Sue J Love
Loyal
Psalm 4:1-8 BSB (Berean Standard Bible)
“1 Answer me when I call,
O God of my righteousness!
You have relieved my distress;
show me grace and hear my prayer.
2How long, O men, will my honor be maligned?
How long will you love vanity and seek after lies?
Selah
“3Know that the LORD has set apart the godly for Himself;
the LORD hears when I call to Him.
4Be angry, yet do not sin;
on your bed, search your heart and be still.
Selah
“5Offer the sacrifices of the righteous
and trust in the LORD.
6Many ask, ‘Who can show us the good?’
Shine the light of Your face upon us, O LORD.
7You have filled my heart with more joy
than when grain and new wine abound.
8I will lie down and sleep in peace,
for You alone, O LORD, make me dwell in safety.”
Trust in Christ Jesus
When we trust in Jesus Christ to be Lord and Savior of our lives, and so we surrender our lives to Him, to do His will and purpose for our lives, we are likely to face opposition and rejection by many who do not approve of our decisions to make Christ the owner of our lives, and to now follow Him in obedience to His commands wherever He may lead us. They might be okay with us if we just say we believe in Jesus, and perhaps if we attend church gatherings weekly, but if we are sold out to Christ, that is at another level.
The more serious we are about our walks of faith in Jesus Christ, and the greater commitment we have to serving the Lord with our lives wherever He leads us, in doing whatever He has called us to do, we may find that we will begin losing friends, or they may just keep a safe distance from us. Or the leaders of “the church” may try to persuade us to be less serious and to have more fun, or to not take the Scriptures so seriously, but to listen to and to follow the teachings of men, instead. For that’s how things are today.
Call Out To God
Rather than letting our circumstances get us down, or to dishearten and to discourage us, we should pray and seek God’s face and His counsel and His wisdom and discernment, as well as His comfort. We should pray for wisdom in knowing the correct way to respond to all who oppose us or who mock us or criticize us, or who try to get us to compromise our faith and convictions. For we want to represent Christ well in how we respond, and we want to show love even to those who mistreat us and who speak evil against us.
God may lead us to speak to those who oppose and reject us, with regard to their treatment of us, which is unkind. And if those who are treating us badly are also those who profess faith in Jesus Christ, then the Lord may lead us to speak with them about what it means to be a child of God and a follower of Christ. And He may have us share with them what the Scriptures teach that our lives should look like if we truly believe in Jesus. For, honestly, that is the loving thing to do, to point them to Christ and to His truth.
The Godly
If by faith in Jesus Christ, a faith which comes from God, and not from ourselves, which is gifted to us by God, we then surrender our lives to the Lord Jesus to follow Him in obedience to His commands, and if we put our sins behind us so we can now live godly and holy lives in service to our Lord, in the power of God, by the grace of God, then we are regarded by God as the godly who He has set apart for Himself. And what that means now is our lives are no longer our own, but we now belong to God to do His will.
And so the Lord is going to instruct us in the ways that He would have us to go, according to His will and purpose for our lives. And He will show us what needs to be cut out of our lives and what now needs to be added on to our lives in service to Him. And all throughout the New Testament Scriptures we are given lists of what we need to put out of our lives, and what we need to put on in our lives to replace what we got rid of. For we need to put off sin and to put on obedience, and to put off self, and to put on righteousness.
[Matthew 5:27-30; Matthew 7:21-23; Luke 9:23-26; Romans 1:18-32; Romans 6:1-23; Romans 8:1-14; 1 Corinthians 6:9-10,19-20; 2 Corinthians 5:10,15,21; Galatians 5:16-24; Ephesians 4:17-32; Ephesians 5:3-6; Colossians 3:5-11; 1 Thessalonians 4:1-8; 1 Timothy 4:7; Titus 2:11-14; Hebrews 12:1-17; 1 Peter 1:14; 1 Peter 2:24; 1 John 1:5-10; 1 John 2:3-6; 1 John 3:4-10]
The Sacrifices of The Righteous
What do we sacrifice when we put our trust in Jesus to be Lord of our lives? In reality we lose nothing of value, but we gain what is of eternal value. For we give up our sins, and we put on obedience to God. We give up living in fear, and living by our feelings, and worrying about everything that goes on in the world. And, instead, we put our trust and our faith in the Lord that He has us in His hands, and that He will direct our paths, and that He will be with us every step of the way as we remain in Him and as we follow Him.
