The Good Ole Days
Today’s Reading – Psalms 133 – 139 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)
(Second Milers also read – Matthew 23 – 24; Psalms 56 – 60; Proverbs 12)
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Psalm 55:17
Read the “0712 Evening and Morning” devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon.
Read a previous post from today’s reading – “Unity“.
“By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down, yea, we wept, when we remembered Zion. We hanged our harps upon the willows in the midst thereof. For there they that carried us away captive required of us a song; and they that wasted us required of us mirth, saying, Sing us one of the songs of Zion. How shall we sing the LORD’S song in a strange land?” (Psalms 137:1-4)
Psalm 137 is a very sad psalm written after the Israelites had lost their land, and had been taken into captivity by the Babylonians. In this psalm they are remembering the good ole days, when they were safe and secure inside of their borders, and when they had the freedom and privelege to worship and serve God freely. But, that was all gone. As a nation, they had forsaken God’s word, neglected His worship, and had allowed all of the wicked practices of the heathen to enter in. Though God had warned them of the consequences many times through His prophets, the people just would not listen, so God had to judge them. In this psalm, they are looking back, and wishing that they could go back and do things differently.
I see a prophetic parallel to America in this psalm. I believe if we continue down the path that we are travelling as a nation, we too will lose everything, and will one day be looking back in regret, wishing we could go back and re-do things. We have not lost everything yet, but we can see the hand of God’s judgment beginning to fall upon this once great nation. It doesn’t have to happen though. We could repent, and go back to what we were when we were founded. Of course, we had some problems back then as well, and I do not advocate that we do everything exactly as we did then, but I do believe we need to put God back on the throne in this land. Our nation has become a godless, corrupt, and extremely immoral place. We have come to accept and even promote many things which God has declared to be evil. We are forsaking the houses of God’s worship, and instead are consumed with chasing possessions and pleasure. If we keep going, someday soon it will all be gone. But then, we will remember. I guess it won’t be all bad, though, because while we are remembering what we lost, we also will remember God. Just a thought.
Posted in Thoughts from Psalms by Phil Erickson with 3 comments.
Sing
Today’s Reading – Psalms 96 – 102 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)
(Second Milers also read – Matthew 9 – 10; Psalms 21 – 25; Proverbs 5)
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Psalm 19
Read the “0705 Evening and Morning” devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon
Read previous posts from this passage – “Enduring to All Generations“, and “Before His Presence“
“O sing unto the LORD a new song: sing unto the LORD, all the earth. Sing unto the LORD, bless his name; shew forth his salvation from day to day.” (Psalm 96:1-2)
“O sing unto the LORD a new song; for he hath done marvellous things: his right hand, and his holy arm, hath gotten him the victory. … Make a joyful noise unto the LORD, all the earth: make a loud noise, and rejoice, and sing praise. Sing unto the LORD with the harp; with the harp, and the voice of a psalm.” (Psalm 98:1, 4-5)
“Serve the LORD with gladness: come before his presence with singing.” (Psalm 100:2)
“I will sing of mercy and judgment: unto thee, O LORD, will I sing.” (Psalm 101:1)
You couldn’t help but notice all of the references to singing in today’s reading in the Psalms. singing is a beautiful expression of the joy that is in our hearts because of all of the blessings that the Lord has given us as His children. Reflecting on the goodness of God should be enough to put anyone in a singing mood. Notice in Psalm 96:2 (above) that a singing Christian shows his salvation to the world around him. People can know we are christians by our words, action, and love; but here we see they can hear our salvation through our joyful spirit expressed in our singing. Why is it then that so many church services are dead when it comes to the congregational singing?
It is a shame that many congregations today are limiting the amount of congregational singing in their worship services. Some churches are replacing the singing from the people in the pews with professional performances from the platform. What a shame. While I thoroughly enjoy hearing Holy Spirit-filled and gifted musicians and singers perform, there is still nothing like an uninhibited congregation singing their hearts out in worship to the Lord.
One more thought regarding singing. Sometimes we don’t feel like singing, perhaps due to negative or painful circumstances going on in and around our lives. We should sing anyway because singing has a way of cheering us up and reminding us that we serve an awesome God. Christian, God wants to hear you sing, and so do I. It matters not if you can hold a note. All you have to do is make that joyful noise, and the Spirit of God will do the rest.
