Page 39 - Living light - The Psalms

Wednesday July 10 - Repentance Turnfromevilanddogood;seekpeaceandpursueit. Psalm34:14
You may be saying, “I repented when I first believed. Why do I need to repent again?” Repentance is a way of living rather than one act in life. Every day we sin, not only in the wrong things we have done, but as significantly in the good things we have not done – the sins of omission. The Greek word for repentance is metanoia, which means a change of mind, a reorientation, a fundamental change of outlook, i.e. ‘turning from evil and doing good’.
The Lord warned Cain, “But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must rule over it” (Genesis 4:7). Sin crouches at our door too. We must intentionally shun temptation by turning and walking away. The fear of the Lord shows itself in distaste for sin, and a departure from it (Proverbs 16:6). This counter-cultural way of life does not stop there but motivates us to do good, for the right reasons (faith and love) and to the right end (the glory of God).
This is the new and living way – turning from evil and doing good through the power of the blood of Jesus and the abiding Holy Spirit. It is the thing that inspires me to be a prison chaplain. Join with me today in co-operating with God in turning our evil thoughts, habits and actions into good ones!
Father, I seek to turn from evil and do good; I seek peace and pursue it. Amen.
Thursday July 11 - The eyes and ears of the Lord
The eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and his ears are attentive to their cry. Psalm 34:15
It’s great when someone gives you their full attention. It’s not so great when you have half their attention and the other half is on TV or their mobile! ‘The eyes of the Lord are on the righteous and his ears are attentive to their cry’ – these are not the words of a friend, colleague, family member or civic dignitary, but of Almighty God!
It's amazing, but it’s also scary; God sees the things no other sees. Most of us act differently when we know someone is looking. I have to admit I drive differently when I see a police car in my rear-view mirror!! If only we were more consciously aware of the eyes of the Lord being on us, we would be fearful of sinning. Proverbs 8:13 endorses this fact: ‘To fear the Lord is to hate evil.’
God’s eyes are on the righteous. If you have committed your life to Christ then you have been made righteous with the righteousness of Christ, and as a consequence God looks for the fruit of righteousness. One day each of us will give an account of ourselves to God (Romans 14:12) – and it will not be on the basis of what we remember but of what God has seen!
What should our response be? It must be to seek to live a holy life in the power of the Spirit and to hate evil.
Father, may I always act knowing your eyes are upon me, and pray knowing you are attentive to my prayer. Amen.
PRAYER FOR TODAY
PRAYER FOR TODAY
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