Day 21: “Pure Hearts”
“Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast
spirit within me.” Psalms 51:10 NIV (See also Matthew 5:8)
Those who are truly
“pure,” then, are those who have been declared innocent because of the work of
Jesus and who are being sanctified by His refining fire and His pruning.
Being pure in heart involves having a singleness of heart
toward God. A pure heart has no hypocrisy, no deceit, no hidden motives. The
pure heart is marked by transparency and an uncompromising desire to please God
in all things. It is more than an external purity of behavior; it is an internal
purity of soul.
The only way we can be truly pure in heart is to give our
lives to Jesus and ask Him to do the cleansing work. God is the one who makes
our hearts pure – by the sacrifice of His Son and through His sanctifying work
in our lives.
“Create in me a clean heart, O God. Renew a loyal spirit
within me.” Psalms 51:10 NLT
David felt that it wasn't enough if God simply cleaned up
the heart he had. The plea “create” indicated he needed a new heart from
God, a clean heart. In this David anticipated one of the great promises
to all who believe under the New Covenant: I will give you a new heart and
put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh
and give you a heart of flesh (Ezekiel 36:26).
“With the word Create he asks for nothing less than a
miracle. It is a term for what God alone can do."
In the New Covenant Christ-followers already have a new
heart and are promised the abiding presence of the Holy Spirit.
Day 22: “Peacemaker”
“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called
children of God.” Matthew 5:9 NIV
This does not describe those who live in peace, but
those who actually bring about peace, overcoming evil with good. One way we
accomplish this is through spreading the gospel, because God has entrusted to
us the ministry of reconciliation (2 Corinthians 5:18). In evangelism we
make peace between man and the God whom they have rejected and offended.
The verse which precedes it speaks of the blessedness of ‘the
pure in heart, for they shall see God.’ It is well that we should understand
this. We are to be ‘first pure, then peaceable.’ Our peaceableness is never to
be a compact with sin, or an alliance with that which is evil.
The reward of peacemakers is that they are recognized as
true children of God. They share His passion for peace and reconciliation, the
breaking down of walls between people.
Day 23: “The Good News”
“Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in
their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and healing every
disease and sickness. When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them,
because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.”
Matthew 9:35-36 NIV
The gospel is the good news that God loves the world enough
to give His only Son to die for our sin. The gospel is good news because our
salvation and eternal life and home in heaven are guaranteed through Christ.
The gospel is good news when we understand that we do not
(and cannot) earn our salvation. The gospel is the good news that we, who were
once enemies of God, have been reconciled by the blood of Christ and adopted
into the family of God.
The gospel is the good news that “there is now no
condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.”
Verses 35 and 36 in Matthew Chapter 9 are about Jesus’
compassion for all the crowds of people. As Jesus encountered the depth of
human need He was moved with compassion for them. Jesus was not unfeeling or
stoic in the face of people and their problems.
The word which is used for moved with compassion (splagchnistheis)
is the strongest word for pity in the Greek language…it describes the
compassion which moves a man or woman to the deepest depths of their being.
The harvest truly is plentiful, but the laborers are few:
Jesus saw the greatness of human need as an opportunity, as a harvest that was plentiful.
A harvest is a good thing, and this was a plentiful harvest.
But it was also a harvest that needed laborers. This is
where you and I come in, as laborers, to spread “The Good News!”
Day 24: “Truth”
To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, “If you hold
to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and
the truth will set you free.” John 8:31-32 NIV
The truth does and will set us free because through it, the
Lord breaks the bonds of enslavement that sin has over us. He shows us how to
become everything we were created to be and to embrace every blessing that is
ours because of who we are in Him. Jesus also guides us to living the very best
possible life - one that gives us joy and glorifies Him.
There is nothing like the freedom we can have in Jesus. No
money can buy it, no status can obtain it, no works can earn it, and nothing
can match it. As Christ-followers we experience this freedom by abiding in
God’s word and being Jesus’ disciple.
Day 25
On November 24th, we celebrated Thanksgiving,
it’s the time of year we begin thinking about everything, they have to be
thankful for. Being thankful is an an attitude we should have daily and count
our blessings. “An attitude of gratitude!”
Which brings us to today’s gratitude prompt: “awe and
wonder.” Reflect on today’s prompt and read today’s scripture in multiple Bible
versions. Then - “Meditate on The Word.”
“Fear the Lord your God and serve him. Hold fast to him and
take your oaths in his name. He is the one you praise; he is your God, who
performed for you those great and awesome wonders you saw with your own eyes.”
Deuteronomy 10:20-21 NIV
“Respect the Lord your God, be faithful, and serve only him,
making promises in his name. Offer your praises to him, because you have seen
him work such terrifying miracles for you.”
Deuteronomy 10:20-21 CEV
“You shall fear the Lord your God; you shall serve Him, and
to Him you shall hold fast, and take oaths in His name. He is your praise, and
He is your God, who has done for you these great and awesome things which your
eyes have seen.” Deuteronomy 10:20-21 NKJV
The LORD your God is God of gods and LORD of lords, the
great God, mighty and awesome: The basis of this brief section of commands is
set in the character of God.
