Psalm 91

Psalm 91

He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say to the Lord, "my refuge and my fortress, my God in whom I trust!" For it is He who delivers you from the snare of the trapper and from the deadly pestilence. He will cover you with His pinions, and under His wings you may seek refuge; His faithfulness is a shield and bulwark.

You will not be afraid of the terror by night, or the arrow that flies by day; of the pestilence that stalks in darkness, or the destruction that lays waste at noon. A thousand may fall at your side and ten thousand at your right hand, but it shall not approach you. You will only look on with your eyes and see the recompense of the wicked, for you have made the Lord, my refuge, even the Most High, your dwelling place. No evil will befall you, nor will any plague come near your tent.

For He will give His angels charge concerning you, to guard you in all your ways. They will bear you up in their hands, that you do not strike your foot against a stone. You will tread upon the lion and the cobra, the young lion and the serpent you will trample down.

Because he has loved me, therefore I will deliver him; I will set him securely on high, because he has known My name. "He will call upon me, and I will be with him in trouble; I will rescue him and honor him. With a long life I will satisfy him and let him see My salvation."

My thoughts on Psalm 34

I enjoy reading Psalm 34, its one of my favorites.

In verse 4 it says:"I sought the Lord, and He answered me, and delivered me from all my fears". Verse 6 thru 10 say: "This poor man cried, and the Lord heard him and saved him out of all his troubles. The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear Him, and rescues them. O taste and see that the Lord is good; how blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him! O fear the Lord, you His saints; for to those who fear Him there is no want. The young lions do lack and suffer hunger; but they who seek the Lord shall not be in want of any good thing". Then verses 15 thru 22 go on to say: "The eyes of the Lord are toward the righteous and His ears are open to their cry. The face of the Lord is against evildoers, to cut off the memory of them from the earth. The righteous cry, and the Lord hears and delivers them out of all their troubles. The Lord is near to the broken hearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit. Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivers him out of them all. He keeps all his bones, not one of them is broken. Evil shall slay the wicked, and those who hate the righteous will be condemned. The Lord redeems the soul of His servants, and none of those who take refuge in Him will be condemned".

These words and promises from the Lord help me to put my focus back on Him when I feel overwhelmed by the troubles of life and as I see the world become more chaotic every day. It seems from my vantage point, that almost every day there is some kind of natural disaster. Just last night, we had a line of storms come through our area that released 7 1/2 inches of rain in a 2 hour time period. The weatherman even commented that a storm like that one was a "once in a hundred year event" and its happened 3 times already this summer! Earthquakes are not even front page news anymore since they are happening so often. I also feel afraid to watch a world news program because it just reinforces the chaotic mess in the world, especially in the Middle East.

But, when I read this Psalm, I realize that I don't have to be afraid because no matter what, God will deliver me. Hard times and persecution may be on the horizon, but if I "keep my eyes on the prize" I can know that ultimately God will bring me home safe and I will live with Him forever!

What is Good?

He has told you, O man, what is good;
And ^B)">(what does the LORD require of you
But to do justice, to love kindness,
And to walk humbly with your God?

Micah 6:8

God's Everlasting Love

Romans 8:31-39 What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things? Who shall bring any charge against God's elect? It is God who justifies. Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died—more than that, who was raised—who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? As it is written,

“For your sake we are being killed all the day long;
we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.”

No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Psalm 130

¹Out of the depths I have cried to You, O LORD.
²Lord, hear my voice!
Let Your ears be attentive
To the voice of my supplications.
³If You, LORD, should mark iniquities,
O Lord, who could stand?
⁴But there is forgiveness with You,
That You may be feared.
⁵I wait for the LORD, my soul does wait,
And in His word do I hope.
⁶My soul waits for the Lord
More than the watchmen for the morning;
Indeed, more than the watchmen for the morning.
⁷O Israel, hope in the LORD;
For with the LORD there is lovingkindness,
And with Him is abundant redemption.
⁸And He will redeem Israel
From all his iniquities.

