Month: April 2017

Judge right & true

“May he defend the cause of the poor of the people, give deliverance to the children of the needy, and crush the oppressor!”

““Behold, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when I will raise up for David a righteous Branch, and he shall reign as king and deal wisely, and shall execute justice and righteousness in the land.  In his days Judah will be saved, and Israel will dwell securely. And this is the name by which he will be called: ‘The LORD is our righteousness.’”

Psalms 58:1  Do you indeed decree what is right, you gods? Do you judge the children of man uprightly?

Deuteronomy 16:18  “You shall appoint judges and officers in all your towns that the LORD your God is giving you, according to your tribes, and they shall judge the people with righteous judgment.  You shall not pervert justice. You shall not show partiality, and you shall not accept a bribe, for a bribe blinds the eyes of the wise and subverts the cause of the righteous.

2 Samuel 23:3   The God of Israel has spoken; the Rock of Israel has said to me: When one rules justly over men, ruling in the fear of God,

Exodus 18:21   Moreover, look for able men from all the people, men who fear God, who are trustworthy and hate a bribe, and place such men over the people as chiefs of thousands, of hundreds, of fifties, and of tens.

2 Chronicles 19:6  and said to the judges, “Consider what you do, for you judge not for man but for the LORD. He is with you in giving judgment.  Now then, let the fear of the LORD be upon you. Be careful what you do, for there is no injustice with the LORD our God, or partiality or taking bribes.”  Now then, let the fear of the LORD be upon you. Be careful what you do, for there is no injustice with the LORD our God, or partiality or taking bribes.”

19:9  And he charged them: “Thus you shall do in the fear of the LORD, in faithfulness, and with your whole heart:

Isaiah 11:3  And his delight shall be in the fear of the LORD. He shall not judge by what his eyes see, or decide disputes by what his ears hear,  but with righteousness he shall judge the poor, and decide with equity for the meek of the earth; and he shall strike the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips he shall kill the wicked.  Righteousness shall be the belt of his waist, and faithfulness the belt of his loins.

Psalms 82:1 God has taken his place in the divine council; in the midst of the gods he holds judgment:  “How long will you judge unjustly and show partiality to the wicked?

Matthew 27:1   When morning came, all the chief priests and the elders of the people took counsel against Jesus to put him to death.

Luke 23:50  Now there was a man named Joseph, from the Jewish town of Arimathea. He was a member of the council, a good and righteous man,  who had not consented to their decision and action; and he was looking for the kingdom of God.

Zechariah 9:9   Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your king is coming to you; righteous and having salvation is he, humble and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.

When I read Psalms 58:1 I was immediately thinking about people in the various positions of office who govern others.  How many times do we look for justice and it appears at times there is none to be found.  Of course we look at this from our perspective and what we determine to be right and true.  Sometimes the cultural mass will abide by decision of those in governance.  This does not make it right and true.  I remember hearing “right is right even if only one is doing it and wrong is wrong even if all are doing it.”  You can see this in the decision by the chief priests when they condemned Jesus to death and Joseph from Arimathea who did not consent to their decision.  Where do we find truth?  How do we know what is right? We can find this in God and His word.  If we neglect spending time in His word.  If we do not desire to know Him more and more each day. If we don’t desire to humbly serve, honor, follow and obey Him.  If we don’t seek Him.  God wants our whole heart, mind, and soul committed to Him.  This is a choice we make every single day.  A choice to humbly serve Him, to seek Him, to hear His quiet small voice leading us, to obey Him, to find our strength in Him, to praise Him.  To often the cares of this world and the busyness of the day take over and we soon find ourselves day after day drifting further and further away from Him and His plan in our life.  Choose to make this the day to start humbly serving, honoring, following, obeying and praising Him.  For He alone is worthy.

Give God Praise

“I sought the LORD, and he answered me and delivered me from all my fears.”

“giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ,”

Psalms 57:7  My heart is steadfast, O God, my heart is steadfast! I will sing and make melody! Awake, my glory! Awake, O harp and lyre! I will awake the dawn! I will give thanks to you, O Lord, among the peoples; I will sing praises to you among the nations. For your steadfast love is great to the heavens, your faithfulness to the clouds. Be exalted, O God, above the heavens! Let your glory be over all the earth!

