Insightful Musings on the Scripturesby
Ray Sparre, NU class of '67
Ray has a wealth of experience as a Husband, Father, Pastor, Missionary, and student of the Word. He believes and practices his faith where the rubber meets the road. You'll find his writings to be practical, insightful, and grounded in a truly Christ-centered world view.
Below are links to a printable daily Bible reading guide which Ray has followed, and an archive of all his daily devotional writings for 2010 and 2011.
| Sparre Home Page | Daily Reading Guide | 2011 Devotion Archives | 2010 Devotion Archives |
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
7 June 11
Good evening, dear people.
It’s late again. I need to get to the hay loft real soon. Busy day. Have a good night.
Love, Dad/Ray
7 June 2011
Psalm 36
Focus: “An oracle is within my heart concerning the sinfulness of the wicked: There is no fear of God before their eyes.” Psalm 36:1.
I suppose those who follow along with my thoughts and ideas in these little compositions could find reason to judge them as being kind of monotonous and boring after awhile. Why?–because I keep dealing with the same or similar themes over and over. That would be a valid judgment—I do keep dealing with the same or similar themes over and over. But I don’t really feel very ashamed of that since the Bible (as well as these Psalms) keep dealing with the same or similar themes over and over. The reason is plain. David said it well in Psalm 119:11: “I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you.” If I don’t, I will. We are predisposed to engage in various forms of foolishness, sin, and evil over and over. So it calls for special effort to incorporate God’s Word into the warp and woof of our personal hearts and lives. And whether we like it or not, we are all players in the universal conflict between the two kingdoms—both competing for ownership and control of the real estate of your heart and mine—it’s the ongoing age-old battle between GOOD and EVIL. I have to believe that our mutual human condition calls for repetition, review, and reinforcement until we, like David, establish the same “oracle” within our hearts—demonstrated by a lifestyle of godliness. So I judge that going over Bible themes, up one side and down the other, is actually time and effort well spent.
Since we don’t normally use the word “oracle” in the course of daily conversation, I took time to look up the word in my dictionary just to review its various shades of meaning. The definition that best fits David’s expression is, “A command or revelation from God.” Don’t you agree that we all need such a heart-gripping “oracle” within us that recognizes the sinfulness of sin and the absolute essential of the “fear of God?”
Here’s a great Bible “oracle” to take to heart and remember—Hebrews 3:12-14. How about memorizing it? How about painting it on your living room wall? Maybe you could print it on your bathroom mirror, or on the dash board of your car, or on your refrigerator. Yes—I’m being extreme. But whatever you do, don’t forget it! “See to it, brothers, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God. But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called Today, so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness. We have come to share in Christ if we hold firmly till the end the confidence we had at first.”
“Life’s greatest tragedy is to lose God and not miss Him.” - F. W. Norwood