My soul, wait thou only
upon God; for my expectation is from him. Psalm 62:5
The psalmist's expectation is from God, not from men.
He has great expectations because he has a great God
who has done great things, made great promises, delivered from great troubles,
granted great blessings. I will also remind myself. "Hripsime, wait only
for God, for my expectation is from Him.
February 27, 2023
’’…for I know their
sorrows’’(Exodus 3:7).
The comfort
of God's children in sorrows is this: the Lord knows their sorrows. If I don't
know the causes of my sorrows, if I don’t know the way out of my troubles, I
will be peaceful knowing that my Father knows. He not only knows, but also can
and wants to deliver me of my sorrows.
The Lord himself says, I know. The "I know" He said gives me
assurance in the many "I don't know"-s I said. Sorrows will not
discourage me if I remember that He is aware of my sorrows.
If He knows my sorrows, I will show my trust in Him by patience, by thankfulness and peacefulness.
February 26, 2023
"Grow in grace,
and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ" (2 Peter 3:18).
I have found another prayer topic to pray for myself and for all God's
children. This is a commandment, therefore it should become a prayer. If
God's Word commands us to grow in grace, then we should pray to grow in grace.
God loves to answer such prayers because He has commanded it.
If we grow in grace, we discover our weakness, our
misery, and the power and glory of God. As we grow in grace and in the
knowledge of our Savior Jesus Christ, our self-confidence decreases, our trust
in God increases, our love for the world decreases, our love for God and His
Word increases.
So, I will pray that I will grow in grace, grow until the
return of Him by whose grace we are saved.
From my diary,
February 25, 2023
Beloved, I beg you as sojourners and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts
which war against the soul. 1 Peter 2:11
If my citizenship is in heaven, then I am a sojourner
and a pilgrim on earth. If I am a pilgrim, the fleshly lusts of the world war
against my soul.
As long as I am a sojourner, and have not reached the
city of which I am a citizen, I have a battle to fight.
Fleshly lusts should be fought immediately; even a
little delay leads to defeat, I have to fight intensely; compromise leads to defeat,
I have to fight constantly; the truce leads
to defeat.
I am a stranger to this world, a pilgrim, so I want to
fight with all my might against the fleshly lusts.
From my diary,
February 24, 2023
In my Father's house are many mansions: if
it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I
go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself;
that where I am, there ye may be also. And
whither I go ye know, and the way ye know. (John 14:2-4).
There is a prepared place; it is prepared by Jesus.
There is a promise: I will come again
There is a way to that place, and that is Jesus.
The promise is from Jesus, therefore it will
definitely be fulfilled, the place is prepared by Jesus, therefore it is ready,
the way is Jesus, therefore we will definitely reach our destination.
We have a promise, we have a way, we have a ready
mansion.
So I will believe and wait for the fulfillment of the
promise, I will walk on the true Way, let my heart be ready and be in heaven,
where my ready mansion is.
From my diary,
February 22, 2023
But I know, that even now,
whatsoever Thou wilt ask of God, God will give it Thee. John 11:22
Martha's faith was genuine, although not very strong,
but it was genuine. She didn't say, "I know that if You had been here, my brother would not have died,
but it's too late, nothing can be done now." But she said: "Even
now..." Her brother was dead, but her faith was alive.
In the most difficult situations, when it seems that
there is no hope, faith says that the Lord can show a way out even now.
Now I also have worries, I have problems that seem
unsolvable to me, but I will say like Martha; "Even now..."
True faith doesn’t say ‘’it's too late’’, but it says
‘’even now’’.
From my diary,
February 22, 2023
My son, keep my words, and lay up my commandments with thee. Proverbs 7:1
The storehouse, where the Word of God should be
stored, is the heart.
Joseph kept the Word of God, his father's commandments
and teachings in his heart, that's why he came out victorious during the temptation
by Potiphar’s wife.
Samson did not remember the Word of God and became a
victim of Delilah.
I must write the Word of God not just in my notebook
but also in my heart, and I will always overcome any temptation.
From my diary,
February 21, 2023
I have trusted also in the LORD; therefore I shall not slide.
Psalm 26:1
The psalmist knows that he will not slide. This is not
self-confidence, if he trusted himself, he would not only slide but fall. He
trusted in the Lord. How can he fall if he leans on mighty arms?
If my trust is in the right place, my steps will be right.
From my diary,
February 20, 2023
From my diary,
February 19, 2023
’’… keep yourself pure’’ (1Timothy 5:22).
