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"Everlasting to Everlasting" by Shawna Songer Gaines
Psalm 103:0) By David:
(1) Bless Adonai, my soul!
Everything in me, bless his holy name!
2 Bless Adonai, my soul,
and forget none of his benefits!
3 He forgives all your offenses,
he heals all your diseases,
4 he redeems your life from the pit,
he surrounds you with grace and compassion,
5 he contents you with good as long as you live,
so that your youth is renewed like an eagle’s.
6 Adonai brings vindication and justice
to all who are oppressed.
7 He made his ways known to Moshe,
his mighty deeds to the people of Isra’el.
8 Adonai is merciful and compassionate,
slow to anger and rich in grace.
9 He will not always accuse,
he will not keep his anger forever.
10 He has not treated us as our sins deserve
or paid us back for our offenses,
11 because his mercy toward those who fear him
is as far above earth as heaven.
12 He has removed our sins from us
as far as the east is from the west.
13 Just as a father has compassion on his children,
Adonai has compassion on those who fear him.
14 For he understands how we are made,
he remembers that we are dust.
15 Yes, a human being’s days are like grass,
he sprouts like a flower in the countryside —
16 but when the wind sweeps over, it’s gone;
and its place knows it no more.
17 But the mercy of Adonai on those who fear him
is from eternity past to eternity future,
and his righteousness extends
to his children’s children,
18 provided they keep his covenant
and remember to follow his precepts.
19 Adonai has established his throne in heaven;
his kingly power rules everything.
20 Bless Adonai, you angels of his,
you mighty warriors who obey his word,
who carry out his orders!
21 Bless Adonai, all his troops,
who serve him and do what he wants!
22 Bless Adonai, all his works,
in every place where he rules!
Bless Adonai, my soul!
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We mark time according to how long a thing will last: A movie, a flight, a degree program, a pair of jeans, a sleepless night, a relationship, a lifetime. Everything lasts some degree shy of forever. Mortality marks our existence. Humans mark our place in this world with a slim finitude.
God’s time is marked from everlasting to everlasting. And yet with the marvelous compassion of a Father, God remembers that we are dust and cares for us in all our mortal finitude. Our lives take up less time in history than a rain drop falling on a window takes up an afternoon. Yet, God loves and cares for the tiny splash made by our lives, and even uses it to reflect divine glory.
Whatever time frame you are in, it will not last forever. Take your focus out of that frame for just long enough to really read Psalm 103. Then place this time frame of life within the time frame of the Kingdom of the everlasting to everlasting. Perhaps your movie, flight, degree, jeans, sleepless nights, relationships, and lifetime will look just a bit different.
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Hymn for Today: "O God, Our Help in Ages Past" by Isaac Watts
1. O God, our help in ages past,
our hope for years to come,
our shelter from the stormy blast,
and our eternal home.
2. Under the shadow of thy throne,
still may we dwell secure;
sufficient is thine arm alone,
and our defense is sure.
3. Before the hills in order stood,
or earth received her frame,
from everlasting, thou art God,
to endless years the same.
4. A thousand ages, in thy sight,
are like an evening gone;
short as the watch that ends the night,
before the rising sun.
5. Time, like an ever rolling stream,
bears all who breathe away;
they fly forgotten, as a dream
dies at the opening day.
6. O God, our help in ages past,
our hope for years to come;
be thou our guide while life shall last,
and our eternal home.
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Thought of the Day: Psalm 103:17 But the mercy of Adonai on those who fear him
is from eternity past to eternity future,
and his righteousness extends
to his children’s children,
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Please Pray: For the teams showing the JESUS film and for the follow-up work in Africa.
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is from eternity past to eternity future,
and his righteousness extends
to his children’s children,
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Please Pray: For the teams showing the JESUS film and for the follow-up work in Africa.
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