Praise be to the Lord, to God our Savior, who daily bears our burdens.

Psalm 68

Praise be to the Lord, to God our Savior, who daily bears our burdens. v19

As a believer, a core spiritual discipline is study of God's Word so that we can understand what it says in an absolute sense (head understanding) and also what God is saying to us individually (heart understanding).  I have for a long time not understood the full extent of the requirements to develop and have a personal relationship with Jesus.  The Bible (God himself - see John 1) is explicit that we love the Lord with all of heart, soul, mind and strength (Exodus 20, Matthew 22).  To express this we should delight in the law of the Lord (Psalm 1) and to develop a hunger and thirst for righteousness (Matthew 5).  In my view, the Bible is not explicit that we are to daily study God's word but it is implied through various scriptures. 

Then he said to them all: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me. Luke 9:23

Give us each day our daily bread. Luke 11:3

Blessed are those who listen to me, watching daily at my doors[.] Proverbs 8:34

See to it, brothers and sisters, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God. But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called “Today,” so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness. Hebrews 12:12-13

Core to answering this question is of course our heart condition - if we truly love the Lord with all of our heart, soul, mind and strength, then we should seek Him as much as possible - daily, but likely more often than this.

My Prayer: Lord, You ARE our daily bread, I depend on You and apart from You I can do no good thing.  I desperately need You in my life.  I know You are with me until the end of the age.  Thank You Jesus.  I am not deserving of Your love.  I am broken - I am selfish, lazy, I am impatient, and I worry too often.  Please forgive me Jesus!  Help me overcome my sin and turn towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, mind and strength. Help me love others as You do.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give me strength.  Give Lisa strength.  Please heal and cure her of her cancer and the side effects from chemo.  Help me lead and serve Lisa, Zach, and Dustin.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.

A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows, is God in his holy dwelling. God sets the lonely in families, he leads out the prisoners with singing; but the rebellious live in a sun-scorched land.

Psalm 68

A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows, is God in his holy dwelling.  God sets the lonely in families, he leads out the prisoners with singing; but the rebellious live in a sun-scorched land. v5-6

God is to us who we need and seek - "our Father in heaven".  He is this to all His children regardless of our circumstances and He demands that we focus on Him first, even when we our earthly circumstances deceive us into thinking that our earthly families are more important.

In Matthew 8, Jesus responds to a disciple that sought to attend to his family instead of focusing on God: 

Another disciple said to him, “Lord, first let me go and bury my father.”  But Jesus told him, “Follow me, and let the dead bury their own dead.” Matthew 8:21-22

The primacy of our relationship with Jesus vs our earthly relationships is supported elsewhere in scripture:

Then Jesus’ mother and brothers arrived. Standing outside, they sent someone in to call him.  A crowd was sitting around him, and they told him, “Your mother and brothers are outside looking for you.” 

“Who are my mother and my brothers?” he asked.

Here are my mother and my brothers! Whoever does God’s will is my brother and sister and mother.” Mark 3:31-35

My Prayer: Lord, You alone are my Heavenly Father - able to do all things, knowing of all things, existing before time began and after time ends, You are in all things and hold all things together, You are my all in all.  I am deeply grateful for Your abounding love and grace and for Your son Jesus.  Thank You for sending Your Son...for me.  I am not worth such a gift...completely undeserving.  I worry far too much, and I lack patience, compassion, and kindness for others.  Please forgive me Jesus!  Help me overcome such sin and turn towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, mind and strength.  Help me love others as You do.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give me strength.  Give Lisa strength.  Please heal and cure her of her cancer and the side effects from chemo.  Help me lead and serve Lisa, Zach and Dustin...and serve You.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day. 

May the nations be glad and sing for joy, for you rule the peoples with equity.

Psalm 67

May the nations be glad and sing for joy, for you rule the peoples with equity. v4

We should be glad and praise God for how He is a just God.  First of all, He knows everything and nothing is hidden from Him.  His justice is based not just on what we have done but on our heart condition - what motivates us and where our idols are.

