Jan

29

New Song

By Julie B Cosgrove | Comments Off


Psalm 40-3      He put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God.

I love music. I relate to it. When a new song comes on the radio, especially from an artist I like (the Newsboys, Casting Crowns, Third Day),  I listen intently.  I can’t wait for the station to play it again so I can learn the words and sing along.  I think about that song off and on during the day and find myself  humming it.  It is on the front of my thoughts. Do you do that?

When words are put to music, they seem easier to learn.  The message comes out with emotion and purpose.  Perhaps that is why David wrote the Psalms – songs about God and His relationship to David and to Israel.  Songs about overcoming strife and evil, finding comfort in God & being thankful, and about God’s holy power.  It is a shame we do not have the music to go along with them – perhaps we’d learn them better. So many of the powerful hymns of yesterday and today are taken from Scripture. It brings the Word alive. It puts it in the front of our thoughts.

But, God has given us each a new song in our hearts, hasn’t He?  Each of us have testimony to what He has done for us, the lessons we have learned in His presence, and the times He was right there to see us through it all.  Do we hum those “tunes” during the day – I mean do we recall His goodness and mercy? Do we listen intently, and imprint it on our thoughts so we can recount them over and over.  Do we then tell others of our song, and open our mouths when prompted to share that message of praise to Him?

I can’t carry a tune in a bucket, but God can make my words melodious to another hurting soul.  May I not be so timid and sing aloud the song of ultimate love – the one my Savior and first love gave to me.  It is a song worth shouting about into the Heavens, and into the broken world . Bet you have one too.

Jan

29

Listen Closely

By Jan Ross | 1 Comment


Not long ago I heard a story about a young man and an old preacher. The young man had lost his job and didn’t know which way to turn. So he went to see the old preacher.

Pacing about the preacher’s study, the young man ranted about his problem. Finally he clenched his fist and shouted, “I’ve begged God to say something to help me. Tell me, Preacher, why doesn’t God answer?”

The old preacher, who sat across the room, spoke something in reply–something so hushed it was indistinguishable. The young man stepped across the room. “What did you say?” he asked.

The preacher repeated himself, but again in a tone as soft as a whisper. So the young man moved closer until he was leaning on the preacher’s chair. “Sorry,” he said. “I still didn’t hear you.” With their heads bent together, the old preacher spoke once more. “God sometimes whispers,” he said, “so we will move closer to hear Him.”

This time the young man heard and he understood. We all want God’s voice to thunder through the air with the answer to our problems. But God’s is the still, small voice—the gentle whisper.

Perhaps there’s a reason. Nothing draws human focus quite like a whisper. God’s whisper means I must stop fretting and worrying and move closer to Him, until my head is bent together with His. And then, as I listen, I will find my answer. Better still, I find myself closer to God.

“Be still, and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth.”  (Psalm 46:10)

Father, help me to be still and listen intently by moving in closer to You. Lord, my relationship with You is more important to me than anything. Help me to stay at Your feet, learning of You, listening to You, worshipping You. Remind me, Lord, that there is no place I’d rather be than at Your feet, in Your presence, snuggled in close to You for it is in that place of intimacy that I’ll hear Your still, small voice guiding me and directing me in the path You have prepared for me. Father, I love You . . . forever.  Amen.

© Jan Ross
All Rights Reserved

Jan

28

What Have You Done?

By Julie B Cosgrove | 1 Comment


Psalm 50:3-5  Our God comes; he does not keep silence; … He calls to the heavens above and to the earth, that he may judge his people:  “Gather to me my faithful ones, who made a covenant with me by sacrifice!”

I often hear people talk of the Day of Judgment when Christ comes to claim His own and we all stand before God and hopefully hear the words “Well done good and faithful servant.” Perhaps that is what Psalm 50 is referring to. But it occurred to me that every day is a mini-Judgment Day.  Yes, I am forgiven if I ask to be and confess my sins.  But the Christian walk should be more than “transgression confession”.

God made a covenant with me and with you. Believe my Son is the Savior, accept Him as Lord of your life and you will live forever in my Presence. When we do, we emulate Christ.  He sacrificed Himself for us. In return, should we not sacrifice ourselves to Him? Sacrifice our pride, human self-centeredness, envy, greed, lust, sloth and unjust anger.  Should we not choose to turn our cheeks, forgive those who have hurt us, give the shirt off our backs and love the unlovable?

 Every night, before I close my eyes, I need to be more diligent in praying – “Did I do that today for You, Lord?”   What’s more, I should pray , “Show me where I can be your hands and feet, eyes and ears, grace and mercy tomorrow. I am one of your people in covenant with You. Here I am, Lord, your servant. Send me.” 

Perhaps tonight, before you close your eyes, you might consider asking the same of yourself. What have you done today for God? If each of us were more fervent in doing that, and following through each and every day, just think what the results would be!

