II Timothy 1:7; Psalm 96 - "Sing Unto The Lord"; "Almost Home"

I woke up this morning with an urgency to read Psalm 96. This is an encouraging Psalm when going through 'tough' days. It encourages me to not allow circumstances to take away the joy the Lord gives me. It encourages me to share His love and the gift of salvation. There will be a day with this earth will be no longer. When that day occurs, only those who are in relationship with Him will live with Him for eternity. Believers have hope in eternity with Him. We need to share that hope. I am once again reminded of Doc's words in his message on Sunday. I desire to be a 'faith spreader...love giver...hope dealer!' I desire to share His love with all I meet. I desire to have His love ooze out of me in a way that people will desire to experience it. Plain and simple. I desire to be who He has called me to be. To do this I must be cleansed from anything not of Him in me. I pray for Him to cleanse me every day so I can be who He has called me to be. There are days when I fail Him but I strive to live in His presence so I can not only hear His voice but walk in obedience to it. The song Sing Unto The Lord encourages me to not allow the enemy an open door into my life. The enemy doesn't like when we praise God. He may work harder at tearing us apart but when we stand in the empowerment of the Holy Spirit as II Timothy 1:7 directs us to we will not cave under the enemy's tactics. We will instead stand in the strength of the Lord. The more we live as God desires, the harder the enemy will attack. The more souls who come to know Christ through us, the harder the enemy will attack. But we cannot allow the enemy to win. Christ is going to return and we must be ready at all time. We also need to be sharing the Gospel so others can be ready too. Verses ten through thirteen of Psalm 96 read in The Passion Translation:

10 Tell the nations plainly that Yahweh rules over all!
He is doing a great job, and nothing will disrupt him,
for he treats everyone fair and square.
11–12 Let the skies sing for joy! Let the earth join in the chorus.
Let oceans thunder and fields echo this ecstatic praise
until every swaying tree of every forest joins in,
lifting up their songs of joyous praise to him!
13 For here he comes, the Lord God,
and he’s ready to judge the world.
He will do what’s right and can be trusted
to always do what’s fair.

As believers, we need to not only be ready for Christ's return but we need to be getting others ready. We need to share the Gospel in ways people will desire to be in relationship with Him. We need to live out the Gospel so people will want to have Him in their life. The Gospel is not something to keep to ourselves. When we praise Him, people will hear our praises and desire to have reason to praise Him too. When we praise Him through 'tough' times, people will be amazed how that is even possible. It is possible to praise Him at all time because we have hope in eternal life with Him. The things we go through on this earth will not last forever. Eternity with Christ is what we need to have our eyes on. There will be no more sickness, death, addiction, etc. in heaven. There will only be pure living. I think about the words in the Lord's prayer that say on earth as it is in heaven. If we truly pray this and mean it, then we are asking God to make life here pure. I strive every day to live a pure life. I strive to walk in obedience to His will every day. Am I 100% successful? No, because I am not God. But I will say the more I strive to live in this manner, the more pure my days become. Matthew Henry writes of this Psalm:

Christ will come to judge the earth, to execute just vengeance on his enemies, and to fulfil his largest promises to his people. What then are we? Would that day be welcome to us? If this be not our case, let us now begin to prepare to meet our God, by seeking the pardon of our sins, and the renewal of our souls to holiness.

Yes! I am looking forward to His return. In fact, I am so ready to be in heaven. But I know until my time is complete on this earth or until He returns in His glory I must continue to be His obedient servant. Some days are harder than others but I cannot allow the enemy even one small area to creep into my life. It would be so easy to stay in bed and cover up my head but if I do the enemy would win. Instead I have to stay strong in sharing my faith. I have to allow the Holy Spirit to continue to empower my words, actions, attitude, and thoughts. We are Almost Home. Heaven is where believers will dwell for eternity. It is my goal and I need to get better at sharing that goal with others.

I know that the cross has brought heaven to us
But make no mistake there's still more to come
When our flesh and our bone are no longer between
Where we are right now and where we're meant to be
When all that's been lost has been made whole again
When these tears and this pain no longer exist
No more walking we're running as fast as we can
Consider this our second wind

Almost home
Brother it won't be long
Soon all your burdens will be gone
With all your strength
Sister run wild run free
Hold up your head
Keep pressing on
We are almost home

Dear Jesus,

Thank You for these songs and Scripture which encourage me greatly! Thank You the opportunities You provided yesterday for me to share Your love and for the opportunities ahead in this day! Thank You for Doc's pain lessening last evening! Thank You for being with him throughout the day ahead! Thank You for the way You will show Yourself to him today! May he be empowered through You in a mighty way. Lord, I know the upcoming CT scans are weighing heavy on his mind. May Your peace come down upon him in a mighty way. May he rest in the knowledge that You already know the results and will give him strength for whatever they are. Father, cleanse me today so I can be more of who You have called me to be. Fill me with Your Holy Spirit so You will ooze out of me. May You be my words, actions, attitude, and thoughts throughout this day. Thank You for the appointment for our friend's heart cath finally being scheduled and for the news of Vance doing well in rehab! Continue to heal him and be with Jeannie throughout these difficult days. I continue to pray for Craig as he is in rehab and Tracy as he is on this new road of widowhood. I pray for Your strength for him and others who have lost loved ones. Lord, be so real to all with the effects of the COVID-19 'junk' we are dealing with. I pray protection over all but especially the first responders and those who are faced with the possibility of being exposed to it. I pray for Joel and all workers in prisons to be protected with so many cases of it. I thank You Marion and her friends have been kept safe with no cases at Canterfield. I know there are many facilities with many cases. Lord, may more believers be sharing You during this time of the pandemic with people more open to You. Thank You Jesus for being My Eternal Goal! Amen.