For there is nothing hidden that will not be disclosed, and nothing concealed that will not be known or brought out into the open. Luke 8:17

Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. The earth and the heavens fled from his presence, and there was no place for them.  And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books. The sea gave up the dead that were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them, and each person was judged according to what they had done. Revelation 2:11-13

God is not only just but he is full of patience, mercy, compassion, etc.  Throughout scripture, God has not only forgiven sin but redeemed it for our good and His glory: Jacob, Joseph and His brothers, Moses, David, Peter, Paul, etc.  God sent his one and only son to die in our place so that we could be forgiven and have eternal life (John 3:16).  I have seen such patience, mercy, and compassion in my own life.  Praise God indeed.

My Prayer: Lord You are an awesome God, perfect in all ways, just and merciful and so much more...all at once.  You are the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords.  I am grateful that You are in my life and that You came to rescue me, knowing everything about me.  Thank You Jesus!  Yet I am not worth such an effort.  I continue to worry, be impatient, etc. - please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from such sin and turn towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, mind and strength.  Help me love others as You do.  Give me strength.  Give Lisa strength.  Please heal and cure her of her cancer and the side effects from chemo.  Help me lead and serve Lisa, Zach and Dustin...and serve You.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message today and every day.

You let people ride over our heads; we went through fire and water, but you brought us to a place of abundance.

Psalm 66

You let people ride over our heads; we went through fire and water, but you brought us to a place of abundance. v12

God either allows or creates circumstances in our lives - good or bad.  God is in control.  Yes, we have free will but nothing is hidden from God and there are consequences for our sin.  Yet, "in all things God works for the good of those who love him (Romans 8:28)".

He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. Colossians 1:17

For there is nothing hidden that will not be disclosed, and nothing concealed that will not be known or brought out into the open. Luke 8:17

We must see all of our circumstances as for God's glory and our good.

Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 

My Prayer:  Lord, You are an awesome God, full of love and compassion for all of Your children...all of the time.  You create goodness and abundance in our lives daily...throughout the day and we are often not paying attention or distracted by the world.  You tell us not to conform to the patterns of this world yet too often we do.  Forgive me Jesus for falling prey to such temptations.  I worry, I am impatient, I get angry, I am full of pride and arrogance....help me turn from such sin and turn towards You Jesus.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, mind and strength.  Help me love others as You do.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give me strength.  Give Lisa strength.  Please heal and cure Lisa, Zach and Dustin and help me serve You.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.

The whole earth is filled with awe at your wonders; where morning dawns, where evening fades, you call forth songs of joy.

Psalm 65

The whole earth is filled with awe at your wonders; where morning dawns, where evening fades, you call forth songs of joy. v8

God's creation spans beyond both the beginning and the end - with this in mind, all the more reason for us to marvel at the glimmer of God's glory that exists as earth.  There isn't anything that exists that is not part of God.

Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows. James 1:17

For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together.  And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy. Colossians 1:16-18

We must therefore worship God with awe and reverence and be thankful that He adopts us as His children.  He does not need us but He loves us all the same.  He of course suffered and died for us...even though He did not deserve it.  We deserved His death, but He willingly died in our place.  He not only laid down His life for us, but He continues to be a living and active God in our life...through the Holy Spirit and His word - which is alive and active (Hebrews 4:12).

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are the Lord of Lords, King of Kings, and Name Above All Names...You are worthy of our full attention and worship.  You not only created all things, You are in all things and You hold all things together...including my life.  You do so for Your glory and my good.  I am in awe of who You are and how much You love me...even though I cannot even begin to fathom the breadth and depth of Your love for me.  Thank You Jesus!  I am deeply grateful for You as my personal Lord and Savior.  I am not worth such a God.  I worry, I am impatient, and I continue to be harsh with my thoughts and words - please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from such sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, mind and strength.  Help me love others as You do.  Give me strength.  Give Lisa strength. Please heal and cure Lisa of her cancer and the side effects from chemo.  Help me lead and serve Lisa, Zach, and Dustin...and serve You.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message today and every day.

