“This is the day which the Lord has made; let’s rejoice and be glad in it.” (Psalm 118:24)
I entitled today’s meditation “Journal Entry,” because I’m writing it to share a personal experience that I encountered Thursday night. While the title is fitting, and it relates to my authentic emotional state after making an observation before retiring for a good night sleep, perhaps I could have entitled this meditation, an abbreviated journal entry “Just telling it like it is!” Nevertheless, here is how the journal entry reads.
“As I sat at the dining room table following the end of a Thursday night Bible Study class, I wondered about some people I had went to church with when I lived in a small town located in northwest Illinois. Spontaneously, I went to the obituaries listed by a funeral home that was owned and operated by one of my neighbors during the mid-1980’s. I went through page after page, and this is what I noticed. There were more men and individuals who had just entered adulthood listed than there were women. None of the men attended my church and it did not seem, by reading what was available, that they went to any church at all. I was saddened and hoped I was wrong. When I read through page after page, often there was I found obituaries of young people, too young for me to have encountered in their childhood. Yet, my compassionate thought was, ‘Even though they lived a short life-span in an era where violence and even though they lived during a time span where drifting from the church seems to reveal inflated numbers, influenced by the previous generation’s wandering away for the church, I hoped that these young adults had given their life to Jesus, and that their souls were with the Lord.’”
Still sitting at the table, not rushing to see a televised NBA game, actually missing the first half, I added one more journal entry. “Thank you, God, for every day you have allowed me to see, and for all the good things You have done for me, despite the things I did that surely displeased you, and definitely let You down.” Then, I got personal and downright prayerful, “Help me Lord, appreciate the blessing of every new day you allow me to see. Don’t let the rhetoric be merely words when I say, ‘Thank you, Lord for waking me up one more day.’ Help me show by my behavior and even my innermost thoughts that I am glad about it.’”
Enough about the journal entry, but remember, I’m just telling it like it is. And since I’m telling it like it is, let me tell you that you should be in attendance at your local church this morning. God has been too good to you, and to His people for us to not be in the sanctuary; for us not to be glad to be in the service on more time. Enjoy worship today! Let your journal entry record how you benefitted from being in the special presence of the Lord and being there to receive a specific message sent by God specifically for you! Just tell it like it is! Be blessed!
Committed to the climb,
Mark L. King
Let there be no mistake that giving praise to the Lord for every minute and every hour we have on this earth. Nothing is promised and that makes it so vital not to take anything for granted. Reflection through journal entries is a powerful tool to healing.
A repetitive journal entry we can write, with accuracy, is God has been so merciful and so good to me. Perhaps if we made the mental journey entry during various stages of the day, our dispositions and devotion, as well as our disciplined lifestyles will be enhanced. Thanks for your response, faithful reader. Be blessed!