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Daily Devotion: Psalm 4:5 and 8

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Psalm 4:5     "Offer the sacrifices of righteousness, and put your trust in the LORD." 

Psalm 4:8     "I will both lay me down in peace, and sleep: for thou, LORD, only makest me dwell in safety." 

I selected these two verses out of this fourth Psalm to show the extent of what we are able to do at the end of the day. The writer speaks of calling upon the Lord when in distress. I pray that I do not take this privilege for granted. Just think about this, at any time of day or night, we have complete open access to the very throne of heaven where our Heavenly Father sits in full authority and judgment. I don't have to take a number and wait my turn. I don't have to leave a voice message and hope that He checks His messages on a regular basis. I don't have to worry whether He is too busy doing other things. No matter the day or hour, I can call upon the name of the Lord and know that I have His full attention.  God has given us the ability to do certain things and hopefully each day we accomplish projects that show His glory and power and grace in our lives. Then there are things we attempt to do that we just do not have the ability or resources to complete. At the end of the day, we can look back at those things and know we have done our best to do what God would have us do. Some days, we look back and have to ask for forgiveness because we may not have given our full attention to the work of the day.

But at the end of the day, there are things we can do and know that will help us. The first thing we should do is to "offer the sacrifices of righteousness." How do we do that? Let's go to the New Testament book of Hebrews to find that answer. "By him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name." (Hebrews 13:15) Yes, those sacrifices of righteousness are given through our praise unto the Lord and giving thanks to Him for the blessings of each day.  By Him (Christ Jesus) we are to offer those sacrifices of the heart. No matter the outcome of any given day, we can offer praise and give thanks unto the Lord for His loving mercy and grace given to us each day. When we can take our minds off our own successes and failures, and keep our hearts and minds upon the Lord, then we can "lay me down in peace, and sleep: for thou, LORD, only makest me dwell in safety."  It seems to me the greatest "sleep aid" is a grateful heart unto the Lord. Please help me Lord to express my gratitude on a daily basis.

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