There is a way out of bitterness, and it's probably not as simple as throwing a theology textbook at it.

Psalm 73:21-24 NIV
21 When my heart was grieved

    and my spirit embittered,

22 I was senseless and ignorant;

    I was a brute beast before you.

23 Yet I am always with you;

    you hold me by my right hand.

24 You guide me with your counsel,

    and afterward you will take me into glory.

Scripture taken from the Holy Bible, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

What can we conclude if we make a pros and cons list for following God like the author of Psalm 73?

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Psalm 73:13-20 NIV
13 Surely in vain I have kept my heart pure

    and have washed my hands in innocence.

14 All day long I have been afflicted,

    and every morning brings new punishments.

15 If I had spoken out like that,

    I would have betrayed your children.

16 When I tried to understand all this,

    it troubled me deeply

17 till I entered the sanctuary of God;

    then I understood their final destiny.

18 Surely you place them on slippery ground;

    you cast them down to ruin.

19 How suddenly are they destroyed,

    completely swept away by terrors!

20 They are like a dream when one awakes;

    when you arise, Lord,

    you will despise them as fantasies.

Scripture taken from the Holy Bible, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

This Psalm of Asaph shares experiential insight into how we can maintain a pure heart.

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Psalm 73:1-12 NIV
A Psalm of Asaph:

1 Surely God is good to Israel,

    to those who are pure in heart.

2 But as for me, my feet had almost slipped;

    I had nearly lost my foothold.

3 For I envied the arrogant

    when I saw the prosperity of the wicked.

4 They have no struggles;

    their bodies are healthy and strong.

5 They are free from common human burdens;

    they are not plagued by human ills.

6 Therefore pride is their necklace;

    they clothe themselves with violence.

7 From their callous hearts comes iniquity;

    their evil imaginations have no limits.

8 They scoff, and speak with malice;

    with arrogance they threaten oppression.

9 Their mouths lay claim to heaven,

    and their tongues take possession of the earth.

10 Therefore their people turn to them

    and drink up waters in abundance.

11 They say, “How would God know?

    Does the Most High know anything?”

12 This is what the wicked are like—

    always free of care, they go on amassing wealth.

Scripture taken from the Holy Bible, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Just the Word of God this week. Soak in this beautiful Psalm and let it encourage you.

Scripture quotations marked CSB have been taken from the Christian Standard Bible®, Copyright © 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible® and CSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers.

Directing our thoughts in a beneficial direction can change us fundamentally.

Philippians 4:8 NIV:

Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable--if anything is excellent or praiseworthy--think about such things.

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Scripture taken from the Holy Bible, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

God is a God of comfort, and we can share that comfort with others.

2 Corinthians 1:3-4 ESV
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.

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Scripture quotations are from The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

The Lord leads us into the blessings of humility by being humble first.

Why not take the time to read over John 13:1-17 this week? Meditate on it, don't rush to conclusions. Let God speak to you. See what you find...

John 13:12-17 NRSV:

12 After he had washed their feet, had put on his robe, and had returned to the table, he said to them, “Do you know what I have done to you? 13 You call me Teacher and Lord—and you are right, for that is what I am. 14 So if I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet. 15 For I have set you an example, that you also should do as I have done to you. 16 Very truly, I tell you, servants are not greater than their master, nor are messengers greater than the one who sent them. 17 If you know these things, you are blessed if you do them.

Born again, we still need to maintain an attitude of repentance. 

John 13:9-11 NRSV 

Simon Peter said to him, “Lord, not my feet only but also my hands and my head!” 10 Jesus said to him, “One who has bathed does not need to wash, except for the feet, but is entirely clean. And you are clean, though not all of you.” 11 For he knew who was to betray him; for this reason he said, “Not all of you are clean.”