The great God, mighty and awesome: When God requires us to
show justice (no partiality nor takes a bribe), compassion (loves the stranger),
and reverence (take oaths in His name), it is because these virtues answer to
aspects in God’s own character.
Who has done for you these great and awesome things: The
obedience God calls us to is always set in the context of what He did for us.
Our service and obedience unto the LORD is based on what He has done for us and
is to be the grateful response to His goodness. If there is a lack in obedience
and reverence, there is almost always a lack of appreciation for what the LORD
has done.
He is your praise: This is true in two senses. First,
He is the object of our praise; second, He is also the One who makes us praiseworthy.
Any wisdom, beauty, or skill we show is not to our praise - but He is your
praise.
Post your favorite version in the comments.
Day 26: “Beloved”
1 John 3:1 (NIV) says, “See what great love the Father has
lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we
are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him.” The
NKJV starts this verse with, “Behold what manner of love the Father has
bestowed on us…”
A beloved person, thing, or place is one that you feel great
affection for. “Much love!”
John speaks in amazement about this manner of love that
makes us children of God. He wants us to behold it - that is, look at it and
study it intently.
Behold means that God wants to see this
love and He is not ashamed to show it to us. He wants the angels in heaven to
know we are His children, that we are His sons and daughters - God’s Girls!
This is the greatest of His love for us.
“Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us,
that we should be called children of God! Therefore, the world does not know
us, because it did not know Him.”
I John 3:1 NKJV
Day 27: New Hope
“Be strong and take heart, all you who hope in the Lord.”
Psalms 31:24 NIV
A soul that truly loves God does not lack any reasons for
loving Him. Yet, God gives us many reasons to love Him.
· Love God because of the excellence of His character.
· Love God because it is such a pleasant and profitable
exercise.
· Love God because it is so beneficial to do so.
· Love God because it is the way to be cleansed from
sin.
· Love God because it will strengthen you in time of
trial.
· Love God because it will strengthen you for service.
· Love God because it is most ennobling.
David closed this Psalm as a true leader and friend,
encouraging others to find what he had found in God. God's people have reason
for good courage, because God does strengthen the trusting, hoping heart.
Day 28: “Open Hands, Open Hearts”
Paul is practicing what he preached in Ephesians 4:15: speaking
the truth in love. He genuinely loved the Corinthians with an open heart,
yet he would also speak openly to them.
Today is the first day of Advent, it serves as a season of
anticipation and reflection leading up to Christmas. Translated from the
original Latin, Advent means important arrival, approach, or coming.
It’s a time marked with remembrance for all God has done and anticipation for
all He is going to do.
Share what “Open Hands, Open Hearts” means to you in the
comments.
Remember - a new favorite song: https://youtu.be/B9TE8D5Vs8k
Day 29: “Lessons we learned in the middle”
“I applied my heart to what I observed and learned a lesson
from what I saw:” Proverbs 24:32 NIV
“When I saw this, it taught me a lesson:”
Proverbs 24:32 CEV
“When I saw, I considered it well; I looked and received
instruction.” Proverbs 24:32 AMP
“When I saw it, I considered it well; I looked on it and
received instruction:” Proverbs 24:32 NKJV
The wise man learned from the tragedy of the lazy man. He
didn’t have to suffer the same things the lazy man did to learn the lesson.
This is one of the marks of wisdom.
The Book of Proverbs is a collection of practical life
wisdom given mostly in short, memorable statements.
It’s a book filled with practical life lessons that
incorporate a lot of wisdom, to teach us how to live a godly life.
Proverbs 24 starts out in verse one teaching us a practical
lesson that we are known by the company we keep. This is something my mother
always told me growing up, then as a mother I stressed to my own children. Our
children are looking at us as role models.
It is unique in its theology, being concerned with practical
life wisdom more than ideas about God and His work of salvation.
Day 30: “Answered Prayers”
“Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for Him” Psalms
37:7 NIV
“Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him” Psalms 37:7
NKJV
“Be still“- Rest in the LORD, and wait patiently:
Because God has promised to faithfully take care of those who put their trust
in Him, we can rest in the LORD. We can wait patiently for Him instead of
fretting and fearing that God has forgotten us while we’re waiting for His
response to our prayers.
Rest in the LORD speaks of a particular kind of rest
- the rest of silence, ceasing from words of self-defense.
Waiting in today’s on-demand can be particularly difficult.
Think of all the times you’ve been shopping and the lines were long or the
drive-through line at your favorite coffee shop. We generally don’t like
waiting, impatience sets in. So it is when we’re waiting for God’s answer to
our prayers. If we don’t get an immediate response, if you’re like me, we take
matters into our own hands. Most of the time that action doesn’t always work
out.
Learning to wait patiently on God’s timing always works out
for our good. God’s ways are not our ways and His timing is perfect!
When you look back over your life, think about all the
prayers you’ve prayed. God’s response is sometimes immediate, sometimes
delayed; He doesn’t always answer our prayers the way we want He to but He’s
always working for our good. Be He hears our prayers, they are like a sweet
aroma to Him. In the waiting praise Him and give Him thanks. An attitude of
gratitude!
Start recording your prayers in a journal if you don’t
already.
Share your thoughts in the comments. Hope you enjoyed this
30-day gratitude series
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