This I recall to mind, therefore I have hope. The LORD'S lovingkindnesses indeed never cease, for His compassions never fail. They are new every morning, great is your faithfulness. Lamentations 3:21-23

Nevertheless do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are recorded in heaven. Luke 10:20

Psalm 71:14-16

But as for me, I will hope continually, and will praise You yet more and more. My mouth shall tell of Your righteousness and of Your salvation all day long; for I do not know the sum of them. I will come with the mighty deeds of the Lord GOD; I will make mention of Your righteousness, Yours alone.

Now may the God who gives perseverance and encouragement grant you to be of the same mind with one another according to Christ Jesus, so that with one accord you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Romans 15:5-6

According to my earnest expectation and hope that I will not be put to shame in anything but that with all boldness, Christ will even now, as always, be exalted in my body, whether by life or by death. For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. Philippians 1:20-21

Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy SACRIFICE, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the WILL OF GOD is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect. Romans 12:1-2

Promise to Count On

For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus. Philippians 1:6

Your Redeemer

I am so thankful. I have been reading through Isaiah lately and it just blesses me every time! I see God calling Himself "your Redeemer" and showering his love and mercy and promises upon the people of Israel. He speaks so tenderly to them and yet reminds them that He is good to them because of His own choice and His own purposes. He is so personal in Isaiah. Plus, you see so many references to the future work of Jesus and it just fills my mind with the Gospel and reminds me of how/why it really is such good news. I think that in Isaiah God reveals Himself and His heart in such a real way, an understandable way. You really feel the nearness of God in this book. So today, I am going to share a passage from Isaiah that is just one of many that are so fantastic and helpful in warming my (too often) cold heart towards worship of our great God and Savior.

Isaiah 44:21-24

"Remember these things, O Jacob, And Israel, for you are My servant; I have formed you, you are My servant, O Israel, you will not be forgotten by Me. "I have wiped out your transgressions like a thick cloud And your sins like a heavy mist. Return to Me, for I have redeemed you."

Shout for joy, O heavens, for the LORD has done it! Shout joyfully, you lower parts of the earth; Break forth into a shout of joy, you mountains, O forest, and every tree in it; For the LORD has redeemed Jacob And in Israel He shows forth His glory.

Thus says the LORD, your Redeemer, and the one who formed you from the womb, "I, the LORD, am the maker of all things, Stretching out the heavens by Myself And spreading out the earth all alone,

A Blessing for 2009

Today as I read my bible I was reminded of how much/often/easily I sin and how thankful I am for the Bible. I wish that I weren’t so accomplished at sinning, but sadly I am a professional. I speak coarsely sometimes. I am quick to see sin or foolishness in others (and NO that is not a well developed gift of “discernment!”) I lack consistent temperance and self-control with regards to my eating habits. I am often lazy or focused on the wrong task or priorities. I could go on and on with this list but I won’t. As I read God’s word the Spirit is faithful to convict me of all of these things and more; but I am glad.

I am glad because I would rather be able to see my sin clearly and as such be able to follow the leading of the Holy Spirit as He guides me back to the path of righteousness; than to be blinded to my situation (that of having strayed from the narrow way and wandering merrily along thinking I’m doing pretty good or am better than the next guy- meanwhile walking toward the cliff of God’s gracious discipline.) I would rather see that I have strayed from the footprints of Jesus than be blind to my peril.

And to that end, I see that the distinct difference between the two “places” I could be is that God has convinced me through the Spirit (and the godly counsel of His people) that I need to be prayerfully, diligently, and consistently reading through His word - the Bible, everyday. I see and talk to lots of people who by their own admission are constantly struggling and seeing little victory; and the most consistent mark in all of their lives is that they don’t consistently read the bible or pray from the bible.

I also see in my own life that when I am not taking scripture specific to my ongoing areas of temptation and spending time praying it, memorizing it, and meditating upon it, that I do not have victory over the daily wars against sin.

