Scripture:

“But let us who live in the light be clearheaded, protected by the armor of faith and love, and wearing as our helmet the confidence of our salvation.”

‭‭1 Thessalonians‬ ‭5:8‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Observation:

Paul tells us here that we are to be clear headed and to be protected by faith and love.  He then says that our helmet is the confidence of our salvation.  Faith and love protect us from whatever comes against us and our salvation keeps our head safe.

Application:

As we walk through these last days, we must remain alert and clearly hearing the word of the Lord.  We must walk in faith and love and never doubt our salvation.  As the end approaches, and during this time of pandemic and trying times culturally, we must live alert and protected at all times.  Now is not the time to stray, but to draw nearer and nearer to the cross of Christ. Now is the time we must turn to the Lord with all our hearts.

Prayer:

Lord God, help me to remain clear minded.  Help me to walk in love and faith and to increase those things in my life.  Teach me to hear Your voice more clearly every day.  I want to work with You to make Your name famous in all the earth.  Let my life and family be covered and protected from any attacks of the enemy that come our way.

Your Forever,

Jeff

 Scripture:

“For the Lord delights in his people; he crowns the humble with victory.”

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭149:4‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Observation:

The Psalmist here says that the Lord delights in His people.  It is an incredible thought to ponder about that God would take delight in us.  We know we are human and have failed Him over and over again, but He takes delight in us.  He goes on to say that God crowns the humble with victory.  Victory comes through humility.

Application:

This morning I’m pondering the thought that God delights in my life.  It makes me want to live so much more holy and godly.  He delights in me anyway, but His delight draws me to want to serve Him better.  The second part speaks of gaining victory through humility.  When I walk humbly before God, He will give me the victory.  Victory, for me is not found in working harder, but in walking humbly and letting God defeat my enemies.

Prayer:

Lord God, help met to give you a life worth Your delighting in.  Let my life please You and bring You honor.  Teach me to walk humbly before You.  Show me Your ways and teach me Your paths.  Guide my life.  I am in Your hands.

Your Son,

Jeff

Remember, Ponder, and Think

 Scripture:

“I remember the days of old. I ponder all your great works and think about what you have done.”

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭143:5‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Observation:

In this passage, the Psalmist says that he remembers the olden days, ponders all of God’s great works and thinks about everything the LORD has done.  He spends times in deep thought about the LORD and how He has worked in his life.  

Application:

I tend to be a doer more than a thinker.  I like to be active in the Kingdom, doing the works of the Father, but there is something very powerful about remembering, pondering and thinking about the LORD and what He has done in our lives.  I need to get better at taking the time to simply sit and recall all the LORD has done for me.  He has done so much for me through the years, but somehow I have had the wrong thoughts that being active is better than sitting still and thinking.  Both are important.

Prayer:

Lord God, teach me to slow down and ponder Your ways and think about all the great things You have done for me.  You have saved me, healed me countless times, delivered me from the plans of the evil one. You have worked financial miracles in my life over and over again.  You blessed me in so many ways.  All I can say is thanks for adopting me into Your family. 

You are Amazing,

Jeff

Search Me

Scripture:

 “Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts.”

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭139:23‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Observation:

Here the Psalmist makes a request of God.  He asks God to search him, test him, and know his anxious thoughts.  It doesn’t seem very fun to be searched and tested by the LORD, but through searching and testing, the heart and anxious thoughts are found and can be dealt with.

Application:

There are not many people who would pray for God to test and search them because He might do it and they might need to change some things.  The reality is that God already knows all the above, it really only reveals them to us.  I want to be as pure as gold and refined like silver so I might more valuable to my king.  Whatever it takes to be more like the Father, that’s what I need to do.  If I need my heart and my thoughts exposed, do it LORD!

Prayer:

Father, I want to be more like You in 2020 than I was in 2019.  Help me to grow more and more into Your image.  Let me see things how You see them.  Help me to live a life that brings You honor and praise.  Pour out Your Spirit in my life every day.  Let me hear Your voice and see what You are doing every day of my life and give me the strength to do what You are doing in the earth.

