Author: astherainandsnow

“You have multiplied, O Lord my God,
    your wondrous deeds and your thoughts toward us;
    none can compare with you!
I will proclaim and tell of them,
    yet they are more than can be told.

In sacrifice and offering you have not delighted,
    but you have given me an open ear.
Burnt offering and sin offering
    you have not required.
Then I said, ‘Behold, I have come;
    in the scroll of the book it is written of me:
I delight to do your will, O my God;
    your law is within my heart.’

I have told the glad news of deliverance
    in the great congregation;
behold, I have not restrained my lips,
    as you know, O Lord.
I have not hidden your deliverance within my heart;
    I have spoken of your faithfulness and your salvation;
I have not concealed your steadfast love and your faithfulness
    from the great congregation.” Psalm 40:5-10

Cotton-puffed cerulean sky makes for a sanctuary vaulting to eternity. Lush meadows sprawl to the edge of piney woods, and frilly wildflowers pop color, tickled by a tiny, intricate butterfly. Closer still, grass blades gracefully stand, gently swaying to the music of fresh beauty and crisp air, captivating the soul’s senses. Wondrous is the creative handiwork of God.

And multiplied are His thoughts! His creation came about by exquisite, careful design, and is sustained by sensible order. The making and moving of men is according to benevolent, purposeful, redemptive thought on the part of the Sovereign. He cares about us, reasons with us, and keeps us in His mind always. Vast is the sum of His thoughts, and precious! (Psalm 8:3-5; 139:1-6,17-18; Isaiah 1:18; Colossians 1:16-17)

Captivated with wonder at our incomparable, immeasurable God, and His innumerable deeds and thoughts, how can we, in humble praise, return His bounty? What if we would do the same? What if we trained ourselves to set aside impulse and thoughtless deeds, to delay reacting to people and situations, in order to think first? What could distinguish our outlook and demeanor if we took time to contemplate the Almighty and His wondrous ways? If we thought through and endeavored how to multiply them in speech and actions, how would our industry and interactions change?

And whom do we hold in our hearts? Whom do we pursue, to whom do we proclaim the glad news of His deliverance? How and where do we speak of His faithfulness and salvation, bringing comfort, hope, and a sense of value to those who are alone, in pain, or needing direction? It is our highest privilege, as recipients of God’s manifold grace and gifts, to pass them on freely, lavishly. (Philippians 1:7a)

When we meditate on His word and works among men, we recognize the Lord’s attributes and the worthiness of our obedience and devotion to Him. We cannot help but love His perfections and delight in His will. We will gladly speak of His faithfulness and practice our salvation with relevance and passion. What evidence of awe and delight do I portray in practical living?

Good Father, fill me with holy wonder and gladness. Multiply my thoughts of You and deeds that bring You glory.

“When David returned from striking down the Philistine, the women came out of all the cities of Israel… to meet King Saul with tambourines, songs of joy, and musical instruments… [singing],

“’Saul has struck down his thousands,
    and David his ten thousands.’

“And Saul eyed David from that day on… afraid of David because the Lord was with him... So Saul removed him from his presence and made him a commander of a thousand… And David had success in all his undertakings, for the Lord was with him. And when Saul saw that he had great success, he stood in fearful awe of him…

“So Saul was David’s enemy continually… And Saul spoke to Jonathan and to all his servants, that they should kill David.” 1 Samuel 18:6-7,9,12-15,29; 19:1

“It happened, late one afternoon, David… saw from the roof a woman bathing; and the woman was very beautiful… So David sent messengers and took [Bathsheba, the wife of Uriah], and she came to him, and he lay with her… And the woman conceived, and sent and told David, ‘I am pregnant.’

“So David sent word to Joab, ‘Send me Uriah the Hittite…’ Uriah said to David, ‘The ark and Israel and Judah dwell in booths, and my lord Joab and the servants of my lord are camping in the open field. Shall I then go to my house, to eat and drink and lie with my wife?..’