“Every good gift that we have had from the cradle up has come from God. If a man just stops to think what he has to praise God for, he will find there is enough to keep him singing praises for a week.” D. L. Moody
Posted in Devotions by Phil Erickson with 6 comments.
Make His Praise Glorious
Today’s Reading – Psalms 65 – 68 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)
(Second Milers also read – Revelation 10 – 12; Psalms 136 – 140; Proverbs 28)
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – James 4:10
Read the “0628 Evening and Morning” devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon
Read an earlier post from this passage – “What Are You Thinking About?”
“Make a joyful noise unto God, all ye lands: Sing forth the honour of his name: make his praise glorious.” – (Psalm 66:1-2)
Our God is an awesome, and wonderful, and great, and powerful God. The English language really does not contain enough adjectives to describe how glorious our God is. Yet, we who have been saved through faith in the shed blood of the Lord Jesus Christ are encouraged to learn about the greatness of God from His Word, and then communicate our appreciation and admiration to Him first, and then to the people around us. In order to do this, we must first study God. One of the reasons why many Christians hava a tough time praising Him is because they don’t know Him; and there are others who are praising Him, but not according to knowledge. We are commanded to study God through the Scriptures. If the God you serve seems vague or small to you, it is because you do not know Him very well. Open the Bible and read about His awesome power, as well as His infinite wisdom, and loving compassion. He is wonderful. Get to know Him.
Once we know some things about God, we are to sing about Him. These Psalms were all originally songs, and many of them are songs of praise. I sometimes get a kick out of watching the song service at our church. I often see people going through the motions, thoughtlessly and half-heartedly mouthing the words of the hymns. Every once in a while I have to shake myself, and remember what I am singing, and to whom I am doing it. Singing is a form of praise and worship. When we sing the songs of God, we are worshipping Him, and praising Him. If there is one part of our church service that I have really been trying to work on, it is the song service.
Notice also Psalm 66:3:
“Say unto God, How terrible art thou in thy works! through the greatness of thy power shall thine enemies submit themselves unto thee.”
Finally, we are to speak our praise to God, and for God continuously. The Scripture says that the redeemed of the Lord are supposed to “say so” (Psam 107:2). We have an awful lot to be thankful for; and an awful lot to praise Him for. My preacher in Texas used to say, “if you’re not going to Hell, you ain’t got no problems; and you ought to be shouting.” He is right. I once heard Pastor Charlie Clark say, “Open your big, fat mouth, and praise God.” Perhaps if we started praising the Lord as we ought to, more people would be attracted to our God. Just a thought.
Posted in Thoughts from Psalms by Phil Erickson with 3 comments.
I Have and I Will
Today’s Reading – Psalm 26 – 31 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)
(Second Milers also read – 1 Peter 1 – 5; Psalms 101 – 105; Proverbs 21)
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Isaiah 51:11
Read the “0621 Evening and Morning” devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon.
Read a previous post from this passage – “Joy Cometh in the Morning.”
“1 Judge me, O LORD; for I have walked in mine integrity: I have trusted also in the LORD; [therefore] I shall not slide. 2 Examine me, O LORD, and prove me; try my reins and my heart. 3 For thy lovingkindness [is] before mine eyes: and I have walked in thy truth. 4 I have not sat with vain persons, neither will I go in with dissemblers. 5 I have hated the congregation of evil doers; and will not sit with the wicked. 6 I will wash mine hands in innocency: so will I compass thine altar, O LORD: 7 That I may publish with the voice of thanksgiving, and tell of all thy wondrous works. 8 LORD, I have loved the habitation of thy house, and the place where thine honour dwelleth. 9 Gather not my soul with sinners, nor my life with bloody men: 10 In whose hands [is] mischief, and their right hand is full of bribes. 11 But as for me, I will walk in mine integrity: redeem me, and be merciful unto me. 12 My foot standeth in an even place: in the congregations will I bless the LORD. (Psalm 26:1-12)
This Psalm is another one of the Psalms of David. Possibly, it was written during the times that King Saul was pursuing David, or possibly it was at the time that his son Absalom was in rebellion.
This Psalm has an interesting structure. You will notice often the phrases, “I have” and “I will” repeated over and over again throughout the Psalm.
