Devotional thoughts - Lent 2013 - Day 12

I don’t even know where to begin writing this, because I am so in awe of God and His ways in dealing with me – with all of us.

Psalm 4:3-4 (KJV)

³ But know that the Lord hath set apart him that is godly for himself: the Lord will hear when I call unto him.

⁴ Stand in awe, and sin not: commune with your own heart upon your bed, and be still. Selah.

 

I have gotten behind in some of my reading and was catching up on Scripture verses from a Lenten devotional calendar.  I was using The Prayer Bible (2003), with the New Living Translation (1996) for my reading.  The scheduled Scriptures for this past Friday included Hebrews 4:11-16.  Verses 12-13 stood out to me:

For the word of God is full of living power.  It is sharper than the sharpest knife, cutting deep into our innermost thoughts and desires.  It exposes us for what we really are.  Nothing in all creation can hide from Him.  Everything is naked and exposed before His eyes.  This is the God to whom we must explain all that we have done.

There was a prayer written in the side margin referencing verse 12:

Holy God, I submit my innermost thoughts and desires to Your Word.  Cut through the self-protective shell, my tough, callous attitudes, and the scar tissue of old wounds; expose all my heart to Your healing gaze.

In my mind’s eye, the same image I saw on Friday appeared again as mentioned in yesterday’s blog – that of me, with my arms stretched wide, holding my coat open toward the sun (the Sun of righteousness Who will rise with healing in His wings).  [I am just now seeing that the rest of Malachi 4:2 (NLT1996) says, “And you will go free, leaping with joy like calves let out to pasture.”  Surely I felt joy in the freedom I experienced in my deliverance from the pain of that emotional wound! Hallelujah!  Praying even now that others suffering from emotional and mental wounds – including PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder) - would know this healing, this freedom, this deliverance, this release, this peace, this joy – this SAVIOR, Jesus the Christ!  Amen.]

In addition to that, yesterday’s Our Daily Bread devotional mentioned Hebrews 4:15, which was a part of the Lenten Scriptures recommended for that Friday that I read.

Also, I had the opportunity to discuss and share the Malachi 4:2 Scripture from yesterday’s God Calling with a couple of people. And not surprisingly, this Scripture was mentioned in the Prime Time with God devotional from Ephesians Four Ministries Church Growth Institute (www.churchgrowth.org) that I received in my email today.

So Lord, I thank You so much for caring so much for me, for giving so much meaning to the things I’m seeing as I seek Your face because You allow me to see You at work in and through them. Thank You for confirming Your Word so that I would understand and trust You more.  Thank You for speaking with me and to me, and for helping me to hear and obey You. I praise You, LORD, for Your faithfulness to Your Word to draw near to me as I draw near to You – knowing that even that is by Your design, through Your invitation, and at Your initiation.  I love You … thank You for loving me first, for loving me best.  Amen.

… and my journey with Him continues …