I Will Say

Tuesday, September 1, 2026

He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.  I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust.  Psalm 91:1-2^(KJV)

If ever there was a doubt God granted us free will, the Psalmist destroys that doubt in this emphatic declarative paragraph, particularly in just six words: 

I will say of the Lord…!

The fact that the Psalmist is allowed to say “I will” in connection of the Lord God, the Creator and Sustainer of everything in the universe, is self-evident proof that our free will is God’s gift, and His blessing to everyone who will receive it. 

Let’s explore this dramatic trust which God places in each human being for us to either accept or reject the Creator of the Universe, just like you would “friend” or “unfriend” someone on FaceBook.  Those first three words…

“I”

The mere fact that word can be expressed is an indication of free will; that word separates each of us from anyone else.  It implies we have liberty to move and be independent in where that takes us.  “I” is the difference between us, or you.

“Will”

The will of a human being is the evidence we are granted independence, and superiority above the other created creatures and plant life, or even the earth, stars, and all the cosmos, seen and unseen.  We make sentient choices based not merely on primal instinct, and expediency, but moral honor (or in some cases turpitude).  We can choose to either honor or dishonor Godliness.

“Say”

This third word is certainly a game-changing dance with truth.  To “say” is to articulate what your will has chosen.  It means to take a stance for others to see, whether “said” orally, written, or simply the placard of your life’s actions.  I knew a man who was difficult to deal with.  His hostility was fueled by the alcohol he consumed hour by hour each day.  I suspect the thirty years he spent on Navy ships, with uncertainty and danger on the other side of every ocean wave, combined with alcohol’s control, made anger and pushing the envelope expected.  He once said he believed in Christ; he was even baptized.  In one conversation he claimed to be wise and was going to teach me what it means to be a minister.  The next week he committed suicide at the end of a standoff with police in front of K-Mart.  He said much about being wise; with his revolver he said much more about his foolish hopelessness.

That brings us back to the “friend” or “unfriend” kind of choice we casually select on Facebook.  Your free will with Mark Zuckerberg’s creative social media is a matter which may well be forgotten before you shut down the computer today.  However, to exercise your free will towards the Creator God, by rejecting His “friend offer” of the cross, is an eternal matter.

For You Today

So, let’s make this personal; say it with me,

I ( your name ),

will say of the Lord

He is my refuge and my fortress:

my God; in him will I trust.

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road; have a blessed day!  

[1] Title and Other Image by Jose Weslley from Pixabay  Unless noted, Scripture quoted from The Christian Standard Bible^© 

 

Faith Birthing More Faith

Monday, August 21, 2023

The king of Aram had great admiration for Naaman, the commander of his army, because through him the Lord had given Aram great victories. But though Naaman was a mighty warrior, he suffered from leprosy.  At this time Aramean raiders had invaded the land of Israel, and among their captives was a young girl who had been given to Naaman’s wife as a maid.  One day the girl said to her mistress, “I wish my master would go to see the prophet in Samaria.  He would heal him of his leprosy.”  

So Naaman went with his horses and chariots and waited at the door of Elisha’s house.  But Elisha sent a messenger out to him with this message: “Go and wash yourself seven times in the Jordan River.  Then your skin will be restored, and you will be healed of your leprosy.”  But Naaman became angry and stalked away. “I thought he would certainly come out to meet me!” he said. “I expected him to wave his hand over the leprosy and call on the name of the Lord his God and heal me!  Aren’t the rivers of Damascus, the Abana and the Pharpar, better than any of the rivers of Israel?  Why shouldn’t I wash in them and be healed?” So Naaman turned and went away in a rage.  But his officers tried to reason with him and said, “Sir, if the prophet had told you to do something very difficult, wouldn’t you have done it?  So you should certainly obey him when he says simply, ‘Go and wash and be cured!’”  So Naaman went down to the Jordan River and dipped himself seven times, as the man of God had instructed him.  And his skin became as healthy as the skin of a young child, and he was healed!  2 Kings 5:1-3, 9-14

This is one of those favorites in Scripture, because it has one of the most dramatic illustrations (on so many levels) of the purity and exceptional nature of faith. 

First, the servant girl, who expresses love for the master who owns her.  In compassion she wishes aloud her master would go to Elisha to be healed.  Naaman acts in faith that is clouded with expectations of a grand show of magical powers, but the prophet won’t even answer the door; he sends a servant to tell the sick man to exercise a more profound faith…go dip in the Jordan seven times! 