Your Son,

Jeff

What HE Pleases

 Scripture:

“The Lord does whatever pleases him throughout all heaven and earth, and on the seas and in their depths.”

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭135:6‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Observation:

In this passage the Psalmist says that the LORD does whatever He pleases in the heavens, the earth and the sea.  God does what He want to do in the earth.  It is His and He has the ability to do whatever He wants.  God doesn’t have to be accountable to any man or man-made institution.  He is all-powerful and can do whatever He pleases.

Application:

I need to remember that God is always in control and does whatever He pleases.  He can bless.  He can curse. He doesn’t have to do what we want Him to do.  Our place is one of submission to Him and surrender to His will in our lives.  We must trust that He will do what He says He will do.  From that point, our job is to trust His goodness and follow His ways.  I need to stop trying to control God and let Him control me more.

Prayer:

Father, You do whatever You please and You don’t have to do what I want You to.  I surrender to Your will for my life.  Open the doors You want me to walk through.  Close the doors You want shut and help me to Walk out my salvation with fear and trembling.  You are my God and I will honor Your will.

Your Son,

Jeff

The Lord Watches Over You

 Scripture:

“He will not let you stumble; the one who watches over you will not slumber.”

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭121:3‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Observation:

The previous verses say, “I look to the mountains.  Does my help come from there?   My help comes from the Lord, the maker of heaven and earth.”  Then the author says He will not let us stumble and that the Lord who watches over us will not slumber.  He doesn’t tire of watching over us.

Application:

God is not going to let us stumble.  He is ever-watching over us to ensure we are going to be okay like a good Father.  He doesn’t sleep because He is watching over His children at all times.  We can rest because God doesn’t!  We can have peace because the God I serve is watching over my life.  I can have joy because I have someone overseeing my life.  I can take risks because He won’t let me stumble.

Prayer:

Father, thank You for reminding me that You are watching over my life and that you don’t sleep or slumber.  Thank you for being my ever-present help in my time of need.  Your are incredible and I love You with all my heart.  Thanks for keeping watch over me.

Your Son,

Jeff

Joyful

 Scripture:

“Joyful are those who obey his laws and search for him with all their hearts.”

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭119:2‬ ‭NLT‬‬

The Psalmist says here that those who obey God’s laws and search for Him with all their hearts are joyful. Joy comes when you have searched for God because He has told us many times that we will find Him when we search for Him with all our hearts.  The combination of obeying His word and searching for Him is powerful.

Application:

I want to be a man of His word and one who searches for Him more and more.  I want to know God’s word and understand all I can through it.  His words are pure and help in so many ways.  I have always been a seeker of God.  I love to seek Him out.  I love to passionately pursue Him.  There is nothing in the world like His presence.

Prayer:

Lord, You are my everything.  You are my rock and my salvation.  Teach me Your Word and let me never lose my passion for You.  I desire your presence and I desire to be strong in Your word.  Teach me to balance the two and become the man You want me to be.

Yours Forever,

Jeff

Ponder Them

 Scripture:

“How amazing are the deeds of the Lord! All who delight in him should ponder them.”

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭111:2‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Observation:

The Psalmist tells us here to ponder the amazing works of the Lord.  To ponder means to think on something for an extended period of time.  It is to analyze in your mind and consider.

Application:

God’s deeds throughout history are truly amazing! We need to ponder them often.  When we ponder about Him opening the Red Sea and the Jordan River, we remember that our situations are not that difficult for Him.  In our own lives, He has given His Son for us.  We should ponder that often and remember the price Jesus paid for our adoption.  

Prayer:

Father, teach me to ponder Your deeds more.  Help me to take time to just think about You and the awesome things You have done.  I’m reminded of the song this morning that says, “When I think about the Lord, how He saved me, how He raised me, how He filled me with the Holy Ghost... It makes me want to shout, Hallelujah! Thank You Jesus! Lord You are worthy of all of the glory, all of the honor, all of the praise!”  Lord, when I ponder Your goodness to me, it makes me want to shout for joy!

