Psalm 23:5c. my cup runneth over.
Oh friends, what a rollicking Pentecost Sunday we had yesterday, as we gathered with fellow believers to celebrate the birthday of our church some two thousand and odd years ago, by reading about that most marvellous and memorable occasion and being refilled with the Holy Spirit of Christ! Glory be! What a time that was! And I’m sure that celebration reignited our passion and fire for Christ and all that He stands for! That means today, on Monday, this first day of our work week, we ought to be in fine form, just rearing to get out there and engage the heathen…and even our backsliding Christian brethren!
That fire and passion, if real, could not have been so easily quenched in just one day, and consequently the day before us must look bright and sunny, despite the true state of the weather. (smile) It’s one of those days when we get up and say, ‘This is the day the Lord has made, we will rejoice and be glad in it,’ and truly mean it. Likewise, when we declare (steups!!!) ‘Something good is going to happen to me today, and something good is going to happen through me today,’ we just feel that jolt of God’s grace and mercy truly lined up in our favour!
Yes my people, it’s these kinds of moments that we live for as true believers in Christ Jesus! Oh, and we do have to handle the maudlin, same old, same old days with Christian aplomb too, but our spirits just automatically rise to the occasion at these special times in our church’s calendar. That’s why yesterday we could sing the Javed song ‘Drinking from My Saucer,’ and mean it because God’s goodness is just flowing through us, or at least we feel it more on the special occasions. (smile) No wonder we could genuinely sing ‘I Thank God For all His Blessings on me, And The Mercies He’s Bestowed. I’m Drinking From My Saucer Because My Cup Has Overflowed.’
Now that just reminds me of a great man of God who spoke about his overflowing blessings…that’s Bruh David in our favourite psalm, Psalm 23. And instead of only quoting one verse, I just got a zeppo that since it’s our favourite, we might as well just pray the whole psalm. (smile) So please pray these wonderful sentiments with me. ‘The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.
He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me. Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest head with oil; my cup runneth over. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.’ *Ps. 23:1-6)
Now doesn’t that just touch a tender spot in our hearts? Of course it does! Because the words and sentiments seem to cover the whole spectrum of the believer’s life… and remember, they were also God-inspired, so they have inherent power. Like the Good Book says: ‘For the word of God is quick (alive, living), and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of (able to judge) the thoughts and intents (intentions) of the heart. Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in (hidden from) his sight: but all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do (must give account.’ (Heb. 4:12-13)
And all I can say to that my brethren is … ‘Wow!’ Now that shows we ought to continually scrutinize our lives very carefully, because the Lord is always intently scrutinizing them. Yes, His word is quick and powerful, that means living and active, not inept or inactive. And according to the scholars, God’s word ‘reaches into the inner secrets of man’s mind to discern even his thoughts and intents. Likewise, God’s eye sees man as though he were naked, unable to hide behind excuse or pretense.’ That makes us wonder why Adam and Eve hid from God (Gen. 3:8) after they disobeyed God’s command not to eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. (Gen. 2:17)
But sadly, after all this time, many of us still try to hide from God, something that’s totally impossible. I guess when we do that, God just shakes His head and feels empathy for us, because that’s just the kind of God He is. Yes my fellow saints, our God is a good God. There’s no doubt about that. The problem though is that we want a fairy godmother or doting grandfather, and He’s neither of those. He is the omnipotent Creator and Controller of His universe, and we are the sheep of His pasture, and it’s time we know our place.
But yuh know what, despite our unfaithfulness and rebellion, He’s such a good God that He’s given us options to change our ungodly ways. And one of those ways is through prayer, or sincere communication with Him. So please, let’s take that opportunity right now nuh, to go to Him in prayer through our Monday Morning Battle Hymn, re all the problems we currently are experiencing.
As one voice: ‘Our Father, who art in heaven, we, Your humble servants, praise Your Holy Name and thank You this Monday morning for life and strong faith in Christ, despite the mass confusion in our world. We desperately need Your divine help, for You are the ONLY ONE with the power to solve our many problems. Heavenly Father, we admit that we have all sinned and seriously disobeyed Your Word, but we know that You are a merciful, forgiving and gracious God, who has faithfully promised to hear and answer our prayers when we humble ourselves, pray, and sincerely seek Your face.
That’s why we come to You now, with sincere repentance in our hearts, pleading with You to give us wise guidance and direction to alleviate our problems. And Father, we pray that you will ease the pain of the many who are suffering from negative situations. Please show them Your awesome grace and mercy, and keep Your promise that You’ll hear our prayer, forgive us, and heal our land if we turn from our evil ways. Show this evil world that You are indeed Jehovah Rapha; the God who heals! We pray this in the holy and blessed name of Your Son, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ! Amen! And again, we say: Amen!’
And having acknowledged those sentiments to heaven, we must now ensure that the motives of our hearts are right, and also keep our promises, if we expect to receive anything positive from God. Much LOVE!
…God is good…all the time…but He does not put up with nonsense…
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