April 28, 2012

 

“News Worthy”

 

Scripture:

Psalm 98:1
Oh sing to the LORD a new song! For He has done marvelous things;
   His right hand and His holy arm have gained Him the victory. (NKJ)

 

Observation:

Before the LORD rescued me from drowning in a sea of self-loathing and pity, the only song I was able to sing was one of regret, defeat, and disdain for the Author of Life—the Living God who created me to live a miserable existence (so I thought), for I was unable to see any of the marvelous things that God had done for mankind, especially in my own life.

 

Application:

I lived the majority of my life in doubt and depression because I believed in the lies of this fallen world that taught me to focus on myself first and then on how much I could accomplish and gain in the shortest amount of what little time I had. But as I began to act upon these falsehoods I began to question the world’s defining reasons for this cursed thing called life; reasons which seemed to be both shallow and short sighted, and quite meaningless when it was all said and done. And so my desires to excel and gain what the world classified as “the good life” slowly began to dissipate and my desire for the real truth began to fester. Although I gained a few of the goals that I had set for my life, I always had this gnawing feeling in my gut that there was so much more to life than what I had been told, for a small still voice was whispering to me that something was missing—that something was terribly wrong here. Where was the “Joy in Living” that my heart longed for? Why did I always feel either incompetent or incomplete? What was wrong with me? What was wrong with the world? What was the point in living anyways? For all the hard work and pain and suffering, where was the reward and where did it all lead to? A little contentment, a little happiness, but in the end it would all be taken away. And it seemed that no matter what I did or what I accomplished, it never felt good enough, nor did it leave me with the peace that my heart had always longed for. And then, out of the blue, the Living God whom I thought hated me reached down from Heaven and with His Mighty Right Arm saved my precious life (a life that He carefully knitted together in my mother’s womb (Psalm 139:13) from self-destruction. The Lord then cleansed me (1 John 1:7) and blessed me with the vision to see this fallen world as it really is, not as I saw it. He carefully explained the reason He sent His Son to the Cross and what this selfless act of love accomplished. This blessed hope that most people long for can only be found in our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. And when you have Jesus, my friend, you have it all; unconditional love and forgiveness; peace of mind and heart in spite of all the troubles; the Way to stand blameless before God; the Truth to live righteously, and last but not least, you have the promise of Heaven on Earth where all God’s people will walk with Him in all His glory—Face to face, Hand in hand—for eternity. There is no news that is more exciting or better than this—News that is worthy of sharing!

 

Prayer:

Thank You, dear God, for the Good News that surpasses all other news—news that is indeed worthy.
Amen