This week I spent some time in Psalm 30, and during my study discovered a couple of really interesting word pictures that I’d never seen before. The first one came in verse 3, which in the NLT reads, “You have brought me up from the grave, O Lord…” The imagery here by David is that…
Category: Psalms
5 Reasons to Give Thanks: Psalm 100
“Shout with joy to the LORD, all the earth! Worship the LORD with gladness. Come before him, singing with joy. Acknowledge that the LORD is God! He made us, and we are his. We are his people, the sheep of his pasture. Enter his gates with thanksgiving; go into his courts with praise. Give thanks…
A Call to Worship
“Shout with joy to the LORD, all the earth! Worship the LORD with gladness. Come before him, singing with joy. Acknowledge that the LORD is God! He made us, and we are his. We are his people, the sheep of his pasture. Enter his gates with thanksgiving; go into his courts with praise. Give thanks…
(Missional) Psalm 2
“I will declare the LORD’S decree: He said to me, ‘You are My Son; today I have become your Father. Ask of Me, and I will make the nations your inheritance and the ends of the earth your possession. You will break them with a rod of iron; you will shatter them like pottery’” (Psalm…
(Missional) Psalm 2
How does God respond to the “raging nations?” Continuing from yesterday’s post from Psalm 2, the Psalmist writes, “But the one who rules in heaven laughs. The Lord scoffs at them. Then in anger he rebukes them, terrifying them with his fierce fury. For the Lord declares, ‘I have placed my chosen king on the…
(Missional) Psalm 2
Recently I did some work from Psalm 2 as a part of our church’s annual Global Missions Month emphasis. I felt led to speak one week on the role of prayer in the missionary enterprise, and came to Psalm 2. I was already familiar with verse 8, but what I found in the rest of…
Why Give?
As I posted yesterday, God has no needs. He is totally self existent and self sufficient. So why bother with giving? What’s the purpose? Psalm 50:14-15 gives three compelling reasons why we should give; each beneficial to us and our development as disciples of Jesus Christ. The first reason is that giving is an expression…
The God With No Needs
Last weekend I spoke about stewardship from Psalm 50. Although I have never taught from this text, I found it to be timely for where we are as a church and as a nation, given the economy. Here’s the gist of what I shared in worship. This Psalm of Asaph opens with an introduction of…
What to Do In Times of Trouble
Back in my days as a Bible beater…err college student…I can recall making fun of preachers who preached from the book of Psalms. “Soft,” I’d think. “Sissies,” I’d judge. “Dumb,” I was. Thankfully I’ve matured a bit, recognizing that the Psalms contain more than gentle musings and platitudes about sheep and sunsets. The Psalms are…
The Impact of Blessings: Psalm 128 (Part 3)
By way of quick review, Psalm 128 begins with a word of instruction on how to become a blessed and happy person. It all hinges on having the fear of the Lord at the center of your life and the Word of God at the circumference of your life. When the center and the circumference…