Psalms 108:1 My heart is steadfast, O God! I will sing and make melody with all my being!  Awake, O harp and lyre! I will awake the dawn!

Psalms 112:7     He is not afraid of bad news; his heart is firm, trusting in the LORD.

Proverbs 1:33   but whoever listens to me will dwell secure and will be at ease, without dread of disaster.

Proverbs 3:25  Do not be afraid of sudden terror or of the ruin of the wicked, when it comes,  for the LORD will be your confidence and will keep your foot from being caught.

Luke 21:9    And when you hear of wars and tumults, do not be terrified, for these things must first take place, but the end will not be at once.”

Romans 5:3   Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance,

Luke 21:19   By your endurance you will gain your lives.

Isaiah 26:3  You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you.  Trust in the LORD forever, for the LORD GOD is an everlasting rock.

Psalms 118:8  It is better to take refuge in the LORD than to trust in man.  It is better to take refuge in the LORD than to trust in princes.

Awake my soul and give thanks to God!  Awake my heart and mind, trust God and take refuge in Him! None of us are immune to having issues and when you think about it our attention and reliance on God seems to jump up to a totally higher level when trials and troubles come into our lives.  The thought that comes to mind; why is there another level to our attention and reliance on and in God during these times?  We would do well to be in attention and reliance of His presence every moment of our day.  Granted there are times of blessing and times of trials.  However, shouldn’t there be a high level of attention and reliance in times of blessings.  We easily understand crying out to our rock and refuge in times of trials.  We should just as easily sing out praises in times of blessings.  Singing and shouting out heart felt praises is a sure sign that you are not just seeking God when trials come but rather see His hand through out each day.  I was speaking with someone yesterday and reminded them of how their attention to signs of a stroke potentially saved the life of my sister.  He immediately said trust me on this – God made me see this and moved me to take action.  He alone allowed me to see this.  This was over 15 years ago and it is still fresh in his mind how God allowed him to see the signs.  He is still giving God praise because of this.  Everyday we have opportunity to see God’s hand at work and give Him praise.  Commit to seeing how many things you can give praise to God about today!!!

Those who know Your name

“ And those who know your name put their trust in you, for you, O LORD, have not forsaken those who seek you.”

“But I have trusted in your steadfast love; my heart shall rejoice in your salvation.”

“ for you have been my help, and in the shadow of your wings I will sing for joy.”

Psalms 57:1  Be merciful to me, O God, be merciful to me, for in you my soul takes refuge; in the shadow of your wings I will take refuge, till the storms of destruction pass by.

Psalms 142:1   With my voice I cry out to the LORD; with my voice I plead for mercy to the LORD.

Psalms 56:1    Be gracious to me, O God, for man tramples on me; all day long an attacker oppresses me;

Psalms 69:13  But as for me, my prayer is to you, O LORD. At an acceptable time, O God, in the abundance of your steadfast love answer me in your saving faithfulness.  Deliver me from sinking in the mire; let me be delivered from my enemies and from the deep waters.  Let not the flood sweep over me, or the deep swallow me up, or the pit close its mouth over me.  Answer me, O LORD, for your steadfast love is good; according to your abundant mercy, turn to me.

Psalms 119: 76  Let your steadfast love comfort me according to your promise to your servant.  Let your mercy come to me, that I may live; for your law is my delight.

Psalms 125:1   Those who trust in the LORD are like Mount Zion, which cannot be moved, but abides forever.

Psalms 17:7  Wondrously show your steadfast love, O Savior of those who seek refuge from their adversaries at your right hand.  Keep me as the apple of your eye; hide me in the shadow of your wings,

Psalms 36:7    How precious is your steadfast love, O God! The children of mankind take refuge in the shadow of your wings.

Psalms 61:4    Let me dwell in your tent forever! Let me take refuge under the shelter of your wings!

