Daily Devotional for May 6, 2024 – Serving God as He commands – or pleasing yourself and others…are you looking for temporary joy or a permanent peace?

Psalm 18:30-36
Your way is perfect, Lord,
    and your word is correct.
You are a shield for those
    who run to you for help.
You alone are God!
    Only you are a mighty rock.
You give me strength
    and guide me right.
You make my feet run as fast
    as those of a deer,
and you help me stand
    on the mountains.
You teach my hands to fight
and my arms to use
    a bow of bronze.
You alone are my shield.
    Your right hand supports me,
and by coming to help me,
    you have made me famous.
You clear the way for me,
    and now I won’t stumble.

The Living Bible copyright © 1971 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

My quote-of-the-day calendar entry says…“Laughter is like changing a baby’s diaper – it doesn’t permanently solve any problems, but it makes things more acceptable for a while.” I will tell you – these days I often don’t know whether to laugh or cry. So many people and situations perplex me…particularly those who claim to know and love Jesus while either 1) wringing their hands about anything and everything; and 2) making claims that simply are not Godly – and go against everything He commands in scripture. 
 
When someone tells me they are instructing their children to love God and follow only His commands in one breath – and in the next, they disparage people of color, immigrants, , the poor, or those who are “different” or less fortunate in some way – I have to question whether God is truly their Mighty Rock. This is not for me to judge, so I try to bite my tongue, change the subject, and speak and act in a way that demonstrates my aim to “love one another.” 
 
When I see lawmakers and “leaders” claim to be “Christians” while spewing hatred and animosity – and enacting legislation that not only widens the divide between certain groups but stirs feelings of hatred, bigotry, bias, and inequality – I want to ask them, “What part of John 3:16 do you not understand? Did you not see/hear the part that says ‘anyone who believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.’?” Maybe I didn’t read closely enough, but I didn’t find anywhere in this Psalm 18 that qualified who God would guide and shield!
 
My point is this…just like the quote describes laughter as a “temporary fix,” hollow claims to love and serve God will not stand the test of time. GOD KNOWS our heart and mind. He is fully aware of our intent and motives. When we faithfully, truthfully seek His will and word – and follow His commands, God will guide and guard us. When we choose to follow our own desires – or the ideals and actions of those in our circle of influence – all bets are off. 
 
I honestly don’t know what God’s wrath and punishment looks like…but I know I don’t want to find out – and I pray that you aren’t willing to take this risk, either. Why would you? Loving and serving God brings such blessings. The Psalms are filled with praise for God and His love and care. Sure, there are hard days as God’s faithful servant…but there are so many good ones, too. And the best is yet to be!  Search your heart today – ask God to show you where you have chosen temporary “laughter” and self-indulgence over long-term joy in His abundance. Ask God to help you clear your path of any stumbling blocks – and start walking upright in His perfect love and care. Alleluia!

©2024 Debbie Robus

Daily Devotional for January 20, 2023 – Serving God over money and status…remember WHOSE you are!

Psalm 119:35-46
Make me walk along the right paths, for I know how delightful they really are.

Help me to prefer obedience to making money! Turn me away from wanting any other plan than yours. Revive my heart toward you. Reassure me that your promises are for me, for I trust and revere you.

How I dread being mocked for obeying, for your laws are right and good. I long to obey them! Therefore in fairness renew my life, for this was your promise—yes, Lord, to save me! Now spare me by your kindness and your love. Then I will have an answer for those who taunt me, for I trust your promises.

May I never forget your words, for they are my only hope. Therefore I will keep on obeying you forever and forever, free within the limits of your laws. I will speak to kings about their value, and they will listen with interest and respect.

The Living Bible copyright © 1971 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

When I was a child, everything revolved around money – mainly because we didn’t have any! Don’t misunderstand me…we were not “poor” by the world’s standards, and we never missed a meal. We had comfortable beds and clean clothes, and my parents both worked multiple jobs to make that happen. But we didn’t have the money for “extras.” And when you are a kid and your friends are going places and doing things that you cannot afford to do, it’s a tough pill to swallow. This is made even harder when the questions come…“Why don’t you ever buy your clothes instead of your mom and grandma making them? Why don’t you take dance lessons? Can’t you meet us at the pool? Where did you get that old car?!”

Just as hard for me were the pressures to give to the church, as if I could somehow “buy” my salvation and God’s grace. I will forever be keenly aware of the hardship and heartache we Christians place on some by constantly passing the plate and basket – or having this mission fundraiser and that one, complete with charts and graphs to mark the “progress” or even lists of those who contribute!

I am thankful for the “material comfort” that I enjoy today. I am also incredibly mindful of the hard work it took to get here. Greg and I did not compromise our values along the way. We never accepted advertising for “get-rich-quick” schemes, and we didn’t over-extend ourselves. We worked long, hard hours, but we knew the quality of the work was there…and God blessed us mightily.

This is a good day for us to focus on the purity of our faith…and how we judge others for theirs. A lot of great people who seek God’s will and do their dead-level best to serve Him in all things are made to feel “less than” for some reason – many of them economic. A lot of the “big spenders” are elevated to a position of “prominence” where others would do anything for them…not just because Jesus commands us to “Love one another,” but because we want to keep them happy – and spending!

Too many have compromised their values and the commands of Jesus just to look good in the sight of others and “play the game.” I get it…nobody wants to be ridiculed or dismissed – for whatever reason. And social media has heightened our awareness of others and “who they are” in every sense of the phrase. But I think some of us have forgotten WHO we should really be striving to please and serve.  

Ask yourself some hard questions today and figure out whether you are truly on God’s side of things. Never forget that His laws are the only ones that really matter…and when we follow them, God will bless our efforts. Alleluia!

©2023 Debbie Robus