“In the morning David wrote a letter to Joab and sent it by Uriah... ‘Set Uriah in the forefront of the hardest fighting, and then draw back from him, that he may be struck down, and die.’ And as Joab was besieging the city, he assigned Uriah to the place where he knew there were valiant men. The men of the city came out and fought with Joab, and some of the servants of David… fell. Uriah the Hittite also died…

“These are the names of the mighty men whom David had:.. Uriah the Hittite: thirty-seven in all.” 2 Samuel 11:1-6,11,14-17; 23:8,39

David knew what it was to be an innocent victim of the one in power- he’d been hunted by the viciously jealous King Saul for years. Yet, clawed himself by the deceitful talons of frantic lust, and bleeding with unstoppable sin upon sin, the very one unjustly targeted now set his target on an innocent, unknowing rival. Having salaciously impregnated Uriah’s wife, David sought to eliminate his paramour’s faithful husband, a loyal elite of his mighty men.

The enemy is a heinous liar. Let his foot in the door, the monster grows, and we’re trapped. The fear of being exposed for what we desperately want to conceal stokes the fury and fire of repeated folly. Sin distorts thinking and entangles actions to heap plot upon hideous plot to the ruin of those around us. Concentric circles of fallout can’t be contained. (Proverbs 6:34; John 8:44; Romans 7:15-20; 8:28; 1 Peter 2:11)

What sin have we coddled into habit? Is there unchecked fury we fuel by bitterness, jealousy, or pride? Untamed gossip, gluttony, or lust? How has it frozen our heart, or seeped into language, demeanor, or destructive action? Only by God’s grace can the flesh be thwarted, and consequences softened and used in mercy for ultimate good. (Romans 8:28; 1 Peter 2:11)

Lord, stop sin in its tracks, that I might be pure and single-minded for You.

“Transgression speaks to the wicked
    deep in his heart;
there is no fear of God
    before his eyes.
For he flatters himself in his own eyes
    that his iniquity cannot be found out and hated.
The words of his mouth are trouble and deceit;
    he has ceased to act wisely and do good.
He plots trouble while on his bed;
    he sets himself in a way that is not good;
    he does not reject evil.

Your steadfast love, O Lord, extends to the heavens,
    your faithfulness to the clouds.
Your righteousness is like the mountains of God;
    your judgments are like the great deep;
    man and beast you save, O Lord.

How precious is your steadfast love, O God!
    The children of mankind take refuge in the shadow of your wings.
They feast on the abundance of your house,
    and you give them drink from the river of your delights.
For with you is the fountain of life;
    in your light do we see light.

Oh, continue your steadfast love to those who know you,
    and your righteousness to the upright of heart!
Let not the foot of arrogance come upon me,
    nor the hand of the wicked drive me away.
There the evildoers lie fallen;
    they are thrust down, unable to rise.” Psalm 36

The psalmist is no idealist but a realist. He knows the truth about evil and deceit, and he knows his God. He understands the depravity of one who worships self and fears not God, and the link between blind self-flattery and cruel action. As he sees that deep and hidden the sin of the wicked, God’s judgments are deeper still, and His goodness immeasurably higher. His eyes pierce the most deceived impression, His love and faithfulness reach the deepest sin and lift their bearer unto the merciful heights of salvation.

Evil makes for hideous barrenness, while children of God delight in divine abundance in the fountain of life. Evildoers are thrust down, the righteous are upright of heart. Where there is no fear of God, wickedness and trouble mingle as thankless companions, but children of God have safe refuge in His love. The contrast is stark, and carries warning: guard against the enticements and deceit of pride and the world’s favors. How so? Seize the offer of great comfort: remain in the Light for sight of God’s good way. (John 8:12)

Do we perceive evil as just a paltry idea with horns that has no bearing on us, or the insidious, forceful reality it is? How appropriately, and deeply, do we fear God in His holiness, perfection, jealousy for His own, and wrath against sin? (Exodus 20:5; 34:14; Isaiah 42:8)

“Immortal, invisible, God only wise,
in light inaccessible hid from our eyes,
most blessed, most glorious, the Ancient of Days,
almighty, victorious, thy great name we praise.