What Paul said to Timothy says to all Christians,
especially young people.
Keep yourself pure, keep your heart, your thoughts
pure, because only the pure in heart will see God, without
holiness no one will see God.
To keep yourself pure, keep your heart with all diligence, keep your feet
from every evil path, keep the Word of God in your heart, don’t keep any wicked
thing before your eyes.
To keep yourself pure, flee! Flee from youthful lusts,
from all appearance of evil, from the corruption of the world.
To keep yourself pure, kill! Kill the deeds of the body, all sinful
thoughts and desires before they can give birth to sin.
Keep yourself pure to glorify your Lord, to grieve the
devil, to be safe and happy, to be an example to others.
Keep yourself pure at all times and everywhere, keep
yourself pure when none but God sees you.
Keep yourself pure if you want to go to the place where nothing
impure will enter.
From my diary,
February 17, 2023
I will praise You, O
LORD, with my whole heart; I will tell of all Your marvelous works. Psalm
9:1
Praise begins in the
heart. When there is praise in the heart, there is something to tell. The
psalmist does not praise halfheartedly, but with his whole heart, telling
not just a few of the Lord's works, but all of His marvelous
works. And since God's works are countless, telling them is a daily activity, Every person saved
by God's grace, sanctified by His Word, renewed by His Spirit, freed from sin
by His mercy has something to tell.
Every morning new mercies
come, every day He sends new blessings,
shows new wonders in His Word, teaches new lessons. He never ceases to amaze
me, so my heart never ceases to marvel at His love, His holiness, His power,
His wisdom, my mouth never ceases to tell of His deeds.
Lord, give me a heart
that remembers your works, You don't want a praise where the heart is absent.
From my diary,
February 16, 2023
But Simon answered and
said to Him, “Master, we have toiled all night and caught nothing; nevertheless
at Your word I will let down the net.” Luke 5:5
Laziness was not the reason for the lack of results.
Work had been done, effort had been made, and that too without pause, all night
long. There was effort, there was no result. But Jesus did not tell them to
stop working because there was no result, nor did He promise to give them fish
without working, but He commanded them to continue working, but in the place He
showed them.
Peter did not say, "Lord, I have a lot of
experience, I'm a skilled fisherman, it doesn't make sense, because we worked
so hard, there was no result." He admitted that his efforts were in vain,
but he willingly accepted the solution Jesus offered. Obedience to the Word of
Jesus always produces results. Peter said: "At Your Word", acted by
His Word and saw the power of His Word.
All the characters in the Bible saw the effect of
acting on His Word. At His Word Noah built the ark and his whole family was
saved, at His Word Moses streched out his hand and they crossed the Red Sea, at
His Word the people of God marched around Jericho and its walls fell down.
When my efforts are in vain, I should not stop trying,
but continue working by His Word. Even if I said, "Lord, I made a lot of
effort, I prayed a lot, but nothing worked", now let me say like Peter;
"But at Your Word I will do it."
There is no one who follows His Word and is
disappointed.
From my diary,
February 15, 2023
’’…and the LORD shut
him in.’’ (Genesis 7:16).
’’…and Noah only
remained alive, and they that were with him in the ark’’ (Genesis 7:23).
Until the flood began, being shut in the ark could be
seen as a restriction of freedom; Those inside could not go anywhere they
wanted. Those outside might think they are free. But when the flood started, it
became clear that those who were locked in were free, they were free from the
danger of death, and the "free" outside were lost.
Those shut in by God are those saved by God. And not Noah, but God Himself closed the door
of the ark, separating those inside from those outside. Those outside could
have fun and party, those inside could not participate, but they were safe.
When God separates us from the world, He closes the door so that we are not
connected to the outside world, and it is not to limit us, but to save us.
From my diary,
February 14, 2023
Not everyone will pray in this way, and not everyone
will look for this hiding place.
The one who flees to the Lord and seeks refuge in Him
knows several important things.
1. He knows about the dangers, trials and snares of
the enemy around him. He doesn't pretend they don't exist. Therefore, he cannot
be careless and indifferent.
2. He knows about his own weakness. Therefore, he
cannot be proud.
3.He knows that there is a safe hiding place to avoid
danger and knows who that Hiding Place is. Therefore, he does not hesitate to
run to that Refuge, and he is sure that he is safe in that Hiding Place.
