Regrets and Miracles

Ps 32:1 Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered.
:2 Blessed is the man to whom the Lord does not impute iniquity. And in whose spirit there is no deceit.
:3 When I kept silent, my bones grew old through my groaning all the day long.
:4 For day and night Your hand was heavy upon me; my vitality was turned into the drought of summer. Selah.
:5 I acknowledged my sin to You, and my iniquity I have not hidden. I said, "I will confess my transgressions to the Lord. " And You forgave the iniquity of my sin. Selah.
:6 For this cause everyone who is godly shall pray to You in a time when You may be found; surely in a flood of great waters they shall not come near him.
:7 You are my hiding place, You shall preserve me from trouble; You shall surround me with songs of deliverance.
:8 I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will guide you with My eye.
:9 Do not be like the horse or like the mule, which has no understanding, which must be harnessed with bit and bridle else they will not come near you.
:10 Many sorrows shall be to the wicked; but he who trusts in the Lord, mercy shall surround him.
:11 Be glad in the Lord and rejoice, You righteous; and shout for joy, all you upright in heart!

 
In hindsight, the psalmist saw the wisdom of a life that strives to honor the Lord – a life that does not need to be marked by regret.

 
May our choices today not result in regret, but rather be wise and God-honoring.

 
Jn 9:25 He answered and said, "Whether He is a sinner or not I do not know. One thing I know; that though I was blind, now I see."

 
The Pharisees wanted to debate with the blind man about where Jesus' power came from and who He was. He refused. Today some say the day of miracles is past. There is no "day" of miracles. There is a God of miracles. He never changes. Neither does the fact that He can work miracles. If you have a problem or addiction, believe He has the power to change that. You've tried everything else, now try God. He will not fail you. Just have faith!

LEAVE IT THERE!

Is 26:1 In that day this song will be sung in the lands of Judah: "We have a strong city; God will appoint salvation for walls and bulwarks.
:2 Open the gates, that the righteous nation which keeps the truth may enter in.
:3 You will keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You.
:4 Trust in the Lord forever, for in Yah, the Lord, is everlasting strength,
:5 for He brings down those who dwell on high, the lofty city; He lays it low, He lays it low to the ground, He brings it down to the dust.
:6 The foot shall tread it down – the feet of the poor and the steps of the needy."
:7 The way of the just is uprightness; O Most Upright, You weigh the path of the just.
:8 Yes, in the way of Your judgments, O Lord, we have waited for You; the desire of our soul is for Your name and for the remembrance of You.
:9 With my soul I have desired You in the night, yes, by my spirit within me I will seek You early; for when Your judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness.

 
Verses 3-4 are an anchor for our souls through every storm of life. Whether it is an annoying inconvenience or a heartbreaking situation, He can bring us peace. Instead of dwelling on the situation or circumstance that you can't change, dwell on the One who can give you peace. When we put our problems in His hands, He puts His peace in our hearts. Put the problem in HIS hands AND LEAVE IT THERE!

 
Jn 9:6 When He had said these things, He spat on the ground and made clay with the saliva, and He anointed the eyes of the blind man with the clay.

 
DNA is in your saliva. When Jesus spat on the clay (what man was originally made from) He was going back to the source of the problem. The man had been blind form birth. That's what He does with us also if we allow it.

Break the cycle!

Ps 139:13 For You formed my inward parts; You covered me in my mother's womb.
:14 I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; marvelous are Your works, and that my soul knows very well.
:15 My frame was not hidden from You, when I was made in secret, and skillfully wrought in the lowest parts of the earth.
:16 Your eyes saw my substance being yet unformed. And in Your book they all were written, the days fashioned for me, when as yet there were none of them.
:17 How precious also are Your thoughts to me, O God! How great is the sum of them!
:18 If I should count them, they would be more in number than the sand; when I awake, I am still with You.

 
Job 33:4 The Spirit of God has made me, and the breath of the Almighty gives me life.

 
Rev 14:13 Then I heard a voice from heaven saying to me, "Write: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.'" "Yes," says the Spirit, "that they may rest from their labors, and their works follow them."

 
Ps 116:15 Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of His saints.

 
God knows us from our very beginning and forever. Though we don't know how many breaths we have left, we can rest knowing He does.

 
Jn 9:2 And His disciples asked Him, saying, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?"
:3 Jesus answered, "Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but that the works of God should be revealed in him.sa

 
Sometimes things happen as consequences of our sin. Other times it is an opportunity for God to show His love and grace by setting us free.

 
Your problem may be to big for you, but it is not too big for God.

 
2 Cor 5:17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation, old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.

 
God doesn't consult your past in order to determine your future. Before you met Jesus, you were spiritually dead.

 
Jn 3:3 Jesus answered and said to him, "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.

 
Once you are born again, the past no longer has any power over you, unless you give it power.

 
Break the cycle!

Hypocrites!

Lk 12:1 In the meantime, when an innumerable multitude of people had gathered together, so that they trampled one another, He began to say to His disciples first of all, "Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy.
:2 For there is nothing covered that will not be revealed, nor hidden that will not be known.
:3 Therefore whatever you have spoken in the dark will be heard in the light, and what you have spoken in the ear in inner rooms will be proclaimed on the rooftops.
:4 And I say to you, My friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body, and after that have no more that they can do.
:5 But I will show you who you should fear: Fear Him who, after He has killed, has power to cast into hell; yes, I say to you, fear Him!"
:6 Are not five sparrows sold for two copper coins? And not one of them is forgotten before God.
:7 But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Do not fear therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows.

