Devotional Thoughts

Psalm 18:6    "In my distress I called upon the LORD, and cried unto my God: he heard my voice out of his temple, and my cry came before him, even into his ears." It's been a few days since we looked at the first three verses, but if you remember David had made some beautiful declarations concerning his relationship with the Lord God Almighty.  In a very bold manner, he declared his love for God. He then declared God to be his only source of stability in life. His complete trust had been placed in the Lord.  If you remember, the last devotion we repeated these words several times, "I will love thee, O LORD, my strength."  We repeated them until they became our statement and foundation of our faith in the Lord.  "I will trust you, O LORD, because I love you completely." Now we come to today's text.  "In my distress I called upon the LORD, and cried unto my God."  Each of us, as David, come to a place in life where we feel distressed.  D...

Psalm 18:1-3     "I will love thee, O LORD, my strength.  (2)  The LORD is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my buckler, and the horn of my salvation, and my high tower.  (3)  I will call upon the LORD, who is worthy to be praised: so shall I be saved from mine enemies." This particular Psalm has been one of my favorites for many years. Notice I said, "One of my favorites." I love all the Psalms because they speak to me on the level where I find myself at any given time.  In this Psalm, the Holy Spirit directed David to write using language we can understand in order to see how diligent and how personal God hears and answers our prayers. We may take a few days on this Psalm. Notice the first words from the pen of David as he begins this Psalm. The Lord has shown him the powerful manner of answered prayers. His response is this, "I will love thee, O LORD, my strength." It would not be a bad th...

Psalm 17:15    "As for me, I will behold thy face in righteousness: I shall be satisfied, when I awake, with thy likeness." Again, I say this 17th Psalm is very interesting. David began by writing of "his goodness". Then he came to the place seeking the strength of the Lord to intervene on his behalf. Then he began to speak of the wickedness of the world. You can sense his becoming tired even as he was thinking about all the things in the world that were being done by wicked people.  The wickedness, the greed, those who sought to lord over others, those who sought to press the people down, and those who sought to destroy anyone in their paths had brought great sorrow and had simply made David tired. Can you identify with David in any way? Do you ever get tired of all the fighting, the arguing, the wars and rumors of wars that are being shown day after day?  Do you get tired of people who try to make merchandise of others? Those who try to lord over everyone else?...

Psalm 17:8    "Keep me as the apple of the eye, hide me under the shadow of thy wings" The 17th Psalm is very interesting. David begins this Psalm by speaking of his strength and determination. At some point in the writing, he sees the reality of danger and opposition in life. It is at that point that he goes from what he has done to the place of total reliance upon the blessed Lord. Isn't that the way most of us look at our lives? We look at our good points and want God to be aware of them; that is, until we are faced with the reality of the enemy standing before us. At that point, our goodness goes flying out the window and we are totally dependent upon the goodness and mercy of our Lord. The turning point was David's request, "Keep me as the apple of the eye, hide me under the shadow of thy wings."  Lord, please don't ever stop showing your love and favor upon me.  I can only stand with your help. I can only go against the enemy with your help. I c...

Psalm 16:11    "Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore." One of the first sentences learned by many, if not most, children contains these words: "I can do it by myself."  The sad part is this sentence tends to remain with most of us throughout all our lives.  "Let me help you with that.... No thanks, I can do it myself."   "Here are the instructions to assemble it... Nah, I don't need those. I can do it myself." Did you read what God said to each of us through His servant, David?  He said, "I will show you the path of life."  He who declares the end from the beginning says, "I will show you the way."  He who has His design upon our lives to the degree that He will lead us into a life of joy and peace says, "I will show you the way."  What is the tendency of most people?  "Thanks, but no thanks. I can do it myself." I...

Psalm 16:10    "For thou wilt not leave my soul in hell; neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption." It is amazing the manner in which the Lord gave glimpses of the work of Jesus Christ throughout the Old Testament. We can't be certain as to how much the writers understood as they penned the words. We are especially blessed to be able to come across a gem, such as today, and know Christ was being introduced even as David was writing concerning His need and His relationship with the Father. The Apostle Peter referred to this passage on the day of Pentecost as he preached that marvelous message concerning the Lordship of Jesus Christ.   In this passage, we must be careful to look for the original meaning of the words, else we go in the wrong direction of thinking Jesus went into the pits of hell during the three days from crucifixion to resurrection. He did not go into the pits of hell to try to beg people out. No! He went into heaven itself to offer the ...