So again - I am glad that God has not left us without clear guidance (His Word) as well as the Holy Spirit/Helper to teach us to understand it and to follow it. I’m glad that He loves me enough to save me through the blood of Jesus and then draw me out of my habits of sin through His convicting work of the Spirit as He uses the Word of God. I’m glad that He has so worked in my life to bless me daily through His word which brings life and peace.

This year may we all be blessed to be daily in God’s word and may our lives reflect the holiness of Christ.

Colossians 3:16-17 16 Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you, with all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with thankfulness in your hearts to God. 17 Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father.

Spiritual Disciplines: bible intake and meditation… day 4

I will finish up with a testimony.

I have been saved for approximately 12 years now and probably since day 1 (of salvation) I have always decided that I was going to read my bible every day and finish the bible in one year... And each year I would look back with intense disappointment and see that I had not been faithful in reading my bible each day and had long since given up trying to get through the bible in a year. So then come January, I would renew my pledge and start over only to fail again. 2 ½ years ago I again started out my January with my yearly pledge to read my bible daily and get through the bible in a year. Something was different that year though... (Of course I didn't know it until December). Each day I would read God's word and try to journal something about what I read. I found it easier to meditate upon God's word and found that it was becoming more of a natural part of my life to read God's word daily. I would pray more and my thoughts were more focused on the Lord. Did I stop sinning? Clearly not. However, I do find my thoughts more captivated with the glories of Christ. I do find it easier to be gracious to others and to be encouraging. I find my heart filled in silent song to God and musings about Him more often. I think much deeper on the things of God and I am lead by His word and Spirit more... If nothing else I am certainly convicted of sin more often. (The Holy Spirit is using that ammunition to fight sin within me!) God is faithful to His promises and He promises that His word will not return void, but it will accomplish the purpose for which He intends it (Isaiah 55:11). And if we are His children, we know that His will for us is our sanctification (1 Thessalonians 4:3).

In my opinion, I have grown more spiritually over these last 2 ½ years of consistently practicing the spiritual disciplines (especially the reading/meditation of God's word with prayer) than I have over the previous 10 years in the Lord. I have found my faith strengthened... (Go figure… for faith comes by hearing and hearing through the word of Christ. Romans 10:17) and I have found obedience to Him easier, especially when I can sit down and read God's word while pondering a decision of how to respond to a situation. So I know by faith in God as well as by personal experience that His word is living and active and sharper than any two edged sword... it is able to do the work of cutting away the really sneaky sin that is hidden deep down inside of me... for the purpose of making me more like God... so that I will grow more in loving God with all my heart, soul, mind, and strength... because He loves Himself like that!

So this begs the question: why don't more people persevere in pursuing a love for God through His ordained means, the spiritual disciplines (which will bring us into the obedience and joy which we so long for)? I think that partly, I was just too lazy for 10 years...it was dull work going through Leviticus to this new believer... (shame on me) and I was short sighted, not seeing God in all of His word (but rather only where it was easy to see Him). However, I think I was also so busy trying to put out "fires" of sin in my own life that I didn't recognize that the long term solution to all the fires was a lifelong plan of pursuing God daily in His word. I didn’t see that the living water of God's word studied in faith consistently, would start to extinguish the flames of the sin that was burning in my life. Ultimately, I will look back on those times and say God is good, and He is still at work in my life. But I praise His name that He has given such simple ways to pursue love for Him... ways that even I can understand. (I think).

I hope this has not been too confusing or exhausting... May we all be encouraged to chase hard after a greater love for God, expecting with all hope that He will bless us and fill us with love for Him and joy in Him... if we come to Him through Christ who is the living word of God as revealed to us in the Holy bible by the Holy Spirit.

