In our own homes – let us praise the Lord and give thanks to Him for His wonderful love.

“God meant it for good” (Genesis 50:20).

Have there been times when you didn’t really understand what was going on in your life, and, then, some time later, you’ve been able to look back and say, “God meant it for good”? Sometimes, we can feel that we’re in a dark place. Nothing really makes sense to us. Do we need to understand everything that God is doing in our lives? When we find it difficult to see any meaning, purpose and direction in what’s happening to us, we should remember these words, “God meant it for good”, and we should remember that they were spoken by Joseph, years after a particularly distressing time in his life. When it seems like we are surrounded by darkness, these words may help us to keep on believing that God is with us. For a time, we may lose sight of God, but that doesn’t mean that he’s abandoned us. What it means is this: we must keep on waiting on the Lord, asking him to strengthen, in us, the firm conviction that his love for us never changes. Our love for him may waver, but his love for us remains the same. Our feelings can pull us in a whole lot of different directions. Sometimes, we can feel very positive. Sometimes, we can feel very negative. At other times, we just don’t know what to make of it all. Whatever we may be feeling at this time, may the words, “God meant it for good” speak to our hearts, lifting us up to the Lord and assuring us of his love for us which is, always, stronger than our love for him.

Do this, Don’t do that: Is this all that there is, for us, in the Christian life? Is this all that God is saying to us?

In their childhood, many people were taught “the ten commandments.” We find them in Exodus 20.

In “the ten commandments”, there are a whole lot of “Don’t do this” commandments, and some “Do this ” commandments.

Many people have the mistaken impression that “the ten commandments” begin with a “Don’t do this.”

To get this impression, there is only one thing we need to do. We need to bypass verses 1 and 2, and start reading from verse 3.

When we do this, we miss something very, very important.

What do we miss? This is what we miss: Before God’s Word speaks to us about what we’re not do and what we are to do, it tells us what God has done.

“I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.”

This was the first thing that God said to his people, Israel.

This is something we must never forget. Before we rush on to talking about what we’re not to do and what we are to do, we must listen to what God is saying to us, when he tells us what he has done for us.

The first thing we must say about God’s Word is this: it’s about him, not us.

Take this lesson, with you, into the New Testament. Before we come to Matthew, chapters 5 to 7, we read Matthew, chapters 1 and 2.

In Matthew , chapters 5 to 7, we have “the Sermon on the Mount.” Here, Jesus is telling us how we’re to live and how we’re not to live.

Many people go straight to the Sermon on the Mount. They turn the Christian faith into something that’s about us: this is what we’re to do, this is what we’re not to do.

Again, we must follow through on the lesson we learned in Exodus 20.

In Exodus 20, we went back to verses 1 and 2.

In Matthew, we go back to chapters 1 and 2.

What do we learn from Matthew, chapters 1 and 2?

This is what we learn: the story is about Jesus, not us.

In Matthew 1:21, we learn that the baby was to be called Jesus, and we learn that the meaning of the name, Jesus, is this: “he will save his people from their sins.”

Jesus is our Saviour: that’s what the gospel is all about.

Before we can think about how we’re to live, we must turn our attention to this: Jesus is our Saviour.

When we Jesus as the centre of our faith, we will hear the Word of God as good news. It will come to us as the joyful message of salvation. This is so very different from a message that comes to us with nothing but “Don’t do this. Do that.”

There is a place for learning how we are to live, but it is not the first thing that God wants us to know.

When we make “Don’t do this. Do that” the first and only thing that God has to say to us, we turn good news into bad news.

We are sinners. How can “Don’t do this. Do that” be anything but bad news? “Don’t do this. Do that” can only do one thing. It can only highlight our failure to keep “the ten commandments”, our failure to live up to the high ideals of “the Sermon on the Mount.” This isn’t good news. It’s bad news.

For sinners, there is good news. Jesus is our Saviour. He will teach us how we are to live, but, first, he will be our Saviour. This is good news: his love is greater than our sin.

Thank God: he does not begin with telling us, “Don’t do this. Do that.” He begins by telling us what he has done for us. With a God who loves us so much, how can this be anything other than good news?

When we receive this wonderfully good news, into our hearts, we will see that there is much more than “Don’t do this” and “Do that.” This doesn’t mean that we will ignore the question, “How are we to live?” What it means is this: First, we will receive Jesus as our Saviour, and, then we will pray, that, with the Holy Spirit living in us, we will live a life that is becoming more and more pleasing to God.

