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Today’s Reading : Psalms 95

Throughout our daily conversations, we use familiar phrases and words to relate our emotions and our situations. These phrases are part of our common speech.  These are commonplace when you’re speaking to people who have similar backgrounds. As an example, this past Halloween evening, while giving out candy I met my friend and their child.  When I saw them I stated  “you made out like a bandit“. The dad laughed and the child looked at me with confusion.  The dad and I are from the same generation. I was congratulating the child on a very productive trick-or-treating and  then I had to explain it that he got a lot of candy and it was a good thing.

Sometimes the words and phrases that we use can have a hidden meaning or a hidden message. It’s about the audience and the speaker. The speaker has to know the audience and has to direct the information and the language to them. When the message is not clear a disconnect happens and then there is a loss in translation or a point of confusion due to the hidden messages.

In today’s passage,  we see the author’s gratefulness and  appreciation for the deliverance and the joy that God has given the people. But as you read through the psalms, there are hidden messages that we might not see, but are  familiar to the people of Israel. That’s where we have to dive deeper and to see the true meaning of the scripture and the verses.

“Oh come, let us sing to the Lord; let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation! Let us come into his presence with thanksgiving; let us make a joyful noise to him with songs of praise!”

‭‭Psalm‬ ‭95‬:‭1‬-‭2‬ ‭ESV‬‬

“do not harden your hearts, as at Meribah, as on the day at Massah in the wilderness, when your fathers put me to the test and put me to the proof, though they had seen my work. For forty years I loathed that generation and said, “They are a people who go astray in their heart, and they have not known my ways.” Therefore I swore in my wrath, “They shall not enter my rest.””

‭‭Psalm‬ ‭95‬:‭8‬-‭11‬ ‭ESV‬‬

In these sections we can see the gratitude and the happiness that we have for God and for the salvation that is given to us.  

In the latter sections, we have the hidden messages. 

Meribah is the place where the newly freed people of Israel became mad at God and began to quarrel (the direct translation of Meribah) about God’s provision and promises. 

This is where they began to test, Massah, God’s ability to fulfill the promise.  They allowed their own understanding to override God’s promises.  They hardened their hearts and attempted to do things on their own.  This testing didn’t happen just once but continuously throughout their 40 year journey. Even Moses was susceptible to doing things his way, and this prevented him from going into the promised land.

God has many things ready for us and has many things promised to us. We all have questioned God’s provisions and God’s ability to fulfill his promises. When God has promised these things to us and we have a relationship with Him, we have to be able to wait until his promises are fulfilled.  

Let us pray that God allows us to see the hidden messages that He has in store for us. Let us allow the Holy Spirit to give us comfort in the times when we feel unsettled and anxious about the promises that He has in store for us. May we pray that God continues to give us refreshment and give us peace in the times of our anxiety and our struggles.

Be blessed

“What comes into your mind when you think about God is the most important thing about you.” ~ A.W. Tozer

Psalm 94 serves as a reminder for me about who God is. Sometimes we forget. Maybe you’ve been shunned or put down. Maybe “good people” have treated you unfairly, or you were left out — not invited to the table, not included in the group.

In those moments, we might assume it’s discipline. We think, “I deserve this because of what I’ve done.” But statements like that reveal a lot about what we actually believe about God. If we see Him as only just, then we might interpret hardship as punishment, it’s His justice being served. If we believe we must be good to earn His favor, then we assume our suffering is somehow keeping us in His grace.

But Psalm 94 paints a different picture. It reveals several encouraging truths, even in hardship, about God: His steadfast love (v.18), His active consolation (v.19), and His role as our stronghold and rock of refuge (v.22). The psalmist doesn’t describe a God who punishes His children, but rather One who holds them steady when they’re about to slip.

Today, we also remember another expression of God’s character, the ultimate gift of Jesus. Because justice demands a price, God sent His Son to pay it in full.

“But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed.” — Isaiah 53:5 (ESV)

Through Jesus, justice was satisfied and mercy was magnified.