Isaiah 50:10   Who among you fears the LORD and obeys the voice of his servant? Let him who walks in darkness and has no light trust in the name of the LORD and rely on his God.

Luke 13:34    O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often would I have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing!

Zechariah 1:4   Do not be like your fathers, to whom the former prophets cried out, ‘Thus says the LORD of hosts, Return from your evil ways and from your evil deeds.’ But they did not hear or pay attention to me, declares the LORD.

Nehemiah 9:30  Many years you bore with them and warned them by your Spirit through your prophets. Yet they would not give ear. Therefore you gave them into the hand of the peoples of the lands.

Proverbs 1:24  Because I have called and you refused to listen, have stretched out my hand and no one has heeded,  because you have ignored all my counsel and would have none of my reproof,  I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when terror strikes you,  when terror strikes you like a storm and your calamity comes like a whirlwind, when distress and anguish come upon you.  Then they will call upon me, but I will not answer; they will seek me diligently but will not find me.  Because they hated knowledge and did not choose the fear of the LORD,  would have none of my counsel and despised all my reproof,

You can see the heart of man that calls out to God, has these attributes: relies on God, trusts in God, clings to God, believes in God, obeys God, seeks God, delights in God, and finds comfort, rest, peace, joy and hope in God.  On the other hand we can see the heart of those who choose not to stay close to God and do exactly the opposite. How much do we rely on God?  Do we delight in His word and the direction it gives to our daily lives?  Do we discern what it is saying and rejoice in the promises of God?  Do we acknowledge God’s reproof and conviction in our lives?  Do we choose to hear His voice? Do we seek His leading?  Replace the “We” in all of the questions above with “I”.  Truthful answers will expose where we are lacking in humbly serving, giving, following, honoring, and obeying God. Every commitment starts with a purpose/goal and choice to change and prioritize time for it, frequent reflection and focus.  Commit to Him and His word.  Commit to humbly serving, honoring, following, obeying Him with all you heart, soul, and mind.

Walk in the Light

“let him know that whoever brings back a sinner from his wandering will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins”

Psalms 56:13  For you have delivered my soul from death, yes, my feet from falling, that I may walk before God in the light of life.

Psalms 86:12  I give thanks to you, O Lord my God, with my whole heart, and I will glorify your name forevever.  For great is your steadfast love toward me; you have delivered my soul from the depths of Sheol.

Psalms 116:8   For you have delivered my soul from death, my eyes from tears, my feet from stumbling;

2 Corinthians 1:10    He delivered us from such a deadly peril, and he will deliver us. On him we have set our hope that he will deliver us again.

1 Thessalonians 1:10   and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come.

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

Psalms 94:18    When I thought, “My foot slips,” your steadfast love, O LORD, held me up.

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.

Psalms 116:9    I will walk before the LORD in the land of the living.

Genesis 17:1   When Abram was ninety-nine years old the LORD appeared to Abram and said to him, “I am God Almighty; walk before me, and be blameless,

Isaiah 38:3    and said, “Please, O LORD, remember how I have walked before you in faithfulness and with a whole heart, and have done what is good in your sight.” And Hezekiah wept bitterly.

John 8:12   Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”

John 12:35  So Jesus said to them, “The light is among you for a little while longer. Walk while you have the light, lest darkness overtake you. The one who walks in the darkness does not know where he is going.  While you have the light, believe in the light, that you may become sons of light.” When Jesus had said these things, he departed and hid himself from them.

Ephesians 5:8  for at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light  (for the fruit of light is found in all that is good and right and true),  and try to discern what is pleasing to the Lord.  Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead exposed.  For it is shameful even to speak of the things that they do in secret.  But when anything is exposed by the light, it becomes visible,  for anything that becomes visible is light. Therefore it says, “Awake, O sleeper, and arise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.”