Hypocrites put on a show of righteousness while hiding sinful thoughts and actions. Christ warned His disciples and us that secret sin will someday be fully exposed.

Yeast may be a blessing in a bakery, but it can also remind us to guard our heart against sin.

Num 32:23 But if you do not do so, then take note, you have sinned against the Lord; and be sure your sin will find you out.

2 Pet 1:5 But also for this very reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge,

Your goal must be to get a little more faith each day, to build on the previous day and to learn from its failures .

Do you see the sign?

Lk 11:29 And while the crowds were thickly gathered together, He began to say, " This is an evil generation. It seeks a sign, and no sign will be given to it except the sign of Jonah the prophet.
:30 For as Jonah became a sign to the Ninevites, so also the Son of Man will be to this generation.
:31 The queen of the South will rise up in the judgment with the men of this generation and condemn them, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and indeed a greater than Solomon is here.
:32 The men of Nineveh will rise up in the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and indeed a greater than Jonah is here.
:33 No one, when he has lit a lamp, puts it in a secret place or under a basket, but on a lampstand, thjat those who come in may see the light.
:34 The lamp of the body is the eye. Therefore, when your eye is good, your whole body is full of light. But when your eye is bad, your body also is full of darkness.
:35 Therefore take heed that the light which is in you is not darkness.
:36 If then your whole body is full of light, having no part dark, the whole body will be full of light, as when the bright shining of a lamp gives you light.
:37 And as He spoke, a certain Pharisee asked Him to dine with Him. So He went in and sat down to eat.
:38 When the Pharisee saw it, he marveled that He had not first washed before dinner.
:39 Then the Lord said to him, "Now you Pharisees make the outside of the cup and dish clean, but your inward part is full of greed and wickedness.
:40 Foolish ones! Did not He who made the outside make the inside also?
:41 But rather give alms of such things as you have; then indeed all things are clean to you.
:42 But woe to you Pharisees! For you tithe mint and rue and all manner of herbs, and pass by justice and the love of God. These you ought to have done without leaving the others undone.
:43 Woe to you Pharisees! For you love the best seats in the synagogues and greetings in the marketplaces.
:44 Woe to you, scribes and Pharisses, hypocrites! For you are like graves which are not seen, and the men who walk on them are not aware of them."
:45 Then one of the lawyers answered and said to Him, "Teacher, by saying these things You reproach us also."

 
When life is going well, we tend to ignore warnings that we need to turn around and change our sinful ways. It's important to remember that we may be wrong even though life is good.
God sends warnings to protect us not to punish us.
Jn 15:12 This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.

Young People, Listen Up!

1 Sam 17:32 Then David said to Saul, "Let no man's heart fail because of him; your servant will go and fight with this Philistine."
:33 And Saul said to David, "You are not able to go against this Philistine to fight with him; for you are a youth, and he is a man of war from his youth."
:34 But David said to Saul, "Your servant used to keep his father's sheep, and when a lion or a bear came and took a lamb out of the flock
:35 I went out after it and struck it and delivered the lamb from its mouth, and when it arose against me, I caught it by its beard, and struck and killed it.
:36 Your servant has killed both lion and bear; and this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, seeing he has defied the armies of the living God."
:37 Moreover David said, "The Lord, who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear, He will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine." And Saul said to David, "Go, and the Lord be with you!"

 
When David volunteered to face the giant he had faith In God who had delivered him in the past. He didn't think he was to young for God to use. Young people, don't ever think God won't or can't use you because of your age. All He needs is a willing heart.

 
Romans 13:8 Owe no one anything except to love one another, for he who loves another has fulfilled the law.

 
True contentment doesn't come from getting all you want, but by discovering the blessings you have been given and learning to enjoy them. Rom 13:8 should be your goal.

Even in old age...

Isaiah 46:1 Bel bows down, Nebo stoops; their idols were on the beasts and on the cattle. Your carriages were heavily loaded, a burden to the weary beast.
:2 They stoop, they bow down together; they could not deliver the burden, but have themselves gone into captivity.
:3 Listen to Me, O house of Jacob, and all the remnant of the house of Israel, who have been upheld by Me from birth, who have been carried from the womb;
:4 even to your old age, I am He, and even to gray hairs I will carry you! I have made, and I will bear; even I will carry, and will deliver you.
:5 To whom will you liken Me, and make Me equal and compare Me, that we should be alike?
:6 They lavish gold out of the bag, and weigh silver on the scales; they hire a goldsmit5h, and he makes it a god; they prostrate themselves, yes, they worship.
:7 They bear it on the shoulder; they carry it and set it in its place, and it stands; from its place it shall not move. Though one cries out to it, yet it cannot answer nor save him out of his trouble.
:8 Remember this, and show yourselves men; recall to mind, O you transgressors.
:9 Remember the former things of old, for I am God, and there is none like Me,
Judges 11:35 And it came to pass, when he saw her, that he tore his clothes, and said, "Alas, my daughter! You have brought me very low! You are among those who trouble me! For I have given my word to the Lord, and I cannot go back on it."
If you give God your word, do you keep it?
Don't get to the end of your life only to look back and discover you forfeited things which were truly significant, to make way for things that added nothing of value.