Worship Wednesday
I will be starting a new section of my blog called Worship Wednesday. To me, living a healthy lifestyle is not just about physical health, it is about mental, physical, AND spiritual health. This weekly post will help remind me, and hopefully you too, that we need to take some time to nourish our spiritual health and growth. My post may be about Sunday's sermon, a passage from my daily walk bible, my latest book adventure, or whatever is speaking to me that week.
This is my Daily Walk Bible. I have the NLT version and really like how easily I can understand the meaning of each verse. Each day there is a reading. It begins with an overview of what the day's reading is, relates it to our daily walk in life, and also shares some insight into the chapters you will read. The overview really helps me to focus on what the reading is about. I find that I've connected to The Word so much more when I can understand it and don't feel like I need my pastor or my mom to translate for me. If you haven't given this bible a try, I highly recommend it. You can find it on Amazon, or in most book stores.
I thought of this idea while taking out my daily walk bible for the first time in a few months. With the craziness of wedding planning, traveling, and work, I had let my bible get buried underneath it all. I'll begin this week with my thoughts from a passage I read on Saturday, August 13.
The book of Lamentations is short. Jeremiah the prophet wrote 5 poems about the destruction of Jerusalem, which he had warned the people of Judah about for years if they did not repent. This book begins with two chapters of defeat, Jerusalem deserted and destroyed. It ends with two more chapters of defeat, the defeated and distressed Jerusalem. In the middle, there is hope and triumph. I felt I picked up my bible at just the right time, where south Louisiana is feeling the power of the Lord in so many ways. There is emotional destruction from the pain of the violence in early July, and now the Lord has shown that He is still mighty above all as he brought in the flooding rains this past weekend.
Jeremiah's hope in the midst of pain and destruction is inspiring. He acknowledges that the Lord will bring him through troubled times, and he will not forget (Lamentations 3:19-21). Yet he knows that he can have hope because the Lords faithfulness is eternal (Lamentations 3:22-24). These floods that have come to south Louisiana are what I relate these verses back to. There may be pain and destruction, but we must depend on the Lord and know that He will never abandon us.
Is there pain and destruction in your life? I encourage you to read chapter 3 of Lamentations. Pray for strength to depend on the Lord through these troubled times. Though he brings grief, he also shows compassion, because of the greatness of his unfailing love (Lamentations 3:32).
Blessings and Love,
Emily