Psalm 16:7-9    "I will bless the LORD, who hath given me counsel: my reins also instruct me in the night seasons.  (8)  I have set the LORD always before me: because he is at my right hand, I shall not be moved.  (9)  Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoiceth: my flesh also shall rest in hope." You would think that after preaching the Word of God for almost 36 years that I would be established in many things that I am now finding to be fascinating.  I have said it on so many occasions that God meets us where we are and speaks to our situations and circumstances.  Maybe He has been speaking to circumstances in my life and now in this new chapter, He is taking me to a place where He is saying, "Stop and listen to me."  I say all that in my way of saying, "I am blessing the LORD".  By that I mean I am trying to praise Him because in this new chapter, He is giving grace sufficient for each day.  Trust me when I say, You can d...

Psalm 16:5-6    "The LORD is the portion of mine inheritance and of my cup: thou maintainest my lot.  (6)  The lines are fallen unto me in pleasant places; yea, I have a goodly heritage." I am finding this particular Psalm to be filled with great riches.  I hear people constantly wishing to win the lottery. What would they do with all that money? How would they spend it?  If research has been done, or could be done, I think we would find that winning all that money actually ruined their lives rather than enhance it. So, why would anyone "wish" to have their lives ruined? "The LORD is the portion of mine inheritance and of my cup." And let me add a passage from Psalm 23 just now: "My cup runneth over."  So, if I understand the great inheritance that I have in my precious Lord, what more could I possibly want?  He provides my every need. He is my shield. He is my support. He is my stability. He is everything that is good for me and guards me aga...

Psalm 16:1-3    "Preserve me, O God: for in thee do I put my trust.  (2)  O my soul, thou hast said unto the LORD, Thou art my Lord: my goodness extendeth not to thee;  (3)  But to the saints that are in the earth, and to the excellent, in whom is all my delight." The dear old hymn states, "Nothing in my hand I bring. Simply to Thy cross I cling" (Rock of Ages, August Toplady)  In this Psalm, David is realizing and publicly stating there is nothing about him that would deem him to be worthy of even crying out to the Lord.  "My goodness extends not to you, O Lord." I have no goodness. I have nothing in my hand that I can bring to present to you that would cause you to even take notice of my existence. Yet, Lord, You in mercy have given open handed access to the very throne of Heaven. As I approach your throne, I cry for mercy and grace to help in time of need. Thank you Lord for your sufficient grace that is made even more clear and distinct in my...

P salm 15:1-2     "LORD, who shall abide in thy tabernacle? who shall dwell in thy holy hill?  (2)  He that walketh uprightly, and worketh righteousness, and speaketh the truth in his heart." Word meanings are very important to the study of God's Word. Many times, we think we know what a particular word means only to find out it carries a very different meaning in the original language of the Bible (Hebrew in this case). The first word in today's verses that I want to look at is the word, "abide". "Who shall abide in thy tabernacle?"  Who shall abide in the covering of the Lord?  David is asking, "Who shall turn aside from the things of this world and enter into the covering of the Lord?"   We are bombarded everyday with ideas, words, actions, and attitudes of worldly minded people. Because we still have to deal with the carnal mind, we are prone to take on the shape of that which we are surrounded by. In other words, if we aren't ca...

Psalm 14:1-3    "The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God. They are corrupt, they have done abominable works, there is none that doeth good.  (2)  The LORD looked down from heaven upon the children of men, to see if there were any that did understand, and seek God.  (3)  They are all gone aside, they are all together become filthy: there is none that doeth good, no, not one." We know there are those who openly declare their disbelief concerning God. We know there are many who proudly (and I use that word in context of them) say "there is no God."  Quite honestly, I've always wondered why those people are consumed with a need to argue the subject. I do not believe Peter Pan ever existed, but I'm not going to waste any time arguing with someone who would declare he does exist. If I did not believe in God, it would be a non-issue with me. So, I'm wondering if there are really any true atheists, or is it as the Lord God Almighty declared in His w...

