Jesus is the Rock UPON we Stand

Verses: Psalms 62: 1 - 12

Song inspired by the chapter:  Song has been uploaded from YouTube.com and is not my original.

My thoughts about the verses:

We need to understand that all of our beliefs are based upon the rock we stand upon.  The rock that we stand upon is Jesus.  Jesus is our strength and our peace.  We have the greatest ally when we put our trust in Jesus.  We are able to withstand all obstacles put in our path when we stand upon the rock, which is Jesus.

It is important for us to remember that we must wait patiently on the rock to return to us.  We must know that Jesus will return to claim his own.  We are to stand firm in that knowledge.  We must understand that no matter what happens those that believe in Christ will have their reward in Heaven.

Jesus will be the refuge for our soul.  Jesus is our peace that keeps us content.  Jesus is the one that will be there for those that will give their life over to God.  Our souls will rejoin the one that we wait for.

Those that have turned away from God think they have the upper hand.  They think their riches are here on Earth.  They put their trust on things that they can hold in their hand.  They search for wealth and fame.  They reject God as their Savior.  Instead they concentrate on getting the approval from those here on the Earth.

It has been said that God will give back to those what work they have done here on Earth.  Therefor if you serve God and do Good work you will receive that in the afterlife.  If you serve wealth you will find that you will not inherit the Keys to the Kingdom.  Those that serve because of their desire to do God’s work will be rewarded with a blessed afterlife.

The question is what do we need to do?  The most important thing that we need to do is trust in the rock.  We need to give our life over to the Savior.  We need to rest our life in the trust of the living God. 

Then we need to make sure that we stay focused on working for God.  We need to focus on helping those that need food, clothes and shelter.  We need to help those that are lost to find their way to the living Savior.  We need to always focus our life on loving God. 

We need to remember no matter what happens we are to life praises to God.  We need to know that God is always on our side.  We need to stand upon the rock no matter how bad gets.  When you do this you are allowing your faith to be the rock of your life.  

Prayer:

Dear God thank you for loving us.  Dear Jesus we thank you for your sacrifice.  We ask that you help us connect with the rock of faith.  Help us to remember that the rock of faith is your love amplified.  Help us always do good deeds.  In the name of the Rock of Life we pray.  Amen

Questions:

Have you accepted Jesus in your life?  Are you putting your faith in the Rock of Love? Are you doing good deeds for the Savior? Are you inspired today to share the Good News to those that need to hear it?  Are you living a life in which people will see that you are standing on the Rock?

Continue to Praise God for God Provides our Needs

Verses: Psalms 61: 1 - 8

Song inspired by the chapter:  Song has been uploaded from YouTube.com and is not my original.

My thoughts about the verses:

David starts this psalm with a weary heart.  He is struggling under the pressure of the world.  He is in hiding once again.  His foes are everywhere. 

Yet, with all of this there is one thing that needs to be pointed out that he praises God.  He doesn’t just sit back and think that he is in this alone.  He knows that God is there making sure his needs are met.  He knows that even before he prays God is there responding to his crisis.

How many times in our life do we feel like we are struggling all alone?  We have this deep down feeling that we have to solve the problem on our own.  We are stressed out trying to figure how to get through the current situation.  We feel that we have no place to turn.

Yet, if we would just take a breath and listen carefully we would hear God’s voice.  We would feel the presence of God helping us through our struggles.  We would know without any doubt that we have a God that provides our needs.  We would feel peace because we would feel the presence of God working in our life.

Think back to David he knew that God was with him.  Though he prayed for God to be is helpmate, he already knew that God was with him.  He had no true fear because he knew that he had given his life over to God.  He knew that no matter what the situations was God would help him get through it.

Is this not a lesson that we can take to heart?   No matter how big or little the situation that we are facing we need to know God is there.  We need to remember that God is carrying the biggest part of the weight.  The very fact is that those that are Christians will never be without God.  Our helpmate is already in place and we only have to let go to feel the comfort of God.

With this knowledge we should offer up our praises to our God.  We need to thank God for never leaving us.  We need to praise God for carrying us through the hard times.  We need to thank God for being with us during the good times. 

Praising God is the most important thing that we can do in our life.  We need to understand that God is always there no matter what the problem.  Thank the blessed savior for being there when things are rough.  Praise the savior for never leaving our side.  We need to acknowledge that God is always there no matter what.  In those promises we need to celebrate the one that has made us whole.