When Naaman’s expectations are ignored, he gets angry and, in his rage, wants to take his ball and go home.  But his servants convince him with logic…you wanted a grand show, and you got a simple request:  If it was some hard thing, you’d have done it…what’s a little dip in the muddy waters?  Naaman caves, and the healing evidence becomes history!

I love this account of Naaman’s healing because it is our story of faith in Christ.  Sin in the soul is immeasurably more damning than leprosy in the flesh.  Leprosy can kill only a temporary skin-and-bone body; sin in our immortal soul condemns our eternal being to a never-ending separation from God. 

We are all Naaman…confronted with our sinful ways, we’re faced with the decision to have faith in God by trusting in Christ’s sacrifice on the cross for our sins, or remain rotting in our chosen sinful ways. 

For You Today 

You have a choice to make, much like Naaman.  Apostle Matthew records the exact words of Jesus about this eternally-significant choice:

Don’t be afraid of those who want to kill your body; they cannot touch your soul.  Fear only God, who can destroy both soul and body in hell.  

Matthew 10:28

Hardly any advice needed on this, simply an invitation:  trust Christ now, and be forever thankful for His gift of eternal life.

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road; have a blessed day!

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There are about 2,600 devotional posts and 400 sermons in the Rocky Road library. 

Title Image:  via WikimediaCommons   Images without citation are in public domain.  

Unless noted, Scripture quoted from NLT^©   

Carried to His Sanctuary

Tuesday, April 18, 2023

“Who is like you among the gods, O Lord—glorious in holiness, awesome in splendor, performing great wonders?  You raised your right hand, and the earth swallowed our enemies.  “With your unfailing love you lead the people you have redeemed.  In your might, you guide them to your sacred home.  The peoples hear and tremble; anguish grips those who live in Philistia.  The leaders of Edom are terrified; the nobles of Moab tremble.  All who live in Canaan melt away; terror and dread fall upon them.  The power of your arm makes them lifeless as stone until your people pass by, O Lord, until the people you purchased pass by.  You will bring them in and plant them on your own mountain—the place, O Lord, reserved for your own dwelling, the sanctuary, O Lord, that your hands have established.  The Lord will reign forever and ever!”  Exodus 15:11-18

This text is part of the victory song Moses and the Israelites sang after God saved them from the pursuing Egyptian army.  Earlier, the former slaves, numbering perhaps six-hundred-thousand, had left Egypt and were contemplating updating their wills at the edge of the Red Sea.  There were impassable mountains to the left and right of them, death by drowning in front of them, and death by Egyptian swords behind.  They were (literally) between two rocks, a watery grave, and an angry army.  One raised staff later, they crossed that sea on dry land, saved by the breath of God.  Pharoah’s army…not so blessed.

This account of Israel’s rescue and open doorway to the Promised Land, is a foretaste of your journey.  As Moses and the children were carried by God’s loving hand to Canaan, so we are bound for the Promised Land of New Jerusalem.

The world’s libraries are full of stories of victory snatched from the jaws of evil and defeat.  Every one of them is a reminder of God’s strong right arm.  The bad guy is holding all the power, and the innocent ones are about to be toast.  At the last second the one wearing the white hat shows up to rescue the powerless.

Why, do you suppose, that plot is so familiar?  Why is every suspense movie built around the sinister plans of a despicably vicious madman?  I believe it is God’s way of keeping us connected to the world we cannot see.  There is, and always has been, a spiritual war raging for the souls of human beings.  Ever since the day Satan walked into God’s throne room and laid-down the challenge gauntlet over the soul of Job[1], Satan has craved control of every man, woman, and child.  God has offered his strong right hand of support to each of us to resist.  And God gives each of us the free will to choose to accept His help, or not.

For You Today 

Today, in some small (or large) way, a subtle (or fully-disclosed) way, you will face a temptation to step away from God, or God’s open invitation to His waiting arms.  Satan will pave a highway with gold and ease to an eternity of suffering and shame.  God will offer you the nail-scarred, rough hands of a carpenter/shepherd to lift you over the temptation and carry you all the way to His sanctuary.

The words echo eternally – choose carefully.

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road; have a blessed day!