Unresting, unhasting, and silent as light,
nor wanting, nor wasting, thou rulest in might;
thy justice like mountains high soaring above
thy clouds, which are fountains of goodness and love.

To all life thou givest, to both great and small;
in all life thou livest, the true life of all;
we blossom and flourish as leaves on the tree,
and wither and perish but naught changeth thee.” ~Walter C. Smith (1867)

Lord, help me daily discern the contrasts before me, and always choose to fear, love, obey, and worship You.

“He has besieged and enveloped me
    with bitterness and tribulation;
he has made me dwell in darkness…
He has walled me about so that I cannot escape;
    he has made my chains heavy;
though I call and cry for help,
    he shuts out my prayer;
he has blocked my ways with blocks of stones…

I have become the laughingstock of all peoples,
    the object of their taunts all day long.
He has filled me with bitterness;
    he has sated me with wormwood.

He has made my teeth grind on gravel,
    and made me cower in ashes;
my soul is bereft of peace;
    I have forgotten what happiness is…

Remember my affliction and my wanderings,
    the wormwood and the gall!
My soul continually remembers it
    and is bowed down within me.
But this I call to mind,
    and therefore I have hope:

The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases;
    his mercies never come to an end;
they are new every morning;
    great is your faithfulness.
‘The Lord is my portion,’ says my soul,
    ‘therefore I will hope in him.’

The Lord is good to those who wait for him,
    to the soul who seeks him.
It is good that one should wait quietly
    for the salvation of the Lord…
For the Lord will not
    cast off forever,
but, though he cause grief, he will have compassion
    according to the abundance of his steadfast love;
for he does not afflict from his heart
    or grieve the children of men…
Is it not from the mouth of the Most High
    that good and bad come?..
Let us test and examine our ways,
    and return to the Lord!
Let us lift up our hearts and hands
    to God in heaven…

I called on your name, O Lord,
    from the depths of the pit;
you heard my plea, ‘Do not close
    your ear to my cry for help!’
You came near when I called on you;
    you said, ‘Do not fear!’

You have taken up my cause, O Lord;
    you have redeemed my life.” Lamentations 3:5-9,14-17,19-26,31-33,38,40-41,55-58

In the invisible under the dirt, all is closed in, dank, and fruitless. But here, hunger and destitution and darkness do their work. Could it be any worse? Is there no hope? Well I ever breathe freely again? Does God hear? In these places of impossibility, God’s attributes are revealed, His ways are learned, and fresh mercies await. Bitter with affliction, bereft of peace, there are true truths we can call to mind that stoke God’s steadfast love. Our place of pleading becomes a greenhouse for hope. (Jonah 2:1-9; 2 Corinthians 12:9)

In waiting, and through grief, God’s compassion flourishes. In spiritual and relational hunger, He is magnified as our Portion. Every divinely-controlled atmosphere of sorrow and season of seeking affords new insights into His purposes, and time to examine our ways. Instead of resisting every hardship, would we ask what He intends to teach? How regularly do we recall past lessons, and look to learn again? Where have we experienced the Lord’s mercy or personal love that we could not have other than through tribulation? What fresh mercies, grace, and sincere love now bloom from us to others?

Gracious Father, cause me to grow and flourish in both the good and bad You’ve ordered for my life. Make me pure in the deepest places, and vibrant in praise of You.

“Fret not yourself because of evildoers;
    be not envious of wrongdoers!
For they will soon fade like the grass
    and wither like the green herb.

Trust in the Lord, and do good;
    dwell in the land and befriend faithfulness.*
Delight yourself in the Lord,
    and he will give you the desires of your heart.