I have walked in integrity (v. 1); I have walked in truth; I will walk in integrity (v. 11)
I have trusted (v. 1); I shall not slide (v. 2)
I have not sat (v. 4); I will not go (v. 4)
I have hated (v. 5); I will not sit (v. 5)
I will wash (v. 6); I will compass (v. 6)
I have loved (v. 8); I will bless (v. 12)
I David Asks the Lord to Examine, Prove, and Try Him. (v 2)
“Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts: And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.” (Psalms 139:23-24)
The word “examine” means to scrutinize, or to look closely at something.
“The LORD is in his holy temple, the LORD’S throne is in heaven: his eyes behold, his eyelids try, the children of men.” (Psalms 11:4 )
The word, “prove,” means to examine, tempt, or to put to the test:
“And they tempted God in their heart by asking meat for their lust.” (Psalms 78:18)
“Prove thy servants, I beseech thee, ten days; and let them give us pulse to eat, and water to drink.”(Daniel 1:12)
The word “try” is the word that is used to refine metal.
“And I will turn my hand upon thee, and purely purge away thy dross, and take away all thy tin:”(Isaiah 1:25)
“That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ:” (1 Peter 1:7)
Notice that he asks God to do this to both his reins and his heart.
The word translated “reins” is sometimes used for the word “kidney”, the physical organ. It is used here and in many other places to refer to the seat of emotion and affection.
“Oh let the wickedness of the wicked come to an end; but establish the just: for the righteous God trieth the hearts and reins.” (Psalms 7:9)
The word heart can be used to refer to almost the same thing, but it can also refer to the soul and mind.
So what is David asking here?
He is asking God to take a close look at his mind (his thinking), and his emotions (his attitude, his will). He wants God to test them, and to try them. When a person has heart problems today, the doctor will look him over carefully, and then he will send him for a battery of tests, and then he may “try” him by putting him through a stress test. Here in our text, David was asking for a thorough examination. The Word of God and the Spirit of God examine us as well:
“For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in his sight: but all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do.” (Hebrews 4:12-13)
II David Acknowledges His Love for the House of God (vs. 8, 12)
The House of the Lord in the Old Testament was the temple. Notice v. 12 speaks of congregations (plural). David loved the Lord’s house – the temple; but he also loved to be with God’s people and he testified (blessed the Lord) wherever God’s people were gathered.
“Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised;) And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works: Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.” (Hebrews 10:23-25)
Notice in v. 12, the reference to the “even place,” meaning level terrain. This means that David was standing on ground and following a path that would keep him from falling into sin. He kept away from places that were spiritually dangerous for him. The House of God, which was the Tabernacle in David’s day, was a safe place for Him. The church house with God’s people gathered together and the Word of God being proclaimed is a safe, “even” place for us today. The Bible also refers to “sliding” (v. 1), and “slippery” places (Psalm 73:18; Jeremiah 23:12), which are places that people sometimes go that will be spiritually dangerous and conducive to falling.
III David Asserts His Disdain for the Works of the Wicked (vs. 4 – 5; 9 – 10)
“1 Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. 2 But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night.” (Psalm 1:1-2)
“I will set no wicked thing before mine eyes: I hate the work of them that turn aside; it shall not cleave to me.” (Psalms 101:3)
Posted in Devotions by Phil Erickson with 2 comments.
Multiplying Words
Today’s Reading – Job 33 – 35 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)
(Second Milers Read – 1 Timothy 4 – 6; Psalms 66 – 70; Proverbs 14)
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Psalm 92:1 – 4
Read the “0614 Evening and Morning” devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon
Read a previous post from this passage – “That Which I See Not“
“Therefore doth Job open his mouth in vain; he multiplieth words without knowledge.” – (Job 35:16)
“Answer not a fool according to his folly, lest thou also be like unto him.” – (Proverbs 26:4)
“Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath:” – (James 1:19)
“Even a fool, when he holdeth his peace, is counted wise: and he that shutteth his lips is esteemed a man of understanding.” – (Proverbs 17:28 )
There is entirely too much talking going on in this entire Book of Job. Job’s so-called friends should be listening to Job rather than rebuking him. He certainly has suffered enough. Even Job is talking too much by arguing with these idiots. They are all “experts” on God; yet there is much that they do not, and cannot understand.
We do the same thing, don’t we? We talk about things, and try to sound like we have complete knowledge on a subject; but half the time we really do not know what we are talking about, especially when it comes to talking about God. The best thing that we can do is quote Scripture if we have to talk at all. The older I get, the more I realize that I really do not know much. I should keep my mouth open proportionately to the amount of knowledge that I have, which means it should not be open much.