When we were overwhelmed by sins, you forgave our transgressions.

Psalm 65

When we were overwhelmed by sins, you forgave our transgressions. v3

There have been times when I have been overwhelmed by my sins.  Acknowledging our need for God not just once but every day is critical in our relationship with Jesus.

Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Matthew 5:3

We must also be overwhelmed by who Jesus is, what He has done for us, and what He continues to do for us.

And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. Ephesians 3:17-19

 

How do you think we will be when "we are filled to the measure of all the fullness of God"?  We of course are going to be on fire for the Lord, loving and serving Him as He intends for us.  We should strive to be overwhelmed by the fullness of God.

My Prayer: Lord, You love me beyond what I can imagine or describe in words.  I cannot even begin to think about the love that nailed You to the cross.  I am not worth such love...I am broken.  Thank You Jesus for Your love, all that You have done, all that You are and You provide for all of my needs - apart from You I can do nothing!  Forgive me for my worry and lack of action to serve You as You desire for me.  Help me overcome my sin and inaction.  Help me turn from such sin and turn towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, mind and strength.  Help me love others as You do.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give me strength.  Give Lisa strength.  Please heal and cure her of her cancer.  Help me lead and serve Lisa, Zach, and Dustin...and serve You.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.

I have seen you in the sanctuary and beheld your power and your glory.

Psalm 63

I have seen you in the sanctuary and beheld your power and your glory. v2

As David has, I HAVE seen God's hand in my life, as He demonstrates a glimpse of His power and glory.  As I have drawn near to God He has drawn near to me (James 4:8) and I have felt the glow of His light...I continue to feel the glow of His light (Psalm 119:105).  Praise and worship is an essential part of our daily life with God.  

Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise—the fruit of lips that openly profess his name. Hebrews 13:15

Lord, you are my God; I will exalt you and praise your name, for in perfect faithfulness you have done wonderful things, things planned long ago. Isaiah 25:1

As part of my praise, I am deeply grateful for how God sustains me and all things - see also here.

My Prayer: Lord, You are a great God who has done wonderful things in the world and in my life, and in the life of those around me.  You are a great God who knows no equal.  You are the Lord of Lords and worthy of my praise.  I am deeply grateful for the gift of Jesus Christ and for his blood shed for me.  I am not worth such a gift as my worry, impatience, etc. continue - please forgive me Jesus.  Help me overcome and turn from my sin and turn towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, mind and strength.  Help me love others as You do.  Give me strength.  Give Lisa strength.  Please heal and cure Lisa of her cancer and the side effects from chemo.  Help me lead and serve Lisa, Zach and Dustin...and serve You.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.

You, God, are my God, earnestly I seek you; I thirst for you, my whole being longs for you, in a dry and parched land where there is no water.

Psalm 63

You, God, are my God, earnestly I seek you; I thirst for you, my whole being longs for you, in a dry and parched land where there is no water. v1

We seek from the world what we cannot get - fruit of the spirit, eternal life, forgiveness, life in the full, etc.  Just as Jesus poured out His blood for us, we should pour out our lives for Him.

We need to seek Him daily...to live for Him.  We exist to glorify Him.  Yet for us to glorify Him we must seek Him.

Come near to God and he will come near to you. James 4:8

[The people] are the shoot I have planted,

the work of my hands,

for the display of my splendor.  Isaiah 60:21

 

My Prayer: Lord, in this moment, my whole being DOES long for You...I do thirst for You and I hunger for You.  I don't want to conform to the pattern of this world, instead I want to be transformed.  Renew my heart and mind...I am broken.  I continue to worry and stress about life.  Please forgive me.  I am so thankful that You poured out Your blood for me...You are the greatest gift of all time.  I need You.  Take me and make me Yours in all ways.  I desire to serve and live for You.  Help me overcome my sin and turn towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, mind and strength.  Help me love others as You do.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give me strength.  Give Lisa strength.  Please heal and cure her of her cancer and the side effects from chemo.  Help me lead and serve Lisa, Zach and Dustin...and serve You. Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.