This chapter in Psalms speaks of those who walked in a way that demonstrated their whole heart wanting to please God in all they thought, did, and said.  Ephesians brings us into remembrance of when our heart was enlightened. “for at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light  (for the fruit of light is found in all that is good and right and true),  and try to discern what is pleasing to the Lord.”  Yes, in the past we did live in darkness and walked a path that was apart from God.  But we are to now walk in a way that is good, right and true continually discerning what is pleasing to God.  How do we know what is good, right and true?  How do we discern what is pleasing to Him?  I fear we allow the culture we live in to dictate what is good, right, and true.  I fear we do not give thought to the love God demonstrated for us through redemption in and through His son. Can you imagine what it would feel like to give your son’s life for the redemption of another and in addition to this grace you also write a book filled with knowledge about you, your statutes, your commandments, you promises, your warnings and the person you redeemed has now lasting thankfulness for what you have done. I fear we neglect God’s word.  We don’t spend time in it.  We don’t think about it so how can it speak into our heart, mind and soul.  We don’t have anything to apply into our lives because of this neglect.  We are lukewarm at best.  We convince ourselves that we are better than most, give when we can, read His word when we have time, and believe in Him.  We need to be careful with this thinking.  Even Satan believes.  Belief is nothing without faith.  Faith is nothing without action.  Action means nothing if it is not with discernment and according to God’s word.  Scripture is clear that we are to live in light of His word, meditate on it, seek His word and act on it.  We do this because it honors and glorifies God.  We do it because of who He is, what He has done, and what He has promised.  There is nothing done in secret.  God knows all the thoughts and actions of every single person.  We fall into satan’s trap of being good enough rather than being all we can in Him.  Do you want to glorify God – spend time in His word with a prayer request of Him leading you on a path that glorifies Him.  I recently was told of a friend who found out he has a serious medical issue for which there is little that can be done.  His time will end far to early.  Yet what he realizes now is all the time he spent on things that don’t amount to much at all.  He has many regrets.  We never know when our time will end and we enter eternity.  Don’t allow one more day to go by being fooled into thinking you can serve God lukewarm.  This is not serving Him it is only leading you down a path further from God.  Choose now to commit to being in His word, humbly serving, following and obeying Him.  When tears come it will be for the reason of joy meeting God rather than of regret.

Pay Attention

“And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Then another book was opened, which is the book of life. And the dead were judged by what was written in the books, according to what they had done.”

” let us not pay attention to any of his words.”

Psalms 56:5  All day long they injure my cause; all their thoughts are against me for evil. They stir up strife, they lurk; they watch my steps, as they have waited for my life. For their crime will they escape? In wrath cast down the peoples, O God! You have kept count of my tossings; put my tears in your bottle. Are they not in your book? Then my enemies will turn back in the day when I call. This I know, that God is for me.

Job 16:20   My friends scorn me; my eye pours out tears to God,

Matthew 22:15   Then the Pharisees went and plotted how to entangle him in his words

Luke 11:54   lying in wait for him, to catch him in something he might say.

Jeremiah 18:18   Then they said, “Come, let us make plots against Jeremiah, for the law shall not perish from the priest, nor counsel from the wise, nor the word from the prophet. Come, let us strike him with the tongue, and let us not pay attention to any of his words.”

Luke 22:3  Then Satan entered into Judas called Iscariot, who was of the number of the twelve.  He went away and conferred with the chief priests and officers how he might betray him to them.  And they were glad, and agreed to give him money.  So he consented and sought an opportunity to betray him to them in the absence of a crowd.

Isaiah 63:9   In all their affliction he was afflicted, and the angel of his presence saved them; in his love and in his pity he redeemed them; he lifted them up and carried them all the days of old.

Hebrews 11:13   These all died in faith, not having received the things promised, but having seen them and greeted them from afar, and having acknowledged that they were strangers and exiles on the earth.

Malachi 3:16   Then those who feared the LORD spoke with one another. The LORD paid attention and heard them, and a book of remembrance was written before him of those who feared the LORD and esteemed his name.

Psalms 126:5  Those who sow in tears shall reap with shouts of joy  He who goes out weeping, bearing the seed for sowing, shall come home with shouts of joy, bringing his sheaves with him.

Revelation 7:17    For the Lamb in the midst of the throne will be their shepherd, and he will guide them to springs of living water, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.”

