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2025-08-01

Good morning, Dear Ones, 

From my vantage point I have seen the world become increasingly difficult to endure.  This is due to the reduction of people who care about the needs and feelings of those around them.  If that sounds cynical, it is borne out of almost daily reports of mass gun violence, cars driven into crowds for the sake of mowing down as many people as possible, and reports of ethnic cleansing on almost every continent of the world.  God has said to us many times and in many ways, “Love your neighbor as yourself.  I am the Lord” [LV 19: 18b].  Sadly, there are evildoers and evil thinkers who try to take God’s even playing field and make it uneven.  What can we do?  Is God aware of the decisions we make and actions we take?  No one person, not the president of the United States or the leader of the NATO organization, or anyone can solve this problem alone.  So, mankind goes to war with their enemies, the war eventually ends, only to start another war.  Only two things will help: learning lessons from history and God’s final solution as outlined in the book of Revelation.  DN 2: 22-35, The Babylonian’s giant statue dream, and its interpretation DN 2: 36-45, are critically important reading for those who want to know the only real solution to the problem of sinfulness.  

We are an impatient lot, and we want something more concrete than just that story from the Scriptures.  And yes, there is an opportunity that God has given us on an individual level that matters so much to Him and us that He is chasing after us to take advantage of it.  We must remember, EPH 1: 4-5, “For He chose us in Him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight.  In love He predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with His pleasure and will.”  Yes, He chose us first!  RO 19: 13, “For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”  Christ’s atoning sacrifice on the cross makes this possible.  For it to happen, REV 14: 12, tells us, “This truth calls for patient endurance on the part of the people of God who keep His commands and remain faithful to Jesus.”  

Expect our faith to be tested by the sinfulness around us, but remember 1 COR 10: 13, “No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind.  And God is faithful; He will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear.  But when you are tempted, He will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.”  God knows every thought, feeling, decision, and action we take.  He also knows our motivation for these things [HE 4: 13].  That is because He is omnipresent, omniscient, and omnipotent.  It is not His plan to catch our sinning, but instead to be there to help us make right decisions, understand the feelings we have, and to lead us to take the right actions—right in His perfect eyes.  We don’t have guess what His will is because He will let us know it through the Holy Spirit and reading His Scriptures. 

Being merciful, forgiving, and compassionate are definitely what God wants.  As early in the Bible as DT 4: 31, we are reminded, “The Lord your God is a merciful God; He will not abandon or destroy you or forget the covenant with your ancestors.”  When God gives His word, we can rely on Him to keep it.  When others sin against us, holding a grudge against them isn’t God’s way.  MT 6: 14, “For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.”  That is at the very heart of Christ’s sacrificial atonement on the cross!  God’s mercy toward us should never be underrated.  EPH 2: 4-5, “But because of His great love for us, God, Who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace that you have been saved.”  Kindness is one of the gifts of the Holy Spirit [GA 5 22-23].  We learn from PR 21: 21, “Whoever pursues righteousness and kindness will find life, righteousness, and honor.”  Any easy Biblical gem to remember is LK 6: 31, “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you”—the golden rule.  

PRAYER: O Lord, we come before Your mighty throne, knowing we have been given an important set of gifts from the Holy Spirit.  They are love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness (humility), and self-control.  The greatest gift of all is given to us through the suffering and death on the cross of Jesus Christ.  That great sacrifice atones for our sins, saves us for eternal life, justifies us in the eyes of God, and brings us into a faithful community of believers.  Because of the Holy Spirit, we don’t want to keep sinning –living a life that leads to spiritual death.  Not a day should go by that we don’t acknowledge and appreciate what Christ has done for us.  We offer You thanksgiving, acknowledgement of Who You are, our loyalty and love, and our utmost praise, in the holy/mighty name of Jesus Christ.  Amen. 

NEXT WEEK:  All that goes into having patience, submitting to Christ’s teaching, being a humble student of the Scriptures, and serving our Lord forges a lifestyle that pleases Him.  We can have joy in using the talents He gives us in this lifestyle of service, whether it is professionally or personally carried out.  Next week, I’ve been commanded to share about the commitment necessary to serve the Lord leading others into a life in Christ.  Being a rabbi, cantor, pastor, worship leader, or any other type of clergy is not just done on Sundays.  It’s right for me to end this devotion with Micah 6: 8, “He has shown you, O mortal, what is good.  And what does the Lord require of you?  To act justly and to love mercy and walk humbly with your God.”  Praise and thanksgiving be to Him! 

Grace Be with You Always,

Lynn, JS 24: 15 

© Lynn Johnson 2025.  All Rights Reserved. 

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