As I endure another in the seemingly endless waves of temptation I am subjected to, to usurp the prerogative that belongs solely to God and endlessly pass judgement on my fellow human beings, this sentiment arose in me in response: I would rather be the helpless, sinful wretch that I am (and have to repent and confess my sins a thousand, a million times, a day) and be utterly dependent on the mercy and grace of God my Father through my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, than be righteous and blameless all on my own, completely independent of the Most High. Glory to God in the highest! May the Lord be with your spirit always.
Recently, I felt like the Lord put me on a true “alternate day” fasting schedule whereby I eat, on average, the equivalent of two meals over the course of a 6-to-8-hour feeding window, followed by fasting for the next 40-42 hours. I’ve lost about 10 pounds over the last month or so since undertaking this approach to weight loss and incorporating this practice into my spiritual life. But the thing I love the most about fasting regularly is that it helps me draw so much closer to the sense of the Lord and His presence and divine life within that I long for. So my word to you is, if you aspire to a closer walk with Him, you might want to consider making fasting a regular part of your spiritual discipline. May the Lord be with your spirit always.
Scriptural references: *Psalm 101 *Matthew 5:22, 28 *Matthew 22:1-14 *Ephesians 4:30 *1 John 3:3 For much of my devotional time with the Lord this past week, I have been prayerfully contemplating Psalm 101, which the English Standard Version prefaces with the heading: I Will Walk With Integrity. This morning, as I began to pray-read this Psalm again, I got the sense to read it as a declaration of the Triune God to the Church. As I did so, it increasingly felt like a letter to the Church right out of the Book of Revelation. I would humbly exhort you thus: If you hope to walk closely with the Lord Jesus Christ and have intimate fellowship with Him, please heed this rendering of Psalm 101, which I have based on the ESV translation (despite some of the early Elizabethan English usages, which I believe He wanted, in order to set the right tone): Verse 2: “Hear, all ye who fear the Lord: Truly, I say unto thee: ponder the way that is blameless, that ye may walk therein. Then will I feel welc
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