“Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in Thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer” (Psalm 19:14).

Be careful what you promise the Lord. I mean, be very careful. Sixty years ago on this day in 1965 a fourteen-year-old boy was to preach his first sermon. In fact, he was to preach in a church that had two services, so his first sermon would be preached two times. Several other young people were to preach that morning as well. But this would be the first time that he ever had such an overwhelming opportunity and terrifying situation as he would preach twice that Sunday.

As he was walking to the platform in the first service, he became so overwhelmed with the magnitude of what he was about to do that his nervousness ratcheted up to sheer terror. This young boy prayed, “Lord, if You will help me and get me through this, I will do whatever You want me to do the rest of my life.”

King David prayed that his words and meditations would be acceptable to the Lord. This young boy made the promise without really fully thinking through what this promise to the Lord would entail. When discouragement would come, the Lord never let him out of his promise! Be careful of your words! Be especially careful of your promises!

For today: You guessed it. Yes, I was that fourteen-year-old boy. God has a grand memory! I can testify to the faithfulness and grace of the Lord. These sixty years of proclaiming His Word are indeed my privilege and it truly is God’s grace and His faithfulness that I am celebrating today.