Month: March 2017

Giving to the Poor

“Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise,”

“give, and it will be given to you. Good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap. For with the measure you use it will be measured back to you.”

Psalms 37:26  He is ever lending generously, and his children become a blessing.

Psalms 37:21   The wicked borrows but does not pay back, but the righteous is generous and gives;

Psalms 112:5  It is well with the man who deals generously and lends; who conducts his affairs with justice.

Psalms 112:9   He has distributed freely; he has given to the poor; his righteousness endures forever;

Deuteronomy 15:8  but you shall open your hand to him and lend him sufficient for his need, whatever it may be.  Take care lest there be an unworthy thought in your heart and you say, ‘The seventh year, the year of release is near,’ and your eye look grudgingly on your poor brother, and you give him nothing, and he cry to the LORD against you, and you be guilty of sin.  You shall give to him freely, and your heart shall not be grudging when you give to him, because for this the LORD your God will bless you in all your work and in all that you undertake.

Job 31:16  “If I have withheld anything that the poor desired, or have caused the eyes of the widow to fail,  or have eaten my morsel alone, and the fatherless has not eaten of it  (for from my youth the fatherless grew up with me as with a father, and from my mother’s womb I guided the widow),  if I have seen anyone perish for lack of clothing, or the needy without covering,  if his body has not blessed me, and if he was not warmed with the fleece of my sheep,.

Matthew 5:7   “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.

Luke 6:35  But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return, and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, for he is kind to the ungrateful and the evil.

Proverbs 20:7   The righteous who walks in his integrity— blessed are his children after him!

Proverbs 24:33  A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest,  and poverty will come upon you like a robber, and want like an armed man.

Giving is a heart choice and decision.  Giving has two aspects one is obedience and the other is true generosity.  In obedience to God and for His glory and honor we give to those in need.  God opens our eyes to see those around us and puts us on paths for generosity/compassion/mercy to be lived out.  When God shows you a need are you obedient?  Do you start your day with the choice to hear His voice concerning those in need?  Too many times we  are thinking too much about ours selves.  When we dwell on self our heart and ears are closed to God in this matter.  Everything we have has been given to us by God for His purpose not ours.  It is well for us to examine our heart and intents with all that God has given us.  Teach yourself to give, give freely, and be a vessel that honors and glorifies God through generousity.

Consider your ways!

“Thus says the LORD of hosts: Consider your ways.”

“Ponder the path of your feet; then all your ways will be sure”.

“Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is”

“My foot has held fast to his steps; I have kept his way and have not turned aside.  I have not departed from the commandment of his lips; I have treasured the words of his mouth more than my portion of food.”

“but let him who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows me, that I am the LORD who practices steadfast love, justice, and righteousness in the earth. For in these things I delight, declares the LORD.”

Psalms 37:23  The steps of a man are established by the LORD, when he delights in his way; though he fall, he shall not be cast headlong, for the LORD upholds his hand.

Psalms 17:5   My steps have held fast to your paths; my feet have not slipped.

Psalms 85:13  Righteousness will go before him and make his footsteps a way.

Psalms 119:133   Keep steady my steps according to your promise, and let no iniquity get dominion over me.

Psalms 121:3   He will not let your foot be moved; he who keeps you will not slumber.

Psalms 121:8   The LORD will keep your going out and your coming in from this time forth and forevermore.

1 Samuel 2:9    “He will guard the feet of his faithful ones, but the wicked shall be cut off in darkness, for not by might shall a man prevail.

Proverbs 16:9   The heart of man plans his way, but the LORD establishes his steps.

Jeremiah 10:23  I know, O LORD, that the way of man is not in himself, that it is not in man who walks to direct his steps.

Hebrews 13:16    Do not neglect to do good and to share what you have, for such sacrifices are pleasing to God.

Ephesians 5:15   Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise

I have been thinking about resting in God.  Relying on Him.  Waiting on Him.  Trusting in Him.  I wonder what this looks like lived out.  Does resting mean we are not constantly searching to know and understand Him more?  I think we have a tendency to become complacent and we stop at “resting”.  Notice scripture today in pondering our path and God’s leading.  Can we know this if we are complacently resting?  Our purpose in this life is to humbly serve, honor, glorify, and obey God.  To do this we need to continually spend time in His word with a heart deep desire.  Spend time in His word.

 

Fret Not

“He goes to bed rich, but will do so no more; he opens his eyes, and his wealth is gone.”

Psalms 37:7  Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for him; fret not yourself over the one who prospers in his way, over the man who carries out evil devices!  Refrain from anger, and forsake wrath! Fret not yourself; it tends only to evil.

