Month: April 2021

Psalm 110 :1-7

We change our minds when life gets hard, God does not.
No matter how far humanity went with the sinning and the vice, God went even further with the grace and His mercy. Century after century, king after king, empire after empire God patiently waits for the right moment to send His King and Priest. He would be different from all kings that have gone before and those that would come after Him, for the Messiah, the God-man will bring His kingdom through His love and peace. He would be the one to rule with righteous and justice, authority and unity. No blood will be shed to establish His kingdom, just His.
By his sacrifice people would taste freedom and joy. Because of Him, God stands true by your side my friend. He that established your freedom will continue to be by your side until we see Him face to face.

Dear Lord, your Word is true and power, help us to share that with courage and care.

( See Hebrew 6:17-20, Numbers 23:19, Isaiah 40:8, John 1:1)

Psalm 109:22-31

Praise starts and finishes this psalm. David is thrown into the hands of his enemies but he chooses to throw himself into the hands of God.
The reality of our circumstances and the heart changes when we turn them to God. We are met with His love and His love conquers all.

When God enters a story that story changes forever.

LD

Man was lost in sin, God found him through the Cross.
We were sat in the darkness, God became light which we can see all else.
We were destined to damnation, but God gave us an eternal destiny.

It’s for love and by Love that we are saved.

It’s this the reason that e can run to God and be safe in His embrace. No matter the evil done to us, in Him we are acquitted and given joy. You see, the Love of God not only that lifts the weight of sin, but frees our hearts from bitterness and malice when we are treated bad. Trust His love today.

(See Romans 8:35-39, John 3:16, 2 Corinthians 5:14-15, 1 Corinthians 13:4-7)

Psalm 109:15-21

None of us has to face evil like Jesus did. I am not trying to minimise our pain my friend, but perhaps to ease some pressure by remembering that the war between good and evil is won by Christ. All we face in life right now, we face together with him. The best answer we can give to the evil one when he attacks, to people when they accuse and to ourselves when we condemn, is: I leave you to the judge of all.

It matters not who or where the accusation voices come from, the answer must always be the same, bring all of them to the one who has the power to silence all accusing voices. Jesus

We know that at the name of Jesus, every knee will bow down and every tongue will confess that He is Lord.
Dear Lord, let us leave all charges against us stop at your feet. Amen

( See Jude 1:9, Luke 1:79, 1 Thessalonians 5:5)

Psalm 109:8-14

We know from the Bible that David was a nonvindicative individual.

Even when people crossed him badly and threaten to kill him, he let God bring him justice. These angry rants of him recorded in this psalm tell of his righteous anger and frustration with his so-called friends. He does not hold back so to speak, he presents his heart raw before God. I must say that his honesty makes me cringe and uncomfortable, still, it’s honesty before God. We don’t know if the words he utters here are a response to what his enemies had whispered for him and his family. All we know is that he is not afraid to cite them.
It’s wise to open our hearts to God and wait for Him to act before we vent at people. We can sure rant, but in the end, he is and must be our vindicator.

Dear Lord, you tell us to love our enemies because we too were your enemies, but Christ love on the cross has broken any partition wall between us. Let us look to Him and not ourselves for justice.

( See Matthew 5:44, 1 John 4:7, Romans 5:10)

Psalm 109:1-7

If prayer is our first response to life, our life will be but a prayer.
Even when life seems overtaken by problems let us be all prayer like David in this psalm. It’s clear that he is in trouble. For the mouth of the wicked works relentlessly against the righteous. There are unfairness and accusations in life that can bring even a patient man to the brick of collapse.

Praise and prayer are at the start of his plea.
David is not a religious man praying only when trouble knocks on his door, no, he prayers constantly with an open heart.
Prayer gets us closer to God, makes us inmates with Him where we can speak openly, sincerely and frankly.

God can handle all prayers, are we all prayer though?

( See 1 John 5:15, 1 Chronicles 16:11, Ephesians 6:18)

Psalm 108:10-13

Until we understand that ‘without God, we can do nothing we will forever exhaust ourselves in futile battles.
All life is a hard life without God. Every task, without the involvement of the Holy Spirit, is overwhelming. The help of man feels useless.
The battles we face, the difficulties we come to over and over again are not there to hurt us, but to reveal the holiness of God.

When we face life with God, when He is our help and shield, when God is all we have, He becomes all we need. We stand fierce with Him on our side and all self-confidence and self-defence shrink leaving all the glory to Him who deserves it all.
All fear is but the attention on ourselves, faith on the other side stands on the shoulders of the saviour. There, real confidence and courage reside.

( See John 15:5, Proverbs 30:5, Hebrews 13:6)

Psalm 108:1-9

There aren’t many of us who are always ready to praise God no matter how our circumstances turn. David starts this psalm which looks similar to the beginning verses in the previous psalm and psalm 57 and 60 declaring that his heart is made-up. His heart is relentless, steadfast, resolute, fasten in God’s character and goodness.

It’s a decision to be confident in God’s love and presence, to trust His Word and promises, to declare His glory and give Him all the praise.
This kind of living, the unwavering steadfastness in God’s character might look impossible, but with Him all things are possible.
We can start with the choice to look to God all the time no matter where circumstances put us, then declare that He is able to keep us from falling and then ask for help when we feel wavering.

A steadfast heart keeps us steady fast.

( See Matthew 19:26, Jude 1:24-25, Jeremiah 17:7)

Psalm 107:33-43

The psalm ends with an invitation to look at how God works in our world. Because how can we ponder the painful puzzle of the world and keep sanity intact without faith rooted in His love?

The Lord has the power to change circumstances.
The Lord has the power to change lives.

LD

His authority is infinite, His ear is inclined to the cries and the prayers of the weak, His hand raises to aide the poor and the needy. His Word heals the bound.
Fear is what we get when we look at ourselves and our powers. Courage is what we find when we understand the Love of God in our lives.
Wise is he or she whose life has been founded upon admiration for the Lord, for God is faithful and His marvellous Love endless for His own.
He protects and provides for His children.

Wisdom and praise reside on the same lips.

( See Romans 8:28, James 3:17, Matthew 7:24, Proverbs 8:35)

Psalm 107:23-32

There are horrendous flooding happening in Australia as I write. Thousands of people have been evacuated and homes are seen floating on the overflowing rivers and dams.
Not every one of us has undergone dramatic experiences like people in Sidney and Queensland, Australia are going right now, but all of us, I believe, can find common grounds in praising God for His providential restraint of nature. God is the Lord of rivers and deserts, the sea and the wind. At the sound of His voice storms calm down and seas depart.

Life can feel like an unravelling storm at times. Alone can be scary to face it and see a way through. But God ( don’t you love these two words?) is our peace in times of turmoil, He is our stillness in the middle of any storm.

Dear Lord, help us to look at you and not the waves in times of storms.

( See Mark 4:35:41, Job 38:11, Proverbs 8:29)