Commit your way to the Lord;
    trust in him, and he will act.
He will bring forth your righteousness as the light,
    and your justice as the noonday.

Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him…

Refrain from anger, and forsake wrath!
    Fret not yourself; it tends only to evil…
Those who wait for the Lord shall inherit the land…
and delight themselves in abundant peace…

The steps of a man are established by the Lord,
    when he delights in his way;
though he fall, he shall not be cast headlong,
    for the Lord upholds his hand…
[The righteous] is ever lending generously,
    and his children become a blessing.

Turn away from evil and do good;
    so shall you dwell forever.
The Lord… will not forsake his saints…

The mouth of the righteous utters wisdom,
    and his tongue speaks justice.
The law of his God is in his heart;
    his steps do not slip.” Psalm 37:1-9,11,23-24,26-28a,30-31

*Or and feed on faithfulness, or and find safe pasture

To fret not takes a deliberate turning to proceed in another direction, opening up a world of emotional and spiritual color. To befriend faithfulness takes intention and effort, and includes knowing what to invest in and what to set aside. As with any friendship, there are stages of introduction, familiarity, and rich knowing that uncover the beauties and bring forth the far-reaching benefits of such intimacy. Befriending faithfulness reaps great reward.

What does faithfulness look like in everyday living? A friend of faithfulness does not gossip, confessing a brother or sister’s sins behind their back, but holds its tongue, or says only what is useful for building up. It is faithful to serve willingly and cheerfully as needs arise, with kindness and compassion. It is faithful to pray for leaders, to encourage them with spiritual and practical support. Faithfulness at work means arriving promptly, doing that work heartily as unto the Lord, employing the mind, talent, and energy that God has entrusted to us. Faithfulness in our communities is consistent ordering of our lives under respectful authority and unselfishly toward our neighbor. In all things and everywhere it is to honor Him, prefer others, and contribute to the greater good. (Proverbs 11:12-13; Ephesians 4:11-16,29; 5:15-17; Philippians 2:3-4; Colossians 3:23; Romans 13:1-2; 1 Timothy 2:1-2; Hebrews 10:24-25)

What and whom are we choosing to befriend? When and how do we delight in the Lord, and deliberately commit to Him our ways? How patiently do we wait, and consistently do we walk? How might we bless others today to spread the divine friendship?

If we are fretting- by comparison with others and worry over tomorrow- we’ve lost touch with faithfulness. They cannot coexist. Nurturing communion with our faithful God, and maintaining as faithful our hearts and hands according to His revealed will, not only guards us from the folly of fretting, but fills us to bear fruit for His glory. Which will it be?

Father, in every choice, may I befriend You and remain faithful to who You are in me and to all You have called me to be.

“You are my rock and my fortress;
    and for your name’s sake you lead me and guide me;
you take me out of the net they have hidden for me,
    for you are my refuge.
Into your hand I commit my spirit;
    you have redeemed me, O Lord, faithful God…

I trust in the Lord.
I will rejoice and be glad in your steadfast love,
    because you have seen my affliction;
    you have known the distress of my soul,
and you have not delivered me into the hand of the enemy;
    you have set my feet in a broad place…

Be gracious to me, O Lord, for I am in distress;
    my eye is wasted from grief;
    my soul and my body also…

But I trust in you, O Lord;
    I say, ‘You are my God.’
My times are in your hand;
    rescue me from the hand of my enemies and from my persecutors!
Make your face shine on your servant;
    save me in your steadfast love!..

Oh, how abundant is your goodness,
    which you have stored up for those who fear you
and worked for those who take refuge in you!..
In the cover of your presence you hide them
    from the plots of men;
you store them in your shelter
    from the strife of tongues.

