Page 5 - Living light - The Psalms

Wednesday May 29 - The consequence!
...I will sacrifice with shouts of joy; I will sing and make music to the Lord
Psalm 27:6
Psalm 27 clearly lays out the benefits that flow from a close walk with God – namely, ‘he will keep me safe’, ‘he will hide me’, ‘he will set me high’, and as a consequence, ‘I will sacrifice’ and ‘I will sing’. There are clear parallels here with Ephesians 5:18-21, where we are commanded to be filled with the Holy Spirit, allowing him to influence our thinking, motives, attitudes and actions. When we yield control of our lives to the Spirit of God we have melodious hearts (v 19), thankful attitudes (v 20) and submissive spirits (v 21), giving rise to joy, thankfulness and harmony.
I do not know your circumstances; for some of us they may be dour, but this I know – in your day of trouble God is with you and you can abide in him. Acts 16:25 recounts such an occasion: ‘About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God.’ As they sang, God manifested his presence; Paul and Silas were set free within – before they were set free without! May I pose a question? When was the last time you burst into song all alone? It is sad that our song to the Lord is seldom heard outside of worship services. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if today our neighbours heard our melodies, rather than our murmuring, as we walk life’s road with Jesus? So let’s pray:
Come Holy Spirit and fill my life anew. I need to be filled with the Spirit of Jesus and sing the praises of my Heavenly Father. Amen.
Thursday May 30 - Seeking the face of God
My heart says of you, “Seek his face!” Your face, Lord, I will seek. Do not
hide your face from me... Psalm 27:8-9
David makes a bold statement here about ‘seeking God’s face’. If I were to seek someone’s face, I would desire to be in their presence, close enough to hear the whisper of their voice. Perhaps the reason we do not hear God clearly is because we major on hearing God’s voice, rather than seeking his face. God encourages us to draw near to him (James 4:8), to behold his face and know the warmth of his embrace.
Why not take time right now to ‘be still and know’ that he is God (Psalm 46:10)? We’ve all known times when we felt abandoned, alone and vulnerable, not knowing God’s will. The disciples knew such a time, but in John 20:21 we read, ‘...Jesus said, “Peace be with you!...” And with that he breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit.”’ How close do you have to be before you become aware of someone’s breath upon you? Dare you come that close to Jesus, so close that just like Adam you receive the breath of God – the life of the Holy Spirit within you?
Morning dew only rests upon things that are still. God promised to ‘be like the dew to Israel’ (Hosea 14:5) so that they might ‘blossom as a lily.’ May it be!
Father, today I do not ask for the blessing of your hand, but the warmth of your smile, the love of your eyes and the peace your breath endues. Amen.
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PRAYER FOR TODAY
PRAYER FOR TODAY