Heralds Digest

  “Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever. Let the redeemed of the Lord say so, Whom He has redeemed from the hand of the enemy,”Psalms‬ ‭107:1-2‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ Those who have not been privileged to ply regularly on rough (sincerely, ‘ bad ’) roads may not truly understand the story of redemption from death traps. To many, redemption simply means finding alternative or escape routes, like through  flying. Whereas, true redemption engages the mercy of God to navigate through the rough patches, enduring the wear and tears, and escaping the affront of road marauders, etc. Israel’s travelling through the wilderness was synonymous to life’s experience with rough roads. Whichever represents the face among financial problems, health challenges, career difficulties, toxic relationships, family mistrust, etc, rough roads readily drain useful resources. But while the experience on rough roads are mostly stressful, the access to the throne of mercy every tim...

  “Seek the Lord and His strength; Seek His face evermore! Remember His marvelous works which He has done, His wonders, and the judgments of His mouth,” ‭‭Psalms‬ ‭105:4-5‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ To get easily deceived and distracted in life is to be attracted by wonderful works on earth. While these works are mostly powered by divine purpose and empowerment, privileged men in positions of power and authority are always eager to take credit for the marvellous works on earth. Unfortunately, this selfish ambition often leads to a derailment from the original plan of God; or the denial of His relevance to human achievements. Whereas, human promises and pronouncements are limited by space, time and circumstances; but the words of the Lord are not only settled in heaven, they are established eternally on earth. Therefore, to be stable and remain focussed on life’s purpose for existence is to seek the Lord only and His strength. While the psalmist even reminisced the wonderful works God used people lik...

  “As a father pities his children, So the Lord pities those who fear Him. For He knows our frame; He remembers that we are dust.” ‭‭Psalms‬ ‭103:13-14‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ The concept of superman is rather wishful; but in reality, authentic life readily acknowledges his weaknesses. Particularly, in believer’s relationships with God, being fickle is really not an offence for those who are faithful to God. Without the breadth of God, man being dust are lifeless, empty and void; but the grace of God is the Source of strength, deliverance and salvation for those who put their confidence in God. Therefore, fickle fellas are unassuming in characters, carriages, and charisma. And since they are simply what the grace of God enables, there is always no pressure to do anything special in their places of primary assignment. Even though faithful believers are fickle fellas, they represent a fearless force for fruitfulness and productivity in the presence of God.

  “As far as the east is from the west, So far has He removed our transgressions from us.”‭‭Psalms‬ ‭103:12‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ Truly, salvation brings total freedom from the deadly three (the world, the devil, and the flesh); but many professing Christians often abuse the grace of God by reneging on their responsibility to detach self from what grace has taken away. Whereas, the mercy of God works only for those who sincerely fear Him enough to segregate self from sin. If God’s grace can go as far as the east is from the west to take our sin away from us, we can at least keep ourselves clean from the new attractions of the deadly three. Unfortunately, foolishness often enables friendliness with the all appearances of the deadly three in believer’s social, family and work relationships. And as long as we disrespect the grace of God that brings salvation or sin separation, self segregation from the deadly three will be absolutely impossible.

  “Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, And into His courts with praise. Be thankful to Him, and bless His name.” ‭‭Psalms‬ ‭100:4‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ Without a conscious distinction between the concept of divine thanksgiving, compared with the desirable attitude of gratitude in human relationships, pure praise and worship to God will be impossible. In spite of the privileges of human petitions before the throne of grace, believers understand that the reverence of who God is underscored an absolute submission to His Will. And if it is believed that we are made by God and for His purpose, it would be clear that there is no room for human reservation as regards the subject of thanksgiving to God. Notwithstanding, the heart of gratitude represents an absolute trust in God’s definition of an unchangeable good in the end; and the jettison of a temporary trace of this world’s attraction at the moment. God is good. Not because of what He has done; but because that’s who He is.

  “It is good to give thanks to the Lord, And to sing praises to Your name, O Most High; To declare Your lovingkindness in the morning, And Your faithfulness every night,”Psalms‬ ‭92:1-2‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ In most regions of the world, a daily weather outlook is like the mirror for correcting the daily dress codes and decorum. Everyone knows that it is not normal to declare a bad weather, but rather a bad dressing. Likewise, praise worship and thanksgiving represents the choice of wearing the garment of righteousness by anyone who must engage with the day’s activities. Irrespective of the reflexes or unpleasantries of the people in our world, the inability of the heart to appreciate the goodness of God with the turnout of all events wouldn’t necessarily guarantee a desirable handle or control. But certainly, self-assessment of everyone’s personal heart of gratitude is always possible. Instead of struggling with God to change people and circumstances around for our own goodness, we can defini...

  “For the Lord God is a sun and shield; The Lord will give grace and glory; No good thing will He withhold From those who walk uprightly.” ‭‭Psalms‬ ‭84:11‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ A sun without a shield is like glory without grace, prosperity without peace, power without passion, and promotion without patience. There is no doubt that these types of glory cannot be found by those who are dwelling in God’s presence. A glory that begs human manipulation, fraudulent practices, systemic cheating and corruption, and all forms of lies cannot be said to come from the Lord. Therefore, those who would trust in God for His good glory must be patient to first get fully satisfied by His grace. Otherwise, the system of this world can easily distract the heart by the adoption of its alternative to God’s glory, without God’s grace. Meanwhile, good glory may take time to come from God; but the grace in the good cannot be found outside the presence and providence of God.