Walk Uprightly

Today is Thursday, March 2, 2017. Eight days until our Glen Rose weekend!

Quote of the Day

“Patriotism is often an arbitrary veneration of real estate above principles.” ~ George Jean Nathan

Word of the Day

All three of my usual sources had good ones today, so I’m sharing all of them.

From the Oxford English Dictionary, we get bookish, which means, “Enthusiastic or serious about reading books; studious.”

From Merriam-Webster, we get laconic, which means, “using or involving the use of a minimum of words : concise to the point of seeming rude or mysterious.”

And, finally, from Dictionary.com, we get crocodilian, which means, “hypocritical; insincere.”

I’m definitely bookish, sometimes laconic, but I hope I’m never crocodilian.

Today is World Book Day. We are not referring to the famous encyclopedia set, but just books, in general. “Books have been educating and inspiring us for thousands of years, so it should go without saying that World Book Day is a more than well-deserved holiday.” No matter what kind of books you like, this day is for you. If you don’t like books, well, “pity” comes to mind.

Again, I have little to speak of on a personal level, so I’ll get on into the devotional portion, this morning. Life goes on, everything seems okay, at the moment. And The Voice didn’t get preempted by the President’s speech Tuesday night (we always watch it on DVR), so all is well.

32 days until Opening Day.

TODAY’S DEVOTIONAL

Awake, my glory! Awake, O harp and lyre! I will awake the dawn!
Psalm 57:8
As for you, O LORD, you will not restrain your mercy from me; your steadfast love and your faithfulness will ever preserve me!
Psalm 40:11
My heart is steadfast, O God, my heart is steadfast! I will sing and make melody!
Psalm 57:7
Cast your burden on the LORD, and he will sustain you; he will never permit the righteous to be moved.
Psalm 55:22
May the LORD answer you in the day of trouble! May the name of the God of Jacob protect you! 
May he send you help from the sanctuary and give you support from Zion! 
May he remember all your offerings and regard with favor your burnt sacrifices! Selah. 
May he grant you your heart’s desire and fulfill all your plans! 
May we shout for joy over your salvation, and in the name of our God set up our banners! May the LORD fulfill all your petitions!
Psalm 20:1-5

(From The President’s Devotional)

For the LORD God is a sun and shield; the LORD bestows favor and honor. No good thing does he withhold from those who walk uprightly.
Psalm 84:11

Joshua DuBois puts a slightly different spin on this. “What does it mean to ‘walk uprightly?'” We are familiar with the metaphorical meaning; living honorably, justly, purely. But what if it should be taken literally? “No good thing does he withhold from those who walk uprightly.”

“Not bowed in shame because of hidden sin. Not darting from side to side, anxious about what is behind us and what is to come. Not slumped over with weariness, the pressures of the world resting upon our shoulders.”

“Walk uprightly.” Chin held high, with the secure knowledge that we are children of God, resting in the knowledge of his love for us. “Ready to square our shoulders up to the blessings and wonders of this new day.” I would add “challenges” to that mix.

“No good thing does he withhold from those who walk uprightly.”

I like this. But caution. There is no place for cockiness or self-assuredness in all of this. It is all based on the knowledge of what God has done in and for us, and what he will do through us.

“Dear God, let my physical presence in the world reflect what you are doing in my spirit. For you are surely doing a new thing. Amen.” ~ Joshua DuBois

Yes, and amen, Father! Let me walk uprightly today, not just walking in the steps and words of Jesus, but walking in confidence and boldness, allowing my physical countenance to reflect the joy that I have in you. And let that joy not be defeated or reduced by any challenges that might come my way during this day. May your steadfast love fill me today.

Even so, come, Lord Jesus!

Grace and peace, friends.

People Depend On Prayer

“The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes, but in having new eyes.”~~Marcel Prous
(BrainyQuote)

Today’s word of the day, from the Oxford English Dictionary, is bookaholic, which means, as you might expect, ” A habitual and prolific reader; a compulsive book buyer.” I would certainly qualify as a bookaholic. There’s bonus word today, from Dictionary.com, a much lesser-known word. Florilegium means “a collection of literary pieces; anthology.” As a bookaholic, I possess a number of florileiums. Would that be “florilegia?”

