Devotional Thoughts

Psalm 149:1    "Praise ye the LORD. Sing unto the LORD a new song, and his praise in the congregation of saints." Why is praise so important in our lives? Be certain that God has incorporated praise into the hearts of every human being. Every individual has praise that will escape from their lips. Some praise themselves and their accomplishments. Some praise material things that have been accumulated. Some praise other people. Some praise the power and glory and grace of our Lord.  We can be assured that the praise of God brings greater contentment than the praise of any other thing. Praising God diverts our attention from anything that might be troubling us to the very throne of God where all mercy and grace floods into our hearts and minds. Praise takes us from the valley to the mountaintop where we can have a better view of the things that are happening in our lives. Praise enables us to better see through the eyes of Christ and enables us to endure the struggles and...

Psalm 148:13   "Let them praise the name of the LORD: for his name alone is excellent; his glory  is  above the earth and heaven."   The final Psalms speak of the importance of praise.  As I read through the verses, I find that praise is based upon God's performance, not ours. Our performance in life is based upon God's ability and our faith in Him.    We can disappoint ourselves, but God never does.  He has promised never to fail us nor leave us. He is true to all His promises. Therefore, we have much to be thankful for and much for which to praise Him.    This morning I am reminding myself that God inhabits the praises of His people. " But thou  art  holy,  O thou  that inhabitest the praises of Israel." (Psalm 22:3)     He is worthy of praise. He inhabits our praise. In the process of praise, we are lifted out of our own discouragement and disappointment into His marvelous greatness. Let...

Psalm 147:5    "Great is our Lord, and of great power: his understanding is infinite." We speak often of the power of prayer and our need to talk with God.  A few days ago, I wrote of a very basic truth that we need to hold in our hearts when we approach the throne of grace: God is God.  And even in holding that truth, we really cannot fathom its depth. "Great is our Lord.... His understanding is infinite."  This particular Psalm speaks of many of God's abilities. We will briefly look at the two that are listed prior to this verse. Our God is able!  That is a statement that is repeated many times throughout the Word of God.   "He healeth the broken in heart, and bindeth up their wounds." (Psalm 147:3)   He is able to heal the broken hearted.  He is able to do this because He has made us, and not we ourselves. (Psalm 100)  He is able to do this because He understands the frailty of our character. He understands that we are like dus...

Psalm 146:5    "Happy is he that hath the God of Jacob for his help, whose hope is in the LORD his God" A few days ago, we saw the case of being happy and now we see more reasons for the child of God to be happy. We can be happy that we have the "God of Jacob for our help."  We can be happy that our "hope is in the LORD our God."  There are times when we see the man called Jacob and other times his name is listed as Israel. If you remember, God changed his name from Jacob to Israel when they wrestled together all through the night. The name, Israel, means being a prince, or having power, with God. His name, Jacob, was when he was a deceiver. God made a change in him.  Today, we see him being listed as Jacob; yet, there is hope of joy and happiness in God. It seems to me the name Jacob is used when there is a great need to be met and the realization that our only hope is to be found in the Lord. The Psalmist speaks of the reasons for happiness in the vers...

Psalm 145:18-19    "The LORD is nigh unto all them that call upon him, to all that call upon him in truth.  (19)  He will fulfil the desire of them that fear him: he also will hear their cry, and will save them." What is truth?  Now there's a question that can be answered in many ways. It seems everyone has their own slant on truth, depending upon their own circumstances. The Psalmist boldly declares to us that the Lord is close to all that call upon Him in truth.  That statement is truth. It stands upon its own merit. There is only one standard of truth and that is God's Holy Word. Any other facet of truth is founded upon that one basic tenet: God's Word is truth.   Two plus two equals four. If I incorrectly answer that simple formula, all the rest of my calculations will be wrong. It is therefore necessary that we become efficient in the simple truths before we can be correct in the complex formulas of life. "The LORD is nigh unto all them that c...

