Streams in the Desert - Jul 14

Bind the festival sacrifice with cords to the horns of the altar. (Psalm 118: 27 NASB)

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Is the altar of sacrifice calling you? Why not ask God to bind you to it, so you will never be tempted to turn away from a life of consecration, or dedication, to Him? There are times when life is full of promise and light, and we choose the cross; yet at other times, when the sky is gray, we run from it. Therefore it is wise to be bound to the altar.

Dear blessed Holy Spirit, will You bind us to the cross and fill us with such love for it that we will never abandon it? Please bind us with Your scarlet cord of redemption, Your gold cord of love, and the silver cord of hope in Christ’s second coming. We ask this so we will not turn from the cross of sacrifice, or desire becoming anything but humble partners with our Lord in His pain and sorrow!

“The horns of the altar” are inviting you. Will you come? Are you willing to continually live a life of total surrender, giving yourself completely to the Lord?
~selected

I once heard a story of a man who attended a tent revival meeting and tried to give himself to God. Every night at the altar, he would dedicate himself to the Lord. Yet as he left each evening, the Devil would come to him and convince him that since he did not feel changed, he was not truly redeemed.

Again and again he was defeated by the Adversary. Finally one evening he came to the meeting carrying an ax and a large wooden stake. After dedicating himself once more, he drove the stake into the ground where he had knelt to pray. As he was leaving the tent, the Devil came to him as usual, trying to make him believe that his commitment to God was not genuine. He quickly returned to the stake, pointed to it, and said, “Devil, do you see this stake? This is my witness that God has forever accepted me.”

Immediately the Devil left him, and he never experienced doubts again.
~from The Still Small Voice

Beloved, if you are tempted to doubt the finality of your salvation experience, drive a stake into the ground and then let it be your witness before God, and even the Devil, that you have settled the question forever.

Are you groping for a blessing,
Never getting there?
Listen to a word of wisdom,
Get somewhere.
Are you struggling for salvation
By your anxious prayer?
Stop your struggling, simply trust, and—
Get somewhere.
Does the answer seem to linger
To your earnest prayer?
Turn your praying into praise, and—
Get somewhere.
You will never know His fullness
Till you boldly dare
To commit your all to Him, and—
Get somewhere.
~Songs of the Spirit

Reference

Cowman, L. B. E.; Reimann, Jim. Streams in the Desert: 366 Daily Devotional Readings (pp. 272-273). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.

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