Manna in the Morning

There is a great verse in the Psalms that should encourage each of us in our daily walk. It’s Psalm 37:23—“The steps of the godly are directed by the Lord. He delights in every detail of their lives.” Now, I think all of us would agree that life can get very confusing at times. We face decisions that challenge our commitment to Christ. Sometimes we are not sure which way to go. The Psalmist is reminding us that when our lives are lived in a godly fashion that God will give us guidance through His Word and His Spirit. With the Word of God as “a lamp for my feet and a light for my path,” we need not fear what’s around the next corner. God is ever ready to offer us His wise leading and counsel. With His help readily available we don’t need to be anxious about our journey. So, today let’s let God guide our steps... we will not be disappointed!

Once again we turn to Paul’s letter to the Romans chapter 12 verses 9-13 for what William Barclay calls “the Christian Life in Everyday Action.” It is a very appropriate title for this inspiring section of Scripture because it touches so much of what we face each and everyday. The last exhortation in verse twelve is to be “patient in affliction.” Another translation suggests that we “meet tribulation with triumphant fortitude.” I like that. Encountering troubles and trials is not a matter of “if” but “when.” The way of our journey is not always easy... sometimes there are bumps in the road. The day of our travel is not always sunny... sometimes the storms come. The path that we take in following Jesus is often met with adversity. When trials come we have a choice. We can either be beaten and discouraged or we can face the trial with a sense of victory because of our triumphant faith in Christ. Jesus once said, “In the world you will have trouble, but take heart, I have overcome the world!” (John 16:33) Everything may not go the way we want it to today but with faith in God it can go His way! Today is Friday... that means Sunday’s coming. Be in church with the gathered body of Christ on the Lord’s Day and celebrate the victories that He has won for us!

In Romans 12:9-13 Paul describes Everyday Living for those who follow Jesus. We are exhorted to love in a genuine manner and to recognize the difference between good and evil. Paul encourages us to be fervent in our approach to living for God and the last thing he says in verse 11 is “serving the Lord.” Now it may be that Paul was saying that our service to the Lord should be with a fervent spirit and not just a mediocre, ho-hum attitude. But I think this exhortation can also stand on its own. As followers of Christ we are to be devoted to the manner of serving Him. I am not referring to what we do on Sunday as the corporate church is gathered for Study and Worship. I am thinking that this is to be an everyday experience as we see ways that we can serve the Lord in our jobs... in our play... in our homes... and in our interpersonal contacts with others. It is important that we remember who our “boss” really is. I have on my desk at home a glass plaque that reads, “My Boss is a Jewish Carpenter.” Each time I see that plaque I am reminded of the importance of serving Him wherever I am and whatever I am doing. When we come to the end of our journey it will, after all, be good to hear the words, “Well done, thou good and faithful servant. Enter into the joys of thy Master.” So, your day is ahead of you...serve your Lord faithfully.

William Barclay titles Romans 12:9-13, “The Christian Life in Everyday Action.” I like that because so many tend to compartmentalize their Christianity into a religious versus a secular dichotomy. God never intended for us to divide up our spirituality like that. The life we are called to live is to be a 24/7/365 “full time Christian life.” God deserves our best in every circumstance. So Barclay’s title is very appropriate for what Paul says: “Don’t just pretend that you love others. Really love them. Hate what is wrong. Stand on the side of the good. Love each other with genuine affection, and take delight in honoring each other. Never be lazy in your work, but serve the Lord enthusiastically. Be glad for all God is planning for you. Be patient in trouble, and always be prayerful. When God’s children are in need, be the one to help them out.” (NLT) In this passage, Paul urges us to both love and hate. We are to love the good and hate the bad. Carlyle said, “What we need is to see the infinite beauty of holiness and the infinite damnability of sin.” Developing this kind of characteristic helps us be more like Christ.

There is an old Gospel Song that is entitled, “Let’s Have a Little Talk With Jesus.” I thought about that song recently when I saw one of the billboards that have sprung up across the country that offer things that God might say to us. An anonymous donor hired an ad agency to “remind people of God, especially people who used to go to church and for some reason don’t go anymore.” Here are some of the messages:

“That ‘Love thy neighbor’ thing. I mean it.”

“Will the road you’re on get you to my place?”

“Have you read my number-one best seller? There will be a test.”

“Loved the wedding. Invite me to the marriage.”

“I don’t question your existence.”

“Keep using my name in vain, and I’ll make rush hour longer.”

“We need to talk,” God.

The best way to begin this day and everyday is to spend some time talking with God. And since, today is Friday... that means that Sunday is coming! Why not make plans now to be in Church and “have a little talk with Jesus”?

Psalm 90 is titled a “Prayer of Moses, the Man of God.” Wow! What a way to be remembered. There are some great verses in that Psalm that Moses wrote. For instance, “Lord, Thou hast been our dwelling place in all generations.” Contrast that affirmation of God eternal nature with another verse which describes human life: “In the morning they are like grass which sprouts anew... toward evening it fades, and withers away.” (vv. 5-6) Then there is this great verse, “Teach us to number our days, that we may present to Thee a heart of wisdom.” (vs. 12) I don’t think the idea here is that we try to figure up exactly how many days we have to live... none of us knows that anyway. The idea has more to do with making each one of those days really count... not wasted. Time is truly one of our most valuable gifts from God. Let’s make sure that we live today in such a way that our Eternal God is honored by the way we use the time He grants. God has done His part... it’s up to us to make today really count!

There was a woman who went to see her doctor with a whole list of complaints. The doctor could find no physical ailment. He suspected the woman’s negative outlook on life was the real problem. He rose from his desk and pointed to a shelf that was filled with bottles. He said, “Look at these bottles. All of them are empty. I can take one of them and fill it with poison, enough poison to kill a human being. Or, I can take that same bottle and fill it with medicine, enough medicine to cure a headache or bring down a fever or kill bacteria. The important thing is that I make the choice. I can fill each bottle with something hurtful or something helpful. The doctor looked her straight in the eye and said, “Each day that God gives us is like one of those empty bottles. We can choose to fill it with positive thoughts that lift us and others; or, we can fill it with negative thoughts that depress us and everyone else. The choice is ours.” The Apostle Paul said it like this, “Don’t use foul or abusive language. Let everything you say be good and helpful, so that your words will be an encouragement to those who hear them.” (Eph. 4:29)

Both Jesus and Paul tell us about the problem of anxiety. Jesus preached that we are not to "worry about tomorrow." (Matt. 6). Paul wrote, "Don’t worry about anything; instead pray about everything. (Phil. 4:6). Robert Burdette wrote, "There are two days in the week upon which and about which I never worry...One of those days is Yesterday, with its cares and frets and pains and aches, all its faults, its mistakes and blunders, has passed forever beyond my recall. It was mine; it is God’s. The other day...is Tomorrow...with all its possible adversities, its burdens, its perils, its large promise and performance, its failures and mistakes, is as far beyond mastery as its dead sister, Yesterday. Tomorrow is God’s day; it will be mine. There is left, then for myself but one day in the week—Today." So we take it ONE DAY AT A TIME! "It isn’t the experience of Today that drives people mad. It is the remorse of what happened Yesterday and fear of what Tomorrow might bring. These are God’s Days...Leave them to God."