My Verse for the Year

I have been so challenged, encouraged, convicted, helped, and blessed by God's Word recently. When we memorized this verse, I knew it would be very special for me in 2009:

Psalm 79:9
Help us, O God of our salvation,
for the glory of thy name:
and deliver us, and purge away our sins,
for thy name's sake.

This seems to be the day of just plain sloppy "Christianity" (and I put the word into quotation marks, because sometimes it is doubtful if it is real!) It seems to me that we would have a different attitude if we would live for the glory of His name! I realize that we are "older" and not "with it" any more. Actually I am glad of that! We are only concerned about being "with it" in God's eyes. We were privileged to grow up in a time of standards instead of standardless living. We had godly examples whom we were happy to follow because they obviously followed Jesus Christ. We saw Jesus Christ lived through them. When I think of some of our dear loved ones and friends who are now in glory (my mom, Mrs. Fraser, Frank and Lorraine Smith, Betty Reed...), I am struck with the fact they were not sloppy Christians! As I finished reading the Bible through last year, I was confronted time and time again with the admonition to "remember the old ways," stick with "the old paths." That does not mean that everything new is wrong, but a lot of it is! We are servants of the Lovely Lord Jesus Christ, ambassadors of the King of Kings. I, for one, want to act like it, look like it, sound like it! I don't want to take the Lord anywhere that would bring reproach upon Him. What ever happened to being in Christ, becoming a new creature, being different from the world, having a new life? "...that in all things He might have the preeminence." end of Col. 1:18 "One day to live, one person to please."

Philippians 1:27a
"Only let your conversation (manner of life, which includes our talk)
be as it becometh (is complimentary to) the gospel."