Prayer – Lord, show me how I can serve You more. I bring a sacrifice of praise into the House of the Lord—along with a sacrifice of thanksgiving and praise. You are powerful and awesome. I am listening to Your words and seeking to keep walking along Your path.
The LORD, the Mighty One, is God, and he has spoken; he has summoned all humanity from where the sun rises to where it sets. From Mount Zion, the perfection of beauty, God shines in glorious radiance. Our God approaches, and he is not silent. Fire devours everything in his way, and a great storm rages around him. He calls on the heavens above and earth below to witness the judgment of his people. "Bring my faithful people to me—those who made a covenant with me by giving sacrifices." Then let the heavens proclaim his justice, for God himself will be the judge. "O my people, listen as I speak. Here are my charges against you, O Israel: I am God, your God! I have no complaint about your sacrifices or the burnt offerings you constantly offer. But I do not need the bulls from your barns or the goats from your pens. For all the animals of the forest are mine, and I own the cattle on a thousand hills. I know every bird on the mountains, and all the animals of the field are mine. If I were hungry, I would not tell you, for all the world is mine and everything in it. Do I eat the meat of bulls? Do I drink the blood of goats? Make thankfulness your sacrifice to God, and keep the vows you made to the Most High. Then call on me when you are in trouble, and I will rescue you, and you will give me glory." But God says to the wicked: "Why bother reciting my decrees and pretending to obey my covenant? For you refuse my discipline and treat my words like trash. When you see thieves, you approve of them, and you spend your time with adulterers. Your mouth is filled with wickedness, and your tongue is full of lies. You sit around and slander your brother—your own mother's son. While you did all this, I remained silent, and you thought I didn't care. But now I will rebuke you, listing all my charges against you. Repent, all of you who forget me, or I will tear you apart, and no one will help you. But giving thanks is a sacrifice that truly honors me. If you keep to my path, I will reveal to you the salvation of God." Psalm 50:1-23
Meditate. Are you thankful for all God has done for you?
Our God approaches, and he is not silent. Fire devours
everything in his way, and a great storm rages.
How do you picture God? A great and majestic king seated on a golden throne wearing an ornate robe that gives Him wings, under which we can take shelter? He is so pure and holy that He glows. In this passage from Psalm 50, it depicts God as powerful—to the extent that fire consumes everything around Him that gets in His way. Can you see flames spewing out destroying the wickedness and evil in the world? That is scary. He’s like a fire breathing dragon…but dragons are associated with satanic things, so we know that our God is not a fire breathing dragon. God expects purity, commitment, and sacrifice, but not the sacrifice of animals. There are other things we can sacrifice like thanksgiving, praise, and even our own attitudes.
Make thankfulness your sacrifice to God, and keep the
vows you made to the Most High. Thankfulness gets our eyes off ourselves
and helps us to focus on who gives us everything…God Almighty Himself. Without
God our cupboards and table would be bare, we’d be homeless, destitute, sick, sad
to the point of despondent, and probably filled with wicked, evil thoughts and
actions. Recall in this passage that God rejects the wicked and calls them to
repentance. He expects the faithful righteous ones, His chosen people, to keep
their commitment—their vows—to Him. What vow have you made to the Lord? Have
you promised to love Him with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength? Have
you accepted Christ as your Savior, and declared your loyalty to Him as His
disciple? That is often part of what someone says when they are baptized or
join a particular denomination. God will be the judge. Are you ready?
Purity - like the water lily.
Are you thankful for even the flowers you see?
Verse of Salvation ~ If you keep to my path, I will
reveal to you the salvation of God. Psalm 50:23
Memory Verse of the Week ~ Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need. Matthew 6:33
Books by Mickey M. Hunacek
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