Jesus is Our Strength and Salvation

Verses: Psalms 118: 1 - 29

Song inspired by the chapter:  Song has been uploaded from YouTube.com and is not my original.

My thoughts about the verses:

Jesus is the Risen Messiah.  The One promised to save the souls of humankind.  We have a God that loves us forever and ever.  Our Savior sacrificed all so that we may be free.

Jesus is the strength that helps us throughout our days.  We have the most powerful source of strength living within us.  All that accept Jesus as their savior are constantly surrounded by the arms of God.  We are never alone no matter what we face.

It is hard in today’s society to somehow think that we have the strength that we need to get by.  We are knocked about by the troubles of the world.  We see devastation and wars all about us.  We have this deep inner fear that our time is coming to the end.

Yet, if we accept Jesus in our life we have the strength to continue.  God’s presence in our life is the foundation of our inner peace.  We only have to commit to being in relationship with Jesus to have hoped that all will go well.  We have nothing to fear when Jesus is on our side.

When we look back at the past we can see how God has helped so many.  We only have to look at our family to see that God carries us when we are weak.  Take a moment and think about your family.  When you really think about it you can think about those moments when God carried the weight so that you can be here today.

I often talk about my grandfather because of his character and strength.  I was taught at an early age that he was a man that loved God with all of his heart.  My grandfather did not have an easy life growing up.  His father died when he was thirteen years old.  Being the oldest of his siblings he took on the responsibility of being the male role model in the family.  He left school in eight grade and begin working to make sure the family survived.

It was during the great depression and he had to do things that would make us today amazed.  He would go to the train tracks and pick of the coal that had falling off the trains to keep his family warm.  He would stand in soup lines to feed his family.  He was able to get a job through the Civilian Conservation Corps.  He helped work on Mammoth Cave National park during his time with the CCC.

When War World II broke out he joined the navy.  He took a test during basic training and scored the equivalent of someone with two years of college.  With this score he became a Chief Petty Officer.  He was the highest ranking unlisted offer on his tanker during the war.  The boat was attacked and only one man was killed during the intense battle.

When I think about all this I am amazed.  He went through so much at a young age.  Yet, his faith only grew stronger over time.  He became a music minister and was a leader of the church for years.  He lived his life with the knowledge that God would give him the strength to overcome anything.  Even in his final stages of brain cancer he never lost faith.  He was there for us to show us that God would give us the strength to continue on.

God is powerful and our salvation.  Jesus is the ultimate bearer of the weight we carry each and every day.  We only have to call upon the name of Jesus to feel the inner peace that we need.  Jesus is our strength and hope.  Whenever we struggle we are not alone.  Jesus is there being the comfort and the strength that we need to survive. 

We all need to remember that Jesus was strong enough to overcome the grave.  We need to remember that Jesus was the perfect sacrifice.  We need to remember that Jesus went to the cross willingly.  Knowing this we should understand that no matter what we go through that Jesus is our salvation, peace, strength and hope.

Prayer:

We praise you God for your love.  We thank you Jesus for your sacrifice so that we may be free.  We worship you for you never-ending love for us.  We ask dear Jesus that you save us from ourselves.  Help us accept the strength that comes from your sacrifice on the cross.  Help us accept your saving grace.  In the name of the Messiah we pray.  Amen

Questions:

Have you accepted Jesus in your life?  Have you felt the presence of God when you are struggling?  Are you living a life that will make others see the salvation and strength of God?  What do you need to do today to allow Jesus to shine through you?