Pastor Fredo Ramos: For whatever reason, I have always struggled to pray. And so, as this new year begins and as many of you think about new routines that you wanna give yourself to, especially for those of you who follow Jesus, I wanna invite you to learn to pray the Psalms with us. It's a practice I picked
Pastor Fredo Ramos: up years ago that really saved, my
Pastor Fredo Ramos: ability to learn to pray, to speak to God honestly about how I was feeling and what I was thinking. And so every single day on sandalschurch.tv on YouTube, we're gonna be releasing, praying the Psalms, a psalm a day.
Pastor Fredo Ramos: We started in January 1st and every day you're gonna get
Pastor Fredo Ramos: a new psalm, but the opportunity to read the psalm with us, to reflect on a phrase, and then to respond to God in prayer, how to pray through the psalms. This has been
Pastor Fredo Ramos: a gift to me
Pastor Fredo Ramos: in my own journey with Jesus. I pray that it's a gift to you and so would you join us. Grace and peace.
Pastor Fredo Ramos: We continue praying the Psalms and we come now to Psalm 25. In you, Lord, my God, I put my trust. I trust in you. Do not let me be put to shame, nor let my enemies triumph over me. No one who hopes in you will ever be put to shame.
Well, good news for us as we begin our time, that no one who hopes in the Lord will ever be put to shame, but shame will come on those who are treasured treacherous without cause. Can't even say treacherous. Treacherous without cause. Verse 4. Show me your ways, Lord.
Teach me your paths. Guide me in your truth and teach me for you are God my savior, and my hope is in you all day long. Remember, Lord, your great mercy and love for they are from old. Do not remember the sins of my youth and my rebellious ways. According to your love, remember me, for you, Lord, are good.
Good and upright is the Lord, therefore he instructs sinners in the in his ways. He guides the humble in what is right and teaches them his way. All the ways of the Lord are loving and faithful to those who keep the demands of his covenant. For the sake of your name, Lord, forgive my iniquity though it is great. Let me just pause there for a moment.
By way of reflection, notice the tone of hope that David offers us today. That those who hope in the Lord will not be put to shame. Even those who hope in the Lord whose ways have been covered in sin. He he even says, man, don't don't remember the sins of my youth or my rebellious ways. But he says instead, allow your great mercy and your love.
Like, remember, Lord, the fact that you are compassionate towards sinners, and there is confidence here for us to to remember today that forgiveness is available. Regardless of what happened yesterday, regardless of what you're struggling with today, there is forgiveness for you. And and God loves to guide the humble in what is right and teaches them His way. All the ways of the Lord are loving and faithful. And so what an invitation we have today to confidently confess our sin, knowing that God forgives us and he remembers us according to his goodness.
In other words, God today does not remember you or I according to what we did yesterday, what we did in our youth, what maybe you did right now, this moment, or this morning, but God remembers you and treats you according to his goodness. Man, what an invitation for us to live with hope today and with freedom today. That it's the very goodness of God, it's the very compassion of God that sets us free, that transforms us, and allows us to say what we end with there in Psalm in in verse 21. May integrity and uprightness protect me because my hope, Lord, is in you. Deliver Israel, God, from all their troubles.
What hope we have today that God will in fact deliver us. That that all that we face today, that all that you face today will not come on you and will not overtake you, because you've been good or because you've been bad. But it will be dealt with because God has been good to you and his forgiveness is for you today. Jesus, we receive, once again, your mercy, the fact that you are compassionate with sinners. And so though we might be feeling some kind of way about our own sin, though we might be feeling at some level guilt and shame today, would you help us to remember that anyone and everyone who hopes in you will never be put to shame?
And so would shame leave? Would the voices of the enemy leave at the voice of you telling us today that we are forgiven and that you have remembered us according to your goodness? We pray these things in Jesus' name. Amen. Grace and peace, you guys.
Stay tuned for Psalm 26.