Heralds Digest

  “ Do not remove the ancient landmark Which your fathers have set. Do you see a man who excels in his work? He will stand before kings; He will not stand before unknown men. ” Proverbs‬ ‭22‬:‭28‬-‭29‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ If career, professional, and academic excellence thrive on the wings of breaking the personal best records of previous achievers, why do we often experience discontinuity in the quest to sustain righteousness among the new generation of spiritual mountaineers? While the scriptures are rife with heroes of faith, our contemporary world is also loaded with leaders who are running the race with grace before our eyes. Unfortunately, today’s followers often prefer to follow celebrities and motivational charlatans, whose lifestyles betray their professional and ministerial rhetorics. We cannot choose to follow the lagging landmarks of worldly entertainment, moral decadence, or social immorality and expect spiritual excellence at the same time. “ Do not remove the ancient landmark Wh...

  “ Yet He sets the poor on high, far from affliction, And makes their families like a flock. The righteous see it and rejoice, And all iniquity stops its mouth. Whoever is wise will observe these things, And they will understand the lovingkindness of the Lord. ” ‭‭Psalms‬ ‭107‬:‭41‬-‭43‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ Hope deferred does not only make the hearts sick. The heart of a discouraged, but righteous individual, is tempted to explore the deceptive gains from iniquity. No matter how well-framed the reality of corruption in human assessment, there is the undeniable sense of ‘give and take’ in the economy of lovingkindness from the world. Even in the world’s advanced capitalism, relief packages and programme grants are presented to the poor and the underprivileged societies for a greater impoverishment, in the disguise of social aids and empowerment programmes. Obviously, the truthful concept remains that there is no free lunch anywhere. Whereas, there is absolutely no need for a return of investm...

  “ Oh, that men would give thanks to the Lord for His goodness, And for His wonderful works to the children of men! Let them exalt Him also in the assembly of the people, And praise Him in the company of the elders. ” Psalms‬ ‭107‬:‭31‬-‭32‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ The company of elders and people in authority is surely full of wits and power; but this authority is designed only for good governance to the people, and not for competition against the wonderful works of the Lord. But for the king of Assyria here, his own greatness is assumed to be beyond the goodness of the Lord. And like king Hezekiah was drawn to the gracious goodness of God in prayer, no little man in his own estimation can compete with the greatness of man without falling on his knees. God’s goodness is not found in the place of wealthy comparison, position outweighing, and human networking. In fact, those who pride in these opportunities are often impatient with calls to wait upon the Lord. Unfortunately, seekers of the goodnes...

  “ Oh, that men would give thanks to the Lord for His goodness, And for His wonderful works to the children of men! Let them sacrifice the sacrifices of thanksgiving, And declare His works with rejoicing .” ‭‭Psalms‬ ‭107‬:‭21‬-‭22‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ It is true that for the same circumstances of life, men can either give thanks to the Lord or raise trouble-alarm to the Lord. Depending on our disposition, the Devil is skillful in the business of playing pranks with human hearts. Unfortunately, the fundamental disposition that attract his attention is always the same: “ Those who sat in darkness and in the shadow of death…they rebelled against the words of God, And despised the counsel of the Most High ” (‭‭Psalms‬ ‭107‬:‭10‬-‭11‬). Right from the beginning of time up until now, it has always been the words of God versus the words of the Devil. The moment the heart is plagued with a focus on disappointment, delay, and darkness, it cannot see the wonderful works of God at the same time. Wherea...

  “ So that your trust may be in the Lord; I have instructed you today, even you. Have I not written to you excellent things Of counsels and knowledge, ” ‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭22‬:‭19‬-‭20‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ Finding helpful hands and resources through men and human setup is a good thing. This is always a great networking opportunity that makes the difference between failure and success in life. The only problem though is that many people often get carried away by replacing trust in God with idols. Yes, it has become a twisted trust when the hearts of men no longer pay attention to the inspiration of the Spirit of God, especially when the windows of human networking or positioning with privileges are getting threatened. The scriptures say “ So that your trust may be in the Lord; I have instructed you today, even you “. Do you know exactly the undeniable thing the world around you is asking you to give, but you are blinded as regards the specific instruction from God? Unfortunately, the believers’ worl...

  “ Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble, And He delivered them out of their distresses. And He led them forth by the right way, That they might go to a city for a dwelling place. ” Psalms‬ ‭107‬:‭6‬-‭7‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ One of the funny experiences of life is the reality of trouble interfacing the right rest and route. For example, the children of Israel were served with the wilderness experience before they could navigate their way into the promised rest; not because there was no better or faster route according to human logical analysis. In fact, the scriptures say “ …that God did not lead them by way of the land of the Philistines, although that was near; for God said, “Lest perhaps the people change their minds when they see war, and return to Egypt. ”” (Exodus‬ ‭13‬:‭17‬) Even today, the right route in God’s economy will often waste all of human ingenuity and intelligence before leading every submissive man into the divinely promised rest; and not necessarily his own perce...

  “ Save us, O Lord our God, And gather us from among the Gentiles, To give thanks to Your holy name, To triumph in Your praise. Blessed be the Lord God of Israel From everlasting to everlasting! And let all the people say, “Amen!” Praise the Lord !” ‭‭Psalms‬ ‭106‬:‭47‬-‭48‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ Smart people have novel ideas of how existing systems can work better; and when someone is blessed with skills on how to gather smart people, there is always no doubt that great things and innovative systems will evolve. Unfortunately, underdevelopment thrives where the gathering or collaboration of smart people is strategically restricted by self interest. While all gatherings with clear understatement of personal praise and promotion are readily attractive to all men, gracious gatherings of people are strictly focused on a sustainable expression and expansion of the glory of God. Therefore, the psalmist acknowledges the believers’ need of saving themselves from a polluted gathering with the Gentiles....