TUESDAY: I PLEDGE ALLEGIANCE TO GOD

Aug 30, 2022
2 min read

Lord, today I want to acknowledge You for who You are. You are a great and mighty God. You are an awesome God. Please continue to remind me daily of Your sovereignty over my life.

Deuteronomy 10:14-19

To the Lord your God belong the heavens, even the highest heavens, the earth and everything in it. Yet the Lord set his affection on your ancestors and loved them, and he chose you, their descendants, above all the nations—as it is today. Circumcise your hearts, therefore, and do not be stiff-necked any longer. For the Lord your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great God, mighty and awesome, who shows no partiality and accepts no bribes. He defends the cause of the fatherless and the widow, and loves the foreigner residing among you, giving them food and clothing. And you are to love those who are foreigners, for you yourselves were foreigners in Egypt.

Moses wrote Deuteronomy as his farewell instructions before he died. He wanted to remind the Israelites just who they followed: the LORD your God, whose kingdom encompasses the heavens, the earth, and everything in it. We likewise worship the same God. Because He is sovereign, I am to obey. He is the God of gods and Lord of lords. He is a great and mighty God. He is the awesome God. I need to remember that and respect and fear Him.

Moses explained that God set his affection on His people, loved them, chose them above all the nations, and desired the heart of each one: Big or small, old or young, rich or poor, He showed no partiality. Therefore, I am called to circumcise my heart, by removing the impure things which cause me to be stiff-necked. I am stiff-necked when I’m disobedient and stubborn toward God’s ways. He ordains me to live a life that is righteous and true.

God defends the cause of the oppressed: those who cannot fight for themselves, including those who don’t have an earthly father or no longer have an earthly husband. These include families whose father or husband is incarcerated or who has abandoned the family. God also loves the foreigner, or the immigrants from other countries; they are far from home and family and need His love and comfort. Moses reminded the Israelites that they were once foreigners, and He brought them out of Egypt.

THINK ABOUT THESE THINGS: Since I’m a citizen of heaven, I’m also a foreigner on this earth. The customs and culture of the world around me are different from the One I follow, that is, Jesus Christ. If I follow the customs of the world, I will assimilate into its culture and am its citizen.

As a citizen of heaven, I am obligated to the King of heaven, our mighty and awesome God. Lord, allow me to receive your love and to give it to others—those who need it, those without fathers or spouses, all those who need Your love.

May you be blessed,

Chaplain Wayne Ruckman