Todays Beginning

Psalm 108:12-13 (MSG), "Give us help for the hard task; human help is worthless. In God we'll do our very best; he'll flatten the opposition for good." Wednesday... Give me help for this hard task! Yes, we need help, real help. Not just any help. There are some situations in our lives that we need help from someone who is greater than the situation. There are some really hard tasks that we face and we want to run from them but we can't. Maybe you are facing one today and you need help, real help. Now verse 1 in the New Living Translation says, "My heart is confident in you, O God; no wonder I can sing your praises." We may not be confident in ourselves and even other people but we can be confident in God. Verse 4 says, "For your unfailing love is higher than the heavens. Your faithfulness reaches the clouds." There are just some things that can only be done with someone who is greater than the hard task. Verse 5 says, "Be exalted, O God, a

  Psalm 107:30 (NLT), "What a blessing was that stillness as he brought them safely into harbor." Tuesday... That stillness is such a blessing. There sure are a lot of storms going on around us and some stillness would be such a blessing. We were living on Long Island in New York and our son, Brett and his family were living in Colorado and we in New York were having a hurricane. We lived fairly close to the Ocean and we didn't really know what was happening but Brett was watching the weather on tv and he called us in the middle of the night and said maybe you need to go to the basement it looks like a tornado is headed your way. So that is what we did. It was so great to have someone watching out for us. Well the Psalmist in Psalm 107 was talking about being on a ship and a storm came up and it was tossing them all around. Now I've never been in a storm while on a ship. But verse 27 said, "They reeled and staggered like drunkards and were at their wits' end.

Proverbs 16:1 (NLT), "We can make our own plans, but the Lord gives the right answer." Monday... Yes, we have so much ability. As we start another week some may need their confidence reinforced but we also must be careful. Confidence is a great tool in our making plans but so is trust. Of course it depends on our focus of trust.  Yes, we as God's creation have so many abilities but seeing into our future is not one of them. Yes, we can make plans but are they the right ones? Verses 2-3 says, "People may be pure in their own eyes, but the Lord examines their motives. Commit your actions to the Lord, and your plans will succeed." Psalm 106:7-8 says, "Our ancestors in Egypt were not impressed by the Lord's miraculous deeds. They soon forgot his many acts of kindness to them. Instead they rebelled against him at the Red Sea. Even so, he saved them - to defend the honor of his name and to demonstrate his mighty power." Yes, there are many even so's

Psalm 113:1-2 (MSG), "Hallelujah!, You who serve God, praise God! Just to speak his name is praise! Just to remember God is a blessing - now and tomorrow and always." Friday... Yes, it really is. It really does! There is so much in people's lives that can bring them down. So much. But starting your day speaking God's name in praise can really help to start the day right. Yes, there is power in praise! Yes, there is always power from God but there is also power from praise. "Just to speak his name is praise! Just to remember God is a blessing." Look at this, no matter what you are facing, verse 4 (NLT) says. "For the Lord is high above the nations; his glory is higher than the heavens."  Our praise changes our focus. The Apostle Paul had started a church in Thessalonica and it had become a thriving church but Paul after he had planted the church was chased out of town. But here is how he started his first letter to them. In 1 Thessalonians 1:1 he wr

Proverbs 12:1 (NLT), "To learn, you must love discipline; it is stupid to hate correction." Thursday... Two words that are not normally used today. If we would have called someone stupid we would probably be corrected. We would be in trouble if we called someone stupid, wouldn't we? But four of the translations that I have read today use the word stupid so I am sure it is what the writer of this Psalm meant.  And the other word is correction. We seem to be in a time in our culture that we don't think correction is the way to go but Biblically it is. Now the Amplified Bible says, "Whoever loves instruction and discipline loves knowledge." Just because we are not in school doesn't mean we need to quit learning. We still need a hunger for it especially the knowledge that God gives.  And then the writer says, "But he who hates reproof and correction is stupid." We are never too old to be stupid and for some the older we get the stupider we get.  No

  Proverbs 11:2 (NIV), "Pride leads to disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom." Wednesday... There is for sure a more productive road. Yes there is disgrace but the road of pride seems to be a road that for many leads to success but does it really? In the matter of relationships it is a real problem but for too many, being humble seems to be weak. But is it? The Amplified Bible goes into more detail. It says it this way, "When pride comes [boiling up with an arrogant attitude of self-importance], then comes dishonor and shame,  but with the humble [the teachable who have been chiseled by trial and who have learned to walk humbly with God] there is wisdom and soundness of mind."  The Apostle Paul while in prison writes in Colossians 3:12-13 (NLT), "Since God chose you to be the holy people he loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Make allowance for each other's faults, and forgive anyone wh

