March 5, 2022
MEDITATING ON GOD’S LOVE Biblical meditation is not an emptying of the mind as the Eastern religions teach. Rather, it is a focusing of the mind on God and His Word. Here, the Psalmist focused the thoughts of his mind on God’s character, namely, His “unfailing love.” We are called to meditate on God’s
February 26, 2022
HOW DO YOU HANDLE DISCOURAGEMENT? Many tend to wallow or spiral down deeper into despair when facing sadness and discouragement. But David knew how to “encourage himself in the Lord” (1 Sam. 30:6). This psalm illustrates his method. When he felt down or out of sorts, he didn’t just drag on, he stopped and
February 14, 2022
A VALENTINE FOR THE BROKENHEARTED Not everyone will receive a Valentine today. Some have a heart still hurting from a broken relationship. Other hearts have slowly been crushed by a lifetime of loneliness. Yet, everyone who comes to the Lord with a contrite and humble spirit, admitting their broken hearts, will experience His presence and
February 3, 2022
THE ONE WHO SPEAKS TO OUR HEARTS It is the Spirit of the Lord that pursues us. He whispers to our hearts to “come and talk” with Him. He is the one who first seeks us, so that now our hearts seek Him in return. Those who don’t know the Lord may seek His
January 29, 2022
DO YOU SEE YOURSELF AS OWNER OR STEWARD? This Davidic psalm begins with an announcement of God’s ownership of everything and everyone. Believing that God is owner and that we are stewards, servants of God caring for His creation, is a life-changing principle. Many Christians claim to believe this, yet they behave as if their
January 26, 2022
OUR SAVIOR PIERCED FOR US This Davidic psalm began with the question, “My God, my God, why have You forsaken me?” (Psa. 22:1). These are the very words Jesus cried out from the cross. David wrote this psalm with his own feeling, yet I wonder how much awareness he had that he was describing the
January 16, 2022 | Psalm 130:1-6 |
Last week, we learned how to be sure that we belong to this movement. This week, we’re going to focus on one of the chief behaviors, or spiritual disciplines, of those who are part of Christ’s disciple-making movement. What is this behavior or practice? It’s the habit of daily seeking to hear from God through prayer and through reading His Word.
I have heard some Christians say, “Why does God speak to others but not to me?” Some actually don’t think they are worthy for God to speak to them. Or they question whether God still speaks today. What do you believe? Do want to hear God speak to you? In the 130th Psalm, the psalmist described how he sought to hear from the Lord. We can hear from the Lord.
December 18, 2021
LONGING FOR HOME AT CHRISTMAS Jerusalem had been overthrown by the Babylonians and its citizens had been taken captive. As they were force marched from Judea to Babylon, they were allowed to rest for a while by one of its rivers. Yet though their bodies were in Babylon, their hearts remained in Zion. And when
December 6, 2021
IMMANUEL, GOD WITH US, SURROUNDING US Psalm 125 is one of the 15 “psalms of ascent,” written to prepare the hearts of worshipers as they climbed up to the Temple Mount in Jerusalem. Entourages of pilgrims like the one that traveled from Nazareth with young, 12-year-old Jesus, would have sung these songs as they came
November 28, 2021
IS IT TIME FOR THE LORD TO ACT? The psalmist saw the people of the world becoming more and more rebellious, ignoring the law of God. He called on the Lord to take action. This call was made especially acute by the fact that Psalm 119 was written as an ode to God’s Word. Usually