Devotional Thoughts

Psalm 86:3-7    "Be merciful unto me, O Lord: for I cry unto thee daily.  (4)  Rejoice the soul of thy servant: for unto thee, O Lord, do I lift up my soul.  (5)  For thou, Lord, art good, and ready to forgive; and plenteous in mercy unto all them that call upon thee.  (6)  Give ear, O LORD, unto my prayer; and attend to the voice of my supplications.  (7)  In the day of my trouble I will call upon thee: for thou wilt answer me." This 86th Psalm begins with the writer asking God to "Bow down thine ear, O LORD, hear me." I sit here pondering those words and am asking myself, "Do I believe that God hears every prayer that I send up to Him?" Do I? Do I understand that when I pray, I have the attention of the Creator and Sustainer of this universe? Do I believe that? Am I sincere when I pray or do I just send up words and hope that He will catch some of them? I have a lot of questions that are raised when I see the Psalmist asking God to "bo...

1  Corinthians 2:6-8     “Howbeit we speak wisdom among them that are perfect: yet not the wisdom of this world, nor of the princes of this world, that come to nought: But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery,   even   the hidden   wisdom,   which God ordained before the world unto our glory: Which none of the princes of this world knew: for had they known   it,   they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.” In the first chapter of First Corinthians, Paul spoke about the “foolishness” that preaching the crucified Christ was to some. In the opening verses of this second chapter, he emphasizes that he did not come trusting in man’s wisdom. He now turns our attention to the idea that what some considered foolishness and outside the realm of man’s wisdom is indeed wisdom to some. The term “howbeit” is basically the equivalent of our usage of “however.” Paul is now redirecting our thinking to a higher form of wisdom. By God’...

Psalm 85:1-2   To the chief Musician, A Psalm for the sons of Korah. "LORD, thou hast been favourable unto thy land: thou hast brought back the captivity of Jacob.  (2)  Thou hast forgiven the iniquity of thy people, thou hast covered all their sin. Selah." Psalm 85:6-7    "Wilt thou not revive us again: that thy people may rejoice in thee?  (7)  Shew us thy mercy, O LORD, and grant us thy salvation." If I may put this in my words, it seems the Psalmist is saying: "Lord, you brought us out of the bondage in which we cause ourselves to be taken. We know you have forgiven our sins. We know your hand is upon us, but Lord, we are missing the joy in our hearts. We need that joy and fellowship with you." In verse 5, the question is asked concerning God's anger. "Wilt thou be angry with us for ever?" In their own thoughts and minds, the people are still thinking God's anger is upon them. "Will you not revive us, Lord?"  I remember r...

1  Corinthians 2:3-5     “And I was with you in weakness, and in fear, and in much trembling. And my speech and my preaching   was   not with enticing words of man’s wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power: That your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God.” We have all probably had the experience of someone encouraging us to do something that was out of the ordinary and not socially popular. They may have used all kinds of flowery speech to motivate us. However, they would be moving on and not have to endure the long-term effects of whatever change they were coaching us in. Paul was reminding the church at Corinth that he had been there for the hard times and was in this for the long haul. While verse three may describe Paul’s condition, he is not simply reminding them of that. He begins by telling them “I was with you.” The people we feel closest to and have the most confidence are those that have sto...