God of all possibilities and promises, bless this dear reader in whatever challenges or decisions they want to make; in Christ Jesus I pray, amen.
Our text for today comes from Psalm 65: 1 Praise is due to you, O God, in Zion; and to you shall vows be performed, 2 O you who answer prayer! To you all flesh shall come. 3 When deeds of iniquity overwhelm us, you forgive our transgressions. 4 Happy are those whom you choose and bring near to live in your courts. We shall be satisfied with the goodness of your house, your holy temple. 5 By awesome deeds you answer us with deliverance, O God of our salvation; you are the hope of all the ends of the earth and of the farthest seas. 6 By your strength you established the mountains; you are girded with might. 7 You silence the roaring of the seas, the roaring of their waves, the tumult of the peoples. 8 Those who live at earth's farthest bounds are awed by your signs; you make the gateways of the morning and the evening shout for joy. 9 You visit the earth and water it, you greatly enrich it; the river of God is full of water; you provide the people with grain, for so you have prepared it. 10 You water its furrows abundantly, settling its ridges, softening it with showers, and blessing its growth. 11 You crown the year with your bounty; your wagon tracks overflow with richness. 12 The pastures of the wilderness overflow, the hills gird themselves with joy, 13 the meadows clothe themselves with flocks, the valleys deck themselves with grain, they shout and sing together for joy.
There are lamentations, songs of despair and woe that go along with mourning; and then there are psalms of praise, songs of hope and joy and worship that sing loudly the praises that our God deserves, and this is a psalm of praise. There are sermons in almost each of the individuals verses that make up Psalm 65. The main message is God is awesome. God is a God who answers prayer. God is a God who forgives and heals our sins and transgressions. God provides a reason for our being glad to be alive. There is no place we can go where we will not see the work of God in full splendor; there is no time of day in which we can say, "God is not present right now." And if we listen closely, even nature joins our song of praise.
I read recently about "the good old days" when Sunday was a day set aside for "marveling." Families would return home from church, enjoy their big Sunday dinner (though it was "lunch" time for most; it's a regional thing), then out the door they would go to marvel at nature. We're blessed with three grandchildren that are in their marveling stage. All through their young stages of life have shared with us new and glorious insights as to the wonder of God in our midst. Every bird, leaf that falls, the swaying of trees in the breeze, the presence of a dog or cat, calls to them and to us a renewed and possibly new appreciation of what God has done. As you walk or yes, drive from here to there, open your eyes, ears, nose, everything sense of appreciation you have, to what God has done, is doing, and pray about what God will do.
PRAYER: God I praise You for all You constantly share with me. Help me today marvel at Your goodness. As others marvel and share, let me see what they see; better yet, let me share with I see with those who do not yet see or understand what You have done, are doing, and will do. I ask this in Christ Jesus' precious and powerful name, amen.
Have a great and blessed day in the Lord!
Eradio Valverde
