A New Year Is Dawning

THE LIGHT IS SHINING FORTH

This is the 401st post on the website and the first of 2022. New Year is always an appropriate time to look back at the old year, either with nostalgia or regret, or maybe a mixture of both; but also — and more importantly — to look forward to the New; our hearts filled with hope.

I am in danger of beginning to sound like Rikki Fulton’s ‘Reverend I M Jolly’, or my erstwhile alter ego the ‘Reverend E S Smiley’, now sadly no longer with us, both of whom used to love a ‘Guid New Year’ message. My own year has been mixed with sadness, but also much delight, and I am sure many will feel overwhelmed by the menace of the pandemic and the loss of dear ones. Will 2022 break the mould that has been our lives for nigh on 2 years now? Naturally, none of us can answer that, but I was much encouraged by today’s reading in David Wilkerson’s devotional ‘God Is Faithful’ — my chosen Devotional for 2022.

GOD’S DELIGHT

God not only loves His children, He takes great pleasure in us. I see this kind of parental pleasure in my wife, Gwen, whenever one of our grandchildren calls. Gwen lights up like a Christmas tree when she has one of our dear little ones on the line. Nothing can get her off the ‘phone. Even if I told her the President was at the door, she would shoo me away and keep talking.

How could I ever accuse my heavenly Father of delighting in me less than I do in my own offspring? At times my children have failed me, doing things contrary to what I taught them. But never once have I stopped loving or delighting in them. If I possess that kind of enduring love as an imperfect father, how much more does our heavenly Father care for us, His children?

Joshua and Caleb stood up in the midst of Israel and cried, “If the Lord delights in us, then He will bring us into this land and give it to us” [Numbers 14:8]. What a simple yet powerful declaration. They were saying,”Because our Lord delights in us, He will vanquish every giant. Therefore, we must not look at our obstacles, but keep our eyes on our Lord’s great love for us.”

All through Scripture we read that God delights in us: “But the blameless in their ways are His delight” [Proverbs 11:20], “The prayer of the upright is His delight [Proverbs 15:8], “My strong enemy [was] … too strong for me … But the Lord … delivered me because He delighted in me” [Psalm 18:17-19].

It is absolutely imperative that we believe God delights in us. Then we will be able to accept that every circumstance in our lives will eventually prove to be our Father’s loving will for us. And He will bring joy out of our struggle.

DAVID WILKERSON

Speaking for myself, these are words I need, not only to hear, but to engrain in my very being. It is so easy for the world to draw us away from the right path, so that we forget whose we are.

PRAYER: Lord, help us to accept Your deep and abiding love for us; make that love an essential part of who we are. Abide in us that we may abide in You. We delight in You, Heavenly Father.

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“MEDITATE ON THESE THINGS”

ESTHER 6:11 NKJV
So Haman took the robe and the horse, arrayed Mordecai and led him on horseback through the city square, and proclaimed before him, "Thus shall it be done to the man whom the king delights to honour!"

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“New Day Dawning” — Celtic Thunder
(A spirited song of thanksgiving, even if a little like it came out of ‘Brigadoon’)

“A Guid New Year Tae Ane An’ A’” — Kenneth McKellar

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A HOLY COMMAND: Oswald Chambers on Love
— Love With All Your Mind --

The characteristics of man’s union with God are faith in God and love for Him. This union was the first thing Satan aimed at in Adam and Eve, and he did it by perverting what God had said.
In the case of Job, Satan goes the length of trying to pervert God’s idea of man. That is an amazing revelation of the power of Satan! He is represented as presenting himself with the sons of God in the very presence of God and trying to pervert God’s mind about Job.
[from ‘Biblical Psychology’]

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LISTEN TO THIS MEDITATION BY CLICKING BELOW …

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