Saturday... We have been searching for the right trees.

We have gotten the keys and are in the process of moving into our retirement home. With all the situations involved with what our world is going through we decided that building a new house here in the desert of Las Vegas was best for us. Now here in Vegas, we are responsible for the landscape in our backyard and trees are an important choice here in the desert. So we have been doing all we can to figure out the best trees to survive and to thrive. We have loved it.

So as I was reading in Psalm 92 these verses caught my attention. Verse 12 (NLT) says, "But the godly will flourish like palm trees and grow like the cedars of Lebanon."

Now Palm trees in the desert are signs of water, of an oasis. And the cedars were used in so many ways to build great buildings. Craftsmen used then in building the Temple in Jerusalem. Maybe God wants to use us, to help us flourish in this desert of despair and fear and pandemic. And then He wants to use us to build His kingdom, He wants us to flourish in this day in which we live.

And then the Psalmist goes on in verse 13, "For they are transplanted to the Lord's own house. They flourish in the courts of our God." We are where God wants us.

Verse 14, "Even in old age they will still produce fruit; they will remain vital and green." I love that. I love that. Even at my age I will remain vital and green. That is my prayer.

Verse 15, "They will declare, 'The Lord is just! He is my rock! There is no evil in him!' "

The MESSAGE Paraphrase puts it this way, "Good people will prosper like palm trees, grow tall like Lebanon cedars; transplanted to God's courtyard, they'll grow tall in the presence of God, lithe and green, virile still in old age." I love it, I love it! Yes, yes! #todaysbegininng

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Friday... We have this hope of expectancy.

Psalm 5:3 (NLT), "Listen to my voice in the morning Lord. Each morning I bring my requests to you and wait expectantly." Friday... We have this hope of expectancy. Now David found a great way to start his day. He says in Psalm 5:1-3 (NLT), "O LORD, hear me as I pray." And that is a great place to start. It really is. Morning sunrise He goes on, "Listen to my cry for help, my King, my God, for I pray to no one but you." And that is so important. We don't try to pump ourselves up by ourself. No, we pray to no one but you, God, my LORD, my King. Now this relationship with God is so, so very important. And then David says, "Listen to my voice in the morning, LORD. Each morning I bring my requests to you" And that is so great. And then he says, "and wait expectantly." Yes, we have this hope of expectancy. We are experienced. That is what a relationship with God and a moment by moment connection does. It makes a difference in our daily wa...

Friday... Yes, we can know this to be true.

Psalm 12:6 (NLT), "The Lord's promises are pure, like silver refined in a furnace, purified seven times over." Friday... Yes, we can know this to be true. Maybe this is what you want to say in this day in which we live. Psalm 12:1-2 (MSG) says, "Quick, I need your helping hand! The last decent person just went down, all the friends I depend on gone. Everyone talks in lie language; lies slide off their oily lips. They doubletalk with forked tongues." Do you ever feel that way?" Have you found that to be true? Well David the writer of this Psalm continues and says in verse 6 something to encourage us, to lift us up, to give us hope. Psalm 12:6 (NLT) says, "The Lord's promises are pure, like silver refined in a furnace, purified seven times over." The Message Paraphrase says verses 6-8 this way, "God's words are pure words, pure silver words refined seven times in the fires of his word-kiln, pure on earth as well as in heaven, God, keep ...

Wednesday... It is amazing what we can see.

Psalm 3:3a (NLT), "But you, O LORD, are a shield around me." Wednesday... It is amazing what we can see. And what we see does make such a difference in our day. Now David, he writer of Psalm 3 starts this Psalm this way. He says in verse 1 (NLT), "O Lord, I have so many enemies; so many are against me." Yes, he is saying this to the LORD, the one he serves. Verse 2 says, "So many are saying, 'God will never rescue him!'" And that is so true with that outlook. So many of us get out of bed with that outlook every morning. It is amazing what we can see. Now I woke up this morning and eventually found myself outside on my couch with my Bible and I read this outlook in verses 1-2 from David. But I didn't stop there and neither did David. But that is an easy place to stop, isn't it? And it is true. Yes, David didn't stop there. Verses 3-4 says, "But you, O LORD, are a shield around me; you are my glory, the one who holds my head high. I...

Today's Beginning

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