Jan

28

Because I loved you

By Gwenn McKone | 3 Comments


I spent an hour in our car this afternoon having a very loud and emotional discussion (fight) with my 15-year-old daughter just sitting in our driveway. Such discussions are all too common between us these days. She was telling me that she’s tired of getting in trouble every single day, and that she’s really a good kid. I was telling her that I’m tired of her talking to me disrespectfully.

When I step back and look at her as a whole, she really is a good kid. She gets great grades, is very involved in our church high school program, and has a good head on her shoulders. She has good moral fiber, is very honest, and hates when her friends get involved with yucky guys.

So what’s my beef, then? Why aren’t I on my knees thanking God for this good kid? I often do. But just as often, I ask for wisdom and strength in dealing with her. She’s very intense and very in-your-face. She’s got attitude with a capital “A”. She often talks at me and not to me–loudly. If she’s passionate about something, or angry about something, and I disagree, I’m suddenly in the firing line. And of course, this usually happens in the car, when there’s no possibility of escape. For her, it’s an advantage–there I am, completely at her disposal. And, no matter how I react, it’s usually wrong in her eyes.

Last night, I was driving her home from her softball practice. She was fit to be tied about some of the things that are happening with her team. She began to vent, and I settled in, mentally preparing myself. The two of us stopped for a quick dinner, because she was going straight to Tuesday night church. She continued to vent. We got back in the car, and she continued to vent. Nearly an hour later, I finally said, “OK, I’ve given you almost an hour to vent. Enough. Let’s talk about something else.” She retorted, “Fine, then, I just won’t talk to you at all from now on.”  (Only seconds before, I had been congratulating myself on being patient enough to listen to her for that long.)

I now understand why God commanded us to “honor our father and mother.” He was trying to give parents a leg up. He knew that it was the toughest job on earth. He even threw in an incentive–the only incentive in all of the ten commandments–”that your days may be long on this earth.” He knows that rearing God-fearing kids is thankless, frustrating and exhausting. It’s the only occupation on earth where you can try your best, and somehow, end up at your worst. I do that a lot. I’ll walk away from a discussion (fight) with my daughter and think, “How the heck did she manage to pull that ugly, black, stinky, slimy stuff out of me? Why can’t I just have some SELF CONTROL!!”

As parents, we all need grace upon grace. And forgiveness. Heaps of forgiveness, especially from ourselves, to ourselves. And we need to remember that this, too, shall pass. All too quickly.

I was talking to my best friend a few months ago about this same topic. We’ve been best friends since the 10th grade–the exact same age that my daughter is now. I said, “I know I’ve always had a really strong personality, but I was never this challenging.”

“Yeah, actually, you were,” she said.

“No way,” I countered. “Seriously?”

“Yeah, you were really cocky.”

I was quiet a few moments considering such a thought. “Why did you put up with me, then?”

“Because I loved you,” she answered quietly.

Those four words knocked me into the back seat. Because I loved you.

“Above all, keep fervent in your love for one another, because love covers a multitude of sins.” (1 Peter 4:8)

In this verse, the word “covers” is “kalupto” in Greek, and it means “to wrap around, as bark, skin, shell or plaster; to cover up.” My friend’s love wrapped around my sins, and covered them up. I love the fact that love doesn’t just cover, it “wraps around.” Like arms…of a mother around her daughter.

Jesus’ love for us does the same, it wraps around us. Surely I can do the same for my daughter, who is…a lot like me.

Jan

27

Afflicting Attitudes

By Julie B Cosgrove | Comments Off


Psalm 119:  50     This is my comfort in my affliction, that your promise gives me life.

What a wonderful attitude, right?  In the midst of whatever we go through in life, whether it is physical illness, the worry over a loved one’s plight, or mental distress, we can take comfort that we believe in a God who keeps His promises. What promises?  Well, to review just a few from the Bible -

He promised through Noah and the rainbow that He’d never destroy the earth in flood- God promises to keep His promises.  

He promised Abraham to make him a father of nations even though Sarah was barren. God promises miracles.

God made a covenant with Moses ( a promise)  that He would lead them to the Promised Land and that He would provide food and water along the way and their clothes would not wear out – God’s promises provide for not only our needs but leads us to greater things.

He made a promise to David that his descendents would continue forever. Jesus was one, and through Him, we are all adopted children of the King and have eternal life. God’s promises ring true for His children.

God promised through Christ’s death on the cross that our sins would be forgiven and through Christ we would never again be separated from Him. He also promised His Holy Spirit would come to dwell in us to guide, protect, teach and encourage us.

All of those promises are recorded for your benefit and mine. Learn them, mark them in your heart and teach them to your children. God is a promise maker, and more than that, a promise keeper. David knew that.  He had learned through his walk with God that whatever happened, whether by his own sinful nature or by enemies crowding at his door, God would not leave Him.  And through his affliction, he’d learn a little more about the wonderful Lord he served. That made it all worthwhile.

vs. 71  – It is good for me that I was afflicted, that I might learn your statutes.

 

adapted from

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