All who serve carved images,
those who boast in idols, will be put to shame.
All the gods must worship Him.
Zion hears and is glad,
and the towns of Judah rejoice
because of Your judgments, Lord.
For You, Lord,
are the Most High over all the earth;
You are exalted above all the gods.
~~Psalms 97:7-9 HCSB

What comes to your mind when you hear the word “judgment?” This word has a negative connotation for most of us, but here we see a whole new way of thinking. God wants us to worship and serve Him alone. Those serving idols and doing evil DO need to fear judgment because they have ignored the Lord, but for the follower of Christ judgment day is one of vindication and reward. God’s judgments are holy and righteous and will be a time of exuberant celebration as even the little “g” gods must bow down and worship our Father.

Who/what are you worshipping?

“Sing to Yahweh, praise His name; proclaim His salvation from day to day.”
‭‭Psalms‬ ‭96:2‬ ‭HCSB‬‬
On a day-to-day basis we are tempted to take salvation for granted. Let us never lose the wonder and joy of the new life
found in Christ once we lay down the old life at the foot of the cross. Have you completely surrendered that old life?🚦

Today, if only you would hear his voice,
“Do not harden your hearts as you did at Meribah,
as you did that day at Massah in the wilderness,
where your ancestors tested me;
they tried me, though they had seen what I did.

Psalms 95:7b-9 NIV

Are you getting frustrated with God? Does it seem as if everyone else is getting ahead while you strive in frustration just to lift one leaded foot out of the mud? This is the moment you are most vulnerable to hardening your heart, just as the Israelites did more than 2000 years ago.

After 400 years in slavery, God rescued the Israelites out of Egypt by parting the waters to let three cross to safety then closing up the waters on Egyptians who were chasing after them on horses and in chariots. They had just left the Desert (Wilderness) of Zin where God had provided manna for them to eat every day for 40 years. Camped out at Rephidim where there was no water to drink, the people became thirsty and complained that Moses had ever taken them out of Egypt in the first place. Their hearts were hardened because they chose to forget what God had already done for them.

When you are tempted to shake your fist at God because you don’t understand what is going on, why things are the way they are, remember the many ways the Father has provided for you.  He cares for the people of His pasture.

You, God, are my God,
 earnestly I seek you;
 I thirst for you,
 my whole being longs for you,
 in a dry and parched land
 where there is no water.
Psalms 63:1 NIV

“If I say, ‘My foot is slipping,’ Your faithful love will support me, Lord. When I am filled with cares, Your comfort brings me joy. No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to humanity. God is faithful, and He will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation He will also provide a way of escape so that you are able to bear it. Jesus told him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me. For you are saved by grace through faith, and this is not from yourselves; it is God’s gift—not from works, so that no one can boast. I will rejoice and boast about You; I will sing about Your name, Most High. He put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God. Many will see and fear and put their trust in the Lord.”

Psalms 94:18-19, I Cor 10:13, John 14:6, Eph 2:8-9, Jer 9:24, Psalms 40:3  from Holman Christian Standard Bible

“Your throne has been established from the beginning;
You are from eternity.”
Psalms 93:2

It’s mind-boggling to consider the very beginning of the creation, when the earth had not yet been formed, to the beginning of time as we know it. Even more amazing is that God existed before even time! Not only did God exist, but His throne–His reign–has existed for all eternity. Past-present-future. Not only is God who He says He is, but He always has been who He is.

Next time you are tempted to be overwhelmed by seemingly unbearable circumstances, remind yourself of this: God is on the throne. The One who is in control has been in control always. This trying season is but a small blip along the timeline of eternity, and He is big enough to handle your issues. At the same time, He cares so much about you as an individual He became a person in the flesh to make a way for you to have a relationship with Him. Have you responded to that invitation?

“It is good to praise Yahweh, to sing praise to Your name, Most High,
To declare Your faithful love in the morning and Your faithfulness at night.”
Psalms 92:1-2 HCSB

What do you call your Mom or Dad? My sons affectionately call me “Mama” or “Mama bear.” The name “Yahweh” is a personal name for God, denoting a close, endearing relationship. Yahweh is the personal God, not like the many gods of ancient pagan society who were far removed from the very people worshipping them. What an amazing gift that the God who created the heavens and the earth, night and day, me and you, wants to be our go-to, our companion, and the object of our affection. Let us start each day singing His praises, walk with Him through the day in an attitude of prayer, and end each day with thanksgiving for His faithfulness.

“The one who lives under the protection of the Most High dwells in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say to the Lord, “My refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.””
‭‭Psalms‬ ‭91:1-2‬ ‭HCSB

My dog (technically my son’s dog) follows me every single step I take. He doesn’t try to walk ahead of me because he wants to know I am right.there. with. him.

Imagine the transformational life change when you begin walking this closely with God. To remain close, not just drawing close periodically, but to dwell in communion with Him means staying under His protection. Abide with Jesus, learning from His example, guided by the Holy Spirit. Don’t try to run out ahead of Him; remain so close you walk inside the protection of His shadow.

“Teach us to number our days carefully so that we may develop wisdom in our hearts.
Make us rejoice for as many days as You have humbled us, for as many years as we have seen adversity.”
‭‭Psalms‬ ‭90:12, 15‬ ‭HCSB‬‬

“Slowly flow the days…swiftly fly the years,” is the message I sang at a wedding years ago, lines from “Sunrise, Sunset” from “Fiddler On The Rood.” How many times have you heard yourself talking about the day dragging only to later look at photos of days gone by and comment on how time flies?

What would change if you practiced living in the moment you have NOW rather than getting by, waiting impatiently for it to pass? God wants us to find the joy in the middle of our mess. Right here. Right now. Not after you lose ten pounds, the bills are paid off, your health is better. During your hardest season ever seek Him with all your heart, and you WILL find the joy. 🚦

“I have sworn an oath to David, and in my holiness I cannot lie:”
‭‭Psalms‬ ‭89:35‬ ‭NLT‬‬

God’s character offers us this assurance we can always count on: He is incapable of lying. We can trust His promises with absolute certainty when He tells us He is “the same yesterday, today, and forever”(Heb 13:8) and “I will never leave you nor forsake you”(Heb 13:5) because He IS Truth. We may not understand the swirl of crazy around us, but we CAN trust He is there with us through the thick and thin of it because He loves us and that is who He is.🚦

My apologies for the lateness of this message. Technology issues. 😬

“But I call to You for help, Lord; in the morning my prayer meets you.”
Psalms 88:13 HCSB

“O Lord, I cry out to you. I will keep on pleading day by day.”
‭‭Psalms‬ ‭88:13‬ ‭NLT‬‬

You are sitting in church, head bowed, and the pastor is praying. He is not just praying but going on and on and on about the same thing using flowery speech. Finally, the end comes, and when you raise your head you can’t recall a single thing that was said. THAT is a repititious prayer Jesus referenced in Matthew 6:7:

“And when you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do, for they think that they will be heard for their many words.”

What the psalmist calls us to do is to remain in prayer on an issue, to daily bring the request before God, to “pray without ceasing.”(1 Thess 5:17) When something is troubling us every day, then every day we must “cast [our] anxieties on Him because He cares for you.”(1 Peter 5:7)

What matter do you need to take to Him every single day?