Proverbs 10:24 (NLT), "The fears of the wicked will be fulfilled; the hopes of the godly will be granted." Tuesday... Which do we want? Life is filled with choices. Tonight here in the US we will be watching two Presidential candidates debating each other. And on election day in November they will be a very important choice for us to make.  So many people have awakened this morning with the choice of fear or hope. And this verse in Proverbs tells the outcome of those choices. The Amplified says verse 24 this way, "What the wicked fear will come upon him, but the desire righteous [for the blessings of God] will be granted." That is a choice. And there are so many other choices we will face today Now over in Colossians 2:8 (NLT), Paul the writer of this letter says, "Don't let anyone capture you with empty philosophies and high sounding nonsense that come from human thinking and from spiritual powers of this world, rather than from Christ." Verses 9-10,

Proverbs 9:6 "Leave your simple ways behind and begin to live; learn to use good judgement." Monday... How to learn to use good judgement. One of the ways to learn how to use good judgement is to use bad judgement and see the consequences. It is so easy for us to depend upon ourselves and our desires and then see where that takes us. But spending time in God's Word, like in Proverbs and starting our day in conversing with God really makes sense, it really is using good judgement. We are in the midst of moving. It's here in Vegas but to another community. We see it as a wise thing to do, with our future in mind. It is amazing what happens when you leave you simple ways behind and really begin to live and to learn to use good judgement. That's what age does for you.   The Amplified Bible says, "Leave [behind] your foolishness [and the foolish] and live, and walk in the way of insight and understanding." Who you hang out with is one of the first places to s

Friday... Now you can wait until it is responsive or exit. Now that is what my computer said as I was trying to get connected to where I write my blog. So what do I do? Well, I waited and here we are. You see I needed this page in order to write this blog. At least I wanted it. I feel I needed it to happen the way it also has but I am seeing that I will be changing and it really will be for the better. You see, we think we need things to happen the way we need but maybe our needs are really wants. The Apostle Paul wrote in Philippians 4:19 (NLT), "And this same God who takes care of me will supply all your needs from his glorious riches, which have been given to us in Christ Jesus." That is such a wonderful thought, isn't it? And we use it in our going to God over and over, don't we?  And he does say in verse 6, "Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done." That is another verse t

Thursday... They do come, they really do.  I am having some problems with posting this blog and there needs to be some changes so I am searching. So how should we focus? Of course finding solutions is one but there still is another very important one to do, a very important place to start. Psalm 95:6-7 (NLT) says, "Come, let us worship the Lord our maker, for he is God. We are the people he watches over, the flock under his care. If only you would listen to his voice today." Oh we do listen to the voice of despair. That is a place we sometimes go, isn't it? We also go to others asking them for advice and that is a good place to go. But stopping and whorshing our maker, our God, the one who watches over us is without a doubt the first place to go.  It is so easy for us during times of difficulties to hang our head down in discouragement. That is where we naturally go. Yes, the Psalmist says for us to hang our heads but do it in worship to God not in deep flows of negative

Wednesday... Our unless can turn into useless.  It really can. I have found that unless I give the correct email of my wife then I can't get what I wanted. I put an extra i in her email and I have been working for 5 days to get it changed. Unless has been useless. The writer of Psalm 94 uses this word and shows how important it is. Verses 17-19 (NLT) says, "Unless the Lord had helped me, I would have soon settled in the silence of the grave. I cried out, 'I'm slipping!' but your unfailing love, O Lord, supported me. When doubts filled my mind, your comfort gave me renewed hope and cheer." "Unless the Lord had helped me." So many people go on and on and on striving to live their life on their own but they keep slipping and doubting and living without hope and cheer. Yes the Lord has such unfailing love for us, he really does but unless we have a relationship with him and we turn to him and ask him for help then the unless turns in to useless because h

Tuesday... But let's just remember this. The writer of Psalm 93 reminds us of a couple of important things. And we need to remember the reality of these two facts. Verse 3 (NLT) says, "The floods have risen up, O Lord. The floods have roared like thunder; the floods have lifted their pounding waves." Now I have lived close to both Oceans and I have seen some tremendous waves. I've even been through some floods. Now we are not in one right now but I do remember. But our family is going through some very difficult situations. And maybe that is true of you. Have you been through some floods? Maybe you are going through some mighty stuff that is greater than you can handle right now. The Psalms over and over bring up situations that are greater than we are. But it doesn't stop there. But they also remind us of another fact.  Yes, what we may be going through is mighty but verse 4 starts with "but". I love that. Yes life is rough, yes "the floods have li

Monday... Three ifs and two thens. They go together! They really do. And this is what caught my attention this morning as I was reading Proverbs 2. Verse 1 (NRSVUE) says, "My child, if you accept my words and treasure my commands within you." Verse 3 (NIV), "Indeed i f you call  out for insight and cry aloud for understanding, Verse 4, and if you look for it as for silver and search for it as for hidden treasure, Verse 5, then you will understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge of God." And verses 9-11, " Then you will understand what is right and just and fair - every good path. For wisdom will enter your heart, and knowledge will be pleasant to your soul. Discretion will protect you, and understanding will guard you." There will always be some effort we must do, some ifs for the thens to be realized in our lives. So many of us want to understand without the ifs. But the thens are so worth, so very worth the effort. Verses 5-6 in the Ampli