Thursday, August 7, 2014

Living in Bondage or Not

Psalm 146 English Standard Version (ESV)
146 
Praise the Lord!
Praise the Lord, O my soul!
I will praise the Lord as long as I live;
    I will sing praises to my God while I have my being.
Put not your trust in princes,
    in a son of man, in whom there is no salvation.
When his breath departs, he returns to the earth;
    on that very day his plans perish.
Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob,
    whose hope is in the Lord his God,
who made heaven and earth,
    the sea, and all that is in them,
who keeps faith forever;
    who executes justice for the oppressed,
    who gives food to the hungry.
The Lord sets the prisoners free;
    the Lord opens the eyes of the blind.
The Lord lifts up those who are bowed down;
    the Lord loves the righteous.
The Lord watches over the sojourners;
    he upholds the widow and the fatherless,
    but the way of the wicked he brings to ruin.
10 
The Lord will reign forever,
    your God, O Zion, to all generations.
Praise the Lord!

All that God has ever wanted was for the human race to put their trust in Him.  From the beginning He wanted to be their King, their Lord, and their Savior.  Yet, the Israelites wanted a human king so God gave them a king. What happened?  Each king let them down in some way or another.  Even the good kings allowed wickedness through idolatry.  Ultimately though, God was still in control. He used the wickedness of those humans to draw His people under the shelter of His wings.

Today is no different.  So often we put our trust or distrust in man rather than putting our trust in God.  We lose sleep over the little things of life rather than giving it to God and resting in His peace.  Yet these words describe a God that cares for us, watches over us, and will justify or condemn us.

I have a friend who is spending some time in prison.  She has spoken about the wickedness in that prison.  It is that way because of those who have been placed there who have not put their trust in God.  They are in prison not only physically but also spiritually and for most of them they were in prison before they ever entered those doors.  My friend, although in prison physically is spiritually free from the bondage.  She has to continually remember that God is there for her, through the blood of Jesus Christ.  She must continually give Him the praise and He will lift her up.  With her faith and freedom through Christ, she will become stronger in Him even in a dark and cruel place.  That is what He can do for each and everyone of us.  Please pray for my friend that she will be strong and that she will be a witness to others with strength from our Lord.

We all have places we don’t like to find ourselves.  We all can live in bondage or we can be free in Him.  As you seek Him today, remember that He frees us if we will allow Him to.  We no longer have to live in darkness but rather we can continually Praise His name forever and ever. 

Seeking Him with all my heart,


Sheila

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