Psalm 13:1-3     "How long wilt thou forget me, O LORD? for ever? how long wilt thou hide thy face from me? (2) How long shall I take counsel in my soul, having sorrow in my heart daily? how long shall mine enemy be exalted over me? (3) Consider and hear me, O LORD my God: lighten mine eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death" Remembering the past can be the most exhilarating or the most painful experience you can have. We can rejoice all over again when the memories take us back to a happy time in our life. But it can be very painful when those memories take us to a dark place in our life. It is those dark times that Satan uses to hold over our heads as the writer of this Psalm expressed in verse two. How long, O Lord?  How long will I have to deal with the memory of my past mistakes?  As they are paraded through my mind over and over, my eyes become darkened with dread and remorse.  Lord, it is only by the light of your face that I can go beyond tha...

Psalm 12:5-8    "For the oppression of the poor, for the sighing of the needy, now will I arise, saith the LORD; I will set him in safety from him that puffeth at him.  (6)  The words of the LORD are pure words: as silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times.  (7)  Thou shalt keep them, O LORD, thou shalt preserve them from this generation for ever.  (8)  The wicked walk on every side, when the vilest men are exalted." This entire Psalm speaks of the boldness of those who have tendencies toward the carnal side of humanity. Some are spoken as being purely wicked, while others seem to be good people who have allowed the loose morals of leadership to sway them. One of the most spoken warnings of Christ was concerning the leaven of the Pharisees. "Beware ye of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy." (Luke 12:1)  His warnings were to His people that the tendencies of the world would not slip into and become part of the conv...

Psalm 11:3-4    "If the foundations be destroyed, what can the righteous do?  (4)  The LORD is in his holy temple, the LORD'S throne is in heaven: his eyes behold, his eyelids try, the children of men." We live in a time where it seems the foundations of America are crumbling.  Many different thoughts are running through my mind as I try to write this devotion.  As it is Memorial Day, I think about the multitude of wonderful men and women who gave their very lives to defend the foundation of this great land. Yes, it is still a great land.   "He that despised Moses' law died without mercy under two or three witnesses:  (29)  Of how much sorer punishment, suppose ye, shall he be thought worthy, who hath trodden under foot the Son of God, and hath counted the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing, and hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace?" (Hebrews 10:28-29)  We hear constant cries across our land that...

Psalm 10:1    "Why standest thou afar off, O LORD? why hidest thou thyself in times of trouble?" I truly love the book of the Psalms. I love them for many reasons, but I think most of all because they meet me right where I live.  As I read these songs, I realize that what is happening now has always been. The thoughts I have are not new to me; rather, throughout the ages, since sin entered the world, there have been the same things happening.  The names are different. The situations may not be exactly the same, but the principle of sin has always been and always will be as long as we are on this earth. I read the question in today's text and I think of that beautiful poem, "Footprints in the Sand". The thought of the poem is concerning this same question, "Where were you when I was in the troubled times of my life?"  As you read through this Psalm, you will see situations such as these: "The wicked in his pride doth persecute the poor." (...

Psalm 9:1-2    "To the chief Musician upon Muthlabben, A Psalm of David. I will praise thee, O LORD, with my whole heart; I will shew forth all thy marvellous works.  (2)  I will be glad and rejoice in thee: I will sing praise to thy name, O thou most High." I included the introduction to this Psalm for a specific reason.  The word, "Muthlabben", means "to die for the son".  Though David was blessed to prophecy concerning the coming Messiah, I'm not sure to what degree he understood what the Almighty Father was going to do for His people.  I'm not sure that David understood the fullness of God's love in that He was going to send His only begotten Son into the world to die for His people. David understood what it meant to lose a son to death. He understood what it meant for a son to turn against him and try to overthrow his throne. But, did he understand that the Messiah was indeed the very Son of God who would leave the glory of heaven and wal...

  Psalm 8:1-4     "O LORD our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth! who hast set thy glory above the heavens.  (2)  Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings hast thou ordained strength because of thine enemies, that thou mightest still the enemy and the avenger.  (3)  When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained;  (4)  What is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visitest him?" "O LORD our Lord, how excellent is thy name!"  Is it possible that there are times in our lives when we lose sight of that precious truth?  We might, at first, say, "Oh no, I would never lose sight of that."  But think about it. Just to look at this from the surface, do we lose our awe at those things we call nature? Do we lose that interest that a young child has in those things which we walk past without giving a second thought?  A child picks u...