Bless the Lord, O My Soul...

Psalm 103:1-5 says:

1Bless the LORD, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy name.

2Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits:
3Who forgiveth all thine iniquities; who healeth all thy diseases;
4Who redeemeth thy life from destruction; who crowneth thee with lovingkindness and tender mercies;
5Who satisfieth thy mouth with good things; so that thy youth is renewed like the eagle's

I love these verses! I can relate to the psalmist because I, too, have received so many benefits from knowing Jesus and having a relationship with Him. I, too, cannot forget these benefits. I, too, want everything in my life to bless the Lord. I don't want to have anything to return unused for His glory on that last day.

What does it mean to "bless the Lord?" For me, it just means that I want to be a blessing to Jesus. I want to be an asset to His kingdom and His cause here on earth. Not because I have anything to give, not because whatever I give will be enough to repay Him for all He's been to me, but because it would be a crime for me to look at all He's done for me, and how He's changed my life, and all He's given me and not want to do something to say thank you.

I don't talk about Jesus so much because I think I'm better than anyone. In fact, I believe the opposite. I'm not a Christian so that I can be judgemental and toss accusations at passers by. The truth is that when I see people in the amazing world around me, I want to get to know them, hear their stories, understand and the give them excited hugs. The reason that I talk about Jesus so much is that He has done too much for me to keep to myself. This is my way of blessing the Lord. If I looked back over my short life and saw everything that this amazing and kind God has done for me, and I was prompted to do nothing in return, I may as well be dead.

My prayer is that everything in my life -the good and the bad- will be a blessing to God and to His church and to His cause. I want all that is within me to bless the Lord and because of this, I cannot keep silent.

"I will love You with all my heart. I will love You with all my strength. I will love You with all my soul. Take all of me."

The Sound of Silence...

Lately, I've witnessed too many cases of injustice and no one seems to be speaking up for what's right. This angers and frustrates me. I pray that change comes soon...

When a person is gossiped about without the right to speak for themselves, can't we say something to defend this right? When a friend is doing something unGodly, isn't it our right to speak the truth in love, even if that truth hurts? When a man is begging on the streets of a big city and on-lookers are walking by with judgement in their eyes, isn't it the right of a Christian to give him food? When a prominent minister of the gospel (in any capacity) has sinned or fallen, isn't it his right to receive support and prayer -not prating- from the body of Christ?

It breaks my heart to see injustice in any measure. In 1963, Martin Luther King, Jr. wrote a letter from a jail cell in Birmingham, AL and said this:

"Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. "

These words ring true today, just like they did during the Civil Rights movement. They ring true for every form of injustice that is seen in our daily walks with God. Let's dig deep inside to find enough passion and compassion to do something when injustice rears its ugly head.

Matthew 7:12 says in NIV:

So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.

It's that simple. Silence in the face of injustice speaks so loudly. Let's be more active in fighting injustice...even in the smallest of things.

And yes, good people. This is, indeed, a challenge.

Ephesians 4:15, Deuteronomy 15:11, Proverbs 11:12-13