Daily Word

O Lord my God, in you do I take refuge; save me from all my pursuers and deliver me, lest like a lion they tear my soul apart, rending it to pieces, with none to deliver. Psalm 7:1-2. This psalm is another lament from David. The title refers to an otherwise unknown incident in his life when a man of Benjamin (the tribe of Saul) slandered David. The psalm provides a vehicle by which those unfairly criticized and persecuted may call to God for help. In the face of desperate circumstances, the first words express trust (my God, refuge), leading to the specific request. When you turn for help in your time of need is it God you turn to first, and when you turn to God are you quick to cry for help or do you express first your trust and faith in who he is?

Daily Word

Turn, O Lord, deliver my life; save me for the sake of your steadfast love. For in death there is no remembrance of you; in Sheol who will give you praise? Psalm 6:4-6. Here the psalmist thinks the Lord has turned from him. The word translated “steadfast” (the sake of your steadfast love) indicates how devotedly God binds Himself t His people by His covenant. A similar statement is expressed in Psalm 30:9 (No remembrance). This word (Sheol) is found most often in poetic passages that revel the thoughts and fears of the living, but are not presentations of a doctrine of resurrection or of the intermediate state. Again, be reminded that this psalm is a plea for mercy. Mediate on each word, and process this psalm as an example of deep prayer unto God…When was the last time you turned to God in such manner?

Daily word

O Lord, rebuke me not in your anger, nor discipline me in your wrath. Be gracious to me, O Lord, for I am languishing; heal me, O Lord, for my bones are troubled. My soul also is greatly troubled. But you, O Lord---how long? Psalm 6:1-3. This psalm is an individual lament from David. It is especially suited to one whose hard circumstances have led him to see his sins and to repent of them. The psalmist begs the Lord to refrain from verbal and physical punishment (rebuke…discipline). Though God disciplines His people, it is for correction and not destruction. The psalmist experiences suffering, probably a serious illness (I am languishing….my bones are troubled). Some take the language as figurative for spiritual distress. The psalmist boldly asks how long God will permit his suffering to continue. He desperately seeks relief from the One who is able to give it. If you haven’t begun already…begin today to look at the heart of the words as we walk through the psalms. Looking within himself, acknowledging his own place, then immediately turning the one who is able to bring help and healing. A great example of both faith and trust!

Daily Word

Make them bear their guilt. O God; let then fall by their own counsels; because of the abundance of their transgressions cast them out, for they have rebelled against you. But let all who take refuge in you rejoice; let them ever sing for joy, and spread your protection over them, that those who love your name may exult you. For you bless the righteous, O Lord; you cover him with favor as with a shield. Psalms 5:10-12. The psalmist calls upon God to punish the wicked (let them fall by their own counsel) because they are guilty. Sin often brings its own retributive consequences. Often times we blame everything under the sun for the negative circumstances in our lives; seeking God to step in and save us from our woes and mishaps. We rarely look within ourselves to search out our own sin which may have brought about the retributive consequence of which we are walking through. Today own your part, repent, rejoice, exalt Him…and walk in His favor as covers you as with a shield!

Weekend Quote (Sun)

God is an infinite circle whose center is everywhere and whose circumference is nowhere. ~ Saint Augustine of Hippo

Weekend Quote (Sat)

We are saved by God’s grace when we believe in Jesus and put our faith in Him, but biblical belief is more than just something we confess with our mouths; it’s something we confess with our lives. ~ Kyle Idleman

Daily Word

But I, through the abundance of your steadfast love, will enter your house. I will bow down before your holy temple in the fear of you. Lead me, O Lord, in your righteousness because of my enemies; make your way straight before me. For there is no truth in their mouth; their inmost self is destruction; their throat is an open grave; they flatter with their tongue. Psalm 5:7-9. The writer knows that he is different from the wicked only because of God’s grace (abundance of your steadfast love). Is own sin would destroy him if God did not have compassion on him as he approached Go’s presence. The psalmist protests his innocence by stating his desire to worship the Lord (will enter your house). “Your house” and “your holy temple” may refer to the site where the temple would be built, or perhaps the tabernacle of the psalmists own time. The path of safety that God opens (your way) is also the path of obedience to His will. (Destruction…open grave) Note how evil speech brings death. Meditate for a few minutes today, and be reminded that we come before God only through “the abundance of His steadfast love”; and we must continually pray that God will lead us to walk in the way that is morally straight.

