CHRISTIANS ENGAGED BLOG
Psalm 59 - For God is My Defense
God knows that His SON – JESUS – will be set on His holy hill from the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem and the kings of the earth will bow down to Him.
The secret to not fearing in this time in history is to see God as our defense. He will defend us if we put our trust in Him.
Psalm 55 – God Will Never Permit the Righteous to be Moved
How many of us during these difficult days are having to fight off restlessness? We are hearing the voice of the enemy louder and seeing the oppression coming from the “wicked” – those who are in rebellion against God. It feels like it is never ending. It is difficult. It is not easy. David felt that restlessness and oppression and voiced it in Psalm 55.
Psalm 53 – The Fool versus the Wise
The way God sees things is SO different than the ways we process truth. We overcomplicate, over think, and justify our weaknesses, but God sees it simply like this – are you foolish or wise? He asks in this passage of scripture – is “there any who understand, who seek God”?
Psalm 49 - We Will Carry Nothing Away
Death is the great equalizer. Death comes to every person whether we are prepared for it or not. We will all die – rich or poor. At that moment our lives will not be defined by how much we have accumulated - our houses or our lands, but our eternal destinies.
Psalm 49 reads more like a proverb than a Psalm as it lays out its deep and resounding wisdom for every living person – we cannot carry anything into the grave but our relationship with Christ.
Psalms 48 – Jerusalem: The Joy of the Whole Earth
A perfect example of God’s faithfulness and ultimate victory in the end is Jerusalem. As Psalm 48 says – this city will become “the joy of the whole earth”.
In Psalm 48 we see the ultimate heavenly city and the warfare surrounding it, but also the physical city of Jerusalem and the warfare of destruction that has always been around it and continues to this day. Ultimately these two realities and two stories will converge into a beautiful tapestry of God’s faithfulness and presence seen on earth.
Psalms 47 – Great King Over All the Earth
What a proclamation of praise and exuberance seen in Psalm 47 as the King of the whole earth is exalted and lifted up as the supreme ruler.
The command of the New Testament is to incorporate patience into our hearts as we wait for the Lord to return. This Psalm gives another picture to set in our minds as we wait patiently for everything to be made right and Jesus to give us our full inheritance as the Bride of Christ.
Psalms 46 – There is a River
There is always a way into peace and joy even in the middle of tribulation. The nations can be raging, the kingdoms of power can be moving, but God will utter His voice, and everything will melt and stop.
Psalm 45 - A Righteous Bridegroom, A Pure Bride
This bride is one that is completely desired by the King. That kind of intense love and affection is what causes worship to spring up in the heart of the bride. It is a response to His great love.
The worship that comes out of her is pure and not afraid of rejection. It is this abandoned worship that makes the bride even more beautiful and more desirable to the King as she comes bringing gifts. He draws her close, entreating her to leave behind all worldly relationships and cleave only unto Him, her bridegroom to whom she is now betrothed.
Psalm 43 – God of My Strength
Sometimes it feels like the world is against us. Many times – we feel the oppression and the pressure of a national crisis beating down on our hearts and minds. The Psalmist in Psalm 43 felt that too – so these five small verses were his way of dealing with the pressure.
Psalm 42 – As the Deer Pants
Hunger for God – it sounds so deep and theological, but it can manifest in an ache, a longing, and a feeling of exhaustion without Him.
I can just imagine the deer without water for hours upon a time and panting at the edge of the brook for a drink. Finally, the deer has arrived after miles of travel to the source of life. It leans over and fully drinks. How refreshing it is!
Psalm 38 – O Lord, my Salvation!
David is experiencing what all of us must go through in our steps to come to God. We must see our sin and realize that we need a Savior.
Salvation needs to be priceless to us. It has to be something that we couldn’t earn on our own. This is where the value of Jesus comes in. We need Him!
The key verse is the last one – “Make haste to help me, O Lord, my salvation!” (verse 22)
Psalm 32 -Blessed is He whose Sin is Covered
Uniquely clear and to the point – Psalm 32 contracts the heaviness and sorrow of sin versus the lightness and joy of God’s mercy. It is a passage of how freedom is found in confession and acknowledgement of sin and God’s true desire is for us all to be liberated from iniquity and transgressions.
Psalm 29 – The Voice of the Lord is OVER the Waters
God has the final word. There is no one more powerful than Him. His majesty and holiness are unmatched. There is no one like Him.
When He speaks – the waters tremble. When He speaks – we should listen.
Psalm 28 - Saving Refuge of His Anointed
In Psalm 28 - we again have the contrast between the wicked and the righteous but this time it highlights David’s expectations on God’s response to each.
Psalm 26 – God Will Dispense Justice Thoroughly
There are times in life when something happens to us that is simply WRONG. Injustice happens. My thoughts instantly go to a family that I know that lost their one son…
Psalm 25 – The Path to the Secret of the Lord
Typically, I will take each Psalm section by section – but today I want us to look at the big picture and then drill down on the specifics of this beautiful passage in the Bible…
Psalm 22 – Through Suffering into Promise
Psalm 22 is a powerful story of suffering and promise – something that we all understand if we have lived on this earth for any length of time…
Psalm 21 – The King Trusts in the Lord
From a place of battle in Psalm 20 to now a place of VICTORY in Psalm 21 – King David is celebrating and blessing God for His faithfulness to Him…
Psalm 20 – Strength & Purpose Comes from God - Our Banner
Yes, this year and last year have felt complex and scary sometimes. Yes, our environment in America feels combative and polarized. If we watch cable news at all…
Psalm 19 – His Glory – No Excuses
The beauty of the heavens, the universe, is beyond what we can articulate and declare. The intricacies of the stars, the planets, and the Milky Way when studied…