Your Son,

Jeff

Confidence in God

Scripture:

“My heart is confident in you, O God; no wonder I can sing your praises with all my heart!”

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭108:1‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Observation:

The Psalmist here says that his heart is confident in God.  He then goes on to say that’s the reason he can sing praises with all his heart.  Strong praise comes from a confident heart.  You praise Him because You are confident He has everything in control and will turn this around.

Application:

A confident heart is demonstrated in our praise.  The LORD rests on the praises of His people, but for our best praise, our hearts need to be confident in Him.  Confidence knows that God is going to come through in any situation.  Confidence says God is in control, even when it seems like everything around you is collapsing.  Confidence really comes down to faith.  My faith, my trust and my confidence are in the LORD, therefore I can praise Him with all my heart.

Prayer:

Father, receive my praise.  You are high and lifted up.  You are great and glorious.  There is nobody like You.  Let my confidence in You grow each day and let my praise develop with it.  Let Your praise always be on my lips and Your confidence be in my heart.

Yours,

Jeff

Until the Time

 Scripture:

“Until the time came to fulfill his dreams, the Lord tested Joseph’s character.”

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭105:19‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Observation:

In this passage, the Psalmist tells us that the LORD tested Joseph’s character until the Time came to fulfill his dreams.  The problem with this is that he was tested for something like 17 years before the time came. When it is time for God to bless you, nothing can stop it, but sometimes you must be tested and tried before the time is right.

Application:

Good things come to those who wait is an old statement from the past.  Sometimes it is easy to get ahead of God and try to fulfill our own dreams.  That never works out well in the end.  There are set times in God when He is going to bless us and raise us up, until then, we will be tested in our character.  I want to pass the character test every time and fulfill the dreams as they come.

Prayer:

Father, let me pass the tests of character while I wait for the fulness of the dreams You have given me.  Help me not to move ahead of You, but to wait on You and do things in Your timing and not my own.  Teach me to walk in faith and patience while I wait on inheriting the promises.  Help me to be faithful above everything else.  I want to serve you well and make Your name great throughout the earth.

Yours Forever,

Jeff

Renewed Youth

 Scripture:

“He fills my life with good things. My youth is renewed like the eagle’s!”

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭103:5‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Observation:

David is writing here and he tells of how the LORD fills his life with good things and his youth is renewed like the eagles’s.  God can not only fill our lives with good things, He is the only one who has the power to renew our youth.  Forever, people have looked for the fountain of youth, but it is found in serving God.

Application:

We are all going to get old. That is part of life, but I believe the word of the LORD and also believe we can have our youth renewed.  God can do anything and I am believing God to stay young and strong until He takes me home.  I want Him to fill me with good things, but I really desire to live young.  I have been watching my parents as they are aging and have been thinking I don’t want to get old go through everything they have been going through.  Some grow old and stay healthy and strong.  I want to be in that camp.

Prayer:

Father, I want to stay young at heart and strong in body all the days of my life.  Though my hair has been gray for a long time, I want to serve You with strength and vitality as a young person until I am old.  Fill my life with good things and renew my youth like the eagle’s.

Your Son,

Jeff

Social Witnessing

 Scripture:

“Sing to the Lord; praise his name. Each day proclaim the good news that he saves. Publish his glorious deeds among the nations. Tell everyone about the amazing things he does.”

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭96:2-3‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Observation:

In this passage the Psalmist tells us to sing and praise the LORD and proclaim the good news that He saves.  He says to publish his incredible deeds among the nations.  God has always had His heart on all the nations!  He then says to tell everyone about what God does.  Everyone means everyone!

Application:

I love to praise the LORD with all my heart.  I love to worship and bow down before Him.  I love to proclaim the good news of His salvation in all the earth, but I’m not as good at telling everyone the amazing things He does.  I need to get better at sharing my faith with everyone.  I am convicted this morning about not sharing my faith more with everyone.