Blessed be the Lord,
    for he has wondrously shown his steadfast love to me
    when I was in a besieged city.
I had said in my alarm,
    ‘I am cut off from your sight.’
But you heard the voice of my pleas for mercy
    when I cried to you for help...
Love the Lord, all you his saints!..
Be strong, and let your heart take courage,
    all you who wait for the Lord!” Psalm 31:3-9,14-16,19-24

Steadfast: 1. Firmly loyal or constant; unswerving; faithful; 2. Fixed or unchanging; 3. Unmovable.

Through every up and down, yank and slip, God’s love is steadfast. Choking or breathing freely, stumbling or ascending, quaking or at rest, attacked or alone, when we know the Lord Jesus, we carry and are enveloped by a strong and steady love that knows no variance or measure. There is no Rock like our God, nor love like His love. (1 Samuel 2:2)

In Him, we are secure. In Him, we are held, intimately known, and given a wide place to roam. In deepest distress, God’s arms hold us, His hands hold our times, and His face lights our way. He stores up goodness for us, and stores us safely up with Him. He shelters from strife and delivers from doubt to bless His name.

What is our affliction? Where are we troubled? How has He wondrously shown His steadfast love in the hurt and darkness? When we falter in grace or in faith, can we trace His faithful loving hand? What wrong thinking, distractions, or lies cause us to yield to alarm instead of taking courage and waiting on Him?

The earth is full of the steadfast love of the Lord. Look around! Your steadfast love, O Lord, extends to the heavens. He benevolently rules over all! How precious is your steadfast love, O God! Relish, rest, and take delight in Him! Let your steadfast love, O Lord, be upon us, even as we hope in you. (Psalm 33:5b,22; 36:5a,7a)

Lord, may I ever continue in and under Your steadfast love, and spread its excellencies to the needy around me.

“The Lord is my light and my salvation;
    whom shall I fear?
The Lord is the stronghold of my life;
    of whom shall I be afraid?

When evildoers assail me
    to eat up my flesh,
my adversaries and foes,
    it is they who stumble and fall.

Though an army encamp against me,
    my heart shall not fear;
though war arise against me,
    yet I will be confident.

One thing have I asked of the Lord,
    that will I seek after:
that I may dwell in the house of the Lord
    all the days of my life,
to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord
    and to inquire in his temple.

For he will hide me in his shelter
    in the day of trouble;
he will conceal me under the cover of his tent;
    he will lift me high upon a rock.

And now my head shall be lifted up
    above my enemies all around me,
and I will offer in his tent
    sacrifices with shouts of joy;
I will sing and make melody to the Lord.

Hear, O Lord, when I cry aloud;
    be gracious to me and answer me!
You have said, ‘Seek my face.’
My heart says to you,
    ‘Your face, Lord, do I seek.’
   Hide not your face from me.
Turn not your servant away in anger,
    O you who have been my help.
Cast me not off; forsake me not,
    O God of my salvation!..

Teach me your way, O Lord,
    and lead me on a level path
    because of my enemies…
I believe that I shall look upon the goodness of the Lord
    in the land of the living!” Psalm 27:1-9,11,13

David is pursued and pelted by enemy assailants, but he’s not overcome by their dark press. He gazes at, holds onto, and sings of the Light that is his God. Every opponent, every onslaught, pales into the background as he focuses on his one thing: dwelling with his Lord every waking moment, beholding His beauty in intimate communion. His hope is fixed in the anticipation of looking upon the goodness of the Lord forever.

We get pressured by so many things that rob attention from the one that is vital. Work and financial responsibilities, maintenance of material goods, petty grievances and irritations with people and politics- each has its place, but none is foremost. Jesus realigned Martha when He directed her to turn from busy tasks to gaze, and listen. It’s not that there aren’t important duties to manage, nor challenges and enemies to contend with, but as God’s children we know all these are providentially in place as instruments for a higher knowing of Him in the midst. (Luke 10:38-42; 2 Corinthians 12:9-10; James 1:2-4)

What occupies our focus? How would we perceive things differently if we began each day aligning praise, passion, and purpose with God as our light and salvation? When and how will we seek His face?

