"Taking Shelter"

"Thou art my hiding place and my shield: I hope in thy word." (Psalms 119:114)

  As much as there is to avoid in having bad thoughts or intentions, there is far more to be gained by taking shelter in God's mercy and grace. Those are the two practical applications to those things listed above; "hiding place" and "my shield." It is really very difficult to avoid having any vain thoughts. James makes this point very clear in James 4:5, "The spirit that dwelleth in us lusteth to envy." He was not speaking of the Holy Spirit, but that fallen spirit of man, the spirit responsible for man's natural tendency to sin. It is more about selfishness, as in, what works best for me and my desires. But, there is something good to be said for those thoughts, believe it or not; they let us know just how much we need God's unfailing mercy! Please hear this! Nobody except God knows your thoughts, not even the devil. It is God, and God alone that will be judging your thoughts. Our actions and the things we might do based upon our thoughts are seen and known by others, including the devil. So those are the things covered by grace, as in, despite those things, God will grant us privilege and power in His Kingdom; His Kingdom includes those things done in His name here on this earth. This I would ask that we view as the "shield," because it is something worn by us that yields power and protection. To the point of God's mercy, when it comes to the vain thoughts and bad intentions, it is only God that knows what they are, and those secrets are safe with Him. We confess them as much as any other sin that we discover in our lives, because they are just as much part of our fallen nature as the act of committing a sinful action. Just as was spoken in the closing Scripture from yesterday, God just wants us to come clean before Him! He already knows what we do, just as He knows every thought and intention of our heart. We just need to confess it before Him and ask His forgiveness! In that, we have hope in His word, because He said that He will forgive us, if we simply ask Him for it...

"Look, a righteous king is coming! And honest princes will rule under him. Each one will be like a shelter from the wind and a refuge from the storm, like streams of water in the desert and the shadow of a great rock in a parched land. Then everyone who has eyes will be able to see the truth, and everyone who has ears will be able to hear it. Even the hotheads will be full of understanding. Those who stammer will speak out plainly." (Isaiah 32:1-4) NLT