God. In his confession he didn't try to make light of his sin by saying, "everybody does it" or "what goes on in my private life doesn't matter." Rather, David confessed his sin to God knowing full well-and most likely expecting-God's perfect wrath and justice. But ours is a God who forgives, no matter shameful our sin.

Even in the deepest depths of your despair, you can call out to God and have faith in His unfailing mercy and love.

[Soldier4Christ]

"Eyes on the End"

Psalm 25:15 "My eyes are ever on the LORD, for only He will release my feet from the snare."

Today is Oculi Sunday. Oculi means "my eyes." This theme invites a question: Where are your eyes today? Are they on the Lord?

I remember when I first learned how to hit a baseball. Over and over my coach shouted, "Keep your eyes on the ball." To this day I tend to shut my eyes before swinging at a ball. Sometimes I even shut my eyes before I catch a ball-and end up falling on my face. But there are many who keep their eye on the ball with great success: Barry Bonds, Sammy Sosa, Michael Jordan, and Kurt Warner, to name a few. Without this fundamental skill, they would not have achieved such success.

There are so many snares the devil has laid before us to trap us that it is essential to keep our eyes on the Lord. Our own sin can bring us down, so it's essential for us to keep our eyes on the Lord. For is it only through Him that we can achieve the ultimate success-a forever life in heaven. Keep your eyes on Jesus and He will strengthen you for the journey-to Easter and beyond!

[Soldier4Christ]

"Help Is On Its Way-Fast"

Psalm 38:22 "Come quickly to help me, O LORD my Savior."

As a child I read a lot of science fiction. One of the things that most fascinated me was the aspect of traveling faster than the speed of light. I had no idea that light traveled so fast! I can remember trying to see light travel by standing in a dark room and turning a light on and off. Try it! Light travels fast!

The Creator of light also travels fast! God is lightening quick-especially with forgiveness. It may seem that God waits to forgive us until we actually confess our sins. But the Scriptures teach that God has actually forgiven us before we sin: "For He chose us in Him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in His sight" (Ephesians 1:4). Now that's fast!

Receiving God's forgiveness is fast! As fast as it takes to say "I'm sorry" is as fast as God grants the forgiveness won by Jesus on the cross so long ago. As fast as it takes to partake of the bread and wine, is as fast as God's forgiveness comes to us.

Now that's fast!

[Soldier4Christ]

"Far Away"

Psalm 38:21 "O LORD, do not forsake me; be not far from me, O my God."

The days are getting longer. Winter has turned to spring. In less than a month, Easter will be here and Lent will be over.

But first, we must continue our journey to that little hill outside Jerusalem where Jesus Christ cried, "My God, my God, why have You forsaken me?" To be forsaken by God is to have Him as far away as possible. Do you ever feel that God is far away from you? Perhaps when someone you love dies? When a marriage fails? When a child rebels and runs away?

While it may feel like God has forsaken you, He hasn't. Even as we cry out with the words of the psalm, God is right there with us, ready to comfort. He hears our cry. In our sin we reject God, not wanting to listen to Him or call out to Him. But because of His great love for us, He will always hear your cry. After all, He sent Jesus to be our Savior. Our sins are forgiven, communication with God is restored!

[Soldier4Christ]

"The Waiting"

Psalm 38:15 "I wait for You, O LORD; You will answer, O LORD my God."

When I was little, it seemed like Christmas took forever to arrive. The early snow in November set in motion the anticipation for Christmas. And it took s-o-o-o-o long! Now, as an adult, it seems like Christmas arrives so quickly! I never seem to have enough time to get everything ready and I'm so rushed I can hardly enjoy the holiday!

When we pray, it can seem like we're kids and God takes s-o-o-o long to answer our prayer. Today's psalm captures that anticipation. But it also gives great comfort in stating the fact that God does answer. There's no doubt about it. God will answer. How can we know for sure? Again the psalm gives the answer-because God is Lord. He is master of all, in charge of everything, and all-powerful.

Waiting on the Lord? Know this, He will answer-for Jesus' sake.

[Soldier4Christ]

"Longings"

Psalm 38:9 "All my longings lie open before You, O LORD; my sighing is not hidden from You."

There are times when I enjoy sitting in a dimly lit room, listening to soft music and praying-just talking to God. But there are other times I need to talk to someone else. My wife is a good listener and I am thankful that God has given her to me.

But even though my wife listens, there are some things about me even she doesn't know. It's not that way with God. Nothing is hidden from Him. He knows everything about me and, at times, that is so comforting.

Yet there are times when I wish God didn't know everything, especially an embarrassing sin. But I can't have it both ways, and I really don't want it both ways. Even though it might feel uncomfortable for God to know everything about me, I'm glad He does. He knows everything about you as well. And when someone knows you that well, it is a wonderful relationship to experience.

[Soldier4Christ]

"Consequences"

Psalm 38:4-5 "My guilt has overwhelmed me like a burden too heavy to bear. My wounds fester and are loathsome because of my sinful folly."

Recently a television ad campaign showed people making excuses for using drugs. As one said, "I'm not hurting anyone but myself," a picture of the collapse of the World Trade Center was shown. The ad intended to make the point that buying illegal drugs helps fund terrorism.

When we sin, we hurt ourselves. It may not be noticeable at first, but an unconfessed sin becomes a burden. Even if we think we are not hurting anyone but ourselves, our sin does hurt someone else-God. It hurts God so much that He sent Jesus to pay the price.

If you are feeling overwhelmed by guilt, burdened with a festering and loathsome wound, confess your sin to God and receive the forgiveness won by Christ. That confession unloads the unbearable. It frees from the burden. You will be let loose from the bondage of your sin by the forgiveness of Jesus Christ.