Psalm 92

Has anyone ever woken up in the morning to pray or lied down at night to pray and not found at least one thing to give thanks to God??  I know, me either.  In fact, it is 1,000% the opposite.  I bet anyone of us could sit down and write a list to last all day long of everything in our lives that we could thank God for.  I mean, He has given all of us everything that we have so far achieved or received. He brought us through yesterday, gave us this day today, and God willing that we wake up tomorrow and are blessed to praise Him for all we have again until our time on Earth is done.

Psalm 92 is a reminder of this, to be thankful while also being humble.  Sing about His love in the morning and His faithfulness at night.  There will never be a shortage of reasons for any of us to never give thanks to and worship God.  The cycle will repeat every day for the rest of your life.

What we see in the second half of this passage is familiar throughout many stories and messages in the bible.  The wicked always seem to flourish momentarily but it never lasts forever.  It’s the righteous who are always the last left standing.  Verse 12, “The righteous will flourish like a palm tree, they will grow like a cedar of Lebanon”.  This is God’s people, compared to those that seem to be doing great for a while but wither away, much like a weed.  Even when the tree gets older, it stays fruitful, fresh and full of life.

Verse 15, “The Lord is upright; He is my Rock, and there is no wickedness in Him.”

“Oh, satisfy us early with Your mercy, that we may rejoice and be glad all our days.”

Psalm 90:14 is a heartfelt plea from Moses for renewal and joy in the midst of human frailty and divine judgment. Having reflected on the brevity of life and the weight of sin earlier in the psalm, Moses turns to God with a humble request — that His mercy would come early, filling the hearts of His people with satisfaction and gladness. The phrase “satisfy us early” speaks not only of urgency but also of a desire to begin each day anchored in God’s steadfast love. Moses understood that true joy does not come from possessions, achievements, or length of years, but from being satisfied in the mercy and presence of God Himself.

This verse reminds believers that while life is fleeting and uncertain, joy can be constant when rooted in divine mercy. Each morning becomes an opportunity to be filled anew with the assurance of God’s forgiveness and faithfulness. When our hearts are satisfied in Him first, even difficult seasons can be met with peace and gratitude.

For today’s Christian, Psalm 90:14 calls us to begin each day by seeking God’s mercy through prayer and reflection on His Word. It is an invitation to let His grace shape our outlook before the demands of the world take hold. In doing so, our hearts are steadied, our attitudes transformed, and our days filled with rejoicing — not because life is easy, but because God is enough.

Heavenly Father,
Satisfy my heart this morning with Your mercy and love. Before the noise of the day begins, fill me with the joy that comes only from knowing You. Teach me to find my contentment not in what I achieve, but in Your steadfast presence.

When I am weary, remind me that Your compassion is new every morning. When I am anxious, let Your mercy quiet my spirit. May the joy of Your salvation steady me through every challenge, and may my words and actions reflect the gladness that comes from walking with You.

Lord, help me to live each day aware of how brief life is, but also how rich it can be when spent in Your grace. Let Your favor rest upon me and establish the work of my hands for Your glory.

In Jesus’ name,
Amen

Written with the assistance of ChatGPT

2^nd Thess. 1

Both Paul’s first letter and his second letter deal heavily with eschatology, or the study of end times. Paul is trying to clarify some misunderstandings that the believers in Thessalonica had about the rapture and Jesus’ second coming to the earth. The emphasis of this first chapter of Paul’s second letter is to provide some comfort and hope for this church which is suffering some intense persecution. Despite the hardship, persecution, and suffering this church was facing, Paul commends them for their growing faith and love for one another. A common theme throughout the church in history is that when persecution runs rampant, faith grows. When persecution is nonexistent, faith is weakened. It is because persecution refines the faith of the church the same way that fire refines and purifies gold. It makes you worthy of the kingdom of God in the sense of sanctification, not justification (v.6).

Sometimes it is hard to trust that God is just when you are suffering persecution and you don’t see immediate vengeance. Passages like this help us to cling to the truth that God will make every wrong right when He returns. Sin requires a punishment. Either you pay that punishment or you let Jesus pay that punishment on the cross by surrendering your life to Him. God promises that those who do evil and don’t obey the gospel will suffer a painful punishment from Jesus’ presence and from the glory of His power. What does this passage encourage the believer who is suffering persecution to do?