Is this too much for us? Yes. It is, but let’s never forget this: Jesus, our Saviour, is with us from the beginning of our faith journey, and he will continue to be with us throughout our faith journey. He forgives our sins, and “he leads us in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake” (Psalm 23:3).

He leads us: This is important. This is not about us: I’m going to do this. I’m not going to do that. It’s about being led by our Saviour.

For his name’s sake: This is more than saying, “I’m going to do the right things, not the wrong things. This is about being led by the Lord, led in the way that brings glory to his name.

When Jesus is at the centre of our faith, he will, also, be at the centre of our obedience. It will be our joyful privilege to be saved by him. It will be our joyful privilege to live for him.

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Lord, You have saved us. You call us, now, to live in obedience to Your Word. Teach us Your way, Lord, and help us to walk in it. May the light of Your love shine upon us. May Your love for us fill us with more love for You.

Lord, You speak to us Your Word of warning – and Your promise of blessing. You call us back from the way of disobedience – and on to the pathway of obedience and blessing. Where does the blessing come from? Does it come from our obedience? No! It comes from Your love. It comes from Your promise. Your love reaches us in our sin. Your blessing increases in us as we learn to turn from our sin and give You first place in our lives.

Why, Lord, do You speak to us the Word of warning and the promise of blessing? There is a good way to which we must turn – and there’s also a bad way from which we must turn. How can we really appreciate and embrace the good way if we do not see the clear contrast between the good way and the bad way? Help us, Lord, to choose the good way – to choose Jesus, who is “the Way, the Truth and the Life” (John 14:6).

Lord, Your Word speaks to us about the “secret things” and “the things that are revealed” (Deuteronomy 29:29). There are some “things” that we will never understand. These “things” belong to You, Lord. Help us to focus our attention on “the things that are revealed”, the teaching that comes to us from “the Holy Scriptures”, the Gospel which brings us to Jesus, our Saviour – calling us to put our faith in Him and live in obedience to Him (2 Timothy 3:14-17).

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“‘Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?’ Jesus replied: ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbour as yourself.’” (Matthew 22:36-39).

In today’s world, there are plenty of people who tell us that loving our neighbour is the really important thing. They tell us that we can take or leave loving God. They say something like this, “Make sure that you love your neighbour. If you want to love God, that’s okay. If you don’t believe in God, just concentrate on the really important thing: loving your neighbour.” What are we to say about this way of talking about loving God? Should we set aside Jesus’ call to love God, and focus all our attention on loving our neighbour? The first thing we need to say is this: Love for the Lord is “the first and greatest commandment.” Jesus doesn’t say this about loving our neighbour.” What he does say is this: it’s “the second” commandment. Is Jesus saying that loving our neighbour is not very important? No. He’s not saying that at all. In fact, he’s saying the exact opposite. He’s telling us that the second commandment is like the first one. That’s hardly saying that loving our neighbour is not important. He’s telling us that it’s like love for God: it’s very important. We’re not to say, “Love for God is the first and greatest commandment. I’ll concentrate on this, and not bother myself too much about loving my neighbour.” That is not what Jesus is saying to us here! What is he saying to us? Love God and love your neighbour. How are we to speak about loving God and our neighbour? Some people find it difficult to believe in God. There are others for whom God is very real. Both need to hear all that Jesus says to us. To those who concentrate on loving our neighbour, Jesus says, ‘Think about where the most real and deepest inspiration for loving our neighbour really comes from.’ Jesus says that it comes from God. He tells us that God loves us, and it’s his love for us that inspires us to love God and love our neighbour. To people who feel that God is very near to them, Jesus says, ‘Don’t forget to love your neighbour. This is the way in which you show how real your love for God is.’ If we are really learning to appreciate how much God loves us, loving our neighbour will be an important way of showing our appreciation. However we get there, starting with our neighbour or starting with God, may our journey through life be one of both learning to love God and learning to love our neighbour.

“Choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve… But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord” (Joshua 24:15).