You reward everyone according to what they have done.

Psalm 62

You reward everyone according to what they have done. v12

This is indeed true - that God is our judge and He will reward everyone according to what we have done.  To be clear, there are at least four key points here: (1) we are to live according to what God has commanded of us, (2) God rewards us, (3) God knows our hearts and false motives won't fly with Him, (4) it is through grace alone that we are saved and blessed - nothing we do assures us of our salvation and God alone blesses us according to His will and plan.

For there is nothing hidden that will not be disclosed, and nothing concealed that will not be known or brought out into the open. Luke 8:17

For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast. Ephesians 2:8-9

 

Straightforward, yet difficult. ; )

 

Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it. Matthew 7:13-14

 

My Prayer:  Lord, You are great and You alone are God...able to judge what is in my heart and You are fair, full of mercy, compassion and patience.  I am not deserving of such a God but You came for me and adopted me anyway.  Thank You Jesus!  Please forgive me for my continued worry.  Help me overcome such sin and turn towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, mind and strength.  Help me love others as You do.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give me strength.  Give Lisa strength.  Please heal and cure her of her cancer and the side effects from chemo.  Help me lead and serve Lisa, Zach and Dustin...and serve You.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message today and every day.

Trust in him at all times, you people; pour out your hearts to him, for God is our refuge.

Psalm 62

Trust in him at all times, you people; pour out your hearts to him, for God is our refuge. v8

As a follow up to yesterday's post, we are encouraged to seek God as our refuge.  Today we read that as a means to seek God as our refuge, we are to "pour out [our] hearts to Him".  Prayer is powerful and effective.

Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective. James 5:16

Prayer is an important spiritual discipline of all believers - for more scriptural references see here.

Speaking for myself, I know I can pray more often and more fervently.

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are an awesome God - You Reign!  You created all things, You are in all things, and You hold all things together.  You are WAY better at being in control than I am - my control is a total illusion!  I am so grateful for how You reign because You bless me, forgive me, and redeem my sin for my good and Your glory - thank You Jesus!  I am not deserving of such mercy, grace and blessing...I continue to worry, get angry, and be impatient with others.  Please forgive me and help me turn from such sin towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, mind and strength.  Help me love others as You do.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give me strength. Give Lisa strength.  Please heal and cure her of her cancer and the side effects from chemo.  Help me lead and serve Lisa, Zach and Dustin...and serve You.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.

Truly my soul finds rest in God; my salvation comes from him. Truly he is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress, I will never be shaken.

Psalm 62

Truly my soul finds rest in God; my salvation comes from him. Truly he is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress, I will never be shaken. v1-2

In this world, we find rest and refuge in many places - TV, books, pornography, sex, others, pets, alcohol, drugs, etc.  Rarely do we find rest in our Heavenly Father.  When we take the time to get to know Him, to study His word (which is God - see John 1) and to be in prayer with Him, we do experience the rest, salvation, and refuge to which David refers.  

This is our challenge - we are to seek out God more than anything else - above anything else in this world.

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.  Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” Matthew 11:28-30

 

See also Psalm 23.

 

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are my rest and my peace, my salvation, my rock and my fortress.  I know that with and through You I will never be shaken.  Yet their are times when I see my salvation elsewhere...in earthly pursuits, in myself, etc.  Forgive me Jesus!  Help me overcome and turn from my sin and turn towards You instead.  You have blessed beyond what I deserve and You deserve my full attention because You are great, able, and You seek me...You love me.  Thank You Jesus.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, mind and strength.  Help me love others as You do.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give me strength.  Give Lisa strength.  Please heal and cure her of her cancer and the side effects from chemo.  Help me lead and serve Lisa, Zach and Dustin...and serve You.  Help me understand, apply, and be obedient to, Your message today and every day. 

With God we will gain the victory, and he will trample down our enemies.

