Relief From Depression #267

Psalm 32:1-5 

1 How blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven,
Whose sin is covered!

2 How blessed is the man to whom the Lord does not impute iniquity,
 And in whose spirit there is no deceit!

3 When I kept silent about my sin, my body wasted away
Through my groaning all day long.

4 For day and night Your hand was heavy upon me;
 My vitality was drained away as with the fever heat of summer.

5 I acknowledged my sin to You,
 And my iniquity I did not hide; 
I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the Lord”; 
And You forgave the guilt of my sin.

David, the Psalmist consistently declares that people are blessed. He speaks to his own soul and instructs his soul to ‘bless God.’ The thirty-second Psalm reminds the readers that they are blessed. Are you blessed? David’s recollection of his own sins reminds him how blessed he is to be forgiven. As a believer in Jesus Christ you have already been forgiven through the death and resurrection of Jesus and your faith in Him. David says that everyone who has been forgiven is blessed. The Old Testament idea of atonement says that the sins are covered, referring to the blood of the lamb sacrificed on the Day of Atonement.

He also declares a blessing on all whose iniquity God does not charge to their account and in whose spirit there is no deceit. David then gives personal testimony to his own blessings. Before his confession of sin and his transparency and his acknowledgment of his sins he was physically sick. He describes a person in deep depression. He was loosing weight through his groaning all day long. He felt the guilt as if the heavy hand of God was on him.

It so affected his physical body that even his energy was gone. His vitality was drained like he had been out in the sunshine in the heat of summer. He was drained of his ability to function. He found the answer. He acknowledged his sin and the guilt of his sin was gone. It is the feelings of guilt that accompanies your sin that deprives you of your strength. Repent of your sin and find the refreshing that comes from God’s forgiveness.    

_______________Today's personal note from Dennis

Greetings from Starbucks in beautiful Tempe, AZ

What a wonderful week. As you can imagine Sandy and I are quite busy right now. We kinda like it that way. This past week was no exception. On Friday Sandy commented that Saturday we had nothing scheduled. But one of those unexpected fun things happened. Our three oldest grandsons spent the night Friday night. They were their rowdy selves. Then on Saturday morning the two little ones came by for a while. Before the day was over all three of our grown kids, Roger, Mandy and Susan had also come by for a while. It was like old times with the addition of 5 grandsons. So much for a day with nothing to do. WE BOTH LOVED IT!!

We all met up at the Mall Friday evening, and also had a run to Krispy Kreme.   The boys had to try out the fun stuff at the Mall. I have trained Johnny to write my sermons now. LOL 

Sandy got started this week with her Young Moms Bible study. She had ten young moms, several with new babies and some with babies on the way. She is teaching the Book of Ruth. She enjoyed every moment. The class for young mothers is at 9:30AM on Tuesday mornings at First Baptist Church of Tempe. 

The study of Revelation has been a real challenge for me. It has meant a lot of time in books, on the internet, praying, writing and hoping. So far the messages have been ready in time to preach on Sunday. The LOFT service at First Baptist Church is a contemporary service with some wonderful people leading us in worship.

I am looking forward to being in Missouri for a week. I will be preaching at Second Baptist Church of Lebanon and also seeing family and friends. I look forward to seeing my Dad. 

Please continue to pray for me and Sandy as we share our lives, hearts and God's word with as many as we can. God continues to open doors to serve Him and for that we are grateful. Your prayers mean a lot to us.

My Schedule for next four months:           

September 22nd First Baptist Church Tempe: in the LOFT at 9:30AM                                    September 29th-October 3 Second Baptist Church Lebanon, M
October 13th First Baptist Church Tempe: in the LOFT at 9:30AM
October 20th Camping Grace Community Church at Roosevelt Lake, AM
November 3rd First Baptist Church Tempe: in the LOFT at 9:30AM
November 17th First Baptist Church Tempe: in the LOFT at 9:30AM
November 24th First Baptist Church Tempe: in the LOFT at 9:30AM
December 1st First Baptist Church Tempe: in the LOFT at 9:30AM
December 15th First Baptist Church Tempe: in the LOFT at 9:30AM
December 22nd First Baptist Church Tempe: in the LOFT at 9:30AM
December 29th First Baptist Church Tempe: in the LOFT at 9:30AM
January 5th 2014 First Baptist Church Tempe: in the LOFT at 9:30AM 

Someone said, "Attitude is Everything." I pray that I will always have an "attitude of gratitude."  I pray you will also. We are all so blessed. Thank God and others. Be grateful for everything. May God bless you as your heart is filled with thanksgiving.  ~ DGW