Choosing the Lord is a personal choice: “Choose for yourselves.” What about our “household”? Can we, always, take them with us? Can we make their choices for them? We may like to think that our family members would make the same choices that we made in our youth, the choices that we have continued to make throughout our life. Sadly, it doesn’t, always, work out that way. What are we to say about our most important choice: choosing Christ as our Saviour? How are we to be encouraged, as we think of our loved ones? I’ve been thinking of the words of the hymn, “O happy day, that fixed my choice on Thee, my Saviour and my God.” Let our choice be fixed on Christ. May he be our choice, at every stage of our life. As we think of our own choice, let us think of some more words from the same hymn: “He drew me and I followed on, charmed to confess the voice divine.” As we think of our family members, let us keep on praying that the love of Christ will draw them to confess him as their Saviour. We’re not saying that our choice must, also, be their choice. What we are saying is this: they are “followed by God’s love” (Psalm 23:6), and this encourages us not to give up on the hope that there could, still, be a real turning, again, to the Lord. There may be nothing automatic about the idea that our family members will make the same choices, but neither is there anything automatic about the idea that people will, always, remain the same, and never change. People can be changed by the power of Christ’s love. Don’t give up hope. Our hope is not in ourselves. It’s in the Lord.

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Lord, You are not a god who keeps his distance from us. You are not a god who keeps his silence. You come near to us. You speak Your Word to us (Deuteronomy 30:11-14). How do we know that You are near to us? How do we know that You speak Your Word to us? Jesus is “God with us” (Matthew 1:23). He is “the Word made flesh” (John 1:14). Thank You for Jesus – He comes near to us and He speaks to us. Help us, Lord, to treasure His presence and to respond to His Word.

We sing to You, Lord. We sing our song of praise. It’s the song of Your salvation. It’s the song that gives glory to You. May our song of praise be more than words. May it be the song that arises from our hearts. May it be the song that comes from lives that are being transformed by Your grace.

Lord, You speak to us the Word of condemnation. You tell us that we are “a perverse generation” You tell us that “You will hide Your face from us” (Deuteronomy 32:20). You also speak to us the Word of compassion – “The Lord will … have compassion on His servants, when He sees their power is gone” (Deuteronomy 32:26). Help us, Lord, to hear the Word of condemnation – to know that “our power has gone”, so that we can hear the Word of compassion, the Word that comes to us in our weakness, the Word that brings us into Your strength – “a new creation in Jesus Christ” (2 Corinthians 5:17).

We thank You, Lord, that You are “the eternal God.” You are “our Refuge.” You hold us in Your “everlasting arms” (Deuteronomy 33:27). This doesn’t mean that life will be easy for us – but it does mean that You will be with us – whatever happens, and You’ll never let us down. You’ll always be there for us. You are “for us” – whatever problems we may have to face, may we learn to say, with triumphant faith, “If God is for us, who can be against us?” (Romans 8:31).

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“The Lord, he is God! The Lord, he is God!” (1 Kings 18:39).

Are there situations in life where we must bow before the Lord, and say, “The Lord, he is God! The Lord, he is God!”? When unusual things happen, our thoughts may turn to the Lord. How are we to respord when we find ourselves thinking about God. Are we to ‘get over it’, and ‘get on with the rest of our life’? That’s what a lot of people would tell us to do? What if God keeps on pressing in on us, calling us to keep on confessing our faith in him? Are we to ignore the promptings of the Spirit? Many people have found themselves at a crossroads. They can react in one of two ways. They can say, “No” to God, or they can say, “The Lord, he is God! The Lord, he is God!” The direction their life takes depends on how they decide. Some go on to serve the Lord. Others drift through life without really becoming all that they could have become. When we are “in the valley of decision” (Joel 3:14), it is important that we make the right decision. When the Lord draws near to you, don’t brush him aside. May your heart be open to him, and may you say, from the heart, “The Lord, he is God! The Lord, he is God!”

“If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land” (2 Chronicles 7:14).

There are plenty of people who tell us that prayer is a waste of time. They tell us that we’re speaking to ourselves. The people of God have heard a different voice. We have heard the voice of the Spirit. The Spirit is calling God’s people to prayer. The message of the Spirit is clear: when God’s people pray, things happen. People don’t remain the same. They are changed. We don’t change ourselves. We are changed by the Lord. As we learn to pray, we learn that God wants to bless us. He wants to pour out his love. He wansts to pour out his power. How can everything remain the same when God’s people are praying? The scoffers may ridicule those who pray. God honours those who pray. He honours them with his blessing. When God blesses us, he creates, in us, a desire for more of his blessing. The more God blesses us, the more we will pray that his blessing will increase. The more we seek the Lord’s blessing, the more he will send his blessing. The critics will tell us we’re deluding ourselves. Who are we to listen to? Are we to listen to the voice of unbelief? or Are we to listen to the voice of the Lord? Each of us must make our choice. Again and again, we must choose to listen to the voice of the Lord. May God help us to listen to him and live for him. May he help us to respond to him and receive from him. May he help us to keep on praying to him, and to keep on saying, “Praise the Lord.”

