Into His Marvelous Light

This devotional is from the “Awakening Series”

It is based on the song “Into His Light.”

 

Lord you know that in this world

I have no one but You

And whom have I in heaven besides You

I’ve tasted of Your goodness

And of Your unfailing love

And no one else is worthy of my worship

No one else is worthy of my praise

 

Not once not twice but countless times

Had I resisted You

Fallen oh so far short of Your glory

But as the Shepherd leaves the ninety nine

To seek just one that’s lost

You left Your home on high

And bought my pardon

And gave all that you had

To make me whole

 

So now may all glory

and honour

and praises be given unto You

I join the saints in declaring

The excellencies of Him

Who from the darkness

Drew me into His light

Who from the darkness

Drew me into His light

 

And as Your child

I’ve learnt that You

Desire the best for me

Chastened me with trials

Oh so fiery

To make me grow in righteousness

And purify my faith

I’ve seen You turn life’s ashes into beauty

Felt heaviness melt into joyful praise

 

Scripture Reading

1 Peter 2:9

 But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His wonderful light.”

Isaiah 62:12
And they will be called the Holy People, the Redeemed of The LORD; and you will be called Sought Out, A City Not Forsaken.

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This was not an easy blog post to write. As I continue to trust God for healing, I’ve been struggling with vision issues. But all the more reason to share this important truth!  (Confession – I had to edit the post I initially wrote).

You belong to a chosen people, a royal priesthood and a holy nation. You are a special possession!  Armed with this understanding, you  have the privilege of declaring God’s praises.  God has anointed you – fully equipped and empowered you –    to make His excellence known. God has rescued  you from what was once an empty existence far from the knowledge of God – what the Bible calls darkness – and unveiled to You, His wonderful light.

I came to faith in Jesus as a teenager. With the help of women leaders, I began to study the Bible and soon it began to hold a dear blace in my heart.   I remember attendinga  two week long Christian Camp so hungry was I to learn the truth! At the end of it all,  I wanted God to hold first place in my heart and that there was no one I could ever compare with Him.  The song “Into His Light” was the first song I ever wrote, and that was more than 20 years ago.  But some things never grow old – for example, how important my relationship is to God – that is something that will never change.

As I look back over my life, it is clear that I did not adequately grasp the privilege of the call to know and serve God.   There was yet much to learn – the Bible is a rich, vast,  book and the journey to know God and fellowship with His people is life long.   Add to that we have to contend with distractions and dangers  that seek to lead us astray. Just this morning I read 1 John 5:21 –  the verse seemed to jump off the  pages of my Bible.

Dear children, keep away from anything that might take God’s place in your hearts.

God must hold old an unrivaled place in my heart – firstly because of who He is and second because no one loves us more or better than He does! Love gives it best and we can be sure that God will always give us His very in the light of the needs of the our eternal relationship that He has prepared for us

In this season, one of the things i that I have resolved  to give God is my best. Never again do I want to dishonor Him by second guessing Him.  Or rob myself and those God has called me to serve by giving Him mediocre service.

As He teaches us to give Him first place, we can expect to go through  “fiery trials” so that we can grow in righteousness. Our Lord gives the very best and this means He will discipline us.  Just yesterday evening, I was having a peaceful time of worship. I was listening to a song by a leading gospel musician Cece Winans. The lyrics rang out “ I love the way you rebuke me… I love the way you love me.”  What a poignant way of reminding us that Jesus rebukes us – and it’s a beautiful, caring act of love when He does!

In the light of His love, we must let go of trivial pursuits.  Things we once held dear need to be tossed into the flame. Ultimately, the prize and joy and beauty of a Christlike character is to be what matters most!

Philippians 2:1,2

See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know Him. Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when Christ appears,[a] we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is.