The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and plenteous in mercy. He will not always chide: neither will he keep his anger for ever. He hath not dealt with us after our sins; nor rewarded us according to our iniquities.
Psalms 103:8-10

David writes this psalm because he's thankful and desires to give the Lord praise as he speaks with a confident voice of thanksgiving for his mercy toward him because he knew a little something about God's mercy. David had done some things that he knew he should not have during his life and it was only through the Lord’s mercies that he was not consumed. Throughout the Psalms, David is constantly pouring out his heart to God and letting us know about the Lord’s grace, His goodness and mercy. This should be our song of praise and thanksgiving; giving God continual thanks for His mercy and grace towards us. I can utter my thanksgiving, like David, with confidence because I know first hand that God has been merciful to me especially during and in spite of the times when I haven't gotten it right.

I love how David communicates these verses. I want to express it in these words: The Lord is kindhearted and understanding, He is unhurried, calm and conscious of His anger; His mercy is continuous and overflowing; His compassion is unfailing, it's lasting and certain; it's trustworthy and true; it's considerate and gentle. Because of His love and compassion, He won't always scold or reprimand us, even though He doesn't approve sometimes of our actions. He will and does rebuke and chastise us but He said it won't last forever; neither will He stay angry with us forever. All of us have experienced at least once where someone is angry with us (or vice versa); they eventually come around or not; or perhaps will hold on to it for far too long or are still holding on (help us Lord!). I praise God that His mercy is not contingent upon our actions and you can believe that He is not going to hold on to His anger. When we ask the Lord to forgive us, He forgives and remembers no more. Now, this is a characteristic that we should all strive to obtain, among others as well, most importantly, be like Him in every way.

For me, this is a crucial part of the scripture and the reason why David was giving God praise; it is the very basis of his thanksgiving. He said "You have not dealt with us after our sins. You have not dealt with us according to what we deserved.” After, in this context, means He has not bared in mind or taken into consideration our sin, but because of His unfailing compassion, He spared us the suffering that we could have had. David had done some horrific things and if God had dealt with him or us justly for some of the things we've done, we would probably faint at the very thought of the type of chastisement that was equal to the sin or sins we've committed or the harsh judgment that He could have brought upon us. Oh but His mercy! His grace and His compassion! Thank you Lord for not dealing with us according to our iniquities; thank you Lord for not giving out what would be considered a just reward for the sins we've committed; thank you Lord for being merciful and because of your mercies we are not consumed; thank you for being gracious towards us and thank you for the opportunity to ask for forgiveness and the chance to start anew. Thank you Lord for being a God of second chances.

Today and everyday, I admit that I'm not perfect and yes, I make mistakes, yet I strive for perfection each day. I don't know about you but I'm glad that we serve a God whose tender mercies are new every morning, and that He gives us another day to try and get it right (Lam 3:21-23). Aren't you glad that He is a God of unfailing, certain, reliable, constant, unshakable and lasting compassion?

Bless Him today with thanksgiving!

Until the morning, be blessed,
Cynde

I will love thee, O LORD, my strength. The LORD is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my buckler, and the horn of my salvation, and my high tower. I will call upon the LORD, who is worthy to be praised: Psalm 18:1-3

Lots of mornings, I wake up singing; there is a phrase or just one word that is in my heart. This morning, it was simply, “deliverer.” The Lord was confirming and reassuring me that He is the Deliverer; He is our Deliverer. Let that resonate and echo throughout your spirit because God intended for us to hear that Word today. Perhaps you are saying “Yes! I needed to hear that particular word this day.” We all at times need to be reminded because the cares of this world will wear us down and we can forget momentarily in Whom we put our trust. However, the Word of God helps to keep us grounded and remember that God cares for us and we see us through every circumstance we face.

There are many definitions that I could use to describe the word deliver, but I like these: to set free, as from misery, despair, grief, depression, sorrow, suffering, or distress; or peril which translates into hurt, risk, harm or danger, or evil. We are all dealing with something, and there are no two of us alike. We all deal with life with different levels of faith. God knows where we are and responds accordingly ... because it’s one on one with Him, it’s personal. There is also another definition that I like: to produce or achieve what is desired or expected; to make good: that’s definitely the outcome we are all looking for from the Deliverer ... for the Lord to make good, for Him to make it all alright. Immediately, Jeremiah 29:11 came to mind ... “For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil,” and then He closes the verse with “to give you an expected end.” That’s His promise to us and a great place to give God praise!

It is comforting to know that we can always take all of our burdens to the Lord. He loves us; He is faithful and just to come and see about us, especially in our time of need. It is better to put our trust in God than to have confidence in man. He will fail us every time. The Word says, “The Lord is my strength and song, and is become my salvation. The voice of rejoicing and salvation is in the tabernacles of the righteous (Psalm 118:14-15). He is our strength, our foundation, our place of safety, our source, our strong tower, our defender, our deliverer.

Verse 6 of this psalm says, “In my distress I called upon the Lord, and cried unto my God: he heard my voice out of his temple, and my cry came before him, even into his ears. Trust that the He has heard your cry and today it has come before Him. Again, He is faithful to us and even more so to His Word. Praise Him today for His Word, for what He is doing in your life, what you see and what has not yet manifested. Most importantly, just praise Him today for being your Deliverer!

Until the morning, be blessed,
Cynde