“O soul, are you weary and troubled?
No light in the darkness you see?
There’s light for a look at the Savior,
And life more abundant and free!
Turn your eyes upon Jesus,
Look full in His wonderful face,
And the things of earth will grow strangely dim,
In the light of His glory and grace.” ~Helen Howarth Lemmel (1922)

Lord, train me to focus my energies and sight to look upon You, so the perspective of all else is framed and understood by Your glory and grace.

“The heavens declare the glory of God,
    and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.
Day to day pours out speech,
    and night to night reveals knowledge.
There is no speech, nor are there words,
    whose voice is not heard.
Their voice goes out through all the earth,
    and their words to the end of the world.
In them he has set a tent for the sun,
    which comes out like a bridegroom leaving his chamber,
    and, like a strong man, runs its course with joy.
Its rising is from the end of the heavens,
    and its circuit to the end of them,
    and there is nothing hidden from its heat...

Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart
    be acceptable in your sight,
    O Lord, my rock and my redeemer.” Psalm 19:1-6,14

Beholding the heavens, we take in all the psalmist describes: God’s magnificent, infinite, indescribable glory: light, movement, order, splendor that explodes the imagination. The shout both humbles and raises to awe. Our senses and souls expand but find their limit while soaring, trying to comprehend the incomprehensible and articulate the measureless in involuntary praise. It is beyond imagining the splendor, and our perception of it, before the fall.

While the Lord tilts our faces skyward to behold His glories, He intends that we carry what we glean into the horizontal ‘here below’ of day to day. We cannot go through our hours with physical eyes on heaven, but our spiritual eyes can carry the eternal perspective of its beauties to our daily decisions and interactions. His order, love, light, and handiwork can be evidenced in the words of our mouths and work of our hands. (Psalm 90:17; Matthew 5:16)

If the heavens declare, what am I declaring? If this Almighty God dwells in me by His spirit, how clearly and broadly am I displaying His glory in demeanor, kindness, acts of service, care, and generosity? How do my words reflect His grace and compassion? My actions His love and strength and tenderness? My industry His order, excellence, persistence, and purposes?

“God, all nature sings thy glory, and thy works proclaim thy might;
ordered vastness in the heavens, ordered course of day and night;
beauty in the changing seasons, beauty in the storming sea;
all the changing moods of nature praise the changeless Trinity,

Clearer still we see thy hand in man whom thou hast made for thee;
ruler of creation’s glory, image of thy majesty.
Music, art, the fruitful garden, all the labor of his days,
are the calling of his Maker to the harvest feast of praise.

But our sins have spoiled thine image, nature, conscience only serve
as unceasing, grim reminders of the wrath which we deserve.
Yet thy grace and saving mercy in thy Word of truth revealed
claim the praise of all who know thee, in the blood of Jesus sealed.

God of glory, power, mercy, all creation praises thee;
we, thy creatures, would adore thee now and through eternity.
Saved to magnify thy goodness, grant us strength to do thy will;
with our acts as with our voices thy commandments to fulfill.” ~David Clowney (1960)

Lord, infuse my nature with Yours. May there be no thought, speech, or action in which I am not reflecting and declaring Your greatness and glory.

“There is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death. For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do. By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit.  For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God’s law; indeed, it cannot… 

“You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you… If Christ is in you,.. the Spirit is life because of righteousness. If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you.” Romans 8:1-7,9-11

For those in Christ, a new freedom and vantage point are owned and take effect in everyday living from the moment of salvation. What is true for children of God is that the law of life has overtaken the law of sin and death, banishing the curse of certain death that slavery to sin brings. This freedom effectuates glorious inauguration to a life of the Spirit, full of His vibrancy, victory, and peace. Hostility to God and His ways is divinely transformed to glad submission. And we are called to walk accordingly. (Romans 6:6,13,23; 8:13; Ephesians 4:1)

