Life in Christ

In my devotions, I always read a chapter from the Old Testament and a chapter from the New. Today I am at Psalm fourty nine and 1 Thesselonians 2. My struggle lately has been to read Gods word and remember it. So often I read it and then when I finish, I can't remember what I read. I didnt let God teach me through his word, i just read it blankly. Today I though i should try writing down the verses that hit me and then write about those verses to remind me of what they mean. I pray it helps me get deeper into Gods word.

Psalm fourty nine is one of encouragement for the believer. Many times in life, those who trust in God face troubles that never seem to touch those who hate God. It can confuse us and sometimes even anger us. How is it that most people are successful when they hate God? WHy do they seem to be blessed when we struggle? These are questions that can enter the mind of a believer in struggle. This Psalm reminds us:

"A man who has riches without understanding is like the beasts that perish."
Psalm 49: 20

Though the wicked so often seem to have what ever they want and what we may wish we could have, they will not be able to keep any of it. They will die and 'never see the light of life' (psalm 49:19). Those redeemed by Christ know that treasures should be stored in Heaven not on Earth. They have already received the greatest gift of all. Eternal life and being brought to Him (Psalm 49:15) The wicked are sheep being led by their shepherd: death. The righteous are sheep being led by their Holy Father to light and everlasting life.

Chapter two of first Thessalonians touches on something similar. The life of a believer should never be about how we can impress or please other people. Everyrthing that we do should be done for the glory of God. We should desire to please God with our actions, thoughts and words, not people.

"We are not trying to please men but God, who tests out heart"

1 Thessalonians 2:4

I used to struggle with this lesson. And at times I still do. I think we all do. We work hard to do and say things to look good in the eyes of the poeple watching us, forgetting to think of what God might think of it. Something I say to myself ( not often enough) is, "does this make God smile?" It may sound like cheese but its true. God can smile, Im sure. And if we do something that pleases him, I like to think he would smile. Similarily, if we do something that causes him pain, he will be far from a smile. If we think pleasing men is important, how much more important is it to please God? He only cares for us like no one could and never disappoints us like all people will. We should live the way Paul writes: to please God!