It is obvious there are those who seek God and those who do not.  For those who do not, they have closed their ears, eyes, heart, soul and mind.  they have closed all of these to His creation, His word, and what He has placed within our heart about Him.  Their heart and mind have hardened to the point of not only rejecting God’s call but to reject, mock, and cause issue with those who walk by faith in the one true God.  In Romans it says that they have chosen to reject God because He has made it clear to them through creation and by placing initial knowledge of Himself in their heart and mind.  Romans continues to say that because they have rejected Him, He has given them over to this debase and eternally harmful mindset.  For those who have chosen to humbly serve, honor, follow and obey there is another course/path for their lives.  God is ever present in their heart, mind, and soul.  They know there is more to life than what is experienced this side of eternity.  They hold on to that which is promised – not seen. They come to God with their heart cry and know He is their strength, rock, refuge, joy, peace, and place of rest.  They live this side of eternity with hope and expectation of eternity promised with God.  Keep strong, stand firm, seek God, and CHOOSE to keep your heart, mind and soul focused in this life on Him.  Do not allow your heart and mind to be pulled away by things of this world and culture.  Do not get so busy that you lose sight of God and eternity.  Do not neglect His word.  Keep your life in check with His word.

Faith Departed

“Come and hear, all you who fear God, and I will tell what he has done for my soul.”

Psalms 55:1   Give ear to my prayer, O God, and hide not yourself from my plea for mercy!  Attend to me, and answer me; I am restless in my complaint and I moan, because of the noise of the enemy, because of the oppression of the wicked. For they drop trouble upon me, and in anger they bear a grudge against me.   My heart is in anguish within me; the terrors of death have fallen upon me.  Fear and trembling come upon me, and horror overwhelms me.   And I say, “Oh, that I had wings like a dove! I would fly away and be at rest;  yes, I would wander far away; I would lodge in the wilderness;  I would hurry to find a shelter from the raging wind and tempest.”   Destroy, O Lord, divide their tongues; for I see violence and strife in the city.   Day and night they go around it on its walls, and iniquity and trouble are within it;   ruin is in its midst; oppression and fraud do not depart from its marketplace.  For it is not an enemy who taunts me— then I could bear it; it is not an adversary who deals insolently with me— then I could hide from him.  But it is you, a man, my equal, my companion, my familiar friend.  We used to take sweet counsel together; within God’s house we walked in the throng.   Let death steal over them; let them go down to Sheol alive; for evil is in their dwelling place and in their heart.   But I call to God, and the LORD will save me.  Evening and morning and at noon I utter my complaint and moan, and he hears my voice.   He redeems my soul in safety from the battle that I wage, for many are arrayed against me.  God will give ear and humble them, he who is enthroned from of old,  because they do not change and do not fear God.    My companion stretched out his hand against his friends; he violated his covenant.   His speech was smooth as butter, yet war was in his heart; his words were softer than oil, yet they were drawn swords.  Cast your burden on the LORD, and he will sustain you; he will never permit the righteous to be moved.  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.

You can hear the anguish in David’s heart over those who were once his friend, who took counsel together in God’s word, and now have joined all the others in practices contrary to walking with God.  David’s heart ached at seeing this take place in the lives of those who once walked with like single purpose to humbly serve, honor, follow and obey God.  Our heart should ache too for those who have fallen away and rejected that which once they held on to.  Do you ever wonder how this falling away takes place in the heart, mind, and soul of a person?  Look at it another way.  What would you tell a person to do if you absolutely wanted to give them guidance and ensure they would fall away?  Would you tell them to gradually stay away from God’s word?  Would you tell them to find reason to stay away from thinking or speaking about God?  Would you tell them to spend more time with wasted causes approved by the culture they are living in but surely not a path honoring God?  Would you tell them to fill their lives full of activities so they would have no time to spend in His word, or think about what it says, or hear God speaking to their heart?  Would you tell them to live in the moment and give no thought to eternity?  Would you tell them to hold grudges?  Would you tell them to remember all the wrongs people have done to them?  Would you tell them to not to forgive? Would you tell them to strive after more and more?  Would you tell them to give little?  Would you tell them to find reason not to give of their time and money to others?  Would you tell them to keep anger in their heart?  Would you tell them to listen to the counsel of people who do not know God?  Would you tell them to keep their eyes on what this world has to offer?  Joshua put it this way: “Choose this day whom you will serve, as for me and my house we will serve the Lord”.  We make a choice each day on who we will serve.  Choose to serve God.  Chose to humbly serve, honor, follow and obey Him.

