Verse of the Day 3/6

Verse of the Day 3/6

Psalm 37:4-5

English Standard Version

4 Delight yourself in the Lord,

    and he will give you the desires of your heart.

5 Commit your way to the Lord;
    trust in him, and he will act.

Most often when I read through Psalm 37 I tend to focus on "do not fret" which is said three times within the first 8 verses.  They are a good reminder for us not to worry so much about things but to turn them over to God.  But reading the Psalm today changed my focus because it came up in two different devotionals that I read this morning.  The focus was on "delight yourself in the Lord".  Taken together, we should be reminded not to worry or fret but instead to "delight in the Lord", rejoice, praise the Lord.

James Smith points out that it is sin that takes our focus off of God and leads to our frets and worries.  He writes:

Sin has taken our attention off of God, and fixed it upon ourselves and the things around us.

Grace calls our attention off of everything else, to fix it upon God. It directs us to . . .

look to the Lord,

come to the Lord,

trust in the Lord,

wait on the Lord,

hope in the Lord, and

even delight in the Lord.

"Delight yourself in the Lord." Take delight, not in health, or wealth, or position, or friends, or in anything that is changeable--but in the unchangeable Lord.

Delight yourself in His glorious character--as gracious, merciful, long-suffering, and abundant in goodness and truth.

Are you someone, like me, who "frets"?  May we turn it over to the Lord and delight in Him, praise the One who offers help to all who seek Him.

Verse 1
I serve a risen Savior,
He's in the world today;
I know that He is living,
Whatever men may say;
I see His hand of mercy,
I hear His voice of cheer,
And just the time I need Him
He's always near

Chorus
He lives, He lives,
Christ Jesus lives today!
He walks with me and talks with me
Along life's narrow way.
He lives, He lives, salvation to impart!
You ask me how I know He lives:
He lives within my heart.

Verse 2
In all the world around me,
I see His loving care,
And tho my heart grows weary
I never will despair;
I know that He is leading
thru all the stormy blast,
The day of His appearing
will come at last

Verse 3
Rejoice, rejoice, O Christian,
Lift up your voice and sing
Eternal hallelujahs to
Jesus Christ the King!
The hope of all who seek Him,
The help of all who find,
None other is so loving,
So good and kind.

Blessings,

Mike

Folllow the Verse of the Day blog at http://mikesvotd.blogspot.com

Ephesians 1:7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace.  NIV

Psalm 37

English Standard Version

He Will Not Forsake His Saints

[a] Of David.

37 Fret not yourself because of evildoers;
    be not envious of wrongdoers!
2 For they will soon fade like the grass
    and wither like the green herb.

3 Trust in the Lord, and do good;
    dwell in the land and befriend faithfulness.[b]
4 Delight yourself in the Lord,
    and he will give you the desires of your heart.

5 Commit your way to the Lord;
    trust in him, and he will act.
6 He will bring forth your righteousness as the light,
    and your justice as the noonday.

7 Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him;
    fret not yourself over the one who prospers in his way,
    over the man who carries out evil devices!

8 Refrain from anger, and forsake wrath!
    Fret not yourself; it tends only to evil.
9 For the evildoers shall be cut off,
    but those who wait for the Lord shall inherit the land.