Prayer:

Lord God Almighty, You know me.  You know I love to worship You and to declare Your goodness to the nations, but help me to do better proclaiming it in my personal life without a pulpit or a microphone.  Help me to declare Your goodness to everyone instead of only when I have a mic in my hand.  Let me shine Your light more and more each day.

Yours,

Jeff

When They Call on Me

Scripture:

“When they call on me, I will answer; I will be with them in trouble. I will rescue and honor them.”

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭91:15‬ ‭NLT‬

Observation:

The Psalmist says here is speaking on God’s behalf.  He tells us that when we call on the Lord, He will answer, He will be with us in trouble, He will rescue us, and He will honor us.  The key is simply in calling on the name of the LORD.  Jeremiah said “Call unto me and I will answer you and show you great and mighty things that you cannot know.”

Application:

God makes great promises here concerning our lives, but they are contingent promises.  They are contingent on the fact that we call on Him.  When I am in trouble, I usually try everything to figure out what I need to do before I simply cry out to the LORD.  I need to call out first instead of trying to work it out.  He is faithful to do what He says He will do, we need to do our part.

Prayer:

Father, I call out to You.  I need you in my life, my family, my church and my nation.  I call out to You for revival in our region and in our nation.  I call out to You and ask You to move powerfully once again.  Pour out Your Spirit on all flesh.  I call out to You and ask You to bring in the great harvest of the nations. I call out to You and ask You to bless my life so I can be a blessing.

Your Son,

Jeff

No Good Thing

 Scripture:

“For the Lord God is our sun and our shield. He gives us grace and glory. The Lord will withhold no good thing from those who do what is right.”

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭84:11‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Observation:

The Psalmist tells us here that God is our sun and shield.  He is our light and our protection.  He then says that God gives grace and glory.  God is full of grace and mercy and chooses to share His glory with us.  This is beyond comprehension.  He adds at the end, “The Lord will withhold no good thing from those who do what is right.”

Application:

When reading this morning, the words, “no good thing” stood out to me.  God doesn’t want to withhold blessings from us, He wants to get them to us, but there is something we must do.  We must do what is right, or live righteous lives.  God is not trying to withhold things from us, but to get us in a position to receive them.  When we do our part, He does His.  He also shares His grace and glory with us, which is beyond understanding.

Prayer:

Father, You are good, kind, loving compassionate, and truly amazing!  You have blessed my life over and over.  You do give grace and glory.  You don’t withhold good things from us.  Help me to walk righteously before You all the days of my life.

Yours Forever,

Jeff

Living Like King David

 Scripture:

“So he shepherded them according to the integrity of his heart, And guided them by the skillfulness of his hands.”

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭78:72‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

Observation:

This verse is referring to King David.  The prior verse says he was taken from shepherding the sheep to become the shepherd of Israel. According to this verse, David led with two things; integrity of heart and skillfulness of his hands.  His heart was pure and undivided and his hands were well trained.

Application:

When Serving the LORD in any position, these two things are critical.  We must be a people who lead with integrity and character above anything else.  Integrity comes from integer, which is a number that can’t be divided by another number equally.  It means you have an undivided heart.  We also need skillful hands to handle things well.  We need to take advantage of every opportunity for education and training so we are skillful at what we do.

Prayer:

Father, let me lead Your people with an undivided heart and skillful hands.  Help me to be a better leader.  Teach me to lead with a right heart and increase my skills to be more effective for Your Kingdom.  Help me to never become complacent, but to always strive to be better in every way.  I want to lead Your people well in my generation.

Yours,

Jeff

It is Good For Me

 Scripture:

“But it is good for me to draw near to God; I have put my trust in the Lord GOD, That I may declare all Your works.”

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭73:28‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

Observation:

In this passage, the Psalmist tells us that it is good to draw near to God and to put our trust in Him, then you can declare all His works.  Drawing near to God is always a good thing.  When you do, you will always have some works to declare to others.

