Todays Beginning

Friday... We really, really need to be careful. If we have been told from our beginning that we are so special and so smart then we can have an arrogance in which we need to be very careful. Oh we are special and we can do almost anything but it isn't because of us. And that is so important for us to know. Now Paul puts us in our place. Over in Romans 11:34-35 (MSG) he writes, "Is there anyone around who can explain God? Anyone smart enough to tell him what to do? Anyone who has done him such a huge favor that God has to ask his advice?"  Oh please God, may we not be one of those who is so arrogant that they believe they can explain You. We live in a time that people think they are so smart that they can explain God and who put us down because we believe there is a God. In verse 33 (NLT) Paul writes, "Oh, how great are God's riches and knowledge! How impossible it is for us to understand his decisions and his ways!" The Amplified Bible says, "Oh, the de...

Thursday... I've heard you say this. Look at what King David says in Psalm 27:7-8 (NLT), "Hear me as I pray, O Lord. Be merciful and answer me! My heart has heard you say, 'Come and talk with me.' And my heart responds. 'Lord, I am coming.'" I don't know what you are going through, today. For some, this is a rough day. Now, maybe you have had a good friend say to us, "No matter what you are going through, give me a call." Maybe you are in this tough spot because of something you have done and you are ashamed. I've been through a time like that. I just wanted to run and hide. But God is different. No matter what we have done we can ask him first of all to be merciful. Yes, there are some that all they want to do is tell us what we did wrong. They will tell us what we already know and feel. You blew it. You know you did. And you're also not sure that if the person you are calling and they see your name come up on their phone that they m...

Wednesday... He wasn't perfect, but. I have spent a lot of time with King David, the writer of many of the Psalms and he wasn't perfect. I have been reading a Psalm a day for almost 50 years and David has shown his feelings, his failures and his areas that he had problems but I love how he starts Psalm 26. In verses 1-3 (NLT), he writes, "Declare me innocent, O Lord for I have acted with integrity; I have trusted in the Lord without wavering. Put me on trial, Lord, and cross-examine me. Test my motives and my heart. For I am always aware of your unfailing love, and I have lived according to your truth."  Again, "For I am always aware of your unfailing love." He was not perfect but he knew that God's love was unfailing. Now that is what we each one need, isn't it? But that kind of love only comes from a relationship with God. But how each one of us need that and each one of us needs to live with that. Yes, I am not perfect and I need that kind of love...

Tuesday... There is within us a desire to please. And it can be a very good thing or not. And it is amazing what we will do to please, isn't it? Now it is really discouraging when it seems that we can't please someone we want to please. Some have done all they can all their life to please a father and mother and they can't? And they feel like a failure. Now Paul in his letter to the Romans deals with the matter of pleasing God. He says there is this sinful nature within each of us. We were born with it. And in Romans 8:7-8 (NLT) he says, "For the sinful nature is always hostile to God. It never did obey God's laws, and it never will. That's why those who are under the control of their sinful nature can never please God."  There are many who could say, "I can't please my parents and I can't please God. I am a failure." And it may be true that you may not be able to please your parents but it usually is not your fault. Oh it could be becaus...

Monday... It is so much better to impress. We really don't like being looked down upon, do we? It is so much better to impress. This verse caught my attention in my reading this morning. Proverbs 24:12 (MSG) says, "Someone is watching you closely, you know - Someone not impressed with weak excuses." But it can be so easy to make weak excuses. But they really don't impress, do they? And the one who is watching us closely is God, and for sure it doesn't impress him. Now verse 10 (NLT) says, "If you fail under pressure, your strength is too small." And there is a great excuse in there. The Amplified Bible says, "If you are slack (careless) in the day of distress, your strength is limited." We need to be at our best during distress. In other words, not making excuses. But let's go back to verses 3-4 (NLT), "A house is built by wisdom and becomes strong through good sense. Through knowledge its rooms are filled with all sorts of precious ri...

