A Psalm for Going Home – Purity 1589
Purity 1589 02/22/2025 Purity 1589 Audio Podcast
Purity 1589 on YouTube:
Good morning,
Today’s photo of my vacation’s last Myrtle Beach sunrise from the vantage point of my suite’s living room balcony window comes to us from yours truly as I captured this scene moments before I left on Friday. And although the weather wasn’t what I wanted it to be, the trip to South Carolina was worth it.
Well, It’s Saturday and “today my vacation will enter into its final phases as I will be leaving my accommodations in Maryland in the morning and will be shortly taking to the road to head back home. Full disclosure this is a pre-recorded message because my suite in Maryland is too crowded to record in the morning and I am letting myself sleep in – shocker. Yesterday, I shared a Psalm for Leaving to inspire my spirit for the road and so today I am sharing a “Psalm for Going Home. My google search led me to Psalm 126 and so I am sharing it on the blog today to prepare me for my homecoming and to encourage you in your faith.
Psalm 126 (NLT)
A song for pilgrims ascending to Jerusalem.
1 When the Lord brought back his exiles to Jerusalem,
it was like a dream!
2 We were filled with laughter,
and we sang for joy.
And the other nations said,
“What amazing things the Lord has done for them.”
3 Yes, the Lord has done amazing things for us!
What joy!
4 Restore our fortunes, Lord,
as streams renew the desert.
5 Those who plant in tears
will harvest with shouts of joy.
6 They weep as they go to plant their seed,
but they sing as they return with the harvest. [1]
Amen. The Lord has done amazing things for me and this vacation is just another testimony of His faithfulness to bless and protect me. There were several times in the last week where I thanked the Lord and rejoiced over His creation, providence, and presence.
And now even though the dream of a vacation wasn’t all I hoped for, it was enough, and now I will go back to the place I long for, my home, where everything may not be perfect but its where God placed me, where I am loved and am living out my purpose in Christ.
So, remember contentment comes from wanting what you already have so be thankful for what you have and the fact that you know who the Lord is because that alone is more than enough to fulfill our wildest dreams, when you follow His call and live for Him.
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For those who want more evidence for Christianity than my simple encouragements provide, I offer apologist, Frank Turek’s website, https://crossexamined.org/.
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Today’s Bible verse comes to us from “The Quick Scripture Reference for Counseling” By John G. Kruis.
(While Bible verses on various topics of Counseling can be found with a quick Google search, we encourage you to purchase this resource to support the late author’s work. (The Quick Scripture Reference for Counseling By John G. Kruis on Amazon )
This morning’s meditation verse comes from the section on Loving and Serving Others.
1 John 4:9–21
1 John 4:21 (NASB) And this commandment we have from Him, that the one who loves God should love his brother also.
Today’s verses are the second of two passages of scripture that fall under the first point of our counseling reference guide resource’s section on Loving and Serving Others.
1. Love one another in response to God’s love for us.
Today’s Bible verse forever dispels the idea that we could worship the Lord in spirit and in truth in a way that would leave us separated from our fellow man.
As someone who wishes to encourage others on the to path of Christian Discipleship, I have a deep respect and love for the brothers and sisters in Christ that have gone before us and who have courageously tried to be true to the call of God on their lives, to crucify the flesh, and to walk in the Spirit. I have much admiration for those in the past, like the monks or desert fathers, who have really examined the spiritual path of life and sought to live for God complexly, and those who have written about the “desert fathers” and other monastic movements that highlight the need for the spiritual disciplines and the practices of silence and solitude.
While these solitary practices are proven to bear fruit of Christian growth and maturity, we should never fall into the false belief that a solitary existence, separated from the rest of the world, is what God is calling us to. Neither should we have disdain for the secular world that could so easily lead us astray.
John’s letter to the church tells us that if we love God, we should love our brothers. We are called to go into all the world to make disciples and because of our great commission, our potential “brothers” are virtually limitless.
Jesus also calls us love our enemies so even if we believe that someone will never come to put their faith in Jesus, it doesn’t excuse us from God’s commands to love.
So, if our hearts are cold toward our fellow man, we need to ask the Lord to change our hearts and to remember His love for us to help us to see others through His eyes. Everyone needs forgiveness, everyone needs love, and if we are fortunate the Lord will used us to show people how to receive what they desperately need.
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As always, I invite all to go to mt4christ.com where I always share insights from prominent Christian theologians and counselors to assist my brothers and sisters in Christ with their walk.
Today we continue sharing from “Day by Day Along the Way” By Jay E. Adams.
As always, I share this information for educational purposes and encourage you all to purchase Adams’ books for your own private study and to support the late author’s work. This resource is available online for less than $20 at many sites.
Day 88
The command is a lamp and the law is a light … – Proverbs 6:23
God doesn’t issue commands for no purpose. His authoritative Words are not merely expressions of His desire for you to follow them. He gives them in order to provide light for you to see where you should go, and are currently going. Apart from them, we would not know which is the right way and which is the wrong one. All would be uncertain—like walking in darkness. Walking in the darkness means making mistakes, stumbling, falling, injuring yourself. But God wants you to walk well. He provided His commandments and His law as a way to make clear to you not only what He wants you to do, but also to enable you to see what is best for you. Do you see your way clearly? Are you able to discern the way of obedience that leads upward to God? The light that enlightens all that you do? The lamp for your feet to keep you from faltering? The shining glory of our Lord Himself as He is seen in His commandments which are light and easy to bear? Or are you hesitant about the Y in the road? Can you discern His signposts plainly? Do you see the way clearly? If not, it’s time to light the lamp![2]
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[1] Tyndale House Publishers, Holy Bible: New Living Translation (Carol Stream, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, 2015), Ps 126.
[2] Jay E. Adams, Day by Day along the Way (Cordova, TN: Institute for Nouthetic Studies, 2020), 96.
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