Here too, are some helpful hints that Jasmine found from John Piper:

Dr. Piper says: "Many good things do not happen in our lives for the simple lack of planning.... Most Christians neglect their Bibles not out of conscious disloyalty to Jesus, but because of failure to plan a time and place and method to read it"

Regarding time: "I earnestly recommend that it be in the early morning, unless there are some extenuating circumstances. Entering the day without a serious meeting with God, over his Word and in prayer, is like entering the battle without tending to your weapons. It’s like taking a trip without filling the tires with air or the tank with gas. The human heart does not replenish itself with sleep. The body does, but not the heart. The spiritual air leaks from our tires, and the gas is consumed in the day. We replenish our hearts not with sleep, but with the Word of God and prayer."

Regarding place: "Pick a place of seclusion…. It needs to be secluded so that you are not distracted, and so that you can speak out loud and sing and cry. If your family situation or home does not have such a place, then create it, not by space, but by rule.... One saintly mother with a large brood of children would use her apron to make a tent for her head and her Bible at the kitchen table and the children were taught, when mother is in her tent, make no noise."

Regarding method: "There are many ways to read the Bible. Any is better than none. Coming to the appointed place and time with no plan for how to read the Bible usually results in a hit-and-miss approach that leave you feeling weak, unreal, and discouraged. For many years I have read through the Bible once each year following 'The Discipleship Journal Bible Reading Plan'.... The design is to read daily from two Old Testament and two New Testament books. I find this variety helpful. Others don’t, and would rather use some other approach. That’s fine."

Finally, I would highly recommend that you get a copy of Donald Whitney's book "Spiritual Disciplines For The Christian Life". God has used this mightily in the lives of many believers. May you all be blessed and may your love for God greatly increase as you pursue Him through the spiritual disciplines!

Here is a link to Donald Whitney's website: http://www.spiritualdisciplines.org/

Spiritual Disciplines: bible intake and meditation … day 3

Let's resume our talk on bible reading and meditation with some more practical application.

I don’t want to steal Jasmine’s thunder as she will be writing about prayer and journaling, but I will say a few quick things. Before you open your bible to read, quiet your mind and heart before God. Ask Him to help you to know Him and love Him and see Him and His works as you read His word. Ask Him to convict you of sin against Him and others and to humble you before Him. Keep those things in mind as you read. Set aside your own agenda and really dig in to what God has to say to you in His word. Ask Him to help you see real ways to apply His word to your life. Carolyn Mahaney (see our link to "Girl Talk" in the sidebar) recommended in her book "Shopping for Time" that you ask two questions as you read your bible. One: Who is God (as revealed in the passage) and two: What should my response be to God as He is revealed in the passage? I really like these types of questions because they help me to direct my thoughts to God in worship and submission, as well as giving me wonderful things to meditate on throughout my day. Notice that second question is self-examining… not other person examining. Don’t read God’s word to try and fix someone else or make them more godly, without humbling yourself under God’s mighty hand and His sword of truth, first.

Another thing that I have found helpful is if I purpose to talk to somebody about what I read and am trying to meditate on from God’s word. Usually my boys are the “lucky” recipients of this. They are on the same reading schedule as I am and so this helps me to hold them accountable as well. But it also helps me to articulate my thoughts when I have to verbalize them in a comprehendible way to them. Plus, because they are still young (9, 11, and 13) it helps me to take a big idea and bring it to their level of understanding. This helps me to know and understand God more, in that He does the same thing for us.

Also, I find that it is easier to meditate on God’s word when I limit the distractions around me. I don’t have the TV on or a lot of background noise during most of the day so that I can focus my thoughts on God and what He would have me pursue each moment. (I hope this helps my boys similarly). Also I don’t spend a lot of time talking just for the sake of chatter. I do happen to home school my boys and though we have a lot of fun, we don’t sit around idly chatting on most days. We may have an exciting conversation about the goodness of God in giving us Jesus or we can have a serious talk about our sinfulness, but I try to be purposeful about directing my mind toward things of God whenever I can. When I am working in my kitchen or in my house or driving in my car, I can think about Jesus. Sometimes I will listen to good Christian music and that will spur on further meditation, however that is not a substitute for quiet focused meditation on God’s word.