[Matthew 7:13-14,21-23; Luke 9:23-26; John 10:27-30; Acts 26:18; Romans 1:18-32; Romans 2:5-10; Romans 3:23; Romans 6:1-23; Romans 8:1-14; Romans 12:1-2; 1 Corinthians 6:9-10,19-20; 1 Corinthians 10:1-22; 2 Corinthians 5:10,15,21; Galatians 5:16-24; Ephesians 2:8-10; Ephesians 4:17-32; Ephesians 5:3-6; Titus 2:11-14; Hebrews 3:1-19; Hebrews 4:1-13; Hebrews 10:19-39; Hebrews 12:1-2; 1 Peter 2:24; 1 John 1:1-10; 1 John 2:1-6; 1 John 3:4-10; Revelation 2:1-29; Revelation 3:1-22]
Set Apart for God
An Original Work / November 11, 2026
Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love
Nearer, My God, to Thee
Lyrics: Sarah F. Adams, pub. 1841
Vs. 6: Edward H. Bickersteth, Jr.
Music: Lowell Mason, 1856
Nearer, my God, to Thee, nearer to Thee!
E’en though it be a cross that raiseth me,
Still all my song shall be, nearer, my God, to Thee.
Nearer, my God, to Thee, nearer to Thee!
Though like the wanderer, the sun gone down,
Darkness be over me, my rest a stone;
Yet in my dreams I’d be nearer, my God, to Thee.
Nearer, my God, to Thee, nearer to Thee!
Or, if on joyful wing cleaving the sky,
Sun, moon, and stars forgot, upward I’ll fly,
Still all my song shall be, nearer, my God, to Thee.
Nearer, my God, to Thee, nearer to Thee!
There in my Father’s home, safe and at rest,
There in my Savior’s love, perfectly blest;
Age after age to be nearer, my God, to Thee.
Nearer, my God, to Thee, nearer to Thee!
Caution: This link may contain ads
“1 Answer me when I call,
O God of my righteousness!
You have relieved my distress;
show me grace and hear my prayer.
2How long, O men, will my honor be maligned?
How long will you love vanity and seek after lies?
Selah
“3Know that the LORD has set apart the godly for Himself;
the LORD hears when I call to Him.
4Be angry, yet do not sin;
on your bed, search your heart and be still.
Selah
“5Offer the sacrifices of the righteous
and trust in the LORD.
6Many ask, ‘Who can show us the good?’
Shine the light of Your face upon us, O LORD.
7You have filled my heart with more joy
than when grain and new wine abound.
8I will lie down and sleep in peace,
for You alone, O LORD, make me dwell in safety.”
Trust in Christ Jesus
When we trust in Jesus Christ to be Lord and Savior of our lives, and so we surrender our lives to Him, to do His will and purpose for our lives, we are likely to face opposition and rejection by many who do not approve of our decisions to make Christ the owner of our lives, and to now follow Him in obedience to His commands wherever He may lead us. They might be okay with us if we just say we believe in Jesus, and perhaps if we attend church gatherings weekly, but if we are sold out to Christ, that is at another level.
The more serious we are about our walks of faith in Jesus Christ, and the greater commitment we have to serving the Lord with our lives wherever He leads us, in doing whatever He has called us to do, we may find that we will begin losing friends, or they may just keep a safe distance from us. Or the leaders of “the church” may try to persuade us to be less serious and to have more fun, or to not take the Scriptures so seriously, but to listen to and to follow the teachings of men, instead. For that’s how things are today.
Call Out To God
Rather than letting our circumstances get us down, or to dishearten and to discourage us, we should pray and seek God’s face and His counsel and His wisdom and discernment, as well as His comfort. We should pray for wisdom in knowing the correct way to respond to all who oppose us or who mock us or criticize us, or who try to get us to compromise our faith and convictions. For we want to represent Christ well in how we respond, and we want to show love even to those who mistreat us and who speak evil against us.