Go to VIDEO (read by author)

There are about 2,500 devotional posts and 400 sermons in the Rocky Road Devotions library.  To dig deeper explore some of these:   Yahweh  and  Fountain Joy  

Title Image:  via Pixabay.com   Images without citation are in public domain.

Unless noted, Scripture quoted from The New Living Translation^©  

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[1] Read the oldest Biblical account of Job as the center of the contest here:  Job 1:1-2:10

Made Right

Friday, March 3, 2023

We are made right with God by placing our faith in Jesus Christ.  And this is true for everyone who believes, no matter who we are.  For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard.  Yet God, in his grace, freely makes us right in his sight.  He did this through Christ Jesus when he freed us from the penalty for our sins.  For God presented Jesus as the sacrifice for sin.  People are made right with God when they believe that Jesus sacrificed his life, shedding his blood.  This sacrifice shows that God was being fair when he held back and did not punish those who sinned in times past, for he was looking ahead and including them in what he would do in this present time.  God did this to demonstrate his righteousness, for he himself is fair and just, and he makes sinners right in his sight when they believe in Jesus.  Romans 3:22-26

In many dramas you will hear a character resolutely say:  I’m going to make things right.  He or she lied, or stole something, or in some way offended another person.  The statement is the desire to undo the wrong…to make it right again!  This is the essence of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the making right of all the wrong that’s ever been done, via the cross. 

I am aware that there are still five weeks left until Good Friday, but that is part of Lent…looking ahead to the Good News of forgiveness, being made right with God.  And making things right begins and ends with God’s love.  Paul’s letter to the believers in Rome puts a bow on this concept.  He explains the cross and God’s heart in nine sentences, 158 words…modern preachers could learn that lesson.  Ouch!

It's amazing to entertain that God’s longsuffering put-up with sins in ancient times, looking forward to the forgiveness He would make possible on the cross.  That should alert us to how gracious God is, because that means he was also looking forward to our days in the 21^st century.   He knew we would need forgiveness to be made right with Him.  In fact, you were on God’s mind before Day #1 of creation.

Some years the anticipation of Lent just about overwhelms me.  I want to rush to Good Friday, get the suffering, pain, and blood in the past, and sit, vigil-like by the empty tomb until the Easter dawn, so I can shout with the angels.  But with these thoughts of God’s forgiveness worked-out for time past, present, and future, there is a calmness to my joy, knowing that I have been made right with He who knows me best, and loves me most.

For You Today 

There is, and has been, only one caveat to being made right with God, and that is the leap of faith to believe Jesus died so you could be forgiven; he took the punishment for your sins.  Paul said it clearly in his letter to the Roman believers:

God did this to demonstrate his righteousness, for he himself is fair and just, and he makes sinners right in his sight when they believe in Jesus.   Romans 3:26

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road; have a blessed day!

            Go to VIDEO (read by author)

There are about 2,500 devotional posts and 400 sermons in the Rocky Road Devotions library.  To dig deeper on today’s topic, explore some of these: 

Blush  and  Lenten Walk - Part 6      

Title Image:  Pixabay.com   Images without citation are personal property of the author, or in public domain.

Unless noted, Scripture quoted from The New Living Translation^©   

Alive

Friday, January 13, 2023

In my first book I told you, Theophilus, about everything Jesus began to do and teach until the day he was taken up to heaven after giving his chosen apostles further instructions through the Holy Spirit.  During the forty days after he suffered and died, he appeared to the apostles from time to time, and he proved to them in many ways that he was actually alive.  And he talked to them about the Kingdom of God.  Acts 1:1-3

In a world full of superstition and baser people who were strong enough, and always willing to take advantage of the naïve, Jesus took care to assure the disciples that he was actually alive.  They were not very accustomed to formerly-dead persons walking, talking, and “being” with them.  In this context, with their fears and amazement sidelined, Jesus then talked to them about the coming Kingdom of God.  Their understanding of the Kingdom had been clouded by the typical, traditional thought pattern, which pointed to an earthly, political kingdom.  Frankly, Roman oppression had fueled a desire to see the blood of Ceasar’s soldiers gushing throught the streets of Jerusalem.  But Jesus pointed to a higher Kingdom, a Temple not made with hands, but overshadowed by the Holy Spirit, descending from the heavens, an eternal gift from the Father of Lights, where God, Himself would dwell with His people, and wipe away every tear.[1]

Sometimes it takes a moment for new thoughts to emerge from the shadows of dusty, dark places, where your mind has been wasting-away.  For the slower among us (like me) it may take weeks, months, or decades for light to dawn.