Why all of this talk about books? Because today is World Book Day, that’s why!!

I wound up having to work late, last night, until just after 5:30. Christi had a meeting of ladies to go to at 7:00, so we didn’t see each other until after that. They are trying to start up a few small accountability/confession groups. We ate dinner in “shifts.” I fixed the pool equipment (just needed to replace a vinyl connector), hung up some laundry, and played Fallout.

Speaking of Fallout, I seem to be in good company. Christi found this video of one of our favorite actors, Christian Kane, talking about playing Fallout. He also mentions James Marsters, who played Spike in Buffy the Vampire Slayer, who also played the game.

Today is Thursday, a day I also like to call “pre-Friday.” It will also be the first night of the week we don’t have something going on.

TODAY’S DEVOTIONAL

(From Praying With the Psalms)

Blessed is the one whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered.
Blessed is the man against whom the LORD counts no iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no deceit.
For when I kept silent, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long.
For day and night your hand was heavy upon me; my strength was dried up as by the heat of summer. Selah.
I acknowledged my sin to you, and I did not cover my iniquity; I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the LORD,” and you forgave the iniquity of my sin. Selah.
Psalm 32:1-5

Most of us know this. If we try to hold onto our sin, hiding it inside, it begins to “fester and poison our whole system.” There is only one who can do anything about sin, and that is God. “Confession is the act that brings sin out into the open and lets God take care of it.”

“As I confess my sins to you, merciful Father, help me to be honest and thorough–not holding back, not denying, not making excuses–and so may I know the glad blessing that comes with forgiveness in Jesus Christ. Amen.”

(From Daily Guideposts 2016)

For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them. Matthew 18:20

In today’s reading, Edward Grinnan writes of his first day at Guideposts, some 29 years ago. As he sat arranging his desk, at 9:45 AM, a bell went off. It was Monday morning. A colleague stopped by to explain that it was time for “Prayer Fellowship.” It was voluntary, but his colleague suggested he come, since it was his first day.

Edward went into a conference room, where a number of staff people sat around “a long brown table heaped with letters that contained prayers.” People were digging through letters, occasionally closing their eyes to pray. Some were being read out loud. There were the usual large requests for “world peace and an end to hunger.” But there were also smaller, more personal requests, like asking for a car to be reliable, or for a husband to be inspired to shave his beard. It didn’t take long for Edward to realize, “people depend on prayer.”

Guideposts has moved several times during that 29 years, but that long brown table still goes with them, and they still meet every Monday morning at 9:45 to pray. The get requests from letters, still, but many requests come their OurPrayer Web site and the Guideposts Facebook page.

The LORD is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth.
Psalm 145:18
do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.
Philippians 4:6
pray without ceasing
1 Thessalonians 5:17

I think I may try to join them every Monday morning at 9:45. Not physically, of course. I can’t go to Manhattan every Monday morning. But I can certainly set an alarm to remind me to pray at that time.

Prayer is important. Many people have a kind of basic, underlying feeling that this is true. But it is more important than most of us realize. We need it for ourselves, we need it for each other. As the statement above says, “people depend on prayer.” I have committed to not letting those people down. I have set up a prayer page on Facebook, as well. It’s called “Pray Where You Are.”. I would love to see more people praying together via this page. Feel free to leave a prayer request there. It will be prayed over, I promise.

Father, keep teaching me to pray. Give me the discipline and inspiration to “pray without ceasing,” and to possibly join in with the Guideposts group every Monday morning. I won’t necessarily know what they are praying about, but I can still pray with them. I pray for all Christians to understand the necessity of prayer, both individually, but more importantly, together. I pray that you would help us as a church to pin down a good time for a regular prayer gathering.

Come, Lord Jesus!

Grace and peace, friends.