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We thank You, Lord, that we are “saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus” (Acts 15:11). We receive His grace when we put our faith in Him: “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved” (Acts 16:31). Putting our faith in the Lord Jesus – This is just the beginning of a life-long commitment to Him: “saved by grace through faith for good works” (Ephesians 2:8-10).

Lord, teach us to pray. This is where the power comes from. It comes from You. Sometimes, it seems like, “Lord, here we are again.” You never say, “Oh, it’s you again.” Help us to keep on praying – even when we feel like giving up. Sometimes, we’re not sure what we should be praying for. When we feel like this, help us to pray, “Your will be done.” Help us to hear Your Word of grace: “My grace is sufficient for you” (2 Corinthians 12:9).

Help us, Lord, to make time for reading Your Word – not just on Sundays, when we’re in church. Help us to read Your Word every day. When we stop speaking to You, help us to remember that You haven’t stopped speaking to us. Your Word continues to speak to us – even when we’re not really listening. Help us, Lord, to listen to what You’re saying to us: “Speak, Lord. Your servant is listening” (1 Samuel 3:10).

When, Lord, we feel like giving up, help us to keep on going. Many people are turning away from You. Help us, Lord, not to follow them. Help us to keep on following Jesus.

Help us, Lord, never to adopt a ‘know-it-all’ attitude. There is always so much more for us to learn. There is so much more blessing for us – when we’re listening to You, when we’re ready to receive from You.

“King of my life, I crown Thee now, Thine shall the glory be.” Help us, Lord, to give You first place in our lives. Help us to say, “Thine be the glory, risen, conquering Son.” Help us to walk with you in the power of Christ’s “endless victory.” May much blessing flow into our lives, overflowing out from us into the lives of other people.

Often, Lord, we’re out for what we can get, when we should be thinking about how we can give. Change us, Lord. Change us from the inside. May the story of our life become “Not I but Christ” (Galatians 2:20), “I must decrease. Christ must increase” (John 3:30).

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“Blessed is the one who does not walk in step with the wicked or stand in the way that sinners take or sit in the company of mockers, but whose delight is in the law of the Lord, and who meditates on his law day and night” (Psalm 1:1-2).

Start the way you mean to continue, and continue the way you started. The first Psalm could be viewed as an introduction to the whole book of Psalms. The first two verses point us in the right direction. We’re to come, again and again, to the Word of the Lord. We’re to receive instruction from the Word of the Lord. Our way of thinking and our way of living are to be shaped by the Word of the Lord. This is the message that comes to us from the first two verses of the book of Psalms. It’s the message that continues to come through to us, as we read on through the book of Psalms. What are we doing with the Word of God? Are we reading it regularly? or Is it gathering dust, as it sits, unopened, on a shelf of a bookcase? The Bible is not, always, an easy book to read, Some parts of it are more interesting than other parts. Some parts are difficult to understand. It is important that we do not lose patience and give up on reading the Bible. We can give up too easily, and miss out on the blessing God wants, so much, to give to us. We’re to keep on going in our study of God’s Word. May God help us to take delight in the Word of the Lord. As we learn to take delight in the Word of the Lord, we will be given the strength that we need to keep on going: meditating on the Word of the Lord, day and night. The more we turn to the Word of the Lord, the more we will be protected from the negative influence of worldly people, who would lead us away from the Lord. From the first two verses of Psalm 1, we learn how we are to rise above the level of the world’s way of thinking and living. It’s not by saying to ourselves,, over and over again, “I’m not going to be like them. I’m not going to be like them. I’m not… .” There is too much of “I” in this. There’s a better way. It’s the way of replacing the world’s way of thinking with something better: the Word of the Lord. It’s the Word of the Lord that we need, if we are to be raised by the Lord above the world’s way of thinking and living. Without the Word of the Lord, our weaknesses will be exposed, and we will be defeated. With the Word of the Lord, we will stand firm in the strength of the Lord, and we will be led in pathways of victory. May God help us to give all the glory to him.