Be Encouraged

“The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?  When evildoers assail me to eat up my flesh, my adversaries and foes, it is they who stumble and fall.  Though an army encamp against me, my heart shall not fear; though war arise against me, yet I will be confident.”

Psalms 54:4  Behold, God is my helper; the Lord is the upholder of my life.

Psalms 118:6  The LORD is on my side; I will not fear. What can man do to me?  The LORD is on my side as my helper; I shall look in triumph on those who hate me.

Psalms 118:13    I was pushed hard, so that I was falling, but the LORD helped me.

1 Chronicles 12:18  Then the Spirit clothed Amasai, chief of the thirty, and he said, “We are yours, O David, and with you, O son of Jesse! Peace, peace to you, and peace to your helpers! For your God helps you.” Then David received them and made them officers of his troops.

Isaiah 41:10    fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.

Isaiah 42:1     Behold my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen, in whom my soul delights; I have put my Spirit upon him; he will bring forth justice to the nations.

Isaiah 50:7  But the Lord GOD helps me; therefore I have not been disgraced; therefore I have set my face like a flint, and I know that I shall not be put to shame.  He who vindicates me is near. Who will contend with me? Let us stand up together. Who is my adversary? Let him come near to me.  Behold, the Lord GOD helps me; who will declare me guilty? Behold, all of them will wear out like a garment; the moth will eat them up.

Romans 8:31    What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?

Hebrews 13:6   So we can confidently say, “The Lord is my helper; I will not fear; what can man do to me?”

Isaiah 54:17   no weapon that is fashioned against you shall succeed, and you shall refute every tongue that rises against you in judgment. This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD and their vindication from me, declares the LORD.”

John 10:28  I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand.  My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand.

1 John 4:4   Little children, you are from God and have overcome them, for he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.

We all find times where we seem to be alone in our issues, trials, and troubles.  We are not strange or abnormal in these thoughts as scripture indicates many before us have similar thoughts.  Notice all of the references used to encourage others: “He will strengthen”, “He will uphold”, “He will never leave”, “His hand hold us”, “He will help”, “He is for us”, “He is on our side”.  God never changes and His promises are never empty “HE WILL NEVER LEAVE US OR FORSAKE US”.  Be encouraged and stand firm in His promises.  Fear not and be confident in Him.  We are never alone.

Prayer to Praise

“Behold, God is my helper; the Lord is the upholder of my life.”

“For he has delivered me from every trouble”

“I can do all things through him who strengthens me.”

Psalms 54:1   O God, save me by your name, and vindicate me by your might.  O God, hear my prayer; give ear to the words of my mouth.

Psalms 26:1  Vindicate me, O LORD, for I have walked in my integrity, and I have trusted in the LORD without wavering.

Psalms 43:1  Vindicate me, O God, and defend my cause against an ungodly people, from the deceitful and unjust man deliver me!  For you are the God in whom I take refuge;

Psalms 55:1-2   Give ear to my prayer, O God, and hide not yourself from my plea for mercy!  Attend to me, and answer me; I am restless in my complaint and I moan,

Psalms 28:7    The LORD is my strength and my shield; in him my heart trusts, and I am helped; my heart exults, and with my song I give thanks to him.

Psalms 140:7    O LORD, my Lord, the strength of my salvation, you have covered my head in the day of battle.

Exodus 15:2    The LORD is my strength and my song, and he has become my salvation; this is my God, and I will praise him, my father’s God, and I will exalt him.

Isaiah 40:31   but they who wait for the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.

