“Praise the Lord, for the Lord is good; Sing praises to His name, for it is pleasant…For I know that the Lord is great, And our Lord is above all gods. Whatever the Lord pleases He does, In heaven and in earth, In the seas and in all deep places.”

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭135:3, 5-6‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

The goodness of the Lord never fails to amaze me. He is kind and loving in how He corrects and convicts. He shows more mercy than I deserve, passionately pursues me, and shows compassion in judgement. 

As I was meditating on this passage today, the Lord convicted me of something seemingly minor – a judgement that was birthed out of an offense years ago that began as a seed of hurt. Hurt birthed offense and judgement was the fruit. It’s funny how that works. I sat my heart right and repented to those involved. My heart is still bruised, but, I feel the pleasure of the Lord. 

When we bring Him an offering, it pleases Him. He finds delight and joy in it. The offering may be a sin offering or a peace offering. It might even be a thank offering. He wants whatever I am carrying. He wants me to lay it down, as an offering. He receives it and in receiving, it frees me of my burden so I am free to praise.  And praise – MY praise – is pleasant to Him. My praise is nâʻîym –  delightful (objective or subjective, literal or figurative):—pleasant and sweet. 

He doesn’t have to forgive. He doesn’t have to free me of my burden. Yet He does. More than that, He chooses to because He is just that good. And that’s a reason to praise if ever I had one. 

Father – thank You for Your conviction and forgiveness. Thank You for drawing me close and dealing with heart issues so nothing separates us. You are good and You keep doing good. Your leadership in my life is perfect and You can be trusted. Amen. 

Daily Reading: 2 Kings 18:9-19:37, Psalms 46, 80, 135

July 28, 2022