I am challenged by this scripture to consider my heart’s desires and my walk with the Lord.
Better is one day in the courts of the Lord, than a thousand days anywhere else. I have always wanted to travel. I enjoy looking at pictures of tropical paradises, and green rolling hills with countryside castles, and long to visit them all. But this Psalm challenges me to consider how much more incredible it would be - it will be - to spend just one day in the presence of the Lord. Yes, God has created many awe-inspiring places on earth, but as gorgeous as they are, their beauty, mystery, and tranquility are only a minuscule fraction of what it will be like to be home and in the presence of God. And on the days when life seems dull, I praise God that spending time with Him in prayer and in His Word, my awe of who He is and what he has done and continues to do, allows me to feel that I am, in a sense, experiencing what is like to be in his courts, giving him thanks and praise, no matter what my earthly location may be. I am also challenged and encouraged by the picture of who God is: “a sun and shield”. He gives light and life and is a protector. Not just our creator and king, checking in on us occasionally, God is our protector! I picture God wanting me to join him when my time on earth is over. And that if my walk is blameless, he will not withhold anything good. Thank you, Jesus, for reconciling me to God, that I am welcomed into your Kingdom, and for all the blessings you long to pour out onto those who call upon your name! Judith 3 Month Reading Plan - Psalms 84-85
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This Psalm is a national Psalm of lament. Lament against the many nations that are out to destroy the Chosen people of God. When we read this Psalm, we could see this as a justification Psalm for God to avenge those who seek, plot, and carry out harm to followers of God. If we honestly look to those around in our lives, we can see those who are in the same position of the people in this Psalm. We ask, as the Psalmist did to God, not to keep quiet to those people. Not in a rebuking voice but a voice of who He is. God is powerful, He is the God of the Most High.
As we read this Psalm, we must stop for a moment and ask ourselves this question. Are there times in our lives where we have our life out of order towards God? Can we be described as people who are seeking to destroy the Name of the Lord by our actions, thoughts, and deeds. Do we examine our lives so that these words given about the people are not words about us? It should be our cry as people of God that our life is focused bringing honor and glory to God. The Psalmist asks God to shame the people so that they may come to see the greatness of God. It should be our prayer as we pray for those who are apposed to the Gospel, that the Gospel will bring about a change in their lives. We should pray that those who are opposed to God will one day declare, as the psalmist does, “That they may know that you alone, whose name is the Lord, are the Most High over all the earth.” (vs 18) Pastor Paris 3 Month Reading Plan - Psalms 82-83 Psalm 82. A Psalm lamenting the abuse of God given authority, specifically towards people unable to defend themselves. Sound familiar in today’s world? In your life? Yet in this Psalm the perpetrators are not human beings but instead spiritual beings (little ‘g’ gods). Like Adam and Eve, created to bear God’s image and rule on his behalf, these gods were to likewise rule over nations given to them (Deut. 32:8). Yet enter sin stage left and its destructive mastery turning its slaves inward.
God confronts, for he can never ignore, evil injustice. His character is at stake! (82:1-2) Standing amid the council of these spiritual beings, judgement is cast. Our heavenly Father’s heart reveals the demand for justice toward the weak and fatherless, wants the rights of the afflicted and destitute upheld, and calls for the rescue of the weak and needy (82:3-4). This is God’s call for all of us, whether on earth or in heaven (the spiritual ‘world’). What is our response to this? First, we battle more than we see. For us who believe God literally took on flesh, on this earth, we perhaps minimize the spiritual reality around us. As we are afraid of what we do not know, it is understandable, but when the Bible reveals this reality to us, we listen! What can make a difference against an enemy unseen? Prayer. In prayer, we take arms. We battle against the powers of darkness for the souls of God’s image bearers. But we battle by prayer against the invisible enemy. Second, let us not dismiss the world so rationally (often we mourn without a ‘why’, nor would any ‘why’ answer satisfy us in pain). The ‘causes’ behind suffering in Psalm 82 are spiritually initiated with evil intent. This spiritual sin can be hidden in a brand-new school, a lush farm in the valley, among the poorest of families or in the most powerful governments. Yet God will not turn a blind eye and he kindly reveals this spiritual world unknown to us except through his word. Let us pray desperately trusting in the all-knowing God, as we battle against things hidden. Pastor Josh 3 Month Reading Plan - Psalms 80-81 Jim, listen to me! Don’t be stubborn and follow your own way. When you read My Word ask, “What are you saying to me, Jesus?” Then listen to Me as I speak to you in your spirit. If I don’t speak to you, could it be because there is sin in your life that you are hiding or refusing to deal with before Me? If there is sin in your life, I have called you to repent and turn from it and turn to Me in total surrender, only then will I speak to you. As you tune your spiritual ears to listen to Me then you will trust Me and obey Me and thank Me with joyful praise. LISTEN-TRUST-OBEY-PRAISE – for there is no other way to live happy in Me!