Application:

The more we draw near to the LORD, the more our lives are changed and the more we trust God.  The more we trust God, the more answers we see.  The more answers we see to prayer, the more we are able to declare God’s good works to others.  It all starts with drawing near to God, which is the passion of my heart.  I want to know Him so I can declare His works to my generation.

Prayer:

Lord God Almighty, thank You for making it easy to seek You.  Thank You for blessing those who draw near to You.  You are amazing and I love drawing near.  When I draw near, I always have something to declare.  Help me to seek You more and more.  I want to know You and I want my eyes and ears opened to hear and see You more often.  Enable me to declare Your works to the nations.

Yours Forever,

Jeff

Living Hearts

 Scripture:

“The humble shall see this and be glad; And you who seek God, your hearts shall live.”

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭69:32‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

Observation:

Here in this passage, the Psalmist declares that the humble will see the good things he had just uttered.  He then goes on to say that those who seek God, their hearts will live.  He brings life to dead hearts.

Application:

Jesus didn’t die to make bad people good, He died to bring dead people back to life.  When we seek God, we will truly begin to live life.  Life begins when we humble ourselves and begin to truly seek the LORD. He will give us a reason to live and fill our hearts with life.  Out of our belly should flow living water.  I want to live with a living, tender, heart that God can use for His glory.

Prayer:

Father, help me to walk before You in humility and brokenness.  Let my heart come alive more and more.  You are the one who sets our hearts on fire and brings life to them.  I want to live from the heart you gave me.  Create in me a clean, new heart that reflects Your goodness.  Let me live from a living heart that lives to honor You.

Yours,

Jeff

Trust in the LORD

 Scripture:

“Trust in Him at all times, you people; Pour out your heart before Him; God is a refuge for us. Selah”

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭62:8‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

Observation:

The Psalmist here tells us to trust in the LORD at all times and to pour out our heart before God.  He ends this verse by saying that God is a refuge for us.  God desires a people who will truly trust Him to lead and guide them.  He longs to be the one we pour out our heart to.

Application:

God is our refuge.  He is a safe place we can run to when things are not good around us.  He is the place we should run when we feel like the enemy is after us.  He desires us to pour our hearts out before Him.  During this 21 day fast, I want to pour out my heart to the LORD and then trust Him to take care of every detail of my life.  I want to find my place of safety in Him and not in my out resources or my own defenses.

Prayer:

Father, I cry out to You this morning.  Move in my life.  Help me to trust You more fully each day.  Teach me to pour out everything in my heart to You.  You are the only one who can turn things around.  You are my help and my hope.  Step in and show Yourself strong in my life, in my family’s lives, and in our church.

Your Son,

Jeff

Cast Your Burden

 Scripture:

“Cast your burden on the LORD, And He shall sustain you; He shall never permit the righteous to be moved.”  ‭‭Psalms‬ ‭55:22‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

Observation:

The Psalmist says here to cast our burdens on the LORD and He will sustain you.  To sustain is to keep healthy and alive.  It is to keep someone fed and cared for.  He goes on the say that when we cast our burdens on the LORD, He will never let the righteous be moved.  He empowers us to stand firm.

Application:

When we are overwhelmed, we are to cast our cares and burdens on the LORD.  He is faithful and will give us what we need to get through any situation we find ourselves in.  He will give us everything we need to stand strong.  When I am overwhelmed, instead of trying to fight through things on my own, I need to cast things on the LORD.  He can handle it and will help me.

Prayer:

LORD, I cast every worry, stress, and issue on You today.  Thank you for offering this to Your servants.  It is powerful that we are able to cast our troubles and burdens on You and not pick them back up.  You are amazing and I appreciate You so much.  Help me not to be moved by the things around me, but to be moved by You.

Your Son,

Jeff

Bring Honor

Scripture:

“I will bring honor to your name in every generation. Therefore, the nations will praise you forever and ever.”