Psalm 60

With God we will gain the victory, and he will trample down our enemies. v12

We face enemies daily - and Satan is our number one enemy of both us and Jesus. Satan is real...very real.  Even Jesus' chosen disciples (Peter, Judas, etc.) have fallen under the influence of Satan.  We need to be aware that Satan is a very real influence and the God is our only refuge.

Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. 1 Peter 5:8

 

See also post here.

Paul provides the same warning as Peter and adds encouragement for us to seek God alone as our refuge.

 

So then, let us not be like others, who are asleep, but let us be awake and sober. For those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who get drunk, get drunk at night. But since we belong to the day, let us be sober, putting on faith and love as a breastplate, and the hope of salvation as a helmet.                       1 Thessalonians 5:6-8

 

My Prayer:  Lord, You indeed are a great God full of power and wonders...unmatched by anyone or anything, including Satan.  I know Satan exists, is on the prowl, and is the great deceiver.  Yet You are more powerful than anything as You are the Lord of Lords and the King of Kings...able to defeat sin and death.  And You are my God...You know everything about me, You adopted me and suffered and died for me.  Thank You Jesus!  I am not worth such a gift...the greatest gift of all time.  I worry too much.  Please forgive me Jesus.  Help me overcome and turn from such sin and turn towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, mind and strength.  Help me love others as You do. Help me grow in my faith.  Give me strength.  Give Lisa strength.  Please heal and cure her of her cancer and the side effects from chemo.  Help me lead and serve Lisa, Zach and Dustin....and serve You.  Help me understand, be obedient to, apply Your message for me today and every day.

You are my strength, I sing praise to you; you, God, are my fortress, my God on whom I can rely.

Psalm 59

You are my strength, I sing praise to you; you, God, are my fortress, my God on whom I can rely. v17

I too often rely on myself, to control my own circumstances and the circumstances of those around me...in my arrogance I feel as if I KNOW what should be done...how foolish, arrogant and prideful! See post here.

Those who trust in themselves are fools Proverbs 28:26

 

Now listen, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.” Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. Instead, you ought to say, “If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that.” As it is, you boast in your arrogant schemes. All such boasting is evil. If anyone, then, knows the good they ought to do and doesn’t do it, it is sin for them.  James 4:13-17

 

Matthew gets to the root of the matter - worry:

 

Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life? Matthew 6:25-27

 

I must rely on God alone who is my fortress and in whom I can ALWAYS rely.

 

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are my rock and my fortress and I know I can always rely on You...You do not change like the shifting shadows (James 1:17-18).  Thank You Jesus!  I am not worth such a God as I worry too much.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from such sin.  Help me love and trust You with all of my heart, soul, mind and strength.  Help me love others as You do.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give me strength. Give Lisa strength.  Please heal and cure Lisa of her cancer and the side effects from chemo.  Help me lead and serve Lisa, Zach, and Dustin...and serve You.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.

Then people will say, “Surely the righteous still are rewarded; surely there is a God who judges the earth.”

Psalm 58

Then people will say, “Surely the righteous still are rewarded; surely there is a God who judges the earth.” v11

Just as David cries out for justice and is comforted in knowing that God is just, we too should feel comforted and at peace that all will be made perfect in the end.  Our focus should not be in worry, envy, jealously, anger, etc. at this world but instead on God Himself, the author of life and of our faith.  He is just. For believers there is hope in this justice in that we are spared...and that we will live eternity in Heaven with God our Father.

He said to me: “It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. To the thirsty I will give water without cost from the spring of the water of life. Those who are victorious will inherit all this, and I will be their God and they will be my children. But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars—they will be consigned to the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death.”  Revelation 21:6-8

My Prayer: Lord, You are both just and merciful...and full of love, power, knowledge, wisdom, etc.  You ARE my all in all.  Apart from You I can nothing and certainly no good thing.  I must abide in You for my sustenance.  Thank You for the blessing of every day.  I need You desperately in my life because I am broken.  I continue to worry and act out of this worry.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome such sin and turn towards You. Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, mind and strength.  Help me love others as You do.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give me strength. Give Lisa strength.  Please heal and cure Lisa of her cancer and the side effects from chemo.  Help me lead and serve Lisa, Zach, and Dustin...and serve You.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message today and every day.