1. Cling to the hope of eventual rest (v.7)
2. Consider your persecutions an opportunity to witness (v.4)
3. Count your persecutions as a purifier of your faith (v.5)

God will take vengeance. He is a just God. Be patient in your tribulation. He has overcome the world (John 16:33).

Today’s Reading: Psalm 88

From the beginning of time, darkness has always held a mystery. But that mystery was revealed and solved by God’s light.

“The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. And God saw that the light was good. And God separated the light from the darkness.”

‭‭Genesis‬ ‭1‬:‭2‬-‭4‬ ‭ESV‬‬

We have been conditioned to be afraid of the dark. There are many things that happen in the dark when you’re not able to see your surroundings. The uncertainty of your environment creates a sense of unnerving and suspense. These thoughts have been used over the millennium to create distractions and anxiety . In today’s psalm, there’s nothing but fear and isolation and a cry out to God.

“For my soul is full of troubles, and my life draws near to Sheol. I am counted among those who go down to the pit; I am a man who has no strength, like one set loose among the dead, like the slain that lie in the grave, like those whom you remember no more, for they are cut off from your hand. You have put me in the depths of the pit, in the regions dark and deep. Your wrath lies heavy upon me, and you overwhelm me with all your waves. Selah You have caused my beloved and my friend to shun me; my companions have become darkness.”

‭‭Psalm‬ ‭88‬:‭3‬-‭7‬, ‭18‬ ‭ESV‬‬

But if we look at darkness through a different lens, darkness has some positive aspects.

In darkness … there is shelter.

In darkness … there is peace.

In darkness … there is rest. 

When you have a relationship with God, the darkness is not as scary as it could be. But the darkness does give you a chance to reset and reflect upon your situation or your circumstance.

Darkness can be a place of shelter.  Many times when David was fleeing his enemies, he would go into a cave and he will get shelter. He was in darkness, but he was safe. 

“And he came to the sheepfolds by the way, where there was a cave, and Saul went in to relieve himself. Now David and his men were sitting in the innermost parts of the cave. And the men of David said to him, “Here is the day of which the Lord said to you, ‘Behold, I will give your enemy into your hand, and you shall do to him as it shall seem good to you.’” Then David arose and stealthily cut off a corner of Saul’s robe.”

‭‭1 Samuel‬ ‭24‬:‭3‬-‭4‬ ‭ESV‬‬

In this story, David is in the cave and Saul is right in front of him. David is so close to him that he was able to get a piece of his garment. David was safe in the darkness. David has shelter in the darkness.  Darkness can give us peace from the chaos and hustle of the day. In darkness, we are able to disconnect and be in unison with God. 

Darkness can give us peace.  Jesus advises us to go into our closet and pray to God. This is where you are isolated in the darkness and you are able to communicate and focus on God. In the darkness, you are able to receive peace.

“But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.”

‭‭Matthew‬ ‭6‬:‭6‬ ‭KJV‬‬

In darkness, you can get rest. At the end of the day when you are tired or frustrated and you find a dark place to rest. Your body becomes rejuvenated and your spirit becomes refreshed.

“He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: He leadeth me beside the still waters. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; Thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.”

‭‭Psalm‬ ‭23‬:‭2‬, ‭4‬ ‭KJV‬‬

In many aspects of our life, we can see the situation through many perspectives. But when we allow God to open our vision in our perspective, we can see things differently. Things that we used to fear and become distraught, now we can see God‘s work in them and allow his work to be with us. 

May you be able to best restful, at peace, and comforted and safe in the darkness and allow God’s presence be your strength and comfort. 

Be blessed 

Psalm 87

When I hear the word Zion, I shudder. Internally, I translate it to Zionists and Zionism. Those words, in the context of modern world affairs, stir images of rage, hate, bigotry, and nationalism. That’s part of what’s broken in our culture. We take good and pure things and turn them rotten. I think that’s exactly how Satan works. He trades truth for lies (Romans 1:25) and light for darkness (Isaiah 5:20).

This becomes clear to me when I read Psalm 87.

On the holy mount stands the city he founded;
the Lord loves the gates of Zion more than all the dwelling places of Jacob.
Glorious things of you are spoken, O city of God. — Psalm 87:1–3 (ESV)

I don’t get past verse 2 without feeling it. That word Zion catches in my throat. