Category: Daily Word

Let’s read the Bible!

Daily Word

Psalm 17

judyinthesky91

Read Psalm 17 – Marvelous lovingkindness, unfailing love, steadfast loving-kindness, the wonders of your great love… these are the words that appear in different translations on 17:7 “Show me your unfailing love in wonderful ways. By your mighty power you rescue those who seek refuge from their enemies.” (That was from my NLT) Bible commentator, David Guzik notes, “Many of us ask for or only expect God’s moderate lovingkindness. We make our prayers, our faith, and our expectations small. David shows us a pattern to expect and ask from God marvelous lovingkindness.”

I am feeling very convicted by this and will be putting the matter to prayer today. Jesus has shown me that he does not answer prayers ‘just a little’; no, he answers prayers in big, undeniable ways! I am wondering where my limits have come from because I need BIG things. I need his full and marvelous lovingkindness to carry me through this life – how about you?

David has the hope of heaven on his heart when he closes this beautiful psalm in :15, “As for me, I shall behold your face in righteousness; when I awake, I shall be satisfied with your likeness.” That alone is a statement of faith far beyond the common man. David did not have Pauls words, “And all who have been united with Christ in baptism have put on Christ, like putting on new clothes.” Galatians 3:27 David had the kind of faith that simply knew.

Isn’t it so true, that the trials and hardships of this life grow dim against the backdrop of heaven and the hope that is ours in Christ? It’s been said – don’t tell God how big your troubles are – tell your troubles how big your GOD is!

Daily Word

Psalm 16

judyinthesky91

Read Psalm 16 – Read about pleasure and joy. Do you ever think about eternity? It is that moment when we escape this world and discover what true life really is. It is that moment when time stops, when we see Jesus face to face, when we look upon every earthly trial with true perspective and know the value of what we once thought of as suffering. Oh, Beloved, the best is yet to come, yet here on earth is our only chance to shine for Christ upon those who do not know him, whose eternal destiny might be destruction, but for our impact.

David makes the very most of his days on earth beginning in verse one – asking the LORD to keep him safe and be his refuge. David tells God, “You are my Master. Every good thing I have comes from you.” :2 He speaks of the godly on earth, his true heros, those he is pleased to be with. And he speaks of those who chase after other gods, their troubles multiply. (:3-4) Have you seen how life does not make sense to those who chase after other gods? Be it money, power, spirituality, they seem so on top until trouble comes.

Verse :5 is priceless! It is the one I will be holding on to today because it reminds me that the LORD is with me now and the best is yet to come! Which verse did the Holy Spirit speak to you through? I would love it if you shared.

Daily Word

Psalm 13, 14, 15

judyinthesky91

Read Psalms 13, 14, 15 – These are quick reads packed with simple truth.  

Psalm 13 is a roadmap for despair.  Sorrow comes on all of us from time to time and David shows how gratitude to the LORD is the lifeline out.  “But I trust in your unfailing love; my heart rejoices in your salvation.  I will sing to the LORD for he has been good to me.”  :5-6

Psalm 14 – There sure are a lot of fools running around right now! “The fool says in his heart, ‘There is no God,’ they are corrupt, their deeds are vile; there is no one who does good.”  Life gets so complicated when the LORD is dismissed.  Verse :2 assures the LORD looks down from heaven to see if any understand and seek him.  Beloved, do not be surprised by corruption, but also, don’t feel alone – the LORD is your refuge and he doesn’t miss a thing.

Psalm 15 – Godly standards look for, “Truth, justice and the American way!”  Okay, I’m back on hero’s and that quote is from the Superman comic book series prior to 1993 when they dropped the ‘American way’ part…. interesting, right, but not what we are here to talk about.  And our verses bring another quote to mind, “Be your own hero!” Maggie Mayhem from Whip it!  A lesser known, but pertinent quote.  The point is, we need heroes.  We need godly, courageous standards to aim for and the best place to look is in God’s Word. 

David captures the goal of godly and courageous, “He who does these things will never be shaken.” :5b 

Beloved, guard against the things of this world that corrupt, and your own sin nature that is at war with you.  Examine these points and pray for the Holy Spirit to reveal anything in your life that needs cleaning up.  May your walk be blameless.

Daily Word

Psalm 12

judyinthesky91

Read Psalm 12 – There is nothing new under the sun. David’s son, King Solomon, would write those words in the book of Ecclesiastes, yet here we see them shining in truth. David could very well have written this psalm after watching a news broadcast in our day, or that of our parents, grandparents, greats and so on because every generation seems to experience a season where it feels as if the godly are no more.

I can get dismal by what I see happening around me, but then I hold on to the fact that the LORD always has a remnant of his faithful children no matter how bad the culture gets.

There is a handwritten note in my bible from 2007 on verses :3-4 that wonders if this was pointing to a book that was popular at the time. Now it is 2022 and it is still pointing to things as much as 2007 and all the way to when David wrote it.

Today, verse :5 is speaking to my heart the loudest, “Because of the oppression of the weak and the groaning of the needy, I will now arise,” says the LORD. “I will protect them from those who malign them.” Our cry stirs the LORD to action! That is an incredible thing. Verse :8 closes our psalm with, “The wicked freely strut about when what is vile is honored among men.” Are we there yet? It certainly feels that way.

Let’s take this psalm as our call to action. There are godless people making abominable claims all around us. Cry out. Let the LORD hear your concerns as you voice your prayers to the courtroom of heaven. Abba, we need you! The wicked are rampant once more; save us with your unfailing love and your righteous right arm. Amen and amen!

Daily Word

Psalm 11

judyinthesky91

Read Psalm 11 – Faith changes your line of sight.

Riding a motorcycle on Southern California roads and highways is different than riding in a car. On a motorcycle each lane has many ways out and must pay complete attention to the road, the drivers, the upcoming merges all while taking in the beauty, the birds, the trees, the sky… I’ve never been to war like David, but I do ride a motorcycle. David expresses a level of faith in the LORD that I lean into. The LORD knows the number of our days. If the LORD has more work for us then we have nothing to fear from arrows, distracted drivers or anything that threatens! “In the LORD I take refuge. How then can you say to me: ‘Flee like a bird to your mountain.’” :1

David asks, “When the foundations are being destroyed, what can the righteous do?” :3

And he answers his own question with some truth about God. God is on the throne. God sees and examines what the sons of men are doing.

“The LORD examines the righteous, but the wicked and those who love violence his soul hates. On the wicked he will rain fiery coals and burning sulfur; a scorching wind will be their lot.” :5-6

When I read the words ‘his soul hates’, I held my breath without realizing it. There are evil people in this world and the LORD doesn’t miss what they do in secret. It is an overwhelming thing to think of what our righteous LORD will do to the evil he HATES.

“For the LORD is righteous, he loves justice; upright men will see his face.” :7

When the foundations are being destroyed, what can the righteous do? They can trust in the LORD, knowing he is righteous, he loves justice and those who walk with him in Jesus will see his face.

And while it is comforting to hold on to this, it also stirs my heart to more mercy, love and truth for those around me who are perishing. Do you know there is not a middle ground? There is heaven for those who are clothed in Christ Jesus; there is hell for all who reject him, and that’s it. There is no place in the middle for what one might think of as the ‘not so bad’, and it’s not a balancing act of good outweighing bad… because “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23), Jesus is the only way. Is there someone you need to reach out to today?

Daily Word

Psalm 10

judyinthesky91

Read Psalm 10 – It’s hard to watch, isn’t it?  Sometimes wicked people prosper while the faithful struggle.  David observes the arrogance and utter lack of humanity of the prosperous as he intercedes for the afflicted.

As you were reading, was your heart stirred to anger for the lack of reverence for God and man David described?  Or did you find yourself jealous of their success?  Yikes, right, that makes it personal.  Beloved, let those questions hit home.  Let the Holy Spirit open your eyes to your own heart as you read God’s Word.

The psalm closes with, “The LORD is King for ever and ever; the nations will perish from his land.  You hear, O LORD, the desire of the afflicted; you encourage them, and you listen to their cry, defending the fatherless and the oppressed, in order that man, who is of the earth, may terrify no more.” :16-18  First of all, whose land is it?  That’s right – the earth and everything in it belongs to God.  And what does God do for the afflicted?  That’s right – he hears, encourages, listens and defends!  Scripture says, “If God is for us, who can stand against us?” Romans 8:31

Daily Word

Psalm 9

judyinthesky91

Read Psalm 9 – I had been walking with Christ for just a few weeks when my crew was reassigned one more flight at the end of a long day. The passengers had been waiting for hours as a plane was repaired and flown down from our headquarters 3 states away.  There was no catering on the aircraft,  not so much as a paper cup for tap water.

Upon learning this my colleague asked, “Are you Christian? ”  I said yes.   She grabbed me by the hands and said we were going to pray about this and proceeded to lift our catering delima up to Jesus.

Our competitors soon  came steaming in with snacks and cases of drinks.   We ended up with more than enough. Our inconvenienced passengers were filled with gratitude instead of attitude!

That was the day I learned how much Jesus cares about the little things as much as the big.   Nothing is too hard for him and He never seems to bless ‘just a little’.

There’s a women’s event I wanted to go to tomorrow, but I was scheduled to fly.  The trade box was full and no one seemed to be picking up.   I asked a few of my Sisters to pray for me, remembering what Jesus did way back when. Sure enough, I got the day off.

I’m Psalm 9, David recounts the wonderful deeds of God in answer to his prayers. I pray this sparks your own memories of answered prayers,big and small. Our faith grows when we remember the Lord’s faithfulness.

Daily Word

Psalm 8

judyinthesky91

Read Psalm 8 – Who is God? Do I matter to him? Beloved, sit with Psalm 8 for a while.

Look around at the skies, look into the eyes of a baby, look around and see the fingerprint of God. Look at the veins within a leaf that has fallen to the ground, then look at the mighty tree from which it fell, and consider our amazing God who designed it all as you read David’s observations in :1-4.

Now, look at your own fingerprint; it is the only one God made just like that. Inhale and feel your body respond… processing the air, bringing it to your lungs, blood, cells… David asks, “what is man that you are mindful of him, the son of man that you care for him? You made him a little lower than the heavenly beings and crowned him with glory and honor.” :4-5 Not only are you fearfully and wonderfully made, but God created you to rule over His creations! (:7-8) Do you matter to God? Why just look at how carefully he designed you and all the good work he ordained just for you!

Psalm 8 speaks of God’s holiness. It speaks of our unique design and our calling to rule over the works of God’s hands. And it lands with the only response possible – PRAISE.

“O LORD, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth!” :9

Beloved, be more, do more, love more, laugh more because God created you for greatness – live differently today because of who God is.

Daily Word

Psalm 7

judyinthesky91

Read Psalm 7 – What kind of bible do you read? There are many different translations available. I first fell in love with Jesus with a New International Study Bible(NIV). It contained lots of explanations to help me along. I now use the English Standard Version (ESV) most of the time, but sometimes I will try a passage in several different versions to really get to the heart of things. The internet has made this very easy, so if you ever get stuck or simply want a richer understanding, try a few different versions.

David is surrounded by those who wish to harm him. In his anguish, he considers if this is perhaps the result of something he did. (:3-5) It is always wise in times of calamity to search one’s heart to ensure it is clean.

With that assurance, he moves to petition, “Arise, O LORD, in your anger; rise up against the rage of my enemies. Awake, my God; decree justice.” :6 David relies on who God is, “My shield is God Most High, who saves the upright in heart.” :10 He goes on from there to state a few wonderful attributes of the LORD.

Remember yesterday, when I said I wanted a hero? The LORD is the hero. If we look to humans we will discover that Romans 3:23 is right every time, “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” There is one who never fails and never forsakes and that is Jesus Christ our LORD. May verse :17 be a light for you, whether in a storm or not – “I will give thanks to the LORD because of his righteousness and will sing praise to the name of the LORD Most High.”

Daily Word

Psalm 6

judyinthesky91

Read Psalm 6 – Early in my bible studies I realized that nearly every character is flawed with sin. I really wanted a hero I could look up to, yet most were a mess like, well, me. The LORD calls David a man after His own heart, but his sin is clearly recorded and on display in the bible. The LORD has an extraordinary relationship with him anyway.

We don’t know why David is being chastised in our Psalm, just that he is. As earthly fathers discipline their children, so does our Heavenly Father, and David is crying out to him.

Like yesterday, David’s plea is centered on the LORD’S unfailing, steadfast love. He doesn’t claim to deserve it or justify himself.

He displays his suffering eloquently (:6-7). We do this a bit too…. Wallow for a moment, but don’t stay there. As David shifts gears in :8, from wallow to rescue he finds mercy.

Beloved, God’s Word says we will encounter trials of various kinds and that we are to consider them pure joy because they are developing our perseverance! (See James 1 for more on this) May Psalm 6 draw your heart close to Jesus, our Rescuer.