Friday... Such a gift, such an overwhelming gift! David writes in Psalm 21:2 (NLT), "For you have given him his heart's desire; you have withheld nothing he requested." Please note that he says, "his heart's desire." In verse 4 it says, "He asked you to preserve his life, and you granted his request. The days of his life stretch on forever." Over in Proverbs 21:1 it says, "The king's heart is like a stream of water directed by the Lord; he guides it wherever he pleases." And verse 2 (AMP), "Every man's way is right in his own eyes, but the Lord examines the hearts [of people and their motives]." And that is so important for us to know. Look at Proverbs 24:12 (NLT), "Don't excuse yourself by saying, 'Look, we didn't know.' For God understands all hearts, and he sees you. He who guards your soul knows you knew. He will repay all people their actions." And then the verse that caught my attention to...

Thursday... He has the ability, but. And the but is very important to understand and to follow through faith. David writes in Psalm 20:1 (NLT), "In times of trouble, may the Lord answer your cry. May the name of the God of Jacob keep you safe from all harm." And then verse 4, "May he grant your heart's desire and make all your plans succeed." Yes, God has the ability and he will answer our cry and he has what it takes to grant our desires and for all our plans to succeed. But it all must go through his love and his wisdom and his plan for us. And then the last part of verse 5 says, "May the Lord answer all your prayers." He can but he also knows what is best. Look at Proverbs 20:4. It says, "Those too lazy to plow in the right season will have no food at the harvest." But why didn't he answer my prayer? I'm in trouble. Yes, you are because you didn't do your part. He gives us opportunities and tasks to do. Now if we are physically...

Wednesday... It really does, it really does. What gets you started every day? I love each morning to go and sit outside on my couch with Turner our dog right beside me and my Bible to read my three chapters and to look up at sky. And the sky is so important to me. There are three things that gets me closer to God. One is the mountains, another is the ocean and then the sky. I love looking up into the sky. And that was true of David. In Psalm 19:1 (NLT) David writes, "The heavens proclaim the glory of God. The sky display his craftsmanship." How can a person look up at the sky and its bigness and not believe in God? Now some have an answer to that and I do too. I can't. There must be someone greater than I am that came up with the idea of and created the sky.  The Amplified Bible says, "The heavens are telling of the glory of God; And the expanse [of heaven] is declaring the work of His hands."  Paul writes in Romans 1:20-21 (NLT), "For ever since the world ...

Tuesday... It really did, yes it did. David was going through some really rouge times, some distress in his life. In Psalm 18:6 (NLT) he says, "But in my distress I cried to the Lord; yes, I prayed to my God for help." Now that is the right thing to do but we may wonder, did he hear me? Well, David continued, "He heard me from his sanctuary, my cry to him reached his ears." It really did, yes it did. And that is the phrase that caught my attention in my reading today. "my cry to him reached his ears." And that is so important for us to realize and believe especially when we are in distress, isn't it? "But in my distress I cried to the Lord; yes, I prayed to my God for help. He heard me from his sanctuary, my cry to him reached his ears." We talk a lot about praying and it does make an emotional difference in our distress. It really does but there is more to it than just an emotional release. In verse 18 David says, "They attacked me at a...

Monday... Here is a great prayer for a new day. David says in Psalm 17:8 (AMP), "Keep me [in Your affectionate care, protect me] as the apple of Your eye; Hide me in the [protective] shadow of Your wings. from the wicked who despoil and deal violently with me, my deadly enemies who surround me." I love that phrase in The Amplified Bible, "as the apple of Your eye" and that is such a great thing to be isn't it and a great prayer to pray?  But, it doesn't just happen. Yes God loves everyone of us but there are some things that we must do to reap the benefit of that love. Look at verses 1-2 (NLT), "O Lord, hear my plea for justice, listen to my cry for help. Pay attention to my prayer, for it comes from honest lips. Declare me innocent, for you see those who do right." He continues in verses 4-5 in The Message Paraphrase, "I'm not trying to get my way in the world's way. I'm trying to get your way, your Word's way. I'm stayi...

