Psalm 103

I don't want my life of faith to have at its root something powerless and empty: me dragging my weary soul through some pitiful religious motions. I want God to be alive in me at the very center of who I am. I want to know Him and to be known by Him. I want my life to be alive with Him. I am asking for daily reminders that He is the One who called me to faith, and that He is the One who is leading Me in His plan for my service of Him. I want to bless the Lord, not just with a pinch of ceremonial incense, but with all that is within me.

I yield myself again today to that holy calling. I delight in Him, and clear thinking comes to my heart for another day. Angels rejoice, and the life of praising God brings life to my bones for another moment of opportunity here under the sun. I am so thankful that the Lord is real, and that He has called me to be His child.

Jesus, God with God, who died for my sins, and was raised for my justification, is my life. Without Him, I am nothing. He is the visible manifestation of the invisible God.

Every day He forgives my iniquities, gets my creaking body out of bed, and reminds me of the coming resurrection. Every day His Word brings heavenly life to me in a dry and weary land. He reminds me again that He loves me, and I believe Him. He opens my eyes to the good gifts all around me that are a reminder to me that I believe in heaven. I will bless the Lord, even for my trials, because I trust that He will speak to me and I will learn from Him through them. They must be a necessary part of the life that He has for me. Why else would He allow them?

Every follower of Jesus Christ is a vital part of a worldwide community of faith, the church. Through our King's cross and resurrection, our Father is bestowing His righteousness upon the humble. The oppression of wicked men will not stand forever. He will overthrow all evil with the powerful beauty of His heavenly kingdom.

Today, He is at work. He is our Father. We are His children. He disciplines us and forgives us. He does not fill our lives with what we deserve. Christ took that for us on the cross. He is going to give us all the blessing that Christ deserves.

My life here is short. I don't know how many of my projects I will get to finish. But I will let Him lead me through them one day at a time, and I will live in the light of His covenant faithfulness. I will bless His holy Name with confidence that He will bring me home according to the same calling by which He leads me here below in His service today.

My heart longs for the fullness of His heavenly kingdom. I am looking for heaven to come to earth soon. Today would not be too soon for me. But I will trust the Lord. He knows.

Won't you join me together with all the suffering servants of Jesus? Won't you add your voice to the praise that comes from the angels? Won't your spirit be united in common purpose with the spirits of just men made perfect above? Won't you sing the song of faith, and add your shouts of praise to the sound of the new creation already reserved for you in the heavens? Won't you bless the Lord?

Bless the Lord, O my soul! Let all that is within me bless His holy Name!