2009 – Day 79.Mar. 21 – Historical Joy

2009 – Day 79.Mar. 21 – Historical Joy

Passages of the Day: Exodus 12: 29 – 30 … 29 And it came to pass at midnight that the LORD struck all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh who sat on his throne to the firstborn of the captive who was in the dungeon, and all the firstborn of livestock. 30 So Pharaoh rose in the night, he, all his servants, and all the Egyptians; and there was a great cry in Egypt, for there was not a house where there was not one dead.

Psalm 105: 26 - 38 … Link to Psalm 105 for study …

My Journal for Today: Today Chuck Swindoll focuses on the joy expressed by the elated Hebrew people as they recognized they had been passed over by the Angel of death; and they were leaving 400 years of slavery behind and heading toward the promised land of Canaan. Joy, joy, joy!!

And then Swindoll asks his devotional readers to compare that historical joy with the very personal realization of freedom when we left our chains of sin behind and walked from our slavery to self into the promised land of freedom in Christ; and I remember that day and time well. And yes, there great joy in my heart as I came to realize that this Jesus of Nazareth was THE CHRIST; and He had died for my sins, setting me free and giving me the grace to choose freedom rather than to wallow in my sinfulness. I still revel joyfully when I relive that morning when I was set free and began my walk toward the promised land of freedom in Christ.

Some of you, who read here, however, may not have had a clear time of passover and release into freedom as I did. Maybe you’ve been a Christian for as long as you remember, … maybe having come to Christ at a very young age. Maybe you’ve just come to forget the joy of being released from the prison of sinfulness and breathing freedom for the first time. I still remember that time, which was a little over 25 years ago; but Swindoll makes a good point for all Christians, whether they had a later life conversion or not. He asks us to remember that every day we can and should revel in the joy that there is more to our life than just being saved from our sinfulness.

Yes, any Christian at any time – like today – can (and should) live in joyfulness because God wants to move us even further out of our “Egypt” and away from the land of slavery to sin. Remember, fellow Christian, … God wants to lead us – everyday - toward His promised land of freedom. As Swindoll points out, God has given us a way – everyday – of celebrating joyfully the reality that we can, by His grace, choose to avoid sin and be free in Christ. Plan A for God, was salvation; but his Plan B in your life or mine is the walk to freedom which we should recognize and celebrate EVERY DAY of our lives as Christians.

So, let’s you and me join the voices of over 2,000,000 Jews at the time of the first Passover, singing God’s praises and joyfully thanking our Lord for setting us free on that Cross so that all who receive Christ as Lord and Savior can be freed from our bondage to sin; and we can march toward the promised land of freedom in Christ – FOREVER!

Yes, for sure … JOY, … JOY, … JOY !!!

My Prayer for Today: On this first day of Spring, as Your timing would have it, Lord, I walk to freedom, following You. Amen