Zechariah 10:12    I will make them strong in the LORD, and they shall walk in his name,” declares the LORD.

Ephesians 6:10   Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might.

We all come up against trials and troubles throughout this life.  We can take note of David and how he brought these trials before God, almost like a complaint, but he always ends in praise proclaiming God’s love, mercy, might, strength and his faith in it.  Acknowledging our trials and troubles to God, our heavenly Father, should be natural.  Likewise we should have continual praise for Him and proclaiming our faith in His power, might, sovereignty, strength, love, mercy, and grace.  Try this for a week.  Read His word for 5 minutes each day and highlight His promises.  These promises are your building blocks for praise because not only do we see what He has done but what He is doing and will do.  Take your problems to Him and lay them in His hands.  Trust in His promises to never leave you or forsake you, to have steadfast love for you, to be your strength, your rock, your power, your refuge, your joy, your peace, and your hope.  In Him you will find rest and reason for hope.

The Great Contrast

“For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy,”

“ For the wicked boasts of the desires of his soul, and the one greedy for gain curses and renounces the LORD.”

“His mouth is filled with cursing and deceit and oppression; under his tongue are mischief and iniquity.”

“The LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.”

“ But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the detestable, as for murderers, the sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, their portion will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death.”

“Therefore wait for me,” declares the LORD, “for the day when I rise up to seize the prey. For my decision is to gather nations, to assemble kingdoms, to pour out upon them my indignation, all my burning anger; for in the fire of my jealousy all the earth shall be consumed.”

Psalms 52:1  ”Why do you boast of evil, O mighty man? The steadfast love of God endures all the day.  Your tongue plots destruction, like a sharp razor, you worker of deceit.  You love evil more than good, and lying more than speaking what is right.  You love all words that devour, O deceitful tongue.   But God will break you down forever; he will snatch and tear you from your tent; he will uproot you from the land of the living.  The righteous shall see and fear, and shall laugh at him, saying,   “See the man who would not make God his refuge, but trusted in the abundance of his riches and sought refuge in his own destruction!”  But I am like a green olive tree in the house of God. I trust in the steadfast love of God forever and ever. I will thank you forever, because you have done it. I will wait for your name, for it is good, in the presence of the godly.

Psalms 103:17    But the steadfast love of the LORD is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear him, and his righteousness to children’s children,

Psalms 107:1  Oh give thanks to the LORD, for he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever!

Proverbs 18:10   The name of the LORD is a strong tower; the righteous man runs into it and is safe.

Psalms 130:5  I wait for the LORD, my soul waits, and in his word I hope;  my soul waits for the Lord more than watchmen for the morning, more than watchmen for the morning.

Lamentations 3:25  The LORD is good to those who wait for him, to the soul who seeks him.  It is good that one should wait quietly for the salvation of the LORD.

Psalms 27:14     Wait for the LORD; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the LORD!

James 5:7   Be patient, therefore, brothers, until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, being patient about it, until it receives the early and the late rains.

The contrast of those who deny God and only seek self satisfaction and those who patiently wait for the Lord is very evident in scripture.  Those who take for themselves, who oppress the weak, who are greedy for more, who are sexually immoral, who lie, cheat, and rob, and who hardens their heart against God have no peace or place of rest for their soul.  I imagine, at times, we look at those who live like this with disgust.  That is so wrong for us to do.  We too were like this but for the grace of God our heart was opened to His grace, mercy, and love.  Think about how long suffering God is.  If we, who believe and have a glimpse of His holiness, look at the wicked with disgust think about God and in His Holiness withholds His wrath and anger, offering grace and mercy.  The contrast is seen in the book of John;  “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God. And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil. For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed. But whoever does what is true comes to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that his works have been carried out in God.”  God’s anger and wrath are Holy and are reserved for those who neglect this offer of salvation.  In this time of reservation there is hope for the lost just as it was for us who once was lost but now are found safe and secure in His grace, mercy and love.    To humbly serve, honor, follow and obey God is to be an example and light to all those who are lost.  God is long suffering not wanting any to perish and we too need to have our heart and mind filled with compassion for the lost.