After serving in the military, I entered the business world at the ripe old age of 21.  In sales, and subsequently management, the visions of sugarplum-success danced in my head.  I totally bought-into the idea of hard work and nose-to-the-grindstone attention to building a little kingdom…for Russell and family.  About twelve years into this plan, it was going well for the net-worth bottom line, but relationships were suffering, along with internal growing awareness that I was chasing a rainbow that might destroy everything in me that God intended for my good, both now, and for eternity.   Then, like the apostle Paul, I met Jesus.  

Unlike Paul, I didn’t go blind, nor was it a blinding light, or an audible voice…it was more a growing understanding of how much of a god I had made of my wealth-quest, and how little value there was in building a soft financial nest in which to land.  The realization dawned on me that everything (without exception) shrivels and fades if it’s entirely constructed of human means and desires.  Only God, and what He ordains lasts.  And God ordained that our souls would last…for eternity. 

I was chasing the wrong “brass ring” of wealth, while God was trying to show me the beauty of His presence, and the gifts he was just eagerly waiting to bestow on my inner being.  He wanted to bless me with the knowledge of what its like to be REALLY ALIVE!

For You Today  

While a preacher can talk to you about these things (and we do love to do that…you give me a chance to have that discussion and you’ll make my day!); but no human being can lead you into that reality.  Like choosing favorite colors, flavors, or anything else that will be the endearing pattern and trademark of your life, it must be YOUR choosing.  So, the last words for all of this:  Choose ALIVE!

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road; have a blessed day!

Go to VIDEO (read by author)

There are about 2,000 devotional posts and 400 sermons in the Rocky Road Devotions library.  To dig deeper on today’s topic, explore some of these: 

The Kingdom of God  and  The Interview

Images:  Title Pixabay.com   Images without citation are either personal property of the author, or in public domain.

Unless noted, Scripture quoted from The New Living Translation^©  

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[1] Read Revelation 21 – read slowly and savor each image of God’s loving presence Also See James 1:17

Cradle to Grave - Part 4

Friday, November 18, 2022

Just as you cannot understand the path of the wind or the mystery of a tiny baby growing in its mother’s womb, so you cannot understand the activity of God, who does all things.  Ecclesiastes 11:5

Children are a gift from the Lord; they are a reward from him.  Psalm 127:3

This week we have been tracing some of the moral, ethical, and spiritual perspectives surrounding the issue of abortion.  It’s time to cut-to-the-chase with a summary of logic.

The illogicality of choosing abortion ignores the basic premise that God alone is God, and we are not!  If God is truly the creator, giver, and sustainer of life, choosing the opposite – death – is nothing less than an all-out declaration of war.  We have free will to disagree with logic and the supremacy of God, but the result is never pretty.  The Creator is greater than what He has created.  As created beings we are subject to the governance of He who is above creation.  God is the arbiter of what is holy and sacred, and life is His choice.

Those who choose abortion disregard the responsibility of parenting, which begins with the decision to be sexually active.    Sexuality is a gift from God that is primarily/inextricably tied to reproduction.  (Even the most rabid of those who are pro-abortion use the term reproductive rights.)  While pleasure and intimacy are a wonderful part of a sexual relationship, not just by-products of the reproductive process, they are not primary.   As anyone with half a brain can attest, with rights come responsibility to use those rights in accord with that which respects the possible outcome…the re-creation of a new life.

Deciding to get an abortion is more emotional than logical.  It is the same kind of decision Adam and Eve made out of fear that God would “discover” their sin.  They hid when they heard Him coming.  Their plan didn’t work.  The fruit of the forbidden tree was supposed to make them as wise as God; all it managed was getting them evicted from the perfect home God had given them. 

Emotion, just as sexuality, is many-faceted.  It can have positive benefits when rightly directed, and tragic results when allowed to govern our choices unilaterally!  Logic demands we consider our actions.  Spiritual understanding demands that logic begins with honoring God with all our decisions.  If you need a verse that says that clearly, Solomon, the wise son of King David, is your man:

Trust in the LORD with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding.  Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take.  Proverbs 3:5-6

What are the so-called logical considerations that are common to those who seek to terminate a child in the womb?  Lifestyle interruption – a career, education, personal freedom from parental responsibility…these and more, which say that what we want cannot be interrupted with caring for a child.  It is the height of selfishness.