Friday... We really think we know. King David writes in Psalm 14:1 (NLT), " Only fools say in their hearts, 'There is no God.' They are corrupt, and their actions are evil; not one of them does good!" Pretty strong words. He then says in verses 4, "Will those who do evil never learn? They eat up people like bread and wouldn't think of praying to the Lord." Verse 2 (MSG) says, "God sticks his head out of heaven. He looks around. He's looking for someone not stupid - one man, even, God-expectant, just one God-ready woman." Proverbs 14:2 (NLT) says, "Those who follow the right path fear the Lord; those who take the wrong path despise him. Verse 3 (AMP) "In the mouth of the [arrogant] fool [ who rejects God] is a rod for his back, but the lips of the wise [when they speak with godly wisdom] will protect them." And then verse 8 (NLT), "The prudent understand where they are going, but fools deceive themselves." And over i...

Thursday... But do we accept each other as we are? Do we? God has created each one of us to be unique? We each have different personalities. And some we accept and some we don't but God accepts and understands each one of us. Now David was a unique personality. He was. And it comes out in his Psalms that he has written. Look at Psalm 13:3 (NLT). It says, "Turn and answer me, O Lord, my God! Restore the sparkle to my eyes or I will die." Now that type of personality could bother some people.  In verse 1 he writes, "O Lord, how long will you forget me? Forever? How long will you look the other way?" Now some would say that that is a little over the top but that was David. That was how he felt. And God accepted him, he understood him and he created him. Yes, we can be hard on people who are not like us.  So many parents have a child who is their favorite. They could be like them and that other child is different. They react to situations in a different way than the...

Wednesday... Words are so powerful. David in Psalm 12:6 (AMP) writes, "The words and promises of the Lord are pure words, like silver refined in an earthen furnace, purified seven times." God's words, his promises are powerful and pure. Have you found that true?  Verse 7 says, "You Lord, will preserve and keep them; You will protect him from this [evil] generation." Now that is a promise that I have found to be very true. I know we are in this midst of an election and we are listening to what is being said and wondering if they can be trusted. Well, I have found that I can trust God's word, his promises. They have held true through so many difficulties in my life. But our words are also powerful. David's son, Solomon over in Proverbs 12:25 (NLT) says, "Worry weigh a person down; an encouraging word cheers a person up." And that is so true isn't it?  Verse 18 says, "Some people make cutting remarks, but the words of the wise bring heali...

Tuesday... We think we really know what makes sense. Yes, maybe we do need to run but where do we run? And that is the question when bad times are happening around us. King David in Psalm 11 knows where to run. He knows what really makes sense. David says in verses 1-3 (MSG), "I've already run for dear life straight to the arms of God." That's what I've done. But someone else has a different perspective and David says to them, "So why would I run away now when you say, 'Run to the mountains;'" That would make sense to someone who doesn't have a relationship with God. No, don't run to God, run to the mountains. But David goes on. They say, "Run to the mountains; the evil bows are bent, the wicked arrows aimed to shoot under cover of darkness at every heart opened to God. The bottoms dropped out of the country; good people don't have a chance." Run to the mountains is what really makes sense. You good people don't have a c...

Monday... They are so honest. They really understand. I have been reading a Psalm everyday for over fifty years and I love the fact that they are honest and understanding. Look at Psalm 10:1 (NLT). It says, "O Lord, why do you stand so far away? Why do you hide when I am in trouble?" Have you ever felt that way? I mean, trouble is all around you and you feel all alone. Have you ever felt that way? Maybe you feel that way today. Well that is the way this Psalm like many other Psalms start. Yes we are allowed to say what we feel. It seems to get it out in the open. I'm not sure what David the writer of this Psalm was going through but he starts out being honest about what he felt. But that is not where he stops but too many times that is where we stop.  He continues. In verse 13 he says, "Why do the wicked get away with despising God? They think, 'God will never call us to account.'" And then verse 14 starts with a very important word. It is a word that ge...

