Praise the Lord for this new day. We
will meet for our Wednesday gathering this evening at 6 PM for fellowship and
study, followed by choir practice at 7:30 PM. We are getting ready for the
Thanksgiving celebration. It is also the deer season here in in New York, and
we have many friends who are avid hunters. Many have gotten their share of the
bounty this hunting season. Last Saturday afternoon as I was in the parsonage I
heard the sound of the rushing wind. Out of curiosity I looked toward the back
yard where, to my utter amazement, I saw two big deer as they ran across the
fields and by the backyard of the parsonage; rather than running through they
ran in circles. It was the first day of the (shotgun) hunting season and
probably they were scared by zealous hunters. They ran away from them and ran
to the parsonage grounds and ran in circles, possibly dancing, for they found a
refuge by the parsonage. The Bible talks of Cities of Refuge. In a deeper
sense the Lord is our refuge and strength. a very present help in the time of
trouble.
Praise the Lord for His
amazing kindness. I have been reflecting during this season about being
grateful. Often in my life i become ungrateful. In the moments when I fall
into the pits ingratitude, I discover the that the Amazing Grace of Jesus
reaches out to me. It is written in Luke 6:35, "He is kind even though we are ungrateful." At
times God's continued bounty makes us increasingly dull to our ungrateful
spirit. Possibly another
reason for a lack of gratitude is that prosperity has a way of dulling our
senses. C. S. Lewis, in his work, "The Screwtape
Letters", picked up this thought when he said, "The long, dull,
monotonous years of middle-aged prosperity are excellent campaigning weather for
the devil." The long, monotonous, prosperous years are also campaigning weather
for the devil.
I would say that for most
of our lives we have known blessings upon blessings and prosperity. One of my
favorite Psalms is Psalm 103, where we find a catalogue of God blessings and
benefits. Our forgiving and merciful God pardons all your iniquities. "He has not dealt with us according to our sins."
Praise God for that! "He has not rewarded us according to our iniquities." Verse
12, "As far as the East is from the West, he has removed our transgressions from
us." Alexander Whyte loved this passage of Scripture and encapsulated
it, saying, "in these verses, we have the law court. 'He pardons all your
iniquities.' We have the hospital. 'He heals all your diseases.' We have the
slave market. 'He redeems your life from the pit.' The throne room. 'For he
crowns you with loving kindness and compassion.' And the banquet hall. 'For he
satisfies your spirit with good things.'" WOW!
Indeed, His divine power
has given us everything we need for life and for righteousness.. 2 Peter
1:3
We are blessed, we are
loved. I am grateful.
In Jesus,
Brown
No comments:
Post a Comment