We are in the autumn season of the Church Year; our focus turns to the end of our lives and the end of the world. We started November celebrating the Feast of All Saints and the final Sunday focusses our attention squarely on Jesus Christ's return. Sunday's assigned Psalm forces you to consider your final day, and your eternal inheritance.
Psalm 16
1 Preserve me, O God, for in You I take refuge.
2 I say to the Lord, “You are my Lord;
I have no good apart from You.”
3 As for the saints in the land, they are the excellent ones,
in whom is all My delight.
4 The sorrows of those who run after another god shall multiply;
their drink offerings of blood I will not pour out
or take their names on My lips.
5 The Lord is my chosen portion and my cup;
You hold my lot.
6 The lines have fallen for me in pleasant places;
indeed, I have a beautiful inheritance.
7 I bless the Lord who gives me counsel;
in the night also my heart instructs me.
8 I have set the Lord always before me;
because He is at my right hand, I shall not be shaken.
9 Therefore my heart is glad, and my whole being rejoices;
my flesh also dwells secure.
10 For you will not abandon my soul to Sheol,
or let Your holy one see corruption.
11 You make known to me the path of life;
in Your presence there is fullness of joy;
at Your right hand are pleasures forevermore.
God has numbered your days on this earth, but your bodily death should neither frighten nor shake you. Because Jesus sacrificed Himself on Calvary's cross, willingly taking the punishment for all of your sins, you will not be abandoned to hell as every human being deserves. Rather, as a baptized child of God, you have a beautiful inheritance, to enjoy pleasures forevermore, at the right hand of Jesus in heaven!
Dear Father in heaven,
As I walk through many challenges and difficulties in my life, I often get discouraged. When I turn away and set other things before me, I shake in fear and doubt. Teach me to set You always before me. Knowing You are at my right hand, keep me ever faithful and confident in the beautiful inheritance You have given to me, through Jesus Christ, Your Son and my Savior. Amen.
Pilgrim Lutheran Church, LCMS Burton, Michigan
office: 810.744.1188 mobile: 248.881.7627
We are Pilgrims with a Purpose:
Sharing God’s Love & Mercy with Each Other & the World.
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Soli Deo Gloria
"Give me understanding, that I may keep Your law
and observe it with my whole heart." Psalm 119:34