For great is your love, reaching to the heavens; your faithfulness reaches to the skies.

Psalm 57

For great is your love, reaching to the heavens; your faithfulness reaches to the skies. v10

God's love is deep and wide - and human understanding cannot fathom and fully appreciate the magnitude of God's love.

And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. Ephesians 3:17-19

 

God loves me so much that He drank from the same cup of God's fury that God reserves for Babylon and her inhabitants in Revelation 16:19.

 

God willingly laid down His life for me...broken and sinful.  The greatest gift of all time.

 

My Prayer: Lord, You ARE the greatest gift of all time.  I am not worth such a gift.  I am broken and sinful.  I continue to be impatient and harsh with others and I worry.  Please forgive me.  Help me overcome such sin and turn towards You.  Help me love others as You love me.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give me strength.  Give Lisa strength.  Please heal and cure her of her cancer and the side effects from chemo.  Help me lead and serve Lisa, Zach and Dustin...and serve You.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message today and every day. 

In God, whose word I praise, in the Lord, whose word I praise—in God I trust and am not afraid. What can man do to me?

Psalm 56

In God, whose word I praise, in the Lord, whose word I praise—in God I trust and am not afraid.  What can man do to me? v10-11

First of all, the Word of God, the Bible - is God.

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. John 1:1

The Word of God, which we know as God Himself is alive, active, and critical to our development as children of God...which should go without saying once you know that the Word of God IS God.
 

All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness...2 Timothy 3:16

For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. Hebrews 4:12

My Prayer: Lord, You are an awesome God and I love spending time with You through Your Word and in prayer.  You appear to me and provide a rest and peace that I am unable to find anywhere else.  Thank You Jesus.  Yet there are many times when I feel anxious and stressed.  Please forgive me for my worry and help me overcome and turn from such sin.  Help me turn towards You instead.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, mind and strength.  Help me love others as You do.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give me strength.  Give Lisa strength.  Please heal her from her cancer and the side effects from chemo.  Help me lead and serve Lisa, Zach and Dustin....and serve You.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message today and every day.

Cast your cares on the Lord and he will sustain you; he will never let the righteous be shaken.

Psalm 55

Cast your cares on the Lord and he will sustain you; he will never let the righteous be shaken. v22

As a follow up to yesterday's post, I am once again encourage to be still and to "cast [my] cares on the Lord".  It is in these situations where I must remind myself not to act out of anxiety, of my own design (vs God's) to do something...to say something...something.  It is typical during these times when I hurt someone with what I do or say, or my action otherwise backfires.

I must cast my cares on the Lord.  I must be still.

The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still. Exodus 14:14

See also verses here. 

My Prayer: Lord, You are a great God, one who knows everything about me, yet loves me anyway...who came after me, sought me, suffered and died for me.  You sustain and hold together all things...You are in all things.  You don't need me...I am broken.  Yet You do.  Thank You Jesus!  Please forgive me for my worry.  Please help me overcome and turn from my sin and turn towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, mind and strength.  Help me love others as You do.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give me strength.  Give Lisa strength.  Please heal and cure Lisa of her cancer and the side effects from chemo.  Help me lead and serve Lisa, Zach and Dustin...and serve You.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day. 

Surely God is my help; the Lord is the one who sustains me.

Psalm 54

Surely God is my help; the Lord is the one who sustains me. v4

Life, from an earthly sense, does not slow down and there are many days when it seems chaotic, stressful, etc.  It is in these moments when God is there to slow us down...to help us recognize that life should revolve around Him...after all He is the giver and sustainer of life and all things.