Daily Word

For you are not a God who delights in wickedness; evil may not dwell with you. The boastful shall not stand before your eyes; you hate all evildoers. You destroy those who speak lies; the Lord abhors the blood thirsty and deceitful man. Psalms 5: 4-6. This is a poetic understatement (not a God who delights in wickedness). God hates sin. God is holy, “set apart” from all evil (evil may not dwell). Sinful people may not come into His presence without a substitutionary sacrifice. We cannot continue to live a life style so connected to the world that we are blinded by our own compromise to His Word. What is it that you no longer fell conviction over because you have allowed yourself to be blinded by compromise…remember, He is not a God who delights in wickedness…of any kind.

Daily Word

Give ear to my words, O Lord; consider my groaning. Give attention to the sound of my cry, my king and my God, for to you I do pray. O Lord, in the morning you hear my voice; in the morning I prepare a sacrifice for you and watch. Psalm 5:1-3. This lament petitions the Lord in the midst of distress. However, the psalmist also expresses trust in the Lord’s protection. The psalmist’s distress is caused by the evil speech of the wicked. The Hebrew word (groaning) implies a kind of muttering or scarcely audible speech, as would accompany memorizing or reflection. David, Israel’s king, addresses God as King. He knows that his own kingship is a pale reflection of God’s. What is it that you consider a “sacrifice” to God? Some consider those things of the world that they have given up as a sacrifice. Consider today a sacrifice of “time”. Beginning each morning with time spent crying out to God. Laying before Him the business of your day, your life, and then watch...see Him work in your life!

Daily Word

Be angry, and do not sin; ponder in your own hearts on your beds, and be silent. (Selah) Offer right sacrifices, and put your trust in the Lord. There are many who would say, “Who will show us some good? Lift up the light of your face upon us, O Lord!” You have put more joy in my heart than they have when their grain and whine abound. In peace I will both lie down and sleep; for you alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safety. Psalm 4:4-8. (Words to the Godly) The singer (Psalmist) tells the godly not to give into the anger that would lead them to take revenge; instead they must remain steadfast in their worship and trust. This (Be angry, and do not sin) should perhaps be taken as a conditional sentence: “If you feel anger at those who slander you (which you may well do), nevertheless do not sin by seeking revenge against them.” They way to prevent sin is to PONDER and BE SILENT: that is, reflect on how the Lord has shown Himself trustworthy. This does not discourage the faithful from using legal resources when necessary; instead it speaks against personal revenge that circumvents the law and consumes the lives of the vengeful. It is the practice of intimate prayer, and the daily study of His Word that enables you to ponder and be silent in times of anger…Which also can be a test of your maturity in Christ!

Daily Word

O men, how long shall my honor be turned into shame? How long will you love vain words and seek after lies? But know that the Lord has set apart the godly for himself; the Lord hears when I call to him. Psalm 4:3-4. It seems that the psalmist is angry (My honor be turned into shame) at men who turn away from God to serve the false gods of the nation. The idols of the nations (seek after lies) are lies because they don’t really exist; they are figments of sinful imagination. The Hebrew word (Hasid) is the adjective form of “steadfast love” (Hb. Hesed). This term, variously rendered “godly”, “saint”, “faithful one”, and “holy one” in the Psalms, refer to those who have genuinely laid hold of God’s steadfast love; here it is singular, to stress that each faithful member of the people may have this confidence. If you attend your church once a week, and live out the rest of the week too busy to study His Word, or seek Him in prayer; then you may very well be living that life of loving vain words and seeking after lies. Without true knowledge of the Word you have no way of knowing whether or not what you hear each week is God’s truth or man’s truth. How can you expect to be set apart…when you fail to take the time to set apart your own life through Him?