Posted in Thoughts from Job by Phil Erickson with 2 comments.
The Daysman
Today’s Reading – Job 8 – 11 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)
(Second Milers Read – Ephesians 1 – 3; Psalms 31 – 35; Proverbs 7)
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Psalm 47:1
Read the “0607 Evening and Morning” devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon
“For he is not a man, as I am, that I should answer him, and we should come together in judgment. Neither is there any daysman betwixt us, that might lay his hand upon us both.” – (Job 9:32-33)
“For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus;” – (1 Timothy 2:5)
The word “daysman” in verse 33 of chapter 9 literally means a mediator. Job is lamenting because there is no one to bridge the gap between the righteous and holy God, and a sinner like himself. He already stated in verse 20 that he could not justify himself. God became man in the person of the Lord Jesus Christ, and as the God-man he came to justify sinners like Job, and you and me also. He was the go-between, the mediator, the one who came between God and men, so that men could come into the presence of an holy God.
Consider some of these verses regarding what Christ accomplished for us when He came to earth as a man and died for our sins:
“Jesus, when he had cried again with a loud voice, yielded up the ghost. And, behold, the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom; and the earth did quake, and the rocks rent;” – (Matthew 27:50-51)
The veil in the temple separated men from God, but through the shed blood of the Lord Jesus, the veil was removed. Notice that the veil was torn from the top to the bottom signifying that it was God that removed the veil that once kept man from Him.
“Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession. For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.” – (Hebrews 4:14-16)
Jesus was, and is, fully God, yet also fully man. He understands what it is like to be tempted, because he experienced it; yet without sin. He, as our great high priest, went before us and opened a door for us to now boldly enter the presence of God. We can now enter God’s presence through “the Door”; through “the Way”; through Christ.
There has always been a “daysman”, even in Job’s time; but Job may not have understood it at the time. Praise God, however, we definitely have one that we can know today!
Posted in Thoughts from Job by Phil Erickson with 1 comment.
I Cannot Come Down
Today’s Reading – Nehemiah 6 – 7 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)
(Second Milers Read – 1 Corinthians 9 – 12; Psalms 146 – 150; Proverbs 31)
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Deuteronomy 32:4
Read the “0531 Evening and Morning” devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon
“That Sanballat and Geshem sent unto me, saying, Come, let us meet together in some one of the villages in the plain of Ono. But they thought to do me mischief. And I sent messengers unto them, saying, I am doing a great work, so that I cannot come down: why should the work cease, whilst I leave it, and come down to you?” – (Nehemiah 6:2 – 3)
In our passage today we see Nehemiah busy doing what the Lord had called him to do: rebuilding the wall of the city of Jerusalem. He had a job to do, and he was intent on completing it. Now there were also people in the area that were intent on stopping Nehemiah from fulfilling the will of God, but Nehemiah did not let them distract him from completing his work. I love what Nehemiah said: “I am doing a great work, so that I cannot come down: why should the work cease, whilst I leave it, and come down to you?” The work Nehemiah was doing was certainly great, because it was God that had asked him to do it.
I have a great work to do for the Lord as well, and so do you. God has something to do for all of us who are His children. We must not get distracted from completing the work that God has given us. I have observed through the years that distractions can come from a variety of sources. The wicked one is famous for distracting people away from the will of God. This was the case with Sanballat, Tobiah, and Geshom from our text. They were wicked men who did not have Nehemiah’s best interests in mind. They were working against the will of God, but notice how they tried to disguise themselves as God’s servants and as Nehemiah’s friends. As God’s children we need to learn to be discerning about the true motivations of the people around us as they attempt to pull us away from the primary tasks that God has given us.
Another type of distraction comes from good people who often invite us to do “good things”; but even these good things become evil if they take us away from the best things. I am slowly learning how to graciously turn down many “good” invitations from caring people. I simply do not have enough time and energy to do all of the things that I might like to do, especially as they pull me away from the primary areas of my responsibility. As a pastor, I get invited to many birthday’s, picnics, graduations, dinners, weddings, conferences, barbecues, etc. I love to be with God’s people, but I simply cannot go to them all.