We will finish up our focus on bible intake/reading and meditation tomorrow, so "stay tuned"!

Spiritual Disciplines: bible reading and meditation… day 2

So how does this work in real life? Am I to get out my spiritual disciplines book, make a list of the various disciplines and start doing them? Well no... And yes. I am to pursue a love for God through the spiritual disciplines... I am to pray to Him and plead with Him to fill my cold heart with greater love for Him. I am to pray that as I open my bible to read it, that my soul will be fed the living water and bread of life which is Christ who is the word become flesh. I am to meditate (think deeply) throughout the day on the holy words of God which I have tasted during my bible time... I am to memorize God's word out of a desire to fill my mind with good things of God (and ammunition for the Holy Spirit to use in the fight against sin). And so on the list goes... but it is not merely a list ... it is a faith filled decision to step into the place where God has promised He will do a good work in our hearts, for His glory, in His perfect time.

So it's not that the list of spiritual "to-do's" is bad, no rather it is good... IF... it is coming from a heart of faith that desperately wants to love God more and as such it comes to God seeking HIS means of pouring that love into us. “For without faith it is impossible to please God,” Hebrews 11:6.

Let’s discuss bible intake and meditation. These go hand in hand. Bible reading is like eating God’s food and meditation is like digesting it. Through meditation the Holy Spirit takes God’s word and uses the “nutrients” to feed your soul and cause spiritual growth. Obviously there are other factors that God uses to cause spiritual growth, such as trials, but those interact with God’s word within us as digested by the Holy Spirit through meditation to produce the growth that God designs for us. Picture a person who exercises to be strong and healthy. If they don’t eat properly, they don’t physically prosper. If they do eat properly, but their body won’t digest the food and use the nutrients to benefit their body, then they still will not prosper. In fact, under those circumstances their body will actually be harmed by the added strain of the exercise. Similarly, we must be eating God’s word daily and then digesting it through meditation upon it, so that we may grow in respect to godliness. We can be sure that when we ingest and digest God’s word by faith motivated by desiring greater love for God, the Holy Spirit will do His part in bringing forth the peaceable fruit of righteousness within us. As we grow in love for God, our whole lives will reflect it and we will be following in the footsteps of Jesus. As such our joy will be made full! These are awesome benefits!

So how do we get started? First things first, this is a lifelong discipline so think of it as such. Some people decide to start reading the bible daily so they get a “read the bible in a year plan” and start off strong. However when they fall behind, they get discouraged and give up due to a hopeless feeling of “I’ll never be able to finish the bible this year because I’m so far behind.” Then they end up reading hardly ever! I would recommend that you seek to read the bible over the course of the year; however, I would not recommend getting so caught up in the one year schedule that when you fall behind, you give up. Rather, keep in mind that you are developing a lifelong daily delight (a sanctified habit) and you are reading God’s word for the purpose of knowing and loving Him better. This way you can be free to joyfully, though purposefully, pursue God by reading through His word at a pace that best fits you. Donald Whitney scandalously encouraged believers (at a spiritual disciplines conference held annually at our church) to meditate more on God’s word even if it meant that they had to read less of it during their bible reading time. This is so true! If we are desiring to really be changed by God’s word then we must meditate upon it, and if in order to fit it all into our hectic lives we must only read one chapter a day (instead of the 3-4 chapters daily required to make it through the bible in a year)… then do it. But keep at it. Don’t give up. Each day go before God and read His word (that’s Him speaking to you telling you what’s important) then listen to Him and think about it deeply (that’s meditation). In Joshua 1:8 it says: “This book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it; for then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have success.” Also in Psalm 119: 11, 15-16 it says: “Your word I have treasured in my heart, that I may not sin against You… I will meditate on Your precepts and regard Your ways. I shall delight in Your statutes; I shall not forget Your word.” So set aside time each day to read God’s word and then meditate on what you’ve read.