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭45:17‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Observation:

The Psalmist here says that he will bring honor to the Lord’s name in every generation.  His ultimate desire was that the nations would praise God forever and ever.  He wanted to live honorable so the name of the Lord would be praised in all the earth.

Application:

I want to live a life that brings God, not only praise, but honor.  To live a life that honors God, I think we must live by the power of the Spirit.  To live a life that brings honor to God, I believe we must walk out our faith on a daily basis.  We also must walk the walk for the long haul.  So many do a great job for a long time, only to ruin it in the end by getting off course.  I want to live my life for God for the long haul and cause His name to be praised in all the earth.  

Prayer:

Father, let my life honor You and let my life help bring you praise in every nation.  I want to make a difference for You and Your kingdom in the whole world.  Help me to make Your name famous in my generation.  Let my life honor You in the big and the little.  I am Yours.  Be glorified in my life.

Yours,

Jeff

He and I

Scripture:

“I waited patiently for the Lord to help me, and he turned to me and heard my cry. He lifted me out of the pit of despair, out of the mud and the mire. He set my feet on solid ground and steadied me as I walked along.”

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭40:1-2‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Observation:

The Psalmist here goes back and forth between He and I.  He says things like, “I waited...He turned to me”, “He heard my cry”, “He lifted me”, “He set my feet”, and “I walked along.”  There is a part we play in our relationship with God and a part He plays.  He does the heavy lifting and we seek Him out in everything.

Application:

God works on behalf of those those seek Him and wait on Him.  The “I” sections of this verse say, “I waited patiently, I cried out, and I walked along.”  The “He” sections say, “He turned, He heard my cry, He lifted, He set my feet.”  God pulls the heavier load in all of this.  Our job is to cry out to Him and seek His face, His job is to make the path straight in front of us.  He lifts up those who seek Him.  Lastly, He steadies us “as” we walk along.  Sometimes we have to start walking before He starts stepping in to help us.  We cry out and start walking.  He does the rest.

Prayer:

Father, help me to cry out to You more and more as Your day approaches.  Steady my path as I walk before You.  Teach me to walk this walk You have set ahead of me.  I need You now more than ever.  You are my everything.  You are my source of love, joy, peace, and all the rest of the fruit of the Spirit.  You are the one I lean on and You are the one who will show me the way forward each day.  I cry out to You.  I need you daddy.

Your Son,

Jeff

God’s Love and Faithfulness

Scripture:

“Your unfailing love, O Lord, is as vast as the heavens; your faithfulness reaches beyond the clouds.”

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭36:5‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Observation:

The Psalmist here tries to describe the love and faithfulness of God by using the vastness of the heavens.  He says that God’s unfailing love is a huge as the heavens and His faithfulness, or dependability, goes past the clouds.  In other words, the love and faithfulness of God goes beyond anything on this earth.  It goes as far as the eye can see.

Application:

God’s love is unfailing.  It never fails.  It doesn’t stop.  It is huge and vast as the heavens above.  His faithfulness, His loyalty and commitment are higher than the clouds in the sky.  I know the Word, but I want to know Him better.  I want to walk more confidently in God’s love and faithfulness.  I also want these characteristics of God to be demonstrated in and through my life.  I want to reflect my Father well.

Prayer:

Father, let my life reflect Your life.  Help me to walk in unending love and massive faithfulness.  Let me not give up on people, but see them as You see them.  Help me to walk faithful to my calling and faithful to my family.  Help me to be faithful to every assignment You place on my life.  Help me to be more like You.

Yours Forever,

Jeff

Each Time

Scripture:

“The righteous person faces many troubles, but the Lord comes to the rescue each time.”

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭34:19‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Observation:

The Psalmist here tells us that the the righteous face many troubles.  He doesn’t act like they don’t.  He doesn’t say that they shouldn’t face troubles if they just had faith.  He said they face many troubles, but he also added that the LORD comes to rescue each time.  God always shows up to rescue the righteous.

Application:

Scripture doesn’t promise us that we will never have any difficulties.  It tells us we will have many troubles, but we are also promised that the LORD will rescue us every single time.  I would rather have trouble and be consistently rescued, than to have less trouble and never be rescued.  God likes us to lean on Him so He allows us to get into some troubles, but then He delivers us.  I can walk confidently that God will deliver me out of every situation in my life.

Prayer:

Lord God, help me to have confidence in Your love and Your Word.  Teach me to walk with You and know that You always rescue Your people.  I want to live a life of faith and trust You at higher levels.  Rescue me when things get bad.

Yours,

Jeff

Confidence in His Goodness

Scripture:

“Yet I am confident I will see the Lord’s goodness while I am here in the land of the living.”

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭27:13‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Observation;

The Psalmist here declares that he is confident that he will see the Lord’s goodness on this side of the grave.  He knew that God would bless him, not only with eternal life, but in the land of the living.  He understood that God is good to his people, not only in death, but in life.

Application:

Being confident in something means you believe it will surely come to pass.  It really is faith that God will do what He says He will do.  I want to walk in confidence that I will see the Lord’s goodness  before I leave this planet.  I am very content with how God has blessed my life in the past, but I also want to see His goodness And provision at new levels in my life. I want to live by faith and be more confident that God will bless my life in the land of the living.

Prayer:

Father, I know there are reserved incredible blessing for my life when I see You face to face in eternity, but I want to walk in more confidence that I will see Your goodness before I go from this earth.  I want my family to see the goodness of God in my life before death.  I want people to see the blessing of God on my life before I pass from this life into the next.  While in the land of the living, let me see the day of Your blessing.

Your Son,

Jeff 

Rise Up Oh Lord

Scripture:

“Rise up, O Lord, in all your power. With music and singing we celebrate your mighty acts.”

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭21:13‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Observation:

The Psalmist is speaking here to the Lord and tells Him to rise up in all his power.  He realized that God needed to rise up and do something in the world around him.  He continued to say that with music and singing they would celebrate His mighty acts.  He was telling the Lord they would celebrate Him when He would rise up and move on their behalf.

Application:

We need God to arise in the world today and show Himself strong.  We need to cry out to the Lord and celebrate Him with music and singing as we cry out for His help with the things going on all over the earth.  We know God is able to step in and solve all the issues our world is facing, we must need to ask Him to arise and let His power be demonstrated to the world.  In troubled times, we need to turn and cry out to the Lord.  Only He can save.

Prayer:

Lord, hear my cry this morning.  Arise and bring an end to coronavirus and the rioting going on all over the earth.  Arise upon Your people and bring resolution to the problems we are facing.  I cry out to You and ask You to arise and move on behalf of Your people, my family, the church I pastor, the area I live and pour out Your Spirit in all the earth.  Your is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever.  Amen.

Your Son,

Jeff

Under My Feet

Scripture:

“You have made him to have dominion over the works of Your hands; You have put all things under his feet,”

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭8:6‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

Observation:

The Psalmist, speaking of man, said that You God gave him to have dominion over the work of His hands and that all things have been put under his feet.  Just prior to this it says that man has been made a little lower than the angels.  God placed man above every other thing.  In Ephesians it says that everything is under the feet of Christ, yet we are His body, therefore, if it is under His feet, it is under our feet.

Application:

We must realize the position of authority the LORD has given us.  God has placed incredible authority in man’s possession.  He wants us to rule His creation and rule it well.  Our place is to exercise the authority He has given us to execute His will in the earth.  He has given us power and authority, we must begin to use it for His glory to make changes in the earth that He would want made.

Prayer:

Lord God Almighty, help me to understand the authority You have given to man better and better.  You placed everything under the feet of man.  Help me to understand that and walk in that.  Help me to exercise true spiritual authority in my region of influence.  Teach me to live how You want me to live and to extend Your kingdom in the earth all the days of my life.  Teach me how to walk in authority You have given me as a man created in Your image.

Yours,

Jeff