A third distraction is the distraction God brings your way. There are times that God will interrupt the daily routine in life in order for you to learn something, or maybe in order for you to accomplish something special for Him. Again, we must be very careful to discern whether these distractions are indeed from God. A few years ago, because of the tight budget at the church I had to go back to a secular job for a few months, which required me to work overnight 6 nights per week. This job was certainly a hindrance that kept me from doing all that I might have wanted to do in the ministry; but I am convinced that God had lead me down that path, at least temporarily. My primary ministry is my family, and God had provided this job as a means for my family to be taken care of while still allowing me to serve as the pastor. However, because of this constraint on my time, I was very limited to what I could do. My life consisted basically of working, sleeping, prayer, Bible reading, studying and preparing for messages, and a little soul winning. That is all that I could do during those months. I had to learn to say no to many other things so that I could do those main things. My focus was still on serving God, but I had to take some time away from that service in order to help the church financially, and in order to put food on my family’s table. God taught me much in the short time that I had been working the outside job, and He even used me to be a light to a very dark workplace. I thank the Lord that my time at the supermarket was short, and that He has turned our church’s financial situation around, but I am convinced that God allowed that period in my life for a reason.
The bottom line of today’s devotion is this: don’t allow distractions to pull you away from the primary things that God wants you to do, unless, of course, it is God who is doing the distracting.
Posted in Thoughts from Nehemiah by Phil Erickson with 6 comments.
Seek Ye First
Today’s Reading – 2 Chronicles 29 – 31 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)
(Second Milers Read – Acts 25 – 28; Psalms 116 – 120; Proverbs 24)
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Micah 6:8
Read the “0524 Evening and Morning” devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon
Read previous posts from this passage – “Living for the Lord – A Formula for Success;” and “Soulwinning in 2 Chronicles“
“3 He in the first year of his reign, in the first month, opened the doors of the house of the LORD, and repaired them.” (2 Chronicles 29:3)
“33 But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.” (Matthew 6:33)
Hezekiah is not my favorite king, but he is high on the list. He definitely started out extremely well. As a very young, 25-year-old king, he made it his first order of business to open the doors of the Temple and repair it. By the way, have you noticed from our reading through these chapters in 1st and 2nd Chronicles that the House of God would always fall into disrepair when God’s people got away from Him. And when a good king came along, he placed the repair of the Temple and the reinstitution of sacrifices and observances high on his priority list. Here in chapter twenty-nine, Hezekiah commands the Levites to remove “the filthiness” out of the Temple. That word, “filthiness,” is an extremely strong word which describes the worst kinds of impurity and here is probably referring to idolatry.
Once all of the garbage was out of the Temple, they began to worship the Lord through sacrifices and singing:
“27 And Hezekiah commanded to offer the burnt offering upon the altar. And when the burnt offering began, the song of the LORD began also with the trumpets, and with the instruments ordained by David king of Israel. 28 And all the congregation worshipped, and the singers sang, and the trumpeters sounded: and all this continued until the burnt offering was finished. 29 And when they had made an end of offering, the king and all that were present with him bowed themselves, and worshipped. 30 Moreover Hezekiah the king and the princes commanded the Levites to sing praise unto the LORD with the words of David, and of Asaph the seer. And they sang praises with gladness, and they bowed their heads and worshipped.” (2 Chronicles 29:27-30)
I believe that a pattern can be seen here in the reign of King Hezekiah that we can follow in our lives today. We need to get rid of the all the garbage that this world pumps into our lives, homes, and churches also. And we also need to confess our sins and sinfulness to the Lord recognizing the sacrifice that He made for the sins when He died for us on the Cross of Calvary. Then will also be able to sing, praise, and worship the Lord. But let’s not wait to start this process; let’s get right on it. Just as Hezekiah put God at the highest level of priority when he became the king, we need to start right now to put God and His will first in our lives.
Posted in Devotions by Phil Erickson with 3 comments.