Thursday I will offer up some more nitty-gritty application type of thoughts regarding bible intake and meditation.

Spiritual Disciplines Marathon !

Hello all! For the next 3 weeks we will be doing a series on the Spiritual Disciplines. I am going to start us off. First, let’s look at the heart of the matter (from my perspective).

A while back, Pastor Matt was preaching in the morning service and he defined sin as not loving God with all our heart, mind, soul, and strength (my own paraphrase). I really appreciated this particular definition because it captured the heart attitude behind our actions. By that I mean that my flesh is so sneaky and utterly sinful and deceitful, that I can justify my actions as not sinful (oftentimes) because "technically" I was not disobeying a direct command of God's word. However, when seen in light of this definition, I sin ALOT more than I would own up to. So... my mind went from there to meditate on the opposite of sin: godliness... (my own antonym).

Now I looked at godliness from two ways... one: I pondered godliness as "being like God"... but like God in what particular quality? My thoughts went back to the definition of sin and to God’s first and foremost commandment to us... and decided that the pre-eminent quality of God which I need to "be like" is (as John Piper says) God's supreme satisfaction (love) of/in Himself. In other words, to be like God I must love Him first and foremost. And then two: I also looked at godliness from the simple aspect of it being the opposite of sin (note the definition of sin in the first paragraph). By implication, the definition of godliness would then be “love God with all your heart, mind, soul, and strength". So the two ways that I was pondering godliness have coincided so far... both ending up with my needing to love God with all my heart, soul, mind, and strength for me to be godly.

Later in the evening service Matt was preaching out of Psalm 27 "4 Crucial Keys to Overcoming Fear.” His second point was: be passionate about your pursuit of God. This got me wondering. How do I pursue God passionately? What about when I don't feel very loving toward God but rather cold or just methodical? Can I pursue Him then? Into my head pops the scripture verse "Discipline yourself for the purpose of godliness…” 1 Timothy 4:7. Wait a minute... discipline myself for the purpose of loving God with all my heart, soul, mind, and strength? Discipline... that takes daily deciding to do what does not come naturally to me... but which will apparently make me love God? I desire to love God more... In fact the reason this line of thought caught my mind is because I find myself living life by a check list.... such as: read bible, clean dishes, make dinner, be submissive, correct math sheets, etc. And only too often do I look back on my day and see a lot of things done, but not much passion for God and not nearly enough enthusiasm and love warming my heart and drawing me closer to Him. I want to be passionate for God but something is lacking.

Well, then my thoughts went to something I have heard Pastor Rick (my-brother–in-law) say many times ... (my own paraphrase) " The spiritual disciplines are a God ordained channel that we (believers) put ourselves in whereby God will meet us and bless us and draw us closer unto Him. He will use the spiritual disciplines to grow us into the image of Christ as we submit ourselves to His word and the Holy Spirit”. So then God wants us to be like Him... (Loving Him with all our heart, soul, mind, strength, etc) and He has ordained that the means to pursuing that love for Him is through the spiritual disciplines. So ... I want to love God more. God must produce this lasting love in me through Christ / the Holy Spirit within me... but I am not called to sit on my laurels and wait twiddling my thumbs for God to pump me full of this love for Him... (For God's word says, "work out your salvation with fear and trembling knowing that it is God who is at work within you both to will and to work for His good pleasure. Philippians 2:12-13 paraphrased). I am called to pursue, yes, even chase after a heart/mind that loves God more. How do I pursue that which is so intangible though?

Well, God is so gracious and kind that He has made it so that a child believer can even pursue this love for Him. He has given us "the spiritual disciplines" as revealed to us in His word... (That being one of the primary disciplines... intake of God's word). I will be discussing this important spiritual discipline as well as its counterpart: meditation, today and for the next three days.