For You Today  

There is much more to be explored here than is possible in the few minutes of a morning devotion, so I leave you with just these few thoughts today:

There is a decision to be made:  Will it be God's authority or yours?  Will your choice honor or defy God?  Will it be an emotional choice alone, or have you done the hard dance with logic and prayer?

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road; have a blessed day!

Go to VIDEO (read by author)

There are about 2,000 devotional posts and 400 sermons in the Rocky Road Devotions library.  To dig deeper on today’s topic, explore some of these: 

       When It's God's Move   and   The Cry Heard in Ramah

Images: Title image Pixabay.com Images without citation are either personal property of the author, or in public domain.

Unless noted, Scripture quoted from The New Living Translation^©   

Cradle to Grave - Part 3

Thursday, November 17, 2022

Just as you cannot understand the path of the wind or the mystery of a tiny baby growing in its mother’s womb, so you cannot understand the activity of God, who does all things.  Ecclesiastes 11:5

Children are a gift from the Lord; they are a reward from him.  Psalm 127:3

The womb is such a complex mystery, the seedbed of God’s crown of creation, the life of humans.  Many other Scriptures point to the first home we all inhabit.  From the Psalmist to the wisdom of Solomon, and the prophets, the womb is sacred.

·       King David shared how God put him together in the womb:

You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body and knit me together in my mother’s womb.  Psalm 139:13

·       The prophet Isaiah said God was calling him while he was not yet born:

Listen to me, all you in distant lands!  Pay attention, you who are far away! The Lord called me before my birth; from within the womb he called me by name.  Isaiah 49:1

·       Jeremiah claims God knew all about him even before the womb:

“I knew you before I formed you in your mother’s womb.  Before you were born I set you apart and appointed you as my prophet to the nations.” Jeremiah 1:5

·       Hosea pointed to the personalities of Jacob and Esau while still unborn:

Even in the womb, Jacob struggled with his brother; when he became a man, he even fought with God.  Hosea 12:3

In yesterday’s devotion, I promised to deal with the “sexism” issue today.  The surprising thing (especially for those who have either never read Scripture, or misunderstand what they have read of God’s Word) is that there is no issue; it is more a modern confusion…which Paul clears up.  It’s a little humorous that Paul is the one to settle this issue, as he generally gets the bad rap of being sexist…but here’s what he said: 

There is no longer Jew or Gentile, slave or free, male and female.  For you are all one in Christ Jesus.  Galatians 3:28

Resolution for pointing fingers at women in the abortion issue (and therefore the hornet’s nest reaction of women’s rights being violated), is not so much a matter of stopping the finger-pointing, but pointing in the right direction.  We must remember that there were two participants in creating the child; there is a father as well as a mother.  Throughout recorded history the patristic cultures which viewed women as chattel have assigned blame for abortion on mothers.  It has been the selfishness of the fathers shirking responsibility that skews the issue.  That does not absolve women, but places responsibility on the shoulders of both partners in the death of unwanted children.  The law (Roe v. Wade specifically) did not change the hearts of men and women; how could it?  Law only points out where we have failed.  But the “law” of God’s Word not only accuses, it also corrects, pointing to our responsibility to preserve life and protect the innocent.

For You Today  

With all the Biblical evidence proclaiming the holiness of the womb’s residents, it is natural to conclude that destroying what God has created, and even named beforehand as a holy gift to us, is an abomination; He said so:

There are six things the Lord hates—no, seven things he detests:  haughty eyes, a lying tongue, hands that kill the innocent, a heart that plots evil, feet that race to do wrong, a false witness who pours out lies, a person who sows discord in a family.  Proverbs 6:16-19

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road; have a blessed day!

Go to VIDEO (read by author)

There are about 2,000 devotional posts and 400 sermons in the Rocky Road Devotions library.  To dig deeper on today’s topic, explore some of these: 

       Subway Sermon   and   An Apology to Molech

Images: Title image Pixabay.com Images without citation are either personal property of the author, or in public domain.

Unless noted, Scripture quoted from The New Living Translation^©