The Glory of the Lord Filled the House
Today’s Reading – 2 Chronicles 1 – 5 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)
(Second Milers Read – Acts 4 – 6; Psalms 81 – 85; Proverbs 17)
Listen to this morning’s Scripture song – Psalm 119:105
Read the “0517 Evening and Morning” devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon
Read a previous post from this passage – “Just Ask Him“
“It came even to pass, as the trumpeters and singers were as one, to make one sound to be heard in praising and thanking the LORD; and when they lifted up their voice with the trumpets and cymbals and instruments of musick, and praised the LORD, saying, For he is good; for his mercy endureth for ever: that then the house was filled with a cloud, even the house of the LORD; So that the priests could not stand to minister by reason of the cloud: for the glory of the LORD had filled the house of God.” – (2 Chronicles 5:13-14)
Nothing pleases the Lord more than the praise and worship of His people. Here in the first five chapters of 2 Chronicles we see Solomon building the temple of God on Mount Moriah in Jerusalem. All of the preparations had been made; all of the materials had been provided for; all of the instruments of worship, and the ornate furnishings had been created; and everything had been put in its proper place. Finally, this temple, which was first conceived through the Lord in the heart of David, is now almost complete. I say almost, because God does not arrive on the scene until His people in one accord begin to worship and praise Him. It isn’t until then that God shows up, and fills the temple with his glory.
Two things caught my attention from this passage. The first is that they played and sang “as one”. That tells me that there was unity and harmony. God loves when His children are dwelling together in unity. The second thing is that God is well pleased with the praise of His people. This is one of the things that sets us apart from other religions. God does not force us to worship Him. Nothing about true worship is forced. Worship and praise are voluntary expressions of our love for the Lord.
As I am writing this passage, I am burdened about many things in my life, and in the life of our church. I have been thinking lately that something is missing in our church. I could not put my finger on it before, but I think God has shown me something here. We are not praising the Lord as we should. We are not singing as we should with a heart filled with praise and adoration for our God. The song service in our church should be more than just some obligatory precursor to the preaching. It should be a time when we as God’s children stop everything and focus our attention on Him completely, lifting up our hearts and voices to Him in praise. It’s really pretty simple isn’t it? Maybe if we start praising and worshipping God as we should the glory will fill our house as well.
Posted in Thoughts from 2 Corinthians by Phil Erickson with 2 comments.
What a Promise!
Today’s Reading – 1 Chronicles 28 – 29 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)
(Second Milers Read – Acts 1 – 3; Psalms 76 – 80; Proverbs 16)
Read the “0516 Evening and Morning” devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon
“(20) And David said to Solomon his son, Be strong and of good courage, and do it: fear not, nor be dismayed: for the LORD God, even my God, will be with thee; he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee, until thou hast finished all the work for the service of the house of the LORD.” (1 Chronicles 28:20
Our text today brings us to the end of David’s life where he is giving final instructions to his son Solomon and the leaders (“princes and captains” 1 Chronicles 28:1). He explains again that it had been his desire to build the Temple but God had other plans. He also publicly thanks the Lord for making him the king, and for promising to keep his seed on the throne of Israel. He then charges his son Solomon and all of Israel to love and serve the Lord, and to fulfill His will for their lives.
That brings us to the promise made by David in v. 20. David assures Solomon that as long as he is doing what God called him to do that he has absolutely nothing to fear because God would: be with him, not fail him or forsake him, until he completes what God called him to do. For Solomon, that meant building the Temple and reigning as king over Israel.
I believe that this promise is applicable for us today as well. God has a plan and purpose for each of our lives, and as long as we are living inside of the will of God, doing what He wants us to do, we are basically invincible. God will give us everything that we need to fulfill His will, and He will also protect us from anyone or anything that tries to deter us from doing what He has called us to do. What a promise! However, this promise does not apply to those who are living out their own will; it only is good for those who are yielded to the will of God.
Question – Are you living your life doing what you want to do, or are you fulfilling God’s will for your life? If you are not sure about what God’s purpose for your life is yet, then I would suggest that you do three things:
- Seek God’s will through the Word of God. the Bible reveals the will of God principally in a general way. God will never specifically direct you contrary to His word.
- Seek God’s will through prayer. Pray about what God wants you to do, where He wants you to do it, and who He wants you to do it with.
- Seek God’s will through godly counsel. Once you have a good idea of what you think God wants for your life, run it by someone who also is walking with the Lord inside of His will. Ask your parents, pastors, or other godly counselors for their input. Don’t shop for counsel, but ask specific mentors to be brutally honest with you. Enlist their prayer support as well.
What a blessing it is to know that we don’t have to worry about anything as we live for the Lord as His ambassadors here on the earth. He has got our backs. He goes before us and surrounds us. He provides and protects us every step of the way. And when we are finished with what He has called us to do here, He will bring us home to Heaven.
Posted in Devotions by Phil Erickson with 3 comments.