JANUARY 20

OUR PERSONAL PROMISES

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Psalm 63:8

“My soul follows close behind You;  Your right hand upholds me.”

1 Corinthians 6:20

“For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s.”

1Peter 1:18-19

“knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers,  but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot.”

John 14:1-3

“Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me.  In My Father’s house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.  And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also.”

Ephesians 2:4-7

“But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us,  even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved),  and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus,  that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.”

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This month we’re reading  the new devotional   “Becoming New”,  written by  Warren W. Wiersbe and compiled by his grandson.  Pastor Wiersbe was the President of Moody Bible Institute before the current President, Erwin Lutzer.  

PERSPECTIVE PLEASES GOD

Read Psalm 73

Asaph wrote this psalm after winning a difficult spiritual battle.  He had stopped walking by faith and was beginning to envy his proud, prosperous neighbors who ignored God but seemed to be successful in all they did.  (Ps 73:1-12).  Then he looked at himself and decided he was stupid to live for the Lord, for his neighbors had more than enough, while he was often in trouble (Ps 73:13-14).  He didn’t talk to anybody about his dilemma, which was a good thing because he would have ended up almost blaspheming God (Ps 73:15).  Instead, he got smart and went to the house of God and told the Lord how he felt.  As he focused his faith on the Lord, his heart was calmed.  He pondered the judgments that would come to unbelievers as well as the blessings he had received from the Lord (Ps 73:16-28). 

The next time you get “out of focus,” ponder these blessings and let them reframe your  perspective.

THE LORD HOLDS US BECAUSE WE BELONG TO HIM (Ps 73:23).  The Christian belongs to God because of Christ. 

This echoes the words of Solomon’s bride, who said, “I am my lover’s and my lover is mine.” (Song of Songs 6:3).  In the wilderness, David wrote, “I cling to You; Your strong right hand holds me securely.” (Ps 63:8).

The Christian belongs to God because of Christ, and not because of anything we did.

We were “bought with a price.”

THE LORD GUIDES US SO WE CAN ENJOY HIM, SERVE HIM, AND GLORIFY HIM.

It’s too bad when a wedding is treated like the finish line to a dating relationship instead of starting line to a lifelong, maturing love.  In our relationship with Christ, we are made new day by day.  As we abide in Christ, we grow deeper in our love for Him, for the better we know Him, the more we love Him.  His desires become our desires, and we serve Him without complaint, and this glorifies the Lord.  “Loving God means keeping His commandments, and His commandments are not burdensome.”  (1John 5:3).  As day by day we follow Jesus, our Savior and Lord, He leads us to “a glorious destiny.” (Psalm 73:24) – the father’s house promised in John 14:1-3.

THE LORD SATISFIES US

The Christian life is an adventure of enjoying the Lord and His blessings!  Since you have been raised to new life with Christ, set your sights on the realities of heaven, where Christ sits in the place of honor at God’s right hand” (Colossians 3:1). Physically we are on earth, but spiritually we are in heaven, where Jesus is enthroned.  (Ephesians 2:4-7).

By His Spirit, Jesus is in us and with us here on earth to provide everything we need.  “As He is, so are we in this world.” (1John 4:17).  What we have in heaven is worth far more than all we have on earth, or anything we may lose on earth, because we serve Christ!

It’s often said that some Christians are so heavenly minded that they’re no earthly good.  The cure for that  is for us to rejoice in all we have NOW in Christ in heaven and draw upon those riches by faith.  This is how we serve others and glorify God.  God’s people have the best of both worlds.  Jesus came down and linked heaven and earth for the believer.  That wonderful link continues and is strengthened in our lives every time we pray, “May your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.”

Set your affections and attention on things above, and you will experience transformation miracles here below.

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