Here's my new favorite chapter

While perusing Matt Walsh's Facebook page, I came across a post that pointed me to a Bible passage that spoke volumes to me. I have copied it here for your consideration. Perhaps God's Word will impact you, as it did me, to stand firm in your belief and commitment to Jesus. I pray that is so...

Psalm 37 (NIV)
Of David
Do not fret because of those who are evil
    or be envious of those who do wrong;
² for like the grass they will soon wither,
    like green plants they will soon die away.

³ Trust in the Lord and do good;
    dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture.
⁴ Take delight in the Lord,
    and he will give you the desires of your heart.

⁵ Commit your way to the Lord;
    trust in him and he will do this:
⁶ He will make your righteous reward shine like the dawn,
    your vindication like the noonday sun.

⁷ Be still before the Lord
    and wait patiently for him;
do not fret when people succeed in their ways,
    when they carry out their wicked schemes.

⁸ Refrain from anger and turn from wrath;
    do not fret—it leads only to evil.
⁹ For those who are evil will be destroyed,
    but those who hope in the Lord will inherit the land.

¹⁰ A little while, and the wicked will be no more;
    though you look for them, they will not be found.
¹¹ But the meek will inherit the land
    and enjoy peace and prosperity.

¹² The wicked plot against the righteous
    and gnash their teeth at them;
¹³ but the Lord laughs at the wicked,
    for he knows their day is coming.

¹⁴ The wicked draw the sword
    and bend the bow
to bring down the poor and needy,
    to slay those whose ways are upright.
¹⁵ But their swords will pierce their own hearts,
    and their bows will be broken.

¹⁶ Better the little that the righteous have
    than the wealth of many wicked;
¹⁷ for the power of the wicked will be broken,
    but the Lord upholds the righteous.

¹⁸ The blameless spend their days under the Lord’s care,
    and their inheritance will endure forever.
¹⁹ In times of disaster they will not wither;
    in days of famine they will enjoy plenty.

²⁰ But the wicked will perish:
    Though the Lord’s enemies are like the flowers of the field,
    they will be consumed, they will go up in smoke.

²¹ The wicked borrow and do not repay,
    but the righteous give generously;
²² those the Lord blesses will inherit the land,
    but those he curses will be destroyed.

²³ The Lord makes firm the steps
    of the one who delights in him;
²⁴ though he may stumble, he will not fall,
    for the Lord upholds him with his hand.

²⁵ I was young and now I am old,
    yet I have never seen the righteous forsaken
    or their children begging bread.
²⁶ They are always generous and lend freely;
    their children will be a blessing.

²⁷ Turn from evil and do good;
    then you will dwell in the land forever.
²⁸ For the Lord loves the just
    and will not forsake his faithful ones.

Wrongdoers will be completely destroyed;
    the offspring of the wicked will perish.
²⁹ The righteous will inherit the land
    and dwell in it forever.

³⁰ The mouths of the righteous utter wisdom,
    and their tongues speak what is just.
³¹ The law of their God is in their hearts;
    their feet do not slip.

³² The wicked lie in wait for the righteous,
    intent on putting them to death;
³³ but the Lord will not leave them in the power of the wicked
    or let them be condemned when brought to trial.

³⁴ Hope in the Lord
    and keep his way.
He will exalt you to inherit the land;
    when the wicked are destroyed, you will see it.

³⁵ I have seen a wicked and ruthless man
    flourishing like a luxuriant native tree,
³⁶ but he soon passed away and was no more;
    though I looked for him, he could not be found.

³⁷ Consider the blameless, observe the upright;
    a future awaits those who seek peace.
³⁸ But all sinners will be destroyed;
    there will be no future^[e] for the wicked.

³⁹ The salvation of the righteous comes from the Lord;
    he is their stronghold in time of trouble.
⁴⁰ The Lord helps them and delivers them;
    he delivers them from the wicked and saves them,
    because they take refuge in him.

Have you found your word?

...No turning back, no turning back

A devotional I recently completed through my YouVersion Bible app focused on New Year’s resolutions, or lack thereof. The premise was to forget the resolutions and focus on a specific word for the year instead.

Well, I finished the One Word That Will Change Your Life devotional several weeks ago, and just today, found my word.

Although I have to admit that I have embraced two words (and a verb) to focus on for 2016, I also believe that my God-given words, [seek] joy and truth, complement one another.

Joy came to me because it seems that lately joy has been missing from my life. I have found myself focusing on the negative instead of the positive, which has taken most of the joy out of living. Seems the Bible is chock full of references about joy in the Lord, joy in Jesus, joy in the Word, and just plain joy in life.

Why not embrace joy, I asked myself, why not?

Well, beginning today, I am actively seeking joy in my scripture reading and in my life. Whether it’s interacting with my sweet husband, fixing breakfast, washing dishes, running the vacuum, petting the dogs, listening to the birds sing or watching Olivia (Charlie’s Oscar fish) swimming in her aquarium home, I am determined to be joyful about it all.

Besides, the Bible is full of references to joy, the Psalms alone have 57 “joy” references in the New International Version. Perhaps that means that God just wants us to be happy? I believe that to be a joyful truth.

Then there’s the truth thing. I find truth about anything and everything in my Bible. I seek truth when I write, whether it’s when I am writing this blog or doing a freelance piece as a professional journalist, I seek the truth. Sometimes that means I am at odds with the status quo, but, if that’s the case, so be it.

As my granddaddy, God rest his soul, always said, “Sometimes the truth hurts, Cheryl Ann, but it must be told.”

As far as biblical truth goes, just today I found a succinct definition in a Priscilla Schirer Bible study, The Armor of God. She wrote, “Truth is God’s opinion on any matter.”

As a follower of Jesus, I seek his truth daily in Bible study and meditation. I search out joy and truth and God beginning with a verse-of-the-day from the Bible Gateway website and end each and every night with the Our Daily Bread devotional reading of the day.

How about you? Do you have a word that you would like to focus on for the year? A word that makes your life better? A word that leads you closer to a relationship with God? After all, as John wrote in his Gospel, chapter one, verse one (NIV) – In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God, so why not explore His Word; why not explore Him?

Again, how about you? Do you seek truth? Do you seek the truth of the Bible?

Do you seek joy? Do you seek the joy that could be yours in Christ Jesus?

Perhaps joy or truth could be your word for 2016, perhaps it’s another word. But, whatever your word is, I pray it is a word that will lead you closer in your walk with Jesus.

Following The Way is the right thing to do. Being a follower of Jesus is the right thing to do.

Without a doubt, our commitment to Him and His way is not always the popular or politically correct thing to do.

But, if you truly believe and truly follow him, you will not hesitate to, “take up [your] cross daily and follow [Jesus].” Luke 9:23. 

Bottom line, if you do take up your cross daily, you will not have to worry about popularity or the p.c. police, because you’ll be doing what is right in the eyes of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Now I ask you, how could it get any better than that?

Praying today that you will find your word and use it to follow Him wherever this life may lead. Amen