Friday... It is so difficult to wait, unless. It really is but it may be that God is not waiting but that he is working. I'm reading in the Acts of the Apostles in the New Testament and a big part of this book is about a man who was an unbelievable doer. He had such enthusiasm, Nothing got in his way of sharing the Good News. But look at Acts 24:27 (NIRV). It says, "Two years passed. Porcius Festus took the place of Felix. But Felix wanted to do the Jews a favor. So he left Paul in prison." Now do you think that Felix was in change of this situation? Do you? Yes, we too many times seem to think that God doesn't have the power to take care of situations in our lives. That the Felix's and Festus's or the Republicans and Democrats or the Conservatives or Liberals are in control.  What is it in your life that seems to have control over your life? Well, there are choices we make that seem to take over the situations in our lives but Paul was not a man who was striv...

Thursday... It really does get tiring. It really does. David in Psalm 6:6 (AMP) says, "I am weary with my groaning." Don't you ever get to the place that you're tired of it.? Now King David had some groaning in him. He was honest. In verse 4 he says, "Return, O Lord, rescue my soul; Save me because of Your [unfailing] steadfast love and mercy." Yes, he had been here before and he knew where to go. Have you experienced this unfailing, steadfast love and mercy? Do you know where to turn in your groaning? We just can't stay in that place too long. We really do need to turn to the one who doesn't put us down but who reaches out to us in our time of despair. Verse 7 says, "My eyes grows dim with grief; It grows old because of my enemies." Verses 8-9, "Depart from me, all you who do evil, for the Lord has heard the voice of my weeping. The Lord has heard my supplication [my plea for grace]; The Lord receives my prayer."  Yes, there is a...

Wednesday... Ok, ok it's morning. So how does that work for you? Is it hard for you to get up? I won't start this by saying that I love getting up in the morning. Well I did, I did say it so I hope you don't stop reading. But because I am counting each day that I have ahead of me then I don't want to waste too much time in bed. I do strive to be healthy and get my eight hours but then I'm up and at it. Now David says in Psalm 5:1 (NLT), "O Lord, hear me as I pray. pay attention to my groaning." And what we are going through can cause us to not want to get up and face a new day. All of that groaning can get to us, can't it? But connecting with God and asking him to pay attention to what we are going through makes such a difference in our day. Yes he wants us to bring our groanings to him and the morning is a great time to do that. David goes on. Verse 2 says, "Listen to my cry for help, my King and my God, for I pray to no one but you." He is ...

Tuesday... But I am in trouble, I am in distress. Is that how you are feeling today?  Psalm 4:1 (AMP) says, "Answer me when I call, O God of my righteousness! You have freed me when I was hemmed in and relieved me when I was in distress; Be gracious to me and hear [and respond to] my prayer." Now distress and trouble come from a lot of sources. Sometimes they come from our being off track. Proverbs 4:23 (NLT) says, "Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life." Verses 25-27 says, "Look straight ahead, and fix your eyes on what lies before you. Mark out a straight path for your feet; stay on a safe path. Don't get sidetracked; keep your feet from following evil." Verses 25 & 26 in the Amplified Bible says, "Let you eyes look directly ahead [toward the path of moral courage] and let your gaze be fixed straight in front of you [toward the path of integrity]." Yes, there can be distress and trouble when we do wh...

Monday... There is so much to keep us awake. There really is. King David over in Psalm 3:1-2 (NLT) writes, "O Lord, I have so many enemies; so many are against me. So many are saying, 'God will not rescue him!'" It seems that David's son, Absalom was trying to kill him because he wanted to be king. And of course the Devil and his followers were reinforcing his deep anxiety by saying, "God will not rescue him!" And for so many of us that is being repeated when we are trying to go to sleep. Yes, there is so much that we face in the day in which we live that can keep us from going to sleep. Is that true of you? But David doesn'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 cried out to the Lord, and he answered me from his holy mountain." And then he says in verse 5, "I lay down and slept, yet I woke up in safety, for the Lord was watching over me." Verse 5...