Quick and Powerful

Good morning!  Let’s pray!

Dear Lord, as we begin this day, may we be bright and beautiful as the pictured sunflower is.  May we be discerners of our thoughts and see the difference between our feelings and our failings.  Lastly, may the intentions of our heart line up with those of Yours so that we may best edify You and Your Word.  In the name of Jesus I ask these things:  amen.

Many of you know that I write this blog with the hopes of sharing my experiences of wandering through Bible verses and sermons and songs and life events with the hope--with the intent--of becoming more like Christ and less like...the world.  About once a week or so, I get a notification that someone has "liked" a post from a previous blog, some dating back months and even years.  Curious as to which post generated this, I will go back and re-read what was written so that I might refresh my mind.  Some of it is good stuff (insert smiley face here)!  Seriously though, some of those blogs rekindle a feeling, a sense of discovery, and often--like the verse being used for today’s devotion--pierce me asunder.  The lesson I learnt way back when often has been either forgotten or misplaced.  

Isn’t that the way it is with God’s Word?  Many of us learned verses as a child, kept them in our hearts, but forgot to apply them to our minds.  We feared when we should have had faith.  We questioned when we should have trusted.  We doubted when the storms came, forgetting that the Master of the Sea was in charge.  We fell apart when the times got rough instead of standing strong, even though it was all we could do to just stand.  But then, but then God’s Word was somehow once again illuminating our darkness.  His truths were being proclaimed in the lives of people around us.  Songs of His power filled our ears and our hopeful hearts yearned for more.  We dusted those Bibles off, added the newest Bible app to our phones, tuned the radio station back to one of Christian-oriented themes, and began pondering those songs of victory in Jesus, of what a friend He is, and considered anew that it is in Christ alone where our hope is found.

There is so much to be gleaned from this verse that for today I am going to stop and just let it soak in.  The Word of God is quick and powerful.  It comes to our minds when we least expect it.  It brightens our days with the promises provided.  The truths of the Lord are as real today as they were when they first originated.  Ponder them anew, I suggest.  Don’t tackle them all at once.  Instead, read one or two favorites of yours and keep them in mind throughout the day.  If they convict you of some error in judgment that you need to correct, don’t run from them and discard them.  Let your hearts be pierced so that God may reign faithfully and truly.  Your souls, your spirits, your minds will be better for it.  I know mine is!

Let’s pray--again!

Dear Father, I thank You so much for the words I read that originate from You.  This particular verse, Lord?  How many times have I heard it and discarded it?  Yeah, too many.  

I got a card earlier in the week, Lord.  Words that were meant to be funny but instead cut me to the quick.  Words that reminded me that what was meant in fun instead hurt my heart to its core (my soul?).  Powerful words, Lord, that were meant to pick up but instead brought me down.  May I use their lesson to remind myself how much effect my words have.  Whether from a blog, something I spoke, or something I myself wrote in correspondence, may I be more careful and considerate of my audience for I never know if those words will come back to haunt me or to honor me.  I prefer honor, Father.  I want to be more like You so help me, I ask, to keep guard over my tongue, my thoughts, and the things that are said that may not ever be taken back.  May my mouth produce blessings and not cursings is my prayer today.  In Jesus’ name I ask for help with this, God:  amen.