Psalm 145:10-13    "All thy works shall praise thee, O LORD; and thy saints shall bless thee. (11)  They shall speak of the glory of thy kingdom, and talk of thy power; (12)  To make known to the sons of men his mighty acts, and the glorious majesty of his kingdom. (13)  Thy kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and thy dominion endureth throughout all generations." "All thy works shall praise thee." This is a statement that would serve every child of God to pay attention. The sun does not need to be reminded to shine each day.  God commanded once and it is an ongoing praise from the sun, the moon, and the stars. You might ask, "How does the sun, moon, and stars praise God, their Creator?" I'm glad you asked. They praise Him by simply doing what they were created to do. The same is true of trees, flowers, grass, and even the rooster crowing. All of God's creation praises Him by doing what they were created to do. The praise...

Psalm 145:4-6    "One generation shall praise thy works to another, and shall declare thy mighty acts. (5)  I will speak of the glorious honour of thy majesty, and of thy wondrous works. (6)  And men shall speak of the might of thy terrible acts: and I will declare thy greatness." The Psalms often address our state of being, or our state of mind. As you read through the various Psalms, you see the writer would sometimes be in the "valley of the shadow of death" and other times be climbing the rocky cliffs "with hinds' feet". There would be times when he felt himself to be slipping and other times he was sure-footed as he went along his path of life.  Can you identify with these emotions? And there may be times when we feel emotionless. I think, for me, those are the most dangerous times when I'm going through the motions with no feeling whatsoever.  But through it all, we can truthfully say that our God is faithful and He has never left us to our o...

Psalm 145:1-3   "I will extol thee, my God, O king; and I will bless thy name for ever and ever. (2)  Every day will I bless thee; and I will praise thy name for ever and ever. (3)  Great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised; and his greatness is unsearchable." This particular Psalm is titled, "David's Psalm of Praise."  It is very evident as we go through this Psalm that David is in a state of great joy and rejoicing in the goodness of God. There must have been some great victory that had been experienced by David. But then, I ask myself this question: Do I require a great victory in my life before I begin to praise God? How about you?  Is God only worthy of my praise when I get what I want in life?  Be certain that He is worthy and He does give us great blessings that are more than can be numbered.  One of the themes we have seen repeated throughout the Psalms is that God never changes. So, if He is worthy of my praise in the daytime, then H...

Psalm 144:15    "Happy is that people, that is in such a case: yea, happy is that people, whose God is the LORD." We all want happiness in life, don't we? We search for it in many ways and in many different places. Sometimes, it seems that we don't really know what true happiness is; therefore, we swallow the commercial leads that tell us to buy certain products and we can find happiness. We go many places to seek that elusive man-made image of true happiness. The Bible speaks of joy and in my opinion there is a difference between joy and happiness.  Joy is that inner feeling of contentment that can sustain us even in tough times. Joy keeps our hearts in a safe place even when the storms of life are raging against us. Joy comes from Christ living in us and sustaining us in all our pain. Joy is a lasting state of heart and mind that is not based upon outward circumstances, but the inner position of relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ. That is joy. But our text sa...

Psalm 143:8    "Cause me to hear thy lovingkindness in the morning; for in thee do I trust: cause me to know the way wherein I should walk; for I lift up my soul unto thee." Psalm 143:10    "Teach me to do thy will; for thou art my God: thy spirit is good; lead me into the land of uprightness." This is a continuation of the prayer for seeking the Lord's will, protection, and purpose for our lives. David acknowledged his thirst for the Lord and need for God's presence in his life.  At times, we may suffer a dryness within our spirits. There can be different reasons for that season of dryness to come upon us, such as sickness, struggles in everyday life, and even a lack of God's Word, prayer, and interaction with the Lord on a daily basis. We read back in Psalm 42:1, "As the hart panteth after the water brooks, so panteth my soul after thee, O God."   David understood this symptom of dryness in spirit, but thank God, he also understood where ...

