Scripture: Isaiah 53-56.  

OBSERVATION
(What is God saying here?)

Isaiah 56:2 (NLT)
² Blessed are all those who are careful to do this. Blessed are those who honor my Sabbath days of rest and keep themselves from doing wrong.

APPLICATION
(How Can I apply what God is saying here to my circumstances today?)

I have read the ten commandments so many times, and I have heard this verse so many times, but it wasn’t until studying this today that it really hit me. You see, I have been an active player in some key birthday celebration recently, and there was much planning to celebrate these days in a very special way, because these were some very special people that celebrated milestones in their life. As I read this verse I was reminded of how mundane we have allowed our Sabbath days to become. In the commandments we are told to keep the day holy. For participants in Sunday/Sabbath School, this means getting up early and refreshing ourselves on the lesson for the day, then of course this is followed by the actual teaching time, then by church. For the normal, non-committed Christian, this means that if there is nothing better for us to do with our family that day, then perhaps we will awaken in time to attend church. Minutes before Sunday/Sabbath School, we will rush out the door and walk into the classroom right after starting time and try to stay awake while the boring teacher tries to cram something into our minds from the Bible. Then on to church service so we could get that over with for the week, then off to fun family times at the beach or anywhere else that may be exciting. Now in all of this, can we truly say that we have sought to make the day a day of rest, or make every effort to keep ourselves from doing wrong, of make it holy, or dedicated to God (much like we do on birthdays where we pretty much dedicate the day to the birthday guy/girl)? In other words, how is our Sabbath any different to our weekday? How does it line up with Biblical instruction? Has God been placed so far back in our list of priorities that we are ashamed to tell family and friends that their request for shopping, beach, swimming, parties, etc. does not fit into our idea of setting this day apart to God and in respect and honor of His Word/instructions about this day? I have four fingers pointing back at me while I write these thoughts, so don’t think for a minute that I am perfect, but friends I am afraid that just how we push God to the background on Sunday/Sabbath, so we also push Him in the background the other six days of the week. If we are to let our lights shine for Jesus, then we must learn to be more like Him every day, and faithfully obey His commands. Verses like the one in this devotion today will help us stay more aligned with God’s Word/expectations.

PRAYER
(With God’s help, what am I going to do differently today because He said it?)

Father, even with steel toed boots on, You have walked all over my toes this morning with this thought. Please forgive me for the cases of neglect that I am guilty of – neglect in my Christian walk and example. I love that song entitled, “I want to be just like You“, but I realize that to do this I must put aside the excuses and be more committed to You and Your Holy Word. Please give me strength and boldness to walk the walk and talk the talk when it comes to obeying You and Your book of instructions, the Bible. For those that may be touched by reading this devotional, I pray that You will help them examine the innermost parts of their lives and insure that they are following Your expectations and not finding excuses so that they could follow the ways of this world. Please have Your way in our lives and guide us into Holy living every day.

 

àWords underlined may be a hyperlink to a song that God laid on my heart while sharing this devotional this morning. Click it and be blessed by the song, like I was when I listened to it! …… I would be overjoyed to have the opportunity to pray with you about a need in your life that may, or may not have been highlighted by this Nugget today. Why not drop me a note and tell me about it? You may email me at:
nuggetsfromgodsword@yahoo.com
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