Weekend Quote (Sun)

We must have faith; and let us not apologize for it, for faith is an organ of knowledge and can tell us more about ultimate reality than all the findings of science. We are not opposed to science, but we recognize its proper limitations and refuse to stop where it is compelled to stop. The bible tells of another world to fine for the instruments of scientific research to discover. By faith we engage that world and make it ours. It is accessible through the blood of the everlasting covenant. If we will believe we may even now enjoy the presence of God and the ministry of His heavenly messengers. Only unbelief can rob us of this royal privilege. ~ A. W. Tozer

Weekend Quote (Sat)

Our body is the most gracious gift God has given us, and if we hand over the mainspring of our life to God we can work out in our bodily life all that He works in. It is through our bodily lives that Satan works, and, thank God, it is through our bodily lives that God’s Spirit works. God gives us His grace and His Spirit; He puts right all that was wrong, He does not suppress it nor counteract it, but readjusts the whole thing; then begins our work. ~ Oswald Chambers

Daily Word

Answer me when I call, O God of my righteousness! You have given me relief when I was in distress. Be gracious to me and hear my prayer! Psalm 4:1. Like Psalm 3 this Psalm (4) was composed in distress, and the psalmist exhibits a deep confidence in God. Both Psalms meditate on faith in the night. The righteous have nothing to fear, because God hears their prayers and cares for them. The righteous are not without sin, but are in a covenant relationship with God. The imperative verbs in this verse (Answer me….my righteousness) show the boldness of the psalmist in prayer. He can fearlessly call on God because He knows that God is his righteousness. How often do you enter into prayer whether in distress or not with abandon confidence, and complete boldness knowing He is your righteousness; that you have nothing to fear?

Daily Word

He who sits in the heavens laughs; the Lord holds them in derision. Then he will speak to them in his fury, saying, “As for me, I have set my King on Zion, my holy hill.” Psalm 2:4-6 Since the Lord is not dismayed, neither do his people need to be, God laughs at the rebels and declares his firm purpose to establish the throne of David as he has promised. The Lord counters the plotting of the kings by pointing to the establishment of His messianic King, prefigured in the temporal monarchy of Jerusalem. Again, it doesn’t matter who man appoints to govern at any level…God is, and has always been in control. As children of God we must look towards the future of a worldwide rule from the house of David calls for a ruler who is more than a mere man!

Daily Word

Why do the nations rage and the people plot in vain? The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the Lord and against his anointed, saying, “Let us burst their bonds apart and cast away their cords from us.” Psalm 2:1-2. This is a perfect reminder that it we are to trust in God alone when it comes to government. We should not be surprised at those things which man does as he is only following his nature. Be reminded that no matter how things may appear on the outside…God is ALWAYS in control.

Daily Word

Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous; for the Lord knows the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish. Psalm 1:5-6. The two ways of life (the Lord knows the way) are determined by one’s relation to the Lord. The ideal of righteousness is fulfilled in Jesus Christ. What does your relation to the Lord determine about you right now?

Daily Word

He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers. The wicked are not so, but are like chaff that the wind drives away. Psalm 1:3-4. As Joseph prospered in Egypt, so will the righteous man. He is compared to a luxuriant tree, ever blooming because water is near. The contrast is strong. The wicked are compared to dead and rootless plants. A puff of wind carries them away. What does it mean to be prosperous in your eyes? Is it a Spiritual view or a worldly view? One who is rooted and planted in His Word remains strong and is prosperous. However, without His Word actively working in and through your life you will ultimately wither and die…That path is easley recognized as when the trials and tribulations that life brings comes their way…they are driven about like chaff in the wind!

Weekend Quote (Sun)

God does not communicate things to us so much as He just is Himself in us. We are the vessels, the containers, so the first work after the new birth is to cultivate the habit of receptivity. ~ Norman Grubb

Weekend Quote (Sat)

The presence of God is a fact of life. We may, by defying the purpose of God, insulate ourselves from that presence. We may, by unrepented sin, cut off the sense of God because we are clouded by a sense of guilt. We may through, no fault of our own, be unable to sense the God who is all about us. But the fact remains that He is with us all the time. ~ J.B. Phillips