Psalm 143:4-6    "Therefore is my spirit overwhelmed within me; my heart within me is desolate.  (5)  I remember the days of old; I meditate on all thy works; I muse on the work of thy hands.  (6)  I stretch forth my hands unto thee: my soul thirsteth after thee, as a thirsty land. Selah." I am all too capable of identifying myself with the Psalmist when he speaks of being overwhelmed, dry and desolate in his spirit, and being thirsty for God.  I can't speak for anyone else, but I know human nature, itself, causes us to enter into seasons when our very spirits become dry and longing for fulfillment. You would hope that at that time, Satan would back off and leave us alone. Be assured, we must always be on guard for at our weakest moments, Satan sends his largest attacks. He has no pity nor mercy on anyone. The Psalmist begins this particular Psalm with the acknowledgement that the enemy is in hot pursuit of him.  He may have been talking about Kin...

Psalm 142:1     "I cried unto the LORD with my voice; with my voice unto the LORD did I make my supplication." This Psalm is titled, "Maschil of David; A Prayer when he was in the cave." The word, maschil, means it is a poem of instruction or to give information.  As a quick reminder, David and his men had hidden in a cave from King Saul who was trying to kill David. As they were in the cave, suddenly Saul and his army came into the cave. Saul's army was at the mouth of the cave. David and his army were in the back of the cave. Apparently it was a very large cave for Saul did not know David's army was also in that cave.  David's men tried to get David to kill Saul while he slept. David refused to kill the anointed king of Israel; rather, while Saul slept, David cut the hem of his robe. Afterwards, David felt guilty about doing this. You can find this account in 1 Samuel chapter 24. Today's Psalm was written as a result of that night in the cave. ...

Psalm 141:3    "Set a watch, O LORD, before my mouth; keep the door of my lips." In this particular Psalm, the writer is concerned about his thoughts, words, and actions becoming like those of the world. Isn't that a real danger still for us today? Jesus taught us that, a little leaven will affect the whole lump.  In other words, we are affected either positively or negatively by those in which we surround ourselves.  If we hang with people who drink and cuss, then more than likely we will be tempted to take a drink and say those words that are not honoring unto the Lord.  Oh, we want to think we will influence them, but it rarely works that way. The Psalmist knew the danger was real, so he prayed fervently that he would not be affected by the people that were not diligent in their actions. "Set a watch, O LORD, before my mouth; keep the door of my lips."  He was asking the Lord to place a guard over his words. This was not the first time he had made this...

Psalm 140:6-7    "I said unto the LORD, Thou art my God: hear the voice of my supplications, O LORD.  (7)  O GOD the Lord, the strength of my salvation, thou hast covered my head in the day of battle." Who is your greatest enemy?  The first five verses of this Psalm speak concerning an enemy from which the Psalmist was seeking to be delivered. Whoever, or whatever, it was, this enemy struck some degree of fear into the mind of the writer. "Deliver me, O Lord. They are continually gathered together for war.  They have sharpened their tongues. Keep me, O LORD.... (they) have purposed to overthrow my goings." Again, I ask, "Who is your greatest enemy?"  What is it that gathers itself to do battle with sharpened words that we hear constantly in our ears (minds)?  From what do you find yourself asking God to deliver and keep you? I find, for myself, that my greatest enemy is my own mind. My greatest battles that I have to fight are against my own tho...

Psalm 139:23-24    "Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts:  (24)  And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting." Have you ever hidden something so well that you could not even find it? It's kind of embarrassing, especially when you go buy another one only for the original to show up later. And it was right where you had placed it to begin with. Isn't that true of our minds sometimes? Our brains are constantly processing information that is being bombarded into it. Some things, we tell ourselves to store that away because we will need that information at a later time. Other things, we tell ourselves to let that slide right on through because it is useless information.  Some things we tend to think we have dealt with and it is no longer important to us; yet, in reality it is hidden away inside our minds. Though we may not think about it on a daily basis, there are times when it comes to the surface agai...

Psalm 139:17-18    "How precious also are thy thoughts unto me, O God! how great is the sum of them!  (18)  If I should count them, they are more in number than the sand: when I awake, I am still with thee." "How precious also are thy thoughts unto me, O God!"  What is the reason for someone to constantly be in your thoughts? I can think of two reasons immediately. One reason would be that you felt someone did you wrong. In that case, the thoughts would not be considered precious; rather, they would probably be vindictive thoughts that would constantly cause you to be troubled. The second reason that someone is constantly in your thoughts would be that you feel very close to that person and your heart is turned to them with great affection.  At that point, your thoughts would be great and you feel highly blessed. My question this morning would be, "How often do my thoughts turn toward God?"  On any given day, what would be the number of hours in whic...