We thank You, Lord, that we have Your wonderful promise – “The Lord your God is with you” – as well as Your clear command – “Be strong” (Joshua 1:9). Without Your promise, the command is no use. Again and again, we fail to keep Your commands. Again and again, we need to be reassured. You are still with us. This is what we need to hear. This is where our strength comes from. It comes from Your promise. It comes from knowing that You never fail us. You have never failed us. You never will fail us.

Help us, Lord, to “give a friendly welcome” (Hebrews 11:31). What a difference the friendly welcome makes! It’s the word of encouragement that makes us feel loved. It’s the act of kindness that lets us know that love is more than words. Lord, You are our Father. Help us to be like You – “when he was yet a great way off, his father saw him, and had compassion, and ran, and fell on his neck, and kissed him” (Luke 15:20). What amazing grace! Before the confession of sin – “Father, I have sinned… ” (Luke 15:21), there is the friendly welcome. It’s Your grace that inspires our confession of sin. It’s Your grace that leads us into the joy of Your forgiveness. It’s not only joy for us. It’s joy for You – “my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found. And they began to celebrate” (Luke 15:24).

Help us, Lord, to be active for You – “the people who know their God will be strong and take action” (Daniel 11:32) –  and to wait upon You – “those who wait upon the Lord will renew their strength” (Isaiah 40:31). We need both – prayer and action, seeking Your will and doing Your will. Give us wisdom to know Your will, and courage to do Your will.

Lord, You have blessed us so much. Help us never to forget this. We look at the world You have made for us – and we say, “Thank You, Lord.” We look at the Saviour You have sent to us – and we say, “Thank You, Lord.” Why must we keep on remembering You? – We “remember” so that we might learn to fear You (Joshua 4:23-24). We remember so that we may have hope for the future – “times of refreshing” (Acts 3:19).

Lord, we thank You that Your Son, Jesus, comes to us as more than our personal Saviour. He comes to us as the “commander of the army of the Lord” (Joshua 5:14). We thank You that “Christ, the Royal Master, leads against the foe.” We thank You that He leads us “on to victory.” Help us to be His faithful followers on His pathway of victory.

We thank You, Lord, that victory comes from You – “I have handed Jericho over to you” (Joshua 6:2). Help us to receive Your victory by faith – “By faith the walls of Jericho fell down” (Hebrews 11:30). We don’t achieve this victory in our own strength. You give us Your promise of victory. Help us to believe Your promise – to receive the victory as Your gift, to stand upon Your promise and claim the victory that You give to us.

Help us, Lord, to take sin seriously. The world tells us that it doesn’t matter how we live. Your Word tells us that it does matter how we live. Help us to think about our way of living. Help us to be honest with ourselves – to be honest with You: Are we living to please ourselves – or to bring glory to You?

Help us, Lord, to do Your work in Your way – believing Your promise and obeying Your command (Joshua 8:7-8). How are we to do Your work in Your way? We must read “all that is written in Your book” – the strong warnings that call us back from the way of sin, and the precious promises that lead us on in the way of holiness.

When we’re following You, Lord, Satan is never very far away. He’s always looking for ways of tripping us up and leading us away from You. Help us, Lord, to remember that You are stronger than Satan. Here-and-now, Satan has his successes – but he will not win the final victory. He will be defeated (Revelation 20:10) – and it will be clear to all that You are “King of kings and Lord of lords” (Revelation 19:16).

We thank You, Lord, that we do not fight against Satan in our own strength. You fight for us (Joshua 10:42). Victory is never our own achievement. It is always Your gift: “Thanks be to God who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Corinthians 15:57).

Where does victory come from? Does it come from ourselves? No! It comes from You, Lord. You give us the victory. We give You the glory: “To God be the glory! Great things He has done. So loved He the world that He gave us His Son … Praise the Lord!”

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“The Lord is my shepherd… I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever” (Psalm 23:1,6).

“For the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd; ‘he will lead them to springs of living water.’ ‘And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.’” (Revelation 7:17).

