Sunday, April 16, 2017

April 16

Joshua 13:1 – 14:15; Luke 18:1-17; Psalm 85:1-13; Proverbs 13:7-8

On this Easter morning, I’m remembering an old hymn that begins with these words:

Revive us again, fill our hearts with your love.
May our souls be rekindled with fire from above.
Hallelujah, Thine the glory, hallelujah amen.
Hallelujah, Thine the glory, revive us again.

The words of that song are true; only the Lord can revive our souls. Listen to what the psalm writer says in 85:6: “Will you not revive us again that your people may rejoice in you?” I memorized that verse for Christmas about fifteen years ago because I liked it and I needed reviving. It reflects the fact that we are dependent on the Lord for our vitality and even for our ability to rejoice in Him. The next verse explains a bit more: “Show us your unfailing love, O Lord, and grant us your salvation” (v. 7). Yes, we have been granted the Lord’s salvation and we rejoice in it at Easter time.

In the Old Testament, we read about Caleb—a man who exuded vitality. He describes himself as strong at 85 as he was at 45 and as eager to take the land as he was when he spied out the land 40 years earlier, declaring that the nation could triumph over the inhabitants of the land (Josh. 14:7-12). Caleb is the oldest man in the nation (with the possible exception of Joshua) but despite his age, he is the most eager to take the land and conquer it. The God of Israel did this revitalizing in Caleb because he followed the Lord wholeheartedly (and that’s why my second oldest grandson is his namesake—his parents’ prayer is that he will follow the Lord wholeheartedly, too—see that post on March 10 here). Caleb held nothing back when he was a young man spying out the land —“let’s go in and conquer,” he had said — and as an old man, he is still ready for the fight.

As I’m nearing old age (and some might even say I’m in old age), I realize how dependent I am on the Lord to revive me again, to keep me vital and caring about His work and His kingdom, to keep me from just coasting along and refusing to stay in the fight. I like Jill Briscoe’s words quoted from the If Gathering 2017: “You go where you’re sent, and you stay where you’re put, and you give what you’ve got until you’re done.”

I pray that God would give each of us the courage and tenacity to keep on giving what we’ve got until we’re done. Revive us to that end on this Easter Sunday, we ask, dear Father, in Jesus’ name.


- Nell Sunukjian

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3 comments:

  1. Thank you, Mom. What a great way for me to start my Easter celebration.

    Happy Easter, OYBThree65 readers!!

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  2. I needed that reminder of being revitalized, as I sit here at home sick on Easter morning! Wow, I think this might be the first time I've EVER missed church worship on an Easter Sunday! My earliest memories as a little girl were always going to church every Sunday but Easter was always special. Special dress, special shoes, sometimes a hat & yes, even little gloves and my Daddy always bought me a corsage in those days to wear to church! Some may say, oh those are just frivolous earthly things, but you know what? I grew up believing Jesus' resurrection was the most important event in history! I love Easter & even though I'm sitting here at home today , I'm rejoicing that He is the one who revives me again!

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  3. So sorry you were sick and I hope you're better by now.
    I love your comments...thanks so much.

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