A poem posted at my other blog Step Ahead is inspired by the post “Soar Higher with Resistance”. Going with the wind may get you somewhere faster but going against the wind lifts you to places higher and higher.
Today’s song Battle is the Lord’s by Rebecca St. James ft. Brandon Lake gives us the encouragement needed to take courage in this fight because the weapons of this war are praises lifted high! The future is not heavy on my soul because God is in control. He is here now and will show us how!
Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean;
wash me, and I will be whiter than snow - Psalm 51:7
This photo from the winter storm that hit Texas in 2021 was taken near my garage after a night of snow which covers everything with a smooth layer just like God covers our sin. In the background is a garbage can. By accepting Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, we can throw away our negative past and focus on a future of joy and peace.
Highlighted in the post “Higher Plane” is doing away with a negative past that controls you and keeps you at a low point. Instead, desire to empty that from your mind by knowing Christ died for all the negatives in the past that weigh you down.
Listen to the song Empty Me by Jeremy Camp and pray that anything that is weighing you down is lifted off your shoulders so you can get to a higher plane. A higher place where your dominant aspirations are to empty worldly desires and replace them with godly desires that get you to a new level of faith, hope, and love.
An airplane gains speed down the runway and the wind resistance flows under the wings to give the plane a lift until it is lifted higher and higher into the sky. To get to a higher level of enlightenment in our life, we must resist what is wrong. The things of this world give us no desire to do so and keep us down low but the power from the Spirit lifts us to new heights of joy and peace.
David didn’t have any joy or peace as recorded in the writing of Psalm 51. The background of this psalm is 2 Samuel 11:1 through 12:15 when David was in a very low place in his life. He had committed adultery with Bathsheba and then murdered her husband. The requests of David is for mercy and forgiveness from his sin. He also wants a pure heart, renewal of a steadfast spirit within, and the joy of salvation. Then beyond forgiveness for himself, he wants Zion to prosper and the walls of Jerusalem to be built up.
David had sinned against God and was constantly thinking about the negatives in his past which were causing sorrow. It’s the same with all of us when something like guilt, anger, or any other negative of the past needs to be released. It doesn’t always have to be from our past but maybe in the present like who we spend time with now, listen to on social media, or watch on TV.
Maybe something needs to be removed in our current routine that is causing these negatives to keep us at a low point in life. If we remove the negative habits, then we can be lifted to a higher place of joy and peace.
David knew that true worship starts with confession. After asking for forgiveness, a new heart with inward joy develops deep down in his heart. If we have peace and joy deep in our heart, it will catch on and others will desire the same life of living on a higher plane.
This day with You Lord, take away anything negative in our present or in our past that weighs us down. Erase it and replace it with the joy and peace we receive by knowing Jesus as Lord and Savior. He died for all these negatives so we can focus on the future that is lived on a higher plane because of our faith, hope, and love. In Jesus name … Amen.
Let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. –Hebrews 12:1
The main thought of “Seize the Day” is to be renewed day by day and to take the opportunity God gives through Jesus Christ to change the course of life. To run the race with service and worship towards the finish line.
Take inspiration from the song Go the Distance by Gary LeVox. Life can be a struggle and there may be trouble but with grace, you can keep pace. With Jesus, you can beat sin and go the distance to win.
The Mighty One, God, the Lord,
speaks and summons the earth
from the rising of the sun to where it sets.
Each day is a new day in which we have the opportunity to grow in our faith. There may be certain routines we can tweak or priorities we can adjust which allow us to step ahead into a brighter future.
Life is not always trouble-free and we may have to do some things that are uncomfortable or challenging but if we say “yes” to Jesus, we never have to go through them alone. We can press on knowing the Spirit is with us to guide our steps in order to find our place in the race and give the endurance needed to keep going towards the victory.
The dramatic action in today’s passage is judgment and God is the judge. He reproves the people of Israel for their sacrifices and their idol worship. In current times, our idols may consist of things like cars, boats, and large expensive houses.
The worship of the Israelites was an outward religion with formalism and hypocrisy in their worship. What God wants is true inward spirituality. He want us to apply our faith with a heart that is right (v. 8-9). With an attitude of faith, hope, and love.
Because of Jesus Christ, we can be thankful that God gives us all another opportunity to get our heart right. Those who take that opportunity can change the course of life so they please God with service and worship Him with love of neighbor as themselves.
This day with You God, we can seize the day and know that we are not alone. Each day, we have an opportunity to take in Your instructions. We have the Spirit with us to guide us in the steps that lead to victory. In Jesus name … Amen.
This Day With God - A Spiritual Journey 