JMD Devotional 227 Psalm 140:8-13 Divine Roadblock

Grant not, O Lord, the desires of the wicked; further not their wicked plot and device, lest they exalt themselves. Selah [pause, and calmly think of that]! Those who are fencing me in raise their heads; may the mischief of their own lips and the very things they desire for me come upon them.
Let burning coals fall upon them; let them be cast into the fire, into floods of water or deep water pits, from which they shall not rise. Let not a man of slanderous tongue be established in the earth; let evil hunt the violent man to overthrow him [let calamity follow his evildoings]. I know and rest in confidence upon it that the Lord will maintain the cause of the afflicted, and will secure justice for the poor and needy [of His believing children]. Surely the [uncompromisingly] righteous shall give thanks to Your name; the upright shall dwell in Your presence (before Your very face).

My pastor, Dan Hendley, has some pithy sayings that you have to be quick to capture the meaning of or they will just zip by. For example,
“To prosper in your sin is the greatest tragedy that can happen to a man this side of eternity. It blinds you to your fate.”

He also has a benediction that took me back the first time I heard it,
“May God grant you restlessness until you come to find your peace in Him alone.”

Dear God,
I confess resenting the many roadblocks to my personal plans, not knowing that my way led to death and only Your path to life. I have been blessed by failure. Thank You that I didn’t travel further using a faulty map and a broken compass and an evil guide. Help those of us who regret wasting so much of our lives in futile pursuits take comfort in Your grace and Your guiding hand, that takes us from where we are and sets us on the right path. It is not too late to set our sites on righteousness; to seek Your will for our lives.
Amen

All (but*) quotes are from The Amplified Bible, published by
the Lockman Foundation. (AMP)
Copyright © 1954, 1958, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1987 by The Lockman Foundation
*New International Version (NIV)
Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society
**Scripture taken from The Message. Copyright © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002. Used by permission of NavPress Publishing Group. (Eugene Peterson's easy-to-read, contemporary Scripture translation)

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