"The Lord brings the counsel of the nations to nothing;
He makes the plans of the peoples of no effect.
The counsel of the Lord stands forever,
The plans of His heart to all generations.
Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord,
Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord,
The people He has chosen as His own inheritance.
The Lord looks from heaven;
He sees all the sons of men.
From the place of His dwelling He looks
On all the inhabitants of the earth;
He fashions their hearts individually;
He considers all their works."
~Psalm 33:10-15
I read this passage in Psalms and a few words really affected me. First of all, we don't have to be afraid of "the plans of the peoples" ie. world events going on and ungodly world leaders. We can trust in the Lord to protect and guide us each day. The Lord is in control and His counsel stands forever. He cares for all generations of people, not just people living 2,000 years ago or people in the 1940s or even in the 1990s, He cares for new generations of people born in the 2000s! That shows me His loving heart for ALL people. Verse 12 says: "Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord", reminds me to continue praying for the peace of Israel. They are His inheritance.
Through the Lord’s mercies we are not consumed,
Because His compassions fail not.23 They are new every morning;
Great is Your faithfulness.
24 “The Lord is my portion,” says my soul,
“Therefore I hope in Him!”
-Lamentations 3:22-24
But one verse really stood out to me, the words shimmering with love, proclaiming a beautiful reality that struck home to my heart.
"He fashions their hearts individually; He considers all their works." (verse 15)
We are not made with a cookie cutter, God fashions and designs our hearts individually. He cares about all the little details, my funny quirks, annoying habits and the confusing way my illogical brain works. :) He considers all our works. These are not works to earn our way to Heaven, but are gifts we have the privilege of giving back to the Lord. Out of our love towards Him. After all, everything we have, has been given to us by God! I have been thinking about consecration recently, as Christians we need to devote ourself to God every day. I used to think it was a one time thing, but it has to be a daily dying to self and obeying the Lord and following the Lord Jesus Christ as our model.
Here is an excerpt from Oswald Chamber's devotional, "My Utmost for His Highest" Jan. 26, 2013
“Consider the lilies of the field . . .” (Matthew 6:28). They grow where they are planted. Many of us refuse to grow where God plants us. Therefore, we don’t take root anywhere. Jesus said if we would obey the life of God within us, He would look after all other things. Did Jesus Christ lie to us? Are we experiencing the “much more” He promised? If we are not, it is because we are not obeying the life God has given us and have cluttered our minds with confusing thoughts and worries. How much time have we wasted asking God senseless questions while we should be absolutely free to concentrate on our service to Him? Consecration is the act of continually separating myself from everything except that which God has appointed me to do. It is not a one-time experience but an ongoing process. Am I continually separating myself and looking to God every day of my life?
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