You are my portion, O LORD;The eighth letter and eighth stanza--the writer's testimony continues as he stands before God giving an account of himself.
I have said that I would keep Your words.
I entreated Your favor with my whole heart;
Be merciful to me according to Your word.
I entreated Your favor with my whole heart;
Be merciful to me according to Your word.
I made haste, and did not delay
To keep Your commandments.
The cords of the wicked have bound me,
But I have not forgotten Your law.
At midnight I will rise to give thanks to You,
Because of Your righteous judgments.
I am a companion of all who fear You,
And of those who keep Your precepts.
The earth, O LORD, is full of Your mercy;
Teach me Your statutes.
A vow is a promise to do something and though many make them, few keep them. If a person cannot count on us to keep our word, what good is our word? Have we made a promise to God to keep His Word (obey it) and then fallen short? When we fall short, do we recognize it and repent, openly acknowledging to Him that we are still in need of Him to guide us?
Have we sought the Lord with our whole hearts--seeking Him daily for wisdom and direction in understanding how He wants us to live? And if we haven't, are we still expecting Him to merciful unto us while we do what we want to do?
When did we last consider our ways--truthfully look at how we conduct ourselves as Believers? Are we a true representative of who God has called us to be? If not, when are we going to make a change--towards all He desires us to do? If we're not willing to change--according to His purposes--why do we still expect Him to act on our behalf?
How many of us can honestly say, we will quickly obey all God gives us to do? Though I hear Him when He speaks directly to me or through others, I am still sometimes a little slow to respond. Not because I don't know it is Him who is speaking, but I hesitate when I don't fully understand what the end result will be. Here's something to think about--we don't have to know the end, if we trust Him for the results He wants. Selah!
Many of us have allowed ourselves to be bound, tied up with those who don't even know God and they certainly don't serve Him. We have to make sure that we don't allow ourselves to be drawn into the circle of the wicked by determining to find and stay in companionship with those who serve The Lord as He desires, not as they desire.
That doesn't mean that we should not continue to promote the Gospel of Jesus Christ, but we should certainly not be found in continued fellowship with those who live in opposition to God's Word. In other words, our confidantes should be Godly and not the ungodly.
Consider this--there are many who serve The Lord with gladness and understand His mercy and grace continually shower us as we continue our journey in life--let's find them and fellowship with them, share our hopes and dreams, be encouraged by one another and continue upon the path that God has established for us.
I am grateful for all those who blog their faith, their hopes, their concerns and trust in Jesus. I am continually encouraged by those who support and correct me when I am tempted to cave in to the stress that attempts to weigh me down. I thank God for all who read my blog as well as those who write for me to read. Though we trust Him, we are yet human with the frailties of being such and having someone else to encourage us to continue the mission is a blessing.
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