4. He knows that time should not be wasted,, so he
goes to hide not by walking, but by running. He flees to that Refuge!
5. He knows that the Lord will never cast out those
who seek refuge in Him. So he goes by faith.
I also know about the dangers that surround me, about
the weaknesses in me, I know about the safe Refuge and I know that the Lord is
ready to hide me in Him, therefore I run to hide in my safe hiding place, in my
Shelter.
From my
diary,
February
13, 2023
Consider how I love thy precepts: quicken me, O LORD,
according to thy lovingkindness. Psalm 119:159
The
psalmist loves God's Word, so he asks for quickening. Love for God's Word is a good argument for
prayer. Because he loves God's Word, he wants to obey God's precepts, and he
knows he cannot do it without God’s
strength. Therefore, he asks the Lord to revive him.
I love Your Word, quicken me to obey it, to
tell others, to reject everything that is contrary to Your Word.
February 12, 2023
Great peace have those who love Your
law, And nothing causes them to stumble. Psalm 119:165
Peace
is the result of love for God's Word. It is not written that great peace have
those who know God's Word, who read it, preach it, but those who love God's
Word. Lovers of God's Word are thankful for God's Word, meditate on God's Word,delight
in God's Word, grieve when they sin against it.
Nothing
will cause them to stumble: neither wealth, nor tribulations, persecutions. nor
the bad behavior of the so-called Christians. Such people have peace in their conscience, in their
heart, in their mind, they have peace with God and, as far as it depends on
them, they have peace with all people.
February 11, 2023
I hate and abhor
falsehood, but I love Your law. Psalm 119:163
I hate the double-minded, but I love
Your law. Psalm 119:113
God's law is truth, and it is obvious that those who
love truth should hate its opposite, falsehood.The psalmist hates all kinds of
lies and falsehood in everything: falsehood in words, in deeds, in teaching.
Falsehood is hated by God, and by those who love God's Word.
From my diary,
February 10, 2023
The psalmist keeps God's Word and loves it exceedingly. Keeping and loving
are connected. He loves God's Word, therefore he keeps it. People always keep
the things they love carefully, they keep them like a treasure in the best
place, they don't carelessly put them somewhere.
From my diary,
February 9, 2023
Thy word is very pure: therefore thy servant loveth it.
- Psalm 119:140
Once a
dear sister told me that her husband, a pastor, had read a passage from Psalm
119 at the meeting. She told me,
"When he read that Psalm, I
remembered you right away".
I know that many believers know me as someone who loves the Psalm 119. But the most important thing is
for the Lord to recognize me as a lover of His Word described in that psalm.
The
psalmist loves the Word of God and knows why he loves it. God’s Word is pure and has cleansing power. The
sinners who grieve for their sins love
the Word of God because they long
to be cleansed by that pure, cleansing Word. Those who are purified by
the Word of God love God’s Word, because the pure love what is pure. They hate
everything that is contrary to that Word, they desire to live in that Word,
they strive to live in accordance with that Word; in holiness.
From my diary,
February 8, 2023
And I will delight myself in Your commandments, which
I love. Psalm 119:47
If you love something, you delight in it.
A sure sign that you love God's Word is that you
delight in it.
The psalmist delights in God's Word, that is why God's
Word is sweeter than honey to him.
How sweet are Your words
to my taste,
Sweeter than honey to my mouth!
Psalm 119:103
He delights in the Word of God, therefore he cannot
forget it.
I will delight
myself in Your statutes;
I will not forget Your word.
Psalm 119:16
You will not forget something you love, something you
delight in.
He prays to see
the wonders of God's Word.
Open my eyes, that I may
see
Wondrous things from Your law.
Psalm 119:18
He prays that he may walk in the path of God's
commandments because he delights in it.
Make me walk in the path
of Your commandments,
For I delight in it. Psalm
119:35
He prays that
the tender mercies of God
come to him, and for this prayer he has the right argument:
‘’For Your law is my delight’’. Psalm 119:77
He is not perished in his affliction, because he has a source of
comfort, because God’s law has been his delight.
Unless Your law had been my delight,
I would then have perished in
my affliction. Psalm 119:92
He delights in
God’s Word, therefore His commandments are precious to him, more than fine
gold. (Psalm 119:127).
If I love God’s Word, I will delight in it.
If I delight in
it, I will pray to see its wondrous things, I will not forget it, I will find
comfort in it, I will long to walk in it.
From my diary,
February 7, 2023
