| “For You, O LORD, will bless the righteous; with favor You will surround him as with a shield.” – Psalms 5:12 |
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| Life is Different When You Live Differently! Life is different when you live differently! Our verse to DATE tells us of the benefit that comes from God as we live according to His standards. He pours out His blessings when we do what is right in His sight. Those blessings come with God’s favor. God’s favor is an essential ingredient for being productive for the Lord. In this verse, God’s favor is on display as God’s protection. God surrounds (WHAT A WORD) God SURROUNDS the righteous with a shield. Life sure is different when you make the decision to live righteously. Going a little deeper: The first word of the Psalms is BLESSED. Summing up the first two verses we learn a person is BLESSED as they avoid the wrong things and do the right things, applying God’s Word to their lives. In the Psalms alone one will find nearly 100 verses that speak of blessings. God blesses those who fear Him. He blesses those who trust Him. We are blessed beyond measure that He has forgiven us of our sins. One will find in the Psalms that God blesses the person who blesses Him. We might ask what is God’s blessing? I like to say God’s blessings bring enjoyment to our lives that we could never achieve on our own. Then we see God’s FAVOR. God’s favor is mentioned in the priestly prayer in Numbers 6:26. One of the parts of the prayer states, “May the LORD look with favor on you and give you peace.” Nehemiah knew God’s favor as he sought to get permission to go to Jerusalem to rebuild the walls. He told the people of Jerusalem how God’s good hand was upon him. Daniel is another example of knowing God’s favor. Being required as a captive in Babylon to do what he knew was wrong he requested to not have to defile himself. With God’s favor, he was granted his request. God’s favor opens doors for us that no man can close! Then it says that God surrounds us with a shield. 18 times in the Psalms we find God is a shield. David relied on God’s protection. Part of His praise to God was for being a shield. In Psalm 119:114 he declared “You are my hiding place and my shield; I hope in Your word.” Life is different when you live differently! Just reminding us – Proverbs 3:33 “The LORD’s curse is on the house of the wicked, but He blesses the house of the righteous.” Verse to DATE the Word on May 12 (5/12) is Psalms 5:12. Psalms 5:12 says, “For You, O LORD, will bless the righteous; with favor You will surround him as with a shield.” Make the choice today to let the Shepherd lead you in paths of righteousness!! Live differently!! Continue Strong on the path of righteousness! And remember to DATE the Word |