 The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together.  Colossians 1:15-17

My Prayer: Lord, You DO hold all things together. Apart from You I can do nothing.  Yet here I am a sinner - worrying about what I should have done...what I can do...and this worry is sinful!  I am grateful for Your patience, mercy, compassion, gentleness, etc. I am not worthy of such love - please forgive me for my worry.  Help me overcome and turn from my worry and turn towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, mind and strength.  Help me love others as You do.  Help me grow in my faith. Give me strength.  Give Lisa strength.  Please heal and cure her of her cancer and the side effects from chemo.  Help me lead and serve Lisa, Zach and Dustin.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.

For what you have done I will always praise you in the presence of your faithful people.

Psalm 52

For what you have done I will always praise you in the presence of your faithful people. v9

In the quiet of the morning, I am ever more aware of God's greatness, His creation, His blessings, etc.  God has done more than I can ever imagine and He is always working in my life, for He is a jealous God...jealous FOR me. 

And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. Ephesians 3:17-19

 

For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.  Hebrews 4:13

Praise and worship of God is the right and proper response to who God is, what He has done and what He will continue to do.
 

Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe, for our “God is a consuming fire.”  Hebrews 12:28-29

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are an awesome God full of love and compassion for me...even though I have sinned and continue to sin....all before Your very eyes. You are so full of mercy for me and gentleness, etc.  Thank You Jesus...I am not deserving of such love.  I don't want to worry, or be impatient or angry but I often do and am these things.  Please forgive me and help me overcome my sin and help me turn towards You instead.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, mind and strength.  Help me love others as You do.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give me strength. Give Lisa strength.  Please heal and cure Lisa of her cancer and the side effects from chemo.  Help me lead and serve Lisa, Zach, and Dustin...and serve You.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.

My sacrifice, O God, is a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart you, God, will not despise.

Psalm 51

My sacrifice, O God, is a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart you, God, will not despise. v17

As I have posted here with regards to Psalm 50, and also in Psalm 51:16, empty actions of sacrifice are meaningless to You. You desire us...are cares, concerns, worries, praises, etc.  You desire OUR LIVES to be a living sacrifice:

Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. Romans 12:1

A living sacrifice implies that through our daily actions and in the course of our lives we demonstrate giving something up in our pursuit of God.  We are not to conform to the patterns of this world (Romans 12:2 - this also provides guidance about HOW to do this). 

 Then he said to them all: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me. For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will save it. Luke 9:23-24

My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are an awesome God full of love, compassion, mercy, gentleness, patience, etc. and You chose me, knowing everything about me, including my sin.  You came for me, and suffered greatly and died for me.  You did not have to but You willing laid down Your life for me so that I could have life and in the full.  Thank You Jesus for such a gift of grace and mercy.  I deserved Your death but You stepped in front of my and interceded on my behalf.  Thank You Jesus!  I am not worth such a gift because my worry continues.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me turn from and overcome such sin and turn towards You instead.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, mind and strength.  Help me love others as You do.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give me strength.  Give Lisa strength.  Please heal and cure her of her cancer and the side effects from chemo.  Help me lead and serve Lisa, Zach and Dustin...and serve You.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.


 

Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me. Then I will teach transgressors your ways, so that sinners will turn back to you.

Psalm 51

Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me. Then I will teach transgressors your ways, so that sinners will turn back to you. v12-13

We all sin and fall short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23).  Yet God is so great that He is not only able to forgive us, but He is able to redeem our sin for something much more valuable - His glory!  Incredible.  God want us to use the grace, mercy, patience, compassion, etc. He pours out on us by helping others with similar sin.

Confess our sins and use our words to build one another up (not to tear others down).

Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective. James 5:16

 

 Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. Ephesians 4:29

 

My Prayer: Lord You are an awesome God - You are able to use broken people such as myself for Your glory and others' good.  You bless me by allowing me to bless others.  Thank You Jesus for blessing me in this way. I am not worth the love and blessing You pour out on me because I worry and I often fail to encourage others with my words.  Please forgive me Jesus and help me turn from such sin and towards You.  Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, mind and strength.  Help me love others as You do.  Help me grow in my faith.  Give me strength.  Give Lisa strength.  Please heal and cure her of her cancer and the side effects from chemo.  Help me lead and serve Lisa, Zach and Dustin, and serve You.  Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.