God may lead us to speak to those who oppose and reject us, with regard to their treatment of us, which is unkind. And if those who are treating us badly are also those who profess faith in Jesus Christ, then the Lord may lead us to speak with them about what it means to be a child of God and a follower of Christ. And He may have us share with them what the Scriptures teach that our lives should look like if we truly believe in Jesus. For, honestly, that is the loving thing to do, to point them to Christ and to His truth.
The Godly
If by faith in Jesus Christ, a faith which comes from God, and not from ourselves, which is gifted to us by God, we then surrender our lives to the Lord Jesus to follow Him in obedience to His commands, and if we put our sins behind us so we can now live godly and holy lives in service to our Lord, in the power of God, by the grace of God, then we are regarded by God as the godly who He has set apart for Himself. And what that means now is our lives are no longer our own, but we now belong to God to do His will.
And so the Lord is going to instruct us in the ways that He would have us to go, according to His will and purpose for our lives. And He will show us what needs to be cut out of our lives and what now needs to be added on to our lives in service to Him. And all throughout the New Testament Scriptures we are given lists of what we need to put out of our lives, and what we need to put on in our lives to replace what we got rid of. For we need to put off sin and to put on obedience, and to put off self, and to put on righteousness.
[Matthew 5:27-30; Matthew 7:21-23; Luke 9:23-26; Romans 1:18-32; Romans 6:1-23; Romans 8:1-14; 1 Corinthians 6:9-10,19-20; 2 Corinthians 5:10,15,21; Galatians 5:16-24; Ephesians 4:17-32; Ephesians 5:3-6; Colossians 3:5-11; 1 Thessalonians 4:1-8; 1 Timothy 4:7; Titus 2:11-14; Hebrews 12:1-17; 1 Peter 1:14; 1 Peter 2:24; 1 John 1:5-10; 1 John 2:3-6; 1 John 3:4-10]
The Sacrifices of The Righteous
What do we sacrifice when we put our trust in Jesus to be Lord of our lives? In reality we lose nothing of value, but we gain what is of eternal value. For we give up our sins, and we put on obedience to God. We give up living in fear, and living by our feelings, and worrying about everything that goes on in the world. And, instead, we put our trust and our faith in the Lord that He has us in His hands, and that He will direct our paths, and that He will be with us every step of the way as we remain in Him and as we follow Him.
[Matthew 7:13-14,21-23; Luke 9:23-26; John 10:27-30; Acts 26:18; Romans 1:18-32; Romans 2:5-10; Romans 3:23; Romans 6:1-23; Romans 8:1-14; Romans 12:1-2; 1 Corinthians 6:9-10,19-20; 1 Corinthians 10:1-22; 2 Corinthians 5:10,15,21; Galatians 5:16-24; Ephesians 2:8-10; Ephesians 4:17-32; Ephesians 5:3-6; Titus 2:11-14; Hebrews 3:1-19; Hebrews 4:1-13; Hebrews 10:19-39; Hebrews 12:1-2; 1 Peter 2:24; 1 John 1:1-10; 1 John 2:1-6; 1 John 3:4-10; Revelation 2:1-29; Revelation 3:1-22]
Set Apart for God
An Original Work / November 11, 2026
Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love
Nearer, My God, to Thee
Lyrics: Sarah F. Adams, pub. 1841
Vs. 6: Edward H. Bickersteth, Jr.
Music: Lowell Mason, 1856
Nearer, my God, to Thee, nearer to Thee!
E’en though it be a cross that raiseth me,
Still all my song shall be, nearer, my God, to Thee.
Nearer, my God, to Thee, nearer to Thee!
Though like the wanderer, the sun gone down,
Darkness be over me, my rest a stone;
Yet in my dreams I’d be nearer, my God, to Thee.
Nearer, my God, to Thee, nearer to Thee!
Or, if on joyful wing cleaving the sky,
Sun, moon, and stars forgot, upward I’ll fly,
Still all my song shall be, nearer, my God, to Thee.
Nearer, my God, to Thee, nearer to Thee!
There in my Father’s home, safe and at rest,
There in my Savior’s love, perfectly blest;
Age after age to be nearer, my God, to Thee.
Nearer, my God, to Thee, nearer to Thee!
Caution: This link may contain ads