Psalms 37:35  I have seen a wicked, ruthless man, spreading himself like a green laurel tree.  But he passed away, and behold, he was no more; though I sought him, he could not be found.

Psalms 55:23  But you, O God, will cast them down into the pit of destruction; men of blood and treachery shall not live out half their days. But I will trust in you.

Job 20:27 The heavens will reveal his iniquity, and the earth will rise up against him.  The possessions of his house will be carried away, dragged off in the day of God’s wrath.  This is the wicked man’s portion from God, the heritage decreed for him by God.”

Job 27: 19  He goes to bed rich, but will do so no more; he opens his eyes, and his wealth is gone.  Terrors overtake him like a flood; in the night a whirlwind carries him off.  The east wind lifts him up and he is gone; it sweeps him out of his place.  It hurls at him without pity; he flees from its power in headlong flight

Isaiah 58:14  then you shall take delight in the LORD, and I will make you ride on the heights of the earth; I will feed you with the heritage of Jacob your father, for the mouth of the LORD has spoken.”

Psalms 25:13   His soul shall abide in well-being, and his offspring shall inherit the land.

Isaiah 60:21  Your people shall all be righteous; they shall possess the land forever, the branch of my planting, the work of my hands, that I might be glorified.

Hebrews 11:16  But as it is, they desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared for them a city.

Revelation 5:10  and you have made them a kingdom and priests to our God, and they shall reign on the earth.”

I found this commentary and and thought it so appropriate for these verses today: This is a psalm, grappling with the problem of the inequality of human life and the apparent failure of God to reward His servants and punish His enemies as they deserve. Life and immortality, where we know that the balance will be readjusted, had not then been brought to light, and therefore the solution was far harder before the advent of our Lord than for us.

But though the psalmist’s solution is therefore not complete, his teaching of the blessedness of absolute trust in God’s providence is very delightful. Fret not thyself; that is, do not give way to passionate resentment or bitter disappointment. Live in God; find your delight in contemplating His nature and His works; roll on Him the decision of your life-choices; trust in Him to supply all your need and work in your behalf. Be silent and rest

Precious Promises

” by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire.”

“I will put my laws into their minds, and write them on their hearts, and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.“

Psalms 36:5  Your steadfast love, O LORD, extends to the heavens, your faithfulness to the clouds. Your righteousness is like the mountains of God; your judgments are like the great deep; man and beast you save, O LORD. How precious is your steadfast love, O God! The children of mankind take refuge in the shadow of your wings. They feast on the abundance of your house, and you give them drink from the river of your delights. For with you is the fountain of life; in your light do we see light. Oh, continue your steadfast love to those who know you, and your righteousness to the upright of heart!

Job 37:23  The Almighty—we cannot find him; he is great in power; justice and abundant righteousness he will not violate.

Matthew 10:29  Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? And not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father.  But even the hairs of your head are all numbered.

1 Peter 2:6  For it stands in Scripture: “Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone, a cornerstone chosen and precious, and whoever believes in him will not be put to shame.”  So the honor is for you who believe, but for those who do not believe, “The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone,”

Psalms 139:17   ,

2Peter 1:3  His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence, by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire.

Hebrews 8:6  But as it is, Christ has obtained a ministry that is as much more excellent than the old as the covenant he mediates is better, since it is enacted on better promises.  For if that first covenant had been faultless, there would have been no occasion to look for a second.  For he finds fault with them when he says: “Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will establish a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah,  not like the covenant that I made with their fathers on the day when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt. For they did not continue in my covenant, and so I showed no concern for them, declares the Lord.  For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the Lord: I will put my laws into their minds, and write them on their hearts, and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.  And they shall not teach, each one his neighbor and each one his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest.
For I will be merciful toward their iniquities, and I will remember their sins no more.”

Great and precious promises have been given to us to escape the corruption of the world.  What promises are coming to mind? David recorded it this way, “How precious to me are your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them!”.  David found value in thinking about God, His thoughts and promises.  He called them precious.  Something very dear to his heart.  He found comfort, refuge, strength, hope, peace, faith, love, joy, mercy…… and more staying close to God.  His daily purpose was to know and serve God deeper and fuller each day.  He had a heart desire to seek God in both times of trials and in times of blessings.  We would do well to reflect each day on God, His promises, and how we to would know and serve Him fuller.  Spend time in His word.  Seek to know Him.  Desire to serve Him.

Worship and Praise

Psalms 35:27  Let those who delight in my righteousness shout for joy and be glad and say evermore, “Great is the LORD, who delights in the welfare of his servant!” Then my tongue shall tell of your righteousness and of your praise all the day long.