Psalm 139:14    "I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvellous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well." "I am fearfully and wonderfully made." How could anyone think this universe came into existence by an accidental collision? I've written about that before, so I will briefly address this statement made by the Psalmist.  When you stop to think about the intricacy of the human body and the manner in which it continues day after day. There are so many functions of the body that we do not think about until they are interrupted by sickness. We do not have to instruct our body to the manner it distributes the nutrients that are placed inside. We do not have to remind, or kick start, our eyes each morning as we open them at the light of a new day. We do not teach our brain how to store information that is fed into it. We do not have to teach the skin to heal after it has been scratched. We are fearfully and wonderfully made.  The...

Psalm 139:6    "Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is high, I cannot attain unto it." There are three words that are often used to describe God: omnipotent, omnipresent, and omniscient. God is omnipotent in that all power belongs to Him, both in heaven and on earth. God is omnipresent in that He is everywhere at all times. The Psalmist goes on to speak of all these things in this 139th Psalm. I would encourage you to read the entire Psalm to be reminded of the greatest of our God. There are many things that I do not know.  The prideful part of me would like to think I could carry on my part of a conversation; that is, until the conversation turns to calculus, nuclear physics, engineering, or baking a cake.  The third word that I used to describe God is omniscient; that is, God knows all things.  On more than one occasion, Jesus knew the very thoughts of those who were trying to entrap Him by their questions. God knows the proper mixture of gases in the...

Psalm 138:1-2    "I will praise thee with my whole heart: before the gods will I sing praise unto thee.  (2)  I will worship toward thy holy temple, and praise thy name for thy lovingkindness and for thy truth: for thou hast magnified thy word above all thy name." This particular Psalm seems to me to be one of commitment and dedication. Following the commitment of these first two verses, comes verses of explanation and thanksgiving that are given.  David speaks in this Psalm concerning the efficiency of God's Word. It is amazing to see how God still deals with His people as He has all through the ages. He has not changed and His Word never becomes weakened. It is of the utmost importance to apply ourselves to the Word of God and become aware of the reality of its truth in our lives. When we walk in the paths of God's Word, there is great joy and peace in our lives. And there is no doubt that God is working through the principles laid down in His Word. When we ...

Psalm 137:1-4    "By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down, yea, we wept, when we remembered Zion. (2)  We hanged our harps upon the willows in the midst thereof. (3)  For there they that carried us away captive required of us a song; and they that wasted us  required of us  mirth,  saying,  Sing us  one  of the songs of Zion. (4)  How shall we sing the LORD'S song in a strange land?" Today's devotion may not be considered as a "Top 5" among devotions. Normally, the Psalms speak to us of a better time either in the past or in time to come.  Today's Psalm speaks of a rough time when the children of Israel had been taken into bondage. It seems the writer may have been faintly remembering a better time when there was music and joy in the land. But now, they were in a strange land and their hearts were not tuned to playing or singing music. It seems their captors were mocking them and trying to get them to s...

Psalm 136:26    "O give thanks unto the God of heaven: for his mercy endureth for ever." This entire Psalm is one of counting blessings and being thankful for each one.  We sing the old hymn, "Count your many blessings, name them one by one."  We saw back in the 40th Psalm, verse 5, " Many, O LORD my God, are thy wonderful works which thou hast done, and thy thoughts which are to us-ward: they cannot be reckoned up in order unto thee: if I would declare and speak of them, they are more than can be numbered."  If we stopped to try to count our blessings each day, we would understand the sentiment of gratitude that seemed to have flooded the heart and mind of the writer of Psalm 136.   Each verse speaks of a blessing from God that had brought him to the very point of expressing such heartfelt gratitude. Certainly it is understood that God's mercy and grace is at the very top of our list of things to be grateful for. He goes down the list from creation ...