We read the first words of Psalm 23, and they are very precious to us. We read the final words of Psalm 23, and they fill us with hope for the future. Our future is more than our future on this earth. It is our “forever” future. This is the future that is described for us in Revelation 7:17. Here, we move from “the Lord is my shepherd” to ‘the Lord will be our shepherd.’ Here, we catch a glimpse of the “forever” hope that the Lord has given to us. Here on earth, we have sadness, and we shed tears. When we go to be with the Lord, there will be no more sadness, and there will be no more tears. This is very wonderful. It fills our hearts with joy. This joy comes to us from the Lord. It can only be given to us by him.

Lord, You call us to be Your witnesses: “You shall be My witnesses.” Help us, always, to remember that the power comes from You: “The Holy Spirit will come upon you” (Acts 1:8).

Help us, Lord, to have the upward look – looking up to You, to receive Your power – and the outward look – looking out to the world, to bring to them the Good News of Your love.

We thank You, Lord, for the Old Testament Scriptures. They tell us that the Saviour will come. We thank You for the New Testament Scriptures. They tell us that the Saviour has come. Speak to us, Lord, from every part of Your Word. Lead us to Jesus. Help us to welcome Him – our great Saviour.

Often, Lord, we can’t make up our mind. We are indecisive. Jesus speaks to us. He calls us to make our decision for Him – but we sit on the fence. We’re neither one thing nor the other. We try to keep on the right side of Jesus – but we’re not out-and-out for Him. Help us, Lord, to nail our colours to the mast – to say, “I belong to Jesus – and I’m proud to belong to Him.”

Lord, help us to remember – and to forget. Help us to remember what You have done for us – and to say, “Thank You, Lord.” Help us, Lord, to forget what we once were – so that we don’t keep on wanting to go back to the world’s way of living.

“God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble” (Psalm 46:1).

“I found strength that I didn’t know I had.” When we hear this kind of thing, we need to ask a question, “Where did this strength come from?” How we answer this question is important. Did this strength really come from ourselves? or Was it given to us by the Lord? The Word of God answers our question: “God is our refuge and strength.” When trouble comes our way, what are we to say? Are we to say, “I’ll see my way through this. It won’t beat me“? or Are we to say, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me” (Philippiand 4:13). May the Lord help each one of us to see that our real strength is in him, not in ourselves.

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Without You, Lord, we are without hope. Where does hope come from? It comes from You, Lord. You are “the God of hope” (Romans 15:13). You give us more than the hope of a better life – a life that is filled with Your blessing. You give us the glorious hope of eternal life (1 John 3:2).

We thank You, Lord, that You are greater than Satan. When Satan comes to us, help us to remind him of this. Help us to tell Satan that Jesus is Lord. Help us to tell Satan that Jesus has triumphed over him. Help us to say to him, “In the name of Jesus, we have the victory. With Christ within, the fight we’ll win. On the victory side.”

“I am under vows to you, my God; I will present my thank offerings to you. For you have delivered me from death and my feet from stumbling, that I may walk before God in the light of life” (Psalm 56:12-13).

Let us think of all that the Lord has done for us, and let us give thanks to him. The Psalmist tells his story. Like him, we have a story to tell. It is a story of love. It’s the story of God’s love. What can we say when we hear that God loves us so much? All we can say is “Thank you, Lord.” Can we ever thank the Lord enough? No. We can’t. Our thanksgiving always falls short of the greatness of his love for us. We can only come to the Lord with the prayer that, by his grace, we will be led by him to bring more glory to him. Here, the Psalmist speaks of “vows.” As I was thinking about this, I found myself thinking about some words from the hymn, “O happy day”: “High heaven that heard the solemn vow, That vow renewed shall daily hear.” When we chose Jesus as our Saviour and our God, we opened our hearts to him. Our sins were forgiven by him: “Happy day, happy day, When Jesus washed my sins away!” Our life was changed. We look back to this “happy day”, but we do not remain in the past. There will be many days that are not particularly happy. On these days, when it’s hard to keep on walking with the Lord, we must bow before him and renew our vow to him. As we walk with the Lord “in the light of life”, the light of heaven shines upon us. It’s the light of resurrection, the light of love that has triumphed over death, the light of eternal life. This is what keeps us going, when the going gets tough. When life’s hard times come our way, let us lay ourselves before the Lord, praying that he will give us the grace that we need to keep on walking with him.

Keep on praying for our troubled world and don’t forget to thank God for answers to prayer.

God bless you all.

Charlie