Jeremiah 32:40  I will make with them an everlasting covenant, that I will not turn away from doing good to them. And I will put the fear of me in their hearts, that they may not turn from me.  I will rejoice in doing them good, and I will plant them in this land in faithfulness, with all my heart and all my soul.

Zephaniah 3:17   The LORD your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing.

Psalms 149:4   For the LORD takes pleasure in his people; he adorns the humble with salvation.

Romans 12:15   Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep.

John 16:22   So also you have sorrow now, but I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy from you.

Psalms 70:4   May all who seek you rejoice and be glad in you! May those who love your salvation say evermore, “God is great!”

Psalms 68:3  But the righteous shall be glad; they shall exult before God; they shall be jubilant with joy!

1 Peter 3:4  but let your adorning be the hidden person of the heart with the imperishable beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which in God’s sight is very precious.

Proverbs 11:20   Those of crooked heart are an abomination to the LORD, but those of blameless ways are his delight.

Psalms 117:2   For great is his steadfast love toward us, and the faithfulness of the LORD endures forever. Praise the LORD!

Psalms 90:17    Let the favor of the Lord our God be upon us, and establish the work of our hands upon us; yes, establish the work of our hands!

We get to make a choice on being joyful, glad, humble, praising and delighting in God.  I read this comment on what seems to be a reality in may lives: “instead of praise and worship there is constant murmuring and complaining which are prevalent among God’s children!”  We have a choice to worship and praise no matter what circumstance we find ourself in.  No matter what trial or burden our God is the same.  He is our heavenly Father who has the perfect purpose and plan for each of our lives.  We can rejoice in this no matter what comes our way.  We can praise Him knowing that He is our comfort, rock, strength and place of rest.  I have no idea why some seem to be be given great burdens to carry for extended periods of time.  Likewise I don’t understand why others are blessed without.  It is our place to know God is sovereign and in control, worthy of praise and worship forever.  Turn complaints to praise and worries to joy.  I am sure you will see the hand of God much clearer and His presence much closer.

Known by his acts

“By steadfast loveand faithfulness iniquity is atoned for, and by the fear of the LORD one turns away from evil.”

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness”

Psalms 36:1   Transgression speaks to the wicked deep in his heart; there is no fear of God before his eyes. For he flatters himself in his own eyes that his iniquity cannot be found out and hated. The words of his mouth are trouble and deceit; he has ceased to act wisely and do good. He plots trouble while on his bed; he sets himself in a way that is not good; he does not reject evil.

Proverbs 20:11   Even a child makes himself known by his acts, by whether his conduct is pure and upright.

Matthew 7:16  You will recognize them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thornbushes, or figs from thistles?  So, every healthy tree bears good fruit, but the diseased tree bears bad fruit.  A healthy tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a diseased tree bear good fruit.  Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.  Thus you will recognize them by their fruits.

Matthew 12:33  “Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or make the tree bad and its fruit bad, for the tree is known by its fruit.  You brood of vipers! How can you speak good, when you are evil? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.

Titus 1:16   They profess to know God, but they deny him by their works. They are detestable, disobedient, unfit for any good work.

Proverbs 8:13   The fear of the LORD is hatred of evil. Pride and arrogance and the way of evil and perverted speech I hate.

Ecclesiastes 12:13   The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man.

Romans 3:18   “There is no fear of God before their eyes.”

The heart of man is deceitful and full of arrogance and pride.  We can know this and always be on guard for when it wants to raise its ugly head. Or, we can say it is not there and never be looking.  How sad is it when we choose to deny there is any thing wrong with our thoughts, intents, words and actions?  Out of the abundance of our heart our mouth speaks.  It is also true that what fills our mind and thoughts feeds our heart.  How is a person to recognize right and wrong thoughts, intents, speech, and actions?  A live time could be spend on what it means to Love, and the same for Joy, or Peace, or Patience, or Kindness, or Goodness, or Faithfulness. The only way to understand our own heart is to examine it in light of scripture and seek God to reveal that which is opposing to living, acting, speaking in such a way that humbly serves, honors and obeys Him.  Filling our mind with His word on a daily basis will start this never ending  growth in our service to Him.  Rejecting or putting off time with His word allows our heart to become complacent and hard.  We are unable to grow, unable to display fruits of His indwelling in our lives, unable to serve Him,  and unable to honor and glorify Him.  Our actions, thoughts and words are a direct reflection of our walk with God.  David wanting to humbly serve, honor and obey God put it this way. “Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts! And see if there be any grievous way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting!”  You know you are on the right path when your prayer is in line with this.