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To you, O Lord, I lift up my soul. O my God, in you I trust; do not let me be put to shame; do not let my enemies exult over me. Do not let those who wait for you be put to shame; let them be ashamed who are wantonly treacherous. Make me to know your ways, O Lord; teach me your paths. Lead me in your truth, and teach me,for you are the God of my salvation; for you I wait all day long. Be mindful of your mercy, O Lord, and of your steadfast love, for they have been from of old. Do not remember the sins of my youth or my transgressions; according to your steadfast love remember me, for your goodness’ sake, O Lord! Good and upright is the Lord; therefore he instructs sinners in the way. He leads the humble in what is right, and teaches the humble his way. All the paths of the Lord are steadfast love and faithfulness, for those who keep his covenant and his decrees. (Psalm 25:1-10)
Dear Friend, I trust you have rested well and are enjoying the blessings of a new day! The psalm recommended for this coming Sunday is the one we will study, Psalm 25:1-10. May it speak a word of hope and peace into your soul.
The verse that jumped out at me was the one I selected as the title of this devotional. After I read it a second time I read it as a former youth director and I thought about some of the "youth" whose sins I haven't yet forgotten! LOL! (You know who you are!). But, the first reading was the one that spoke to me deepest. As a youth, I said, did, and thought a lot of things that I know were sinful. The psalmist is saying, "Trust God enough to give Him your sins and let God deal with them in His own way." And that's true. The psalmist begins by worshiping God in the lifting of his soul to God and declaring his trust in Him. He also knows that in spite of what he's done and the perception he has of himself, he can trust God to allow him freedom from shame. The enemies that we may have around us are more than ready to exult over us, but God won't allow that. You may not have human enemies, but think of illnesses you may have, or conditions in your health that could turn into a deadly enemy; God can deal with those as well. We may suffer pain and discomfort, but never shame. God's embrace of love is too strong to allow that for us.
David, as he wrote this psalm also declares his personal need for God's guidance and direction in the path of his life. "Lead me in Your truth," he writes, "and teach me, for you are the God of my salvation; for You I wait all day long." Who of us cannot pray that prayer? And he continues, "Be mindful of Your mercy, O Lord, and of your steadfast love, for they have been from of old." In other words, there hasn't been a day when I haven't known of Your love with me, and for me. Then, the key verse, "Remember not the sins of my youth or my transgressions" but remember me in Your love. God is like that; He forgive and forgets our sin, and always welcomes us with love. God is good and upright, showing us sinners the way we should go, ready to teach and instruct, for His ways are ways of steadfast love and faithfulness, if we would but obey.
PRAYER: Loving God, may Your loving mercies be upon this dear reader and me. Show us Your ways according to Your plan and purpose for our lives. Guide us to victory over our enemies, especially those ready to kill, steal or destroy us; Show them instead Your mercy and strength. Guide our paths to faithfulness; this we pray in Christ Jesus' precious and powerful name, amen.
Have a great and blessed day in the Lord! How much love can you show the day after Valentine's? Plenty!
Eradio Valverde
PRAYER REQUESTS AND UPDATES: Late late last night I received word from my brother in Christ, Rev. Michael Dobbs that he was running a 102 degree fever and was shaking uncontrollably and was rushed to the ER in San Antonio. Please pray for him as I have not yet heard from him this morning. Please pray for our two newest members of FUMC-Gonzales, Dorothy and Ken McGinty. Dorothy is in hospice care and needs our prayers, as does Ken for strength and peace. They are a wonderful couple surrounded by a loving and caring family. May God bless and keep them is our prayers. We pray for those who yesterday had their first Valentine's Day without their "valentine." Pray for Joseph Latham as he continues in ICU in an induced coma. May the Lord lift him to healing in Jesus' name. Thank you for your prayer and may God bless and protect you!
