Not Forsaken
Lust. Adultery. A cover-up. A murder.
Those are the big mistakes that King David is bringing to God in Psalm 51—a psalm that walks through various steps of repentance and restoration after failing to follow God’s standards for living rightly.
The first part of verse 11 is a prayer for God not to abandon David because of his failure. David knows that the consequences for sin are serious. His plea to God indicates that he has a repentant spirit that is remorseful and willing to follow God.
Next, he asks for God to restore the joy of his salvation to him. He remembers a time where he had joy and passion as he followed God. But in this season of life, he has become disconnected from that joy.
And lastly, he asks for God to instill within him a spirit that is willing to follow and listen to God. David knows that an obedient life comes through the grace and power of God, and it’s God’s power that will sustain him.
There is much to learn about repentance from this psalm, and how to approach God when we mess up. But, we can be assured that when we mess up, God will not forsake us—just as He did not forsake David. He promises not to remove His presence from us. There is nothing that can take away the love of God from our life.
Because our salvation is secure in Christ forever and always, we can truly experience the joy that He makes possible. We may go through seasons where we don’t feel joyful—but that doesn’t change our status before God.
If you’ve made mistakes recently, spend some time confessing them to God right now. Ask God for forgiveness, and tell Him how you honestly feel today. Then, ask God for the power to live a new life that follows the paths He has for you. And as you pray this, remember that He will always love you. Nothing can separate you from Him.
Luke 10
“After these things the Lord appointed other seventy also, and sent them two and two before his face into every city and place, whither he himself would come. Therefore said he unto them, The harvest truly is great, but the labourers are few: pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he would send forth labourers into his harvest. Go your ways: behold, I send you forth as lambs among wolves. Carry neither purse, nor scrip, nor shoes: and salute no man by the way. And into whatsoever house ye enter, first say, Peace be to this house. And if the son of peace be there, your peace shall rest upon it: if not, it shall turn to you again. And in the same house remain, eating and drinking such things as they give: for the labourer is worthy of his hire. Go not from house to house. And into whatsoever city ye enter, and they receive you, eat such things as are set before you: and heal the sick that are therein, and say unto them, The kingdom of God is come nigh unto you. But into ...
God Is With You
The prophet Isaiah wrote the words of Isaiah 7:14 nearly 600 years before Jesus was born. At the time of this writing, the Israelites were doing all the right religious things, but weren’t practicing justice as God commands. Like many prophets during Isaiah’s time, this was a warning against that injustice. But among that warning was a glimmer of hope that God would set things right.
Here, the prophet Isaiah is giving the people of Israel a reason to hope because of God’s good promise—the promise that He will provide a sign and He will show up for us. Because that’s what Immanuel means: God with us.
But what does “God with us” mean for us today?
It means we can share in that hope by fixing our eyes on Jesus and trusting in Him. We can trust that from Christ’s birth to His current reign in Heaven—Jesus is God with us.
He’s with us in our pain when we lose a loved one.
He’s with us in our anger when we see injustice and don’t know where to turn.
He’s with us ...