We behave the way we behave because we believe what we believe. If it is true we have been freed from the stronghold of sin, we should reckon that so and act within and out of that liberty. Relentlessly the devil lurks and taunts to deceive and make us fall, convincing us we’re condemned, too weak to triumph over evil desires and inordinate affections. He tricks us into compromise, doubt, justified outbursts of anger, arrogant rights to special treatment, a flirt here and a tidbit of juicy gossip there. He snarls and delights at every stumble and wave of despair at repeated failure. (1 Peter 5:8)

Who do we believe? Will we succumb to the enemy of our souls, or triumphantly stride alongside Jesus according to all He’s accomplished for us? He helps in weakness, and perseveres to sanctify, to conform us to His image, to defend and intercede for us. Through Him, we are more than conquerors! While we wrestle against dark forces of evil, our risen Savior indwells and empowers us by His Spirit. Therefore, we can believe and walk accordingly. Will we by faith get in step? (Romans 8:26-34,37; Ephesians 6:12)

Lord, keep Your steadfast love and salvation before my eyes that I might walk accordingly in integrity, in Your faithfulness, and for Your glory. (Psalm 26:3,11)

“He restores my soul.
He leads me in paths of righteousness
    for his name’s sake.” Psalm 23:3

“For your name’s sake, O Lord,
    pardon my guilt, for it is great.” Psalm 25:11

“Do not remember against us our former iniquities;
    let your compassion come speedily to meet us,
    for we are brought very low.
Help us, O God of our salvation,
    for the glory of your name;
deliver us, and atone for our sins,
    for your name’s sake!
Why should the nations say,
    ‘Where is their God?..’

But we your people, the sheep of your pasture,
    will give thanks to you forever;
    from generation to generation we will recount your praise.” Psalm 79:8-10a,13

“Though our iniquities testify against us,
    act, O Lord, for your name’s sake;
for our backslidings are many;
    we have sinned against you…

“Do not spurn us, for your name’s sake;
    do not dishonor your glorious throne;
    remember and do not break your covenant with us.” Jeremiah 14:7,21

The unspeakable splendor of a mountain sunset, vivid fiery clear color in clearer air emblazoned in glory, is magnificent to behold. Given by God for our enthrallment and pleasure? Not exactly. The Creator spreads His lavish display to enlist our souls to take joy and delight in Him for His sake and glory, not because it captivates us with feel-good wonder. Yes, we lift our eyes and are dwarfed before the Immeasurable, but our what is man? moments are used by the Almighty to draw out praise to the Him who made and redeemed us, who gave us dominion so we could praise His excellent name forever. O, how turned around we get in this world! We make life about me, and strive for sensory surprise and fulfillment that satisfies me, when rapturous joy and pleasure come only when He is exalted. (Psalm 8:1,3-6)

We are born under the condemnation of sin we have inherited, and in our smugness might think that the loving Jesus saves for our sake. But in fact, what He has done and does on our behalf (yes, it is out of pure, divine love) is ultimately for His sake, not that we would be famous exemplars of salvation but that He would be known and exalted in our transformed lives. Our self-centered wiring is hard to recalibrate, but by His example and grace and faithful sanctification, He turns our affections in the right direction. (Psalm 51:5; Isaiah 49:3; John 3:16; 1 John 1:8-9)

God is greatly glorified by His perfect character and the actions that flow from it: justifying, pardoning, saving, and restoring His people. He is exalted in delivering, helping, and leading us. Every act is about Him, and is done for us for the sake of His name, kingdom, and eternal purposes. How well is His ‘sake’ displayed in us?

Do we pray, behave, and endeavor with this mindset? How would it change our motives, the caliber of our work, the way we spend money and recreate and serve and schedule our time if we lived and breathed for Jesus’s sake instead of our own?

Lord, remind that You are the end and glory of all creation and of my life. Convict and correct any self-ward inclinations or prideful actions, that I might fully live, and live fully, for Your sake alone.