LEARNING DAILY

 

Psalm 145:17-20, The Lord is righteous in all His ways, gracious in all His works. The Lord is near to all who call upon Him, to all who call upon Him in truth. He will fulfill the desire of those who fear Him; He will also hear their cry and save them. The Lord preserves all who love Him, but all the wicked He will destroy.

 

In studying the Word of God, one must come to the conclusion, as the Psalmist did, that God is righteous in all He does! Everything He had done and said and all He will do is holy and just. He does not lie. He has said what His followers must do, how they must act, and how they should talk as they walk the narrow way. Not one who claims to be a Believer, a follower of Jesus Christ can live in any contrary way. God has shown us how He expects us to live by sending His Son to die for whosoever would believe in Him. His righteousness is given to us when we asked Him into our heart; at that time the new Believer begins a journey of sanctification – the process of being cleansed of unrighteousness, to being purified or made holy. This is done because of God’s grace which we cannot earn but is given to each person who confess their need for God’s forgiveness.

 

If I may be open today, I confess that I have been praying for some things for a long time. I have been praying God’s truth, what I know is His desire (I know because it is in His Word!), and from a sincere heart! The psalmist wrote above that God “is near those who call upon Him” in this way. In Matthew Henry’s Commentary it is written, “He [God] is ready to hear the prayers of His people. He is in their hearts, and dwells there by faith, and they dwell in Him. He is nigh to those who call upon Him, to help them in all times of need. He will be nigh to them, that they may have what they ask, and find what they seek, if they call upon Him in truth and sincerity.” God’s timing is something I do not understand; but that does not keep me from continuing to pray for those who need to come to know God loves them and no longer wants them to be deceived. God’s promise is to be near, an ever-present help to those who need to be strengthened by Him, with those who pray with His truth in their heart. Praying this way means taking the log out of my eye first, making sure I am not praying from a prideful heart and remembering that it is God who does the work I am praying about. He does it in His way and in His time – no matter how convincing I am about the how and when.

 

The psalmist writes about God “fulfilling the heart of those who fear Him”. Answered prayer comes because the person praying is asking according to the heart of God; it is not selfish praying. The one who prays according to the desires of God can be assured “He will also hear their cry and save them”. Even though one may want his/her prayer answered right now, it is important that God hears the sincere prayer made according to His will; believe He will answer that prayer, that cry from a sincere heart. Pray in faith and trust God for the prayer to be answered.

 

God will preserve those love Him! Walking on the narrow way in the truth of God’s Word assures the one who calls on His name that He is near, will hear our prayer offered in faith and will keep him/her close to Him.