Prayer:

Praise God for loving us all the time.  Thank you for always being there no matter what is happening in our lives.  We praise you for helping us even when we feel alone.  In the name of the Risen Savior we pray.  Amen

Questions:

Are you struggling with something that you can’t handle alone?  Have you turned your problems over to God?  Do you feel the presence of God in your life?  Have you accepted the Savior in your life?  Are you offering up praises to the one that will never let you down?

We Can’t Win Over our enemies Without God

Verses: Psalms 60: 1 - 12

Song inspired by the chapter:  Song has been uploaded from YouTube.com and is not my original.

My thoughts about the verses:

I am reminded back to when I played basketball.  It was important for everyone to be on their game.  You needed every team member to win.  It wasn’t up to one person to claim the victory.  Every person was needed to be spot on all the time.

Not only those team members on the court had to be on their game but, so many others had to be up to par.  The coaches and assistants have to be observant and calling the right plays.  The cheerleaders need to be encouraging the players.  The fans have to be cheering for their team.   The referees have to be alert. 

Half of the game is played far from the court.  It starts when the players are doing drills, lifting weights, and running the court.  It continues as they learn play books, practice shots and work on defense.  It takes all of this behind the scene action to take place for the game to be a success.

You can now see how David felt at that moment.  He knew that his soldiers had been prepared.  He knew that they had been doing everything that they had been taught before the battle started.  Yet, like many of us learn you will not win every contest you are in.  Sometimes no matter how hard you try you will lose. 

In the world of sports when a team loses we start to blame players, coaches even the referees.  We don’t want to accept that our team could lose what we think was a simple win.  We act like our whole life is based on that game.  We get so wrapped around the games that we miss the hard work that it took to get the players where they are today.

Yet, can you imagine where David was at in this moment of his life.  This wasn’t a game where people would be alive if they lost.  People would have died.  Land would have been lost.  The very Kingdom could be at risk. 

David prayed to God and asked God to not forget them.  He knew that God was needed in their midst for them to win.  He asked God to come and help them in the midst of their strife.  He realized that he had to include the power of God to win.

We can see our own life’s in this story.  We often face defeat and try to push the blame on people around us.   We try to deflect the reason that we did not overcome something because of the ways others reacted.  Yet, we miss that we need God in our life.  We miss that we tried to do it without asking God to be there.  The next time you are in the middle of a struggle ask yourself did I give this over to God.  You will soon learn how things can truly change with God in the center of our struggles.

Prayer:

Dear God thank you for always being there for us.  Thank you for carrying us in our times of need.  Thank you for listening when we call upon your name.  Help us always to include you in our life.  Not only in the times we are struggling but, also in the moments of great joy.  In the name of Our Holy Parent we pray.  Amen

Questions:

In times of struggle do you call on God?  Have you turned your life over to God?  Are you offering up praises to God for the things that have happened in your life?  Have you come to understand that you need God for your life to be complete?

God Hides Us from those that would Harm Us

Verses: Psalms 59: 1 - 17

Song inspired by the chapter:  Song has been uploaded from YouTube.com and is not my original.

My thoughts about the verses:

Reading this tonight made me think back to several different book series that I have read over the last year.  All the books have the same general theme.  The main character is a young man/woman.  Our hero/heroine is in a situation that it is leading to war.  Then as things seem to be going from bad to worse a miracle happens.  A person out of nowhere comes in and saves the day for our character.  Then because of this save the world continues on in peace.

Haven’t we all read or seen that movie in the last few years.  You can name the numerous books and movies that follow that same plot.  In this part of the Bible the same situation is taking place.  Yet, many of us don’t realize how important this save was for our future.

Let us look at the situation David our future King and Hero is being chased by Saul.  Saul wants to take David down before he is able to take over the kingdom.  He is doing anything that he possibly can to change the outcome that was inevitable.  David had already been anointed the next King of the Israelites and had the backing of God on his side.  There David is hiding from his enemies.  In walks the person that God uses to get to the outcome that God wants to happen.  David’s wife Michal, who happens to also be the daughter of Saul, helped David escape from the grasp of her Father.  This helped lead to the plan that God wanted not only for David but for all of us.

Have you ever been there?  Thinking that there is no way out of a situation.  We feel as if everyone is out to hurt us.  We feel the clock of doom ticking slowly away and have nowhere to hide.  We know that we need something, anything to help us get out of the situation that we are in.  Then all of a sudden we realize that we do have the answer and it has always been there.   All we ever had to do was turn it over to God.  God would come in and save the day. 

See Jesus is that person in the story that changed the outcome.  Jesus is the one person that can hide us so that we could have a better day.  Our accepting the help of Jesus is the only action we need to do.  Wants we accept Jesus our sins are hidden forever.  Our story changes and we have the perfect salvation.

Our life may never make it into a written novel.  We may never come to power.  Yet, that doesn’t matter when it comes to the way God loves us.  God has sacrificed Jesus so that we may live. In all of those stories I have read there is someone that is sacrificed for the good of the whole.  Yet, there is only one that ever needs to be sacrificed for all humanity to live with peace and that is Jesus.

Prayer:

Dear God we thank you for your love.   God we praise you for sending Jesus to save us from our sins.  Help us give our life over to you.  Help us to always give our praises and thanks to you.  Help us to always remember that you are the only Hero that we need in our life.  Help us when we are afraid know that we can hide in your open arms.  In the name of the Risen Lamb we pray.  Amen

Questions:

Have you ever felt afraid of the future? Have you felt like you were fighting the fight all by yourself? Is today that you ask God into your life?  Is today the day that you find not only the Hero you need but the Hiding place you need for your life?

God will be there to help, us even if it our Leaders, who are against us

Verses: Psalms 58: 1 - 11

Song inspired by the chapter:  Song has been uploaded from YouTube.com and is not my original.

My thoughts about the verses:

Imagine a time when the whole world seemed against you.  Think back to that moment and how you felt alone and lost.  That moment in which you thought I can go no farther.   Yet, here you are today on the other side.

Jesus would live one of those moments.  His friends would run and hide.  The rulers would catch him in their snare of death.  The crowd would mock and jeer at him.  Yet, he made it to the other side.

How can we make it when things so impossible.  Is there an invisible shield that rises around us and protects us from harm?  Are there gangs of allies protecting us during the worse moments in our life?  Do we have a power that is stronger than ourselves?

Simple answer YES we have all of this.  Christians have a power that comes from the very breath of God. The arms of God shield us from the pain that would be ours.  The Angels surround us so that we may find peace. 

Jesus had all those things as he stood there during his trial.  Jesus did not go to the cross all alone.  The Heavenly Parent was right there for each step.  Comforting as each drop of blood flowed from his brow.  God was giving him strength to endure the lashes that tore into his flesh.  The people had no idea that the One that had come to save them were in their very presence.  Yet, for that to happen, Jesus had to walk up the mount and die on the cross.

Let us take a look at the rulers of this time and in the past.  They have a daunting task to make sure things go right.  Sometimes they are fool hearty and think that their way is the only way.  Other times they allow God to be their lead.  They allow the spirit to guide them to do the right thing at the right time.

The Sanhedrin were doing what they thought was best.  They had a life of luxury.  They also had a life where they could worship God in peace.  They saw Jesus as a rebel rouser.  They mistook him for someone that would turn the Romans against the Jewish people.  They were only trying to protect their own when they arrested Jesus.

Pilate was trying to do the right thing.  He judged Jesus and determined that he was free from guilt.  Yet, it was the crowd that begged that he kill Jesus.  Pilate knew this was wrong.  His name would always go down as the one that killed Jesus.  Yet, what choice did he have.  He could not afford an uprising what would Caesar think.

See we all have those times when we are faced with difficult decisions.  Some we make and are better off for it.  Other decisions lead us astray.  We choose the wrong thing because we think it is the only solution.  Yet, when you look at things we have to understand that there are many ways to handle problems.

Today may be one of those days when you feel you are all alone.  You are worried what others are saying.  You do not want to stick out as being different from the crowd.  People are afraid that they will be shunned if they help the defenseless.

Remember we can all do the right thing at the right time.  Sometimes it will be a solution that will not lead to a happy ending for us.  Think back to those that betrayed Jesus at first they had to feel full of themselves.  We did it we took down this Jesus before anything could go wrong.  Yet, what they missed is that God knew that they would do that.  Therefor even though the Sanhedrin thought they had the right answers they were wrong.  Yet, because of what they did us all have a chance to be free.

Tre next time you are faced with situations that seem impossible.  When you are afraid to take a stand because it might be different than what others feel want you to take a moment.  Ask yourself am I doing this for God?  If you know for sure that this is true continue down that path.  Yet, if you are not sure then decide to I keep going down this path that would be an opposition with Jesus or do I turn around and help others.  Only you can answer the question. 

The hardest thing to remember is that it is often impossible to change what you have started.  So make sure that you are on the right path in the beginning and you will always go down the right path.  Jesus knew his path and though sad because it would lead to the destruction of some of his beloved he went through with it.  Know that so many people would trust him and find the gift of everlasting life.

Prayer:

Dear God we thank you for your love.  We thank you for always protecting us.  We thank you for never leaving us alone in our times of need.  We praise you for not allowing the rulers to persuade us when they are leading us down the wrong path.  We ask for strength, hope and knowledge.  In your name we pray.  Amen

Questions:

What path are you walking?  Do you feel the shield of Jesus surrounding you?  Do you trust the people around you or do you need to march to your own drum?  The choice is yours and today is you put the Love of Jesus first.   No matter what is happening in your life, know that God will get you through it.  The only question then is do you trust in the one that can give you strength?  If not is today the day you make that choice?

God Protects Us from Those that will Try to Bully Us

Verses: Psalms 57: 1 - 11

Song inspired by the chapter:  Song has been uploaded from YouTube.com and is not my original.

My thoughts about the verses:

One of the most devastating things that can happen to a child is being bullied.  Take it from someone that was bullied life changes when people decide to pick on you.  In fact, some people never recover and live their whole life with a negative attitude about themselves.  Imagine living your whole life hating yourself.  This is the situation that some people live in because of childhood bullying.

Yet, it doesn’t end there.  Adults also go through different forms of bullying.  They may feel left out of a crowd because of their shyness.  Co-workers may shun them and intimidate them.  They may fear their boss because of the way they carry themselves.

It even goes further when people feel intimidated for things that they can’t change.  Watch TV and see all of the size 3 actresses on the screen.  Watch the movies and see all the actors with big muscles.  Listen to the news and hear about different groups that are discriminated by their lifestyle.  Know the feeling of living in a place where you can’t worship God in your own way.

These are all forms of bullying that just get worse as time goes along.  There are so many people that have been broken.  They take their own life because they feel that they can’t live within the world’s description of how they should live.  Think about the people that have killed others because they felt that was the only way to overcome their bullies.

The thing that we need to learn is that bullies have their own problems.  They act that was because of their own insecurities’.  They are afraid that if they let people see their weaknesses that they will be ridiculed.  Therefore to feel better about themselves they make others feel worse.

Now David was under great hardship.  Saul was chasing him and he had hidden.  Saul was upset because he knew the truth.  He knew the truth that he had upset Gd. He knew that David would soon be the King.  He knew that his son would not inherit the Kingdom that God had anointed him to rule.  Therefore he had become a bully to David.  He tried several times to kill David.

The lesson that we can learn is that even though he was bullied he had the greatest power on his side.  God never left David. He had the protection that he needed.  He would be able to take that bullying and turn it around.  He would one day take his place and be praised.  He lived through many trials.  This wasn’t the last time when bullies tried to take over his life.  Yet, God never let him go through things alone.

God will be there for us in the same way.  We need to always remember no matter who opposes us God will be there for us.  We need to praise God for this.  We need to thank God for always being there for us.  We need to thank God for the strength that is given to us each day.

Prayer:

Dear God we thank you for your love.  We thank you Savior we praise you for your strength.  We praise you Savior for being with us all the time.  We thank you Holy Parent for never leaving us in our time of struggles.  We ask that you be with those that bully.  We ask that you help us as we deal with people that come up against us.  In the name of the Great Comforter we pray.  Amen

Questions:

Have you ever been bullied?  Have you ever bullied anyone else?  Is today the day you turn it over to God?  Is today the day that you accept people for who they are?

When God is For you who can be Against you?

Verses: Psalms 56: 1 - 13

Song inspired by the chapter:  Song has been uploaded from YouTube.com and is not my original.

My thoughts about the verses:

When God is for you who can be against you?  This question has plagued us since the beginning of time.  Everyday people try to defeat us.  We are faced with enemies that  want to do anything to destroy us.

Those that have accepted Jesus have the power of God on their side.   This strength protects us at all times. Even though we may feel like we are outnumbered we have a strong army on our side.  God’s power outweighs the power of any of our foes.

We should not fear because God will get us through the battles of life.  The One that saved us will ensure we will have the comfort we need.  Think on this a moment the Holy Parent sent the Son so that we could have everlasting life.  With that knowledge we should know that we are safe.

Now being safe does that mean we will not always win.  Think back to the moments that the Israelites faced hard times.  They didn’t always win in fact there were several times that they were held captive.  Yet, even though they might not have won the initial battle they ended up winning the war.

I am sitting here right now thinking back to the captivity that was happening due to the Roman Empire.  The people were allowed to continue their worship of God.  Imagine how the world would be if we allowed each group to worship God in their own way.  The struggles that we go through would be decreased. 

There are people all over this world that are struggling because people will not accept them for who they are.  We are in constant conflict because we think our way is the best way.  Yet, what we miss is that our way is only a different way. 

David told Jesus that he knew he was protected.  He was protected because he had God on his side.  The truth is that we can say the same thing.  If we depend on God we have strength.  We also have a faithful God.

God deserves our praise for the faithfulness that is shown to us.  We should offer praises to God.  We should always know without doubt that the good things that happen in our life are from God.  We need to remember this and offer ourselves as a living sacrifice to God. 

Prayer:

Dear God we praise you for all that you do.  We thank you for always being there for us.  We praise you for your faithfulness.  We worship you with our open hearts.  Help us always put our trust in you.  Help us always remember that you will never fail us.  Help us remember that when you are with us known one can stand up against us.  In the name of the Risen Savior we pray.  Amen

Questions:

If Jesus is with you who can be against you?  Have you ever felt alone?  Do you feel outnumbered?  Have you turned your life over to God?

The Betrayal by a Friend

Verses: Psalms 55: 1 - 23

Song inspired by the chapter:  Song has been uploaded from YouTube.com and is not my original.

My thoughts about the verses:

Have you ever been betrayed by someone you trust?  The feeling deep  in your heart is that of pain. You trusted that they would be there with you no matter the cost.  Yet, they turned around and went against you.  They broke your trust and have affected the way you feel about them.   You may one day trust them but not as deeply as you used to.

Think to that night that Jesus was betrayed.  The betrayal did not come from a mere acquaintance.  The betrayal did not come from someone that he passed on the street.  The betrayal didn’t happen by someone he healed.  The betrayal did not come from someone that had heard him preached. 

The betrayal came from his friend.  The betrayal came from a friend that had walked with him.  The betrayal came from one that had broken bread with him.  The betrayal came from someone that he trusted as a brother.

Yet, the betrayal wasn’t the end of the story.  This was only the beginning.  The betrayal had to take place so Jesus could be led to the cross.  The sacrificial lamb knew that his friend would betray him.  Yet, he didn’t separate himself from Judas. Instead he broke bread with him the very last night of his freedom. 

Jesus knew that it would be hard on Judas.  He knew that people would always think of him as the betrayer.  He would be known for all time as the one that led Jesus to his death.  Yet, I want you to think on this a moment isn’t that what was needed to happen.  Where would we be today if Jesus had not died on the cross?

I honestly believe that Jesus forgave Judas for the betrayal.  Jesus knew that it had to happen.  Jesus knew even before Judas did that he would betray him.  I believe that Judas was chosen as a disciple for this one purpose. Not because he betrayed Jesus out of spite.  Yet, the real reason he betrayed Jesus was to help others.  Imagine being the unknowing deliver to Jesus to the cross.  The death of Jesus would be the only way that people would ever get redeemed to go back to Heaven.

There are two lessons that we can learn.  The first lesson is that sometimes betrayals are caused because someone thinks that are doing good.  They feel that they need to do the right thing.  Unknowingly they are actually trying to help.  They think that they are doing well, but it might end up hurting us.

The second lesson is very important.  God will never betray us.  God will be with us through thick and thin.  We will always have what we need because God is in our life.  Think about that moment on the cross when Jesus commanded his spirit into the hands of God.  Even his death he knew that God was there.  We need to be that confident about God when it comes to the problems in our life.

Prayer:

Dear God we thank you for loving us.  We thank you for always being on our side. We praise you for sending the Beloved son so that we can have everlasting life.  Help us dear God forgive those that have hurt us.  Help us put our trust in you.  In the name of the Source of Peace we pray.  Amen

Questions:

Have you ever felt betrayed by a friend?  Have you forgiven them?  Are you ready to ask God in your life?  Are you willing to accept Jesus as the best friend you will ever have?