Monday Devotional: March 24, 2025

Bible Reading: Psalm 32:1-11(NRSVUE)

¹ Happy are those whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. ² Happy are those to whom the Lord imputes no iniquity and in whose spirit there is no deceit. ³ While I kept silent, my body wasted away through my groaning all day long. ⁴ For day and night your hand was heavy upon me; my strength was dried up as by the heat of summer. Selah ⁵ Then I acknowledged my sin to you, and I did not hide my iniquity; I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the Lord,” and you forgave the guilt of my sin. Selah ⁶ Therefore let all who are faithful offer prayer to you; at a time of distress, the rush of mighty waters shall not reach them. ⁷ You are a hiding place for me; you preserve me from trouble; you surround me with glad cries of deliverance. Selah ⁸ I will instruct you and teach you the way you should go; I will counsel you with my eye upon you. ⁹ Do not be like a horse or a mule, without understanding, whose temper must be curbed with bit and bridle, else it will not stay near you. ¹⁰ Many are the torments of the wicked, but steadfast love surrounds those who trust in the Lord.  ¹¹ Be glad in the Lord and rejoice, O righteous, and shout for joy, all you upright in heart.

A friend once said that forgiveness doesn’t simply mean forgetting. Forgiveness also conveys the quality of wishing the other person well. It often takes an extraordinary act of grace to forgive- much less to accept forgiveness of this sacred kind.

In reading the psalmist’s words, we realize the true blessedness of the recipient of God’s forgiveness. We worship a God who loves us completely, who forgives transgression, and who covers our sin completely.

The psalmist, like some of us, experiences physical illness as a result of his unconfessed sin: his body wastes away, his strength dries up. But then he confesses his sin to God.

Words, spoken or unspoken, offer an opportunity to communicate to God not only our sin but also the deep longings of our hearts. We worship a God who knows the choices of our past, a God who knows the choices others have made on our behalf. These choices linger today; some may still haunt us.

The psalmist confesses his sin and receives forgiveness after his time of crisis. God forgives the guilt of the psalmist. Far beyond a temporary feeling that can melt as fast as a pint of ice cream on a hot day, the joy of the Lord can sustain the weary.

Today you can experience the steadfast love of God. Set aside your unwillingness to call upon God for help; “happy are those whose transgression is forgiven.”

How can you experience the joy of forgiveness that only God offers today? Are you ready in this moment to acknowledge to God how you are really doing?

Prayer

God, this time is your time; it always has been. May I experience your forgiveness and grace today. May it begin here and now. Amen.

By D J Del Rosario, The Upper Room Disciplines 2016, page 83.

Bible Study

“Embracing Life” By Von W. Unruh

Unit 1: Beatitudes for Lent

Session Title: From Pride to Humility
Focal Passage: Matthew 5:5; Luke 18:9-14
Purpose Statement: To consider whether ambition or humility is the truest signpost to God.

Questions:

• When you are brutally honest with yourself, where do you see the similarities between you and the Pharisee?
• Do you see yourself as a sinner? Have you asked God for forgiveness?
• Where do you need to be less like the Pharisee and more like the tax collector? Ask God to help you to be humble.

Zoom Session

Monday, March 24, 2025, from 6:00 pm to 7:00 pm.

(For Zoom Link, send an email to [email protected])

In-Person Session

Wednesday, March 26, 2025, from 1:00 pm to 2:00 pm, Conference Room, McGee Building.