Devotional for March 3

To You, O My Strength, Will I Sing Praises

59 Deliver me from mine enemies, O my God: defend me from them that rise up against me.
2 Deliver me from the workers of iniquity, and save me from bloody men.
15 Let them wander up and down for meat, and grudge if they be not satisfied.
16 But I will sing of thy power; yea, I will sing aloud of thy mercy in the morning: for thou hast been my defence and refuge in the day of my trouble.
17 Unto thee, O my strength, will I sing: for God is my defence, and the God of my mercy. Psalm 59:1-2, 15-17 (KJV)

The Prayer Appointed for This Week

O God, our Father, Thou Searcher of human hearts, help us to draw near to Thee in sincerity and truth. May our religion be filled with gladness and may our worship of Thee be natural. Strengthen and increase our admiration for honest dealing and clean thinking, and suffer not our hatred of hypocrisy and pretense ever to diminish. Encourage us in our endeavor to live above the common level of life. Make us to choose the harder right instead of the easier wrong, and never to be content with a half truth when the whole can be won; through your Son Jesus Christ our Lord; who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen. based on the West Point Cadet Prayer

The Morning Exhortation

Happy is the soul that walks in the Spirit and lives in the Kingdom of God. Thoughts, mental images, feelings, and deeds are the food, drink, rest, and training of the soul. Why envy those who only prosper themselves in this world? It’s not the pretty, nor the smart, nor the rich, but the cleansed vessels that are of great worth to God. An employer seeks to know a candidates skills and qualifications to determine his or her fit for a particular job, but God isn’t concerned with our talents and skills. God looks at the heart. God is not merely handing out jobs, He is enlarging His family. You don’t need a polished resume for the Lord, just come as you are and give Him your whole heart. Listen and you will hear the Lord say, “My son, give me your heart.” Blessed is the one who replies, “My heart, O Lord, do I give.” Trust the Lord. It is His will that we be holy, and if we choose it, He will make it so. We are made holy by earnest prayer and by faith in the blood of the Lamb. Be still, know that He is God, and praise His holy Name. All power belongs to God. Give God the glory and you will see the salvation of our Lord.

Question

How is the fight of faith like sailing?

Answer

Grace is the wind, physical circumstances the current, belief the sails, and faith the rudder. Trim the sails, hold steady the rudder, and sail straight ahead allowing the current to be as it may.