GOD HAS SMILED ON ME!

Would you please make a special effort to share today's devotional with a friend in need of Jesus?

SCRIPTURE

Psalm 80 (NRSV)
Israel, the vine

Give ear, O Shepherd of Israel,
you who lead Joseph like a flock!
You who are enthroned upon the cherubim, shine forth
before Ephraim and Benjamin and Manasseh.
Stir up your might,
and come to save us!

Restore us, O God;
let your face shine, that we may be saved.

O Lord God of hosts,
how long will you be angry with your people's prayers?
You have fed them with the bread of tears,
and given them tears to drink in full measure.
You make us the scorn of our neighbors;
our enemies laugh among themselves.

Restore us, O God of hosts;
let your face shine, that we may be saved.

You brought a vine out of Egypt;
you drove out the nations and planted it.
You cleared the ground for it;
it took deep root and filled the land.
The mountains were covered with its shade,
the mighty cedars with its branches;
it sent out its branches to the sea,
and its shoots to the River.
Why then have you broken down its walls,
so that all who pass along the way pluck its fruit?
The boar from the forest ravages it,
and all that move in the field feed on it.

Turn again, O God of hosts;
look down from heaven, and see;
have regard for this vine,
the stock that your right hand planted.
They have burned it with fire, they have cut it down;
may they perish at the rebuke of your countenance.
But let your hand be upon the one at your right hand,
the one whom you made strong for yourself.
Then we will never turn back from you;
give us life, and we will call on your name.

Restore us, O Lord God of hosts;
let your face shine, that we may be saved.

DEVOTION

Oh Hallelujah! Don’t you just love the refrain of this psalm, “Restore us, O Lord God of hosts; let your face shine, that we might be saved!”

Wow! That’s going to ring in my spirit all day long.

The writer of this prayer was a true prayer warrior! He understood the importance of intercessory prayer—which means to pray for another person, place or thing on their behalf.

He knew that the Israelites were in grave trouble. They had forsaken their first love, turning away from their relationship with God, and as a consequence they were suffering the misery that comes when you remove yourself from the safety and protection of God’s hand.

See, sIn separates us from God. sIn is about making the “I” primary and forsaking the Thou. God is the Thou and we are the I. When we make ourselves more important in our own eyes than God, we have made ourselves, our wants, our hopes, and our dreams into idol gods.

Those idol gods exact great payment from those who serve them. If you worship the god of money, it requires more and more of the same. If you worship the god of lust, it requires more and more of the same. If you worship the god of power, it requires more and more of the same.

Before you know it, your whole life is caught up in trying to bring tribute to your god. You have to lie, cheat, and steal, just to get more money. You have to connive, plot, and fornicate, just to get more sex. You have to hurt, destroy, or kill, just to attain more power.

I know that you know all about this. Every human being does. All we have to do is look in our homes, go out in our neighborhoods, or turn on the television set and we will see people worshipping their “gods” in the most terrible and horrific of ways.

We see wars and hear rumors of wars. We see murder, rape, and mayhem galore! We see greedy banks and executives engaging in practices that leave people homeless, hopeless, and destitute. We see children kidnapped, abused, and stuffed in garbage bags and suitcases. I could go on and on, but you get the point!

And do you know the worst part? None of us can separate ourselves from all of this mess! For all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God!

All of us, at one point or another, have bowed down to the “I” in sIn and wrecked some sort of havoc in our lives or the lives of others because that’s just how sIn works!

So, what are we to do?

Well, today’s GOOD NEWS is that there is one who is already victorious over sIn, death, and the grave. There is one, who never, ever bowed down before the god of “selfish and greedy gain.” There is one who is so perfect--and so unblemished--that He is able to make things right again.

His name is JESUS. God loves the world so much that God was not willing to leave us in our mess all by ourselves!

God gave Jesus to the world so that our sIn-debt could be paid making us inheritors of eternal life.

God saves all of us when we put all of our hope in Jesus, believing that He died on the cross and rose again on the third day!

Aren’t you glad God loves, gave, and saves, my friends!

Restore us, O Lord God of hosts; let your face shine, that we may be saved.

Wow! It is only God who can restore us. It is only God who can “fix” the brokenness of our lives. We made the mess, but only God can clean it up. And God did clean it up when Jesus came to the Earth—as Clorox for our sin-stained souls…

When we put all of our hope in Jesus and become followers of Him, God looks at our hearts and sees JESUS, God’s only--and beloved--Son. When God peers into our hearts and sees Jesus, God’s face shines on us and we are restored and saved instantly!

No longer does God see our sIn only, and turn away. God sees God’s Son and bids us welcome into eternal relationship and life in God’s presence!

Look, my friends, it does not get any better than this! God is willing to do ALL OF THE WORK for us! We don’t have to do a thing to be saved and restored except invite GOD to do all of the work by putting all of our faith in Jesus.

Will you do that today? Will you put all of your hope in Jesus? Will you trust Jesus to take care of your sin?

If so, please pray with me…

Dear God, I have made a terrible mess of my life! In fact, I am drowning in my sIn! I am ashamed to say that not only I am paying the price, but my friends and family are paying the price of my poor choices too. Today, I want to start all over. I want to put all of my hope in Jesus. I want to trust you to clean up my mess. Please forgive me of my sin and fill me with your Spirit. I believe that Jesus died on the cross and rose again, just for me! Your love is like nothing I’ve ever known. I give myself to you. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

SPECIAL NOTE

If you just prayed that prayer for the first time, today, you are saved! I would be so honored if you would let me know about your decision by clicking “Yes” in the poll located at the top/right of today’s devotional! I am so happy for you! Happy Spiritual Re-Birth-Day!

Next steps: In response to what God did for you just now, let me suggest that you consider telling another Christian so that they can celebrate with you! Ask them to help you find a Bible that is easy for you to understand so that you can learn more about your new-found faith! Ask them to help you find a good Bible believing church where you can make new friends who will walk with you on your new journey! You are already saved; now let God mature you by faith! Congratulations!



ANNOUNCEMENTS

Congratulations to the people who have recently put all of their faith in Jesus! We are so excited about your new-found faith in Jesus! You are in our thoughts and prayers!

If you would like to put all of your hope in Jesus today, please visit my blog entitled, “Putting All Your Hope In Jesus” located at
http://aintathatgoodnews.blogspot.com/2009/04/putting-all-your-hope-in-jesus.html

If you have additional questions about how to become a friend and follower of Jesus, please see the devotion entitled, "Come to Jesus"
http://aintathatgoodnews.blogspot.com/2009/03/come-to-jesus.html

Pastor Yolanda is now publishing another blog entitled, “A Spoken WORD” in celebration of Holy Hip Hop, Gospel/Christian Rap and Spoken Word. Please check it out @ http://aspokenword.blogspot.com/

You are invited to follow Pastor Yolanda on Twitter www.twitter.com/PastorYolanda

Good News has now added a Prayer Ministry. http://www.kindlejoy.com/groups/goodnews
You are invited to leave comments or questions regarding today’s devotional. These comments are public.

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From Pastor Yolanda's blog http://aintathatgoodnews.blogspot.com