Heralds Digest

  “ Bless the Lord, all you His hosts, You ministers of His, who do His pleasure. Bless the Lord, all His works, In all places of His dominion. Bless the Lord, O my soul! ” Psalms‬ ‭103‬:‭21‬-‭22‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ There is no doubt that the primary essence of the Lord’s call unto salvation is the commission into the field of soul-winning. While everyone knows that commission comes after a genuine response to the Saviour’s call to salvation, not everyone who claims salvation has accepted the mandatory commission into the field. And just like the psalmist admonishes “ Bless the Lord, all you His hosts, You ministers of His, who do His pleasure“ , the reality of some of the Lord’s hosts and ministers being occupied by the pursuit of their personal pleasures is a common knowledge. Even when we are fully engaged in ministries and occupied by kingdom activities and programming, it is still possible to be lost in the pursuit of our personal pleasures. Oh for a sincere heart that pleads for a daily...

  “ Bless the Lord, O my soul, And forget not all His benefits: ” Psalms‬ ‭103‬:‭2‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ There are so many intrigues and lessons to learn by any soul that take the time to compare benefits with bitterness. At any point in life’s sojourn, when the soul focuses on bitterness, he quickly forgets any trace of benefits from the Lord. One particular king of Judah, Ahaz, in his bitterness and protest against God once engaged in fretful forgetting “ For he sacrificed to the gods of Damascus which had defeated him, saying, “Because the gods of the kings of Syria help them, I will sacrifice to them that they may help me.” But they were the ruin of him and of all Israel” (II Chronicles‬ ‭28‬:‭23‬). Therefore, the psalmist is admonishing believers to be aware of the danger of fretful forgetting through a deep awakening of the soul to its benefits. Actually, in whatever life’s situation and circumstance, believers’ primary benefits are anchored in the salvation of their souls from the bondag...

  “ They will perish, but You will endure; Yes, they will all grow old like a garment; Like a cloak You will change them, And they will be changed. But You are the same, And Your years will have no end. The children of Your servants will continue, And their descendants will be established before You. ”” Psalms‬ ‭102‬:‭26‬-‭28‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ When the scriptures posited children as the heritage of the Lord, it portends parenting as the most privileged project on earth to sustain the legacy of holiness. Every other project on earth has time stamps; but hear this “ The children of Your servants will continue, And their descendants will be established before You ”. Why is that? The virtue of holiness in any descendant retains the presence of God from generation to generation. Unfortunately, every attempt to build something else at the expense of sustaining holiness has always breeds pride, arrogance, and wickedness that evicts man away from the presence of the Lord. And like the Lord warned m...

  “ It is a snare for a man to devote rashly something as holy, And afterward to reconsider his vows .” Proverbs‬ ‭20‬:‭25‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ The devotion of anything as holy is simply an offering to God, which is expected to be voluntary before but mandatory afterward.  But in reality, even when a voluntary offering is considered thoughtless or a rash devotion, the Lord considers human relenting or carnal reconsidering to redeem a devotion as a snare from the devil. The point is that God owns us, talkless of anything owned by us. Taking back what we have offered voluntarily to the Lord is considered a spat on the face of God; and that’s always the delight of the enemy, who has lost the opportunity to bring his offering before the Lord. And besides just anything, believers are requested to offer themselves as a living sacrifice to the Lord. “ I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your ...

  “ But You, O Lord, shall endure forever, And the remembrance of Your name to all generations. You will arise and have mercy on Zion; For the time to favor her, Yes, the set time, has come .” Psalms‬ ‭102‬:‭12‬-‭13‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ Those who readily trust in the shadow’s shades or temporary enrichment and empowerment are not always bothered by their transient appearances. At least, they are confident that their periods of reigning are capable of instilling fear and oppression on their subjects. Such were the unwarranted avalanche of invasion by the Ammonites, Moabites, and the people of Mount Seir upon Jehoshaphat and the people of Judah. And like the psalmist and the children of Judah were made to discover, the Saviour’s schedule endures forever and the remembrance of His name extends throughout all generations, even when it appears not working. Actually, the wicked invasions of the righteous abode are merely great timers for believers to arise and call upon the Lord. For everyone who ap...

  “ Hear my prayer, O Lord, And let my cry come to You. My days are like a shadow that lengthens, And I wither away like grass. ” ‭‭Psalms‬ ‭102‬:‭1‬, ‭11‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ Hopelessness is synonymous to the awareness of the reality of shadow shades. It is an apparent reflection of emptiness, futility, and fruitlessness. When GOD would rebuke Jonah of old for his hope in the comfort from the shadow shades of plants, he allowed the plants to be consumed by mere worm “ And it happened, when the sun arose, that God prepared a vehement east wind; and the sun beat on Jonah’s head, so that he grew faint. Then he wished death for himself, and said, “It is better for me to die than to live. ”” (Jonah‬ ‭4‬:‭8‬) So, when the psalmist acknowledged his days as a lengthened shadow, it reflected the import of the deferment of hope in God. Whereas, believers’ hope is not restricted to the appearance of shades from any other sources, apart from God. In an inspirational admonition to believers elsewhere, Apo...

  “ My eyes shall be on the faithful of the land, That they may dwell with me; He who walks in a perfect way, He shall serve me. He who works deceit shall not dwell within my house; He who tells lies shall not continue in my presence .” Psalms‬ ‭101‬:‭6‬-‭7‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ Any type of service, either public or political, is easily influenced by political lobbyists. Then, the fundamental key remains the attraction of favour or personal interest in the eyes of the public administrators. Unfortunately, even when this type of eye service does not guarantee the selection or election of the faithful of the land, unfaithful public or political service holders are readily provided the mandate to provide public services in our institutions and societies. And while these unfaithful servants have now extended their franchise on insincere services to the house of the Lord, the scriptures say “ He who works deceit shall not dwell within my house; He who tells lies shall not continue in my presence ”. ...