Devotional for February 24

Joyful Are the People Whose Strength Is in You

4 Blessed are they that dwell in thy house: they will be still praising thee. Selah.
5 Blessed is the man whose strength is in thee; in whose heart are the ways of them.
6 Who passing through the valley of Baca make it a well; the rain also filleth the pools.
7 They go from strength to strength, every one of them in Zion appeareth before God.
8 O Lord God of hosts, hear my prayer: give ear, O God of Jacob. Selah.
9 Behold, O God our shield, and look upon the face of thine anointed.
10 For a day in thy courts is better than a thousand. I had rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God, than to dwell in the tents of wickedness. Psalm 84:4-10 (KJV)

The Prayer Appointed for This Week

O Lord, you have taught us that without love whatever we do is worth nothing; Send your Holy Spirit and pour into my heart your greatest gift, which is love, the true bond of peace and of all virtue, without which whoever lives is accounted dead before you. Grant this for the sake of your only Son Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen. Book of Common Prayer

The Morning Exhortation

Our God reigns! Every knee shall bow and every mouth shall confess that Jesus Christ is Lord. All things are in the hand of God. The axe cuts down the tree, but the axe is secondary to the hand that wields it. Watch and pray. Why get angry because of the rude person in your way? God uses such small things to train us to be able to maintain His peace. And if you only do good when others can see, you limit your reward to the applause of men. Receiving praise from people may be sweet to the ears, but pleasing God is far more satisfying. Refuse to react to the unedifying feelings of the flesh. Let go of the lesser desires of the cardinal mind in order to obtain the more abundant life in Christ Jesus. Press on toward the upward call of God, which is to know our Lord Jesus Christ. This is a part of the glorious ministry of the Holy Spirit to the saints. It is more than having knowledge about Him, it is rather to know Him through lived experience. This happens the same way we get to know any other person, and that is by spending time in His presence and listening to His voice. This is the promise of the Gospel of Christ. There are five steps filled with faith and intention for appropriating this one needful blessing: 1) we must first have the knowledge that it is the will of God for us; 2) we must long for it to be so for us; 3) we will have it to be so for us; 4) ask the Lord to make it so; and 5) Wait for the settled inner conviction that it is so. Do not force step 5. It is important not to claim it until the witness of the Spirit gives the assurance that the grace has been bestowed. Rather than claim it prematurely, give thanks and look for it with an eager expectation of the manifestation of the faithfulness of God. Watch and give glory to God. Though it tarry, wait for it. It will surely come.

Question

Now that you know how, the only question is when?

Answer

This too the Scriptures have answered abundantly. Wait on the Lord, trust His perfect timing.