If you don’t listen to Me, I will discipline you as a father corrects his child because he loves him and desires to bring him back into relationship with him. So, I chasten you because I unconditionally love you and have your best interest at heart – YOUR VERY BEST! LISTEN TO ME! It makes My heart leap for joy, for I long to share the secrets of My heart with you! My heart’s desire is to develop an intimate personal relationship with you based on My unconditional love for you. Be still and know that I am God. Praise My Name forever. Amen Jim 3 Month Reading Plan - Psalm 79 Sunday Morning Worship Service.
Join us for worship and the sermon. Please read the Psalm in preparation. Pastor Paris 3 Month Reading Plan - Psalm 78:23-72 JuThe Psalmist’s plea increases with intensity. He begins with “Restore us O God”, “Restore us O God Almighty”, “Restore us O Lord God Almighty”. How often, when praying for something, do our pleas and cries to God become more intense?
The writer does not forget what God promised and what God did in the past. God made a people unto him, and brought them, the “vine”, out of Egypt, which was a massive feat. God provided so that Israel could take root and become a mighty and blessed nation. But then God allowed his nation to be ripped and torn apart, to crumble, and to have outside nations come in, take, and destroy. Is it true that “all good things must come to an end”? Life is filled with moments of good. But, like me, do you ever wonder, “how long will this last, before something bad happens?” Sometimes I wonder if my worry about when the good will end sets me up for disaster. I know, deep down, that God is in control, but, what if? Did my momentary lack of faith hasten the struggles that came about? My cries to God begin to deepen, from “Dear heavenly Father” to “O God, are you there?”, “Lord, do you hear me?”, “Why God, is this happening?”. As the Psalmist does, I can remember and speak to God of his promises and the amazing, redeeming works he has done. I can recall the good that has taken place and know in faith that God is more concerned about the condition of my heart, and my hope, faith, and trust in Him, than he is about my comfort here on earth. Thank you, Lord, for hearing my cries when I am full of bitter pain and uncertainty. I know you are always at work! Judith 3 Month Reading Plan - Psalm 78:1-22 GOD’S GLORY
“How long, O Lord?” The Psalmist begins this Psalm with a cry to God. He is lamenting over the destruction of God’s Holy City in 586 BC. All that he stands for, the devastation he sees in the streets of Jerusalem, beckons him to call and cry out to God. He is faced with an insurmountable grief in his life that in fact has weakened his own spirit. (vs 8). Sitting in a state what many today would describe as depression; he calls out to God. “How long, O lord?” In his longings, the Psalmist is once again reminded of the Glory of God. One of the many attributes of God. He calls out to God to have that Glory once again shine forth. He pleads for forgiveness of sin on behalf of the people as this stops God’s Glory. He pleads for God’s deliverance to come to the people for this will reveal to the nations the Glory of God. He asks God to preserve His people for the coming time when God’s Glory will bring about judgement and eternal life. In the end, the Psalmist once again reminds us that we need to have God’s praise always on our lips. “Give thanks to you forever; from generation to generation, we will recount your praise.” In the end, we are reminded that “nothing is more important than God’s glory, and it should play a greater role in our prayers, plans, and actions.” Today, commit yourself to give praise and that God’s Glory will be revealed through your life. Pastor Paris 3 Month Reading Plan - Psalms 76-77 Psalm 78: 1-4—O my people, hear my teaching; listen to the words of my mouth. I will open my mouth in parables, I will utter hidden things, things from old what we have heard and known, what our fathers have told us. We will not hide them from their children; we will tell the next generation.
As my children are now adults, one of my favourite times occurs when we have finished watching a movie or going for a walk. The mood is relaxed and one of our boys will start with “Do you remember when…?” Stories. They are important to our personal history and culture. As younger people, we may roll our eyes when grandparents start talking about the “good ol’ days”, but they are important as they will tell of the unmined gems of our past and history. Even better are God-stories which are meant to remind us of how God worked in the past and that he is the same God “yesterday, today, and tomorrow” (Hebrew 13:8). His methods may not be the same, but his character of steadfastness, mercifulness, faithfulness remain unchanged. The Psalmist encourages us not to hide the stories of our lives and how God intersects in divine ways. It is important to tell our children and our grandchildren the God-stories, the Redeemer-stories that have changed us. We begin to have a better picture of who God is as we hear how His story is woven in the fabric of our own. What are some ways to keep the stories alive?
Heather 3 Month Reading Plan - Psalms 74-75 I have led a pretty blessed life. God has given me so much kindness and undeserved favour that I often find myself in speechless thanks for his gentle hand on my life.
It wasn’t until 2012 that I came up against overwhelming discouragement and despair. It seemed like my life was falling apart in many ways, professionally, relationally in the church and personally in my ability to manage. I felt the heavy hand of adversity on me and it has forever changed me. I was not just crying out to God for deliverance but was actually crying before God in my morning devotions. There was a period of time where I would find myself lying on the floor in my morning devotional time without words to say - silent in the overwhelming depression that threatened to swallow me. This psalm was one of the psalms that I latched onto for rescue. What I loved about this psalm was my visceral connection with the psalmist. I truly felt the desperation of his cry in the first few verses - his desperation as he describes the spiritual impasse he is at. The questions in verses 7-9 were my questions. 7 “Will the Lord spurn forever, and never again be favorable? 8 Has his steadfast love ceased forever? Are his promises at an end for all time? 9 Has God forgotten to be gracious? Has he in anger shut up his compassion?” The turning point for me was the target from verse 10 and action plan in verses 11-12. It gave me a lifeline to escape the overwhelming despair. 10 And I say, “It is my grief that the right hand of the Most High has changed.” 11 I will call to mind the deeds of the LORD; I will remember your wonders of old. 12 I will meditate on all your work, and muse on your mighty deeds. I actively, and with great effort, turned the silence in my devotional time into the action plan here to reach the target of verse 10. It was clear that the circumstances were not going to change but God’s promise here was to change my grief - which was a miracle in and of itself. I started journaling and documenting all of the goodness, kindness and blessings that God lavished on me, both in the past and in the present. I then reviewed that daily. It was a grind at first and felt like just so much work and meaningless words, but this pattern changed my life. This is one of my go to strategies now, and a regular part of my devotional life. Sometimes it takes a greater focus and sometimes less, but God has faithfully “changed my grief” over and over again. Do you find yourself in that state of abject despair? Claim this target and put the action plan into motion. God is faithful and he will change your grief! Burt 3 Month Reading Plan - Psalm 73 Our mighty warrior.
In this first half of the psalm, Asaph points to God, who won the battles for his people. "The present Psalm is a most jubilant war song, a paean to the King of kings, the hymn of a theocratic nation in its divine power:' His might is greater than the greatest military force against Israel (v. 3). His strength is not found in weapons but in his word of rebuke, which defeats his enemies (v. 6). God's power is not guided by his nature (v. 4). He is "glorious in holiness, and his terrible deeds are done in justice for the defense of the weak and the deliverance of the enslaved." He continues to fight on our behalf through our mighty warrior Jesus Christ, who defeated the strongest opponent, Satan, on the cross. Having defeated the devil, we can live victoriously and tell others confidently of God's greatness (v. 1). Responding to God's victory. In this second half of the psalm, Asaph's comments now extend beyond Israel to the surrounding territories and rulers (vv. 11-12). How should they, and we, respond to battles clearly won by Almighty God? First, seeing his wrath, we should solemnly fear God (v. 7). Second, we should praise God's majestic nature, which his wrath reveals. The "most rampant evil is under the control of the Lord, and will in the end be overruled for his praise" (v. 10 ). Finally, we should live faithfully before the Lord for he has been faithful to us (vv. 11-12). "He keeps his promises, let not his people fail in theirs. He is their faithful God and deserves to have a faithful people." We do so with grateful praise and obedience to the Lord. Used by Permission “The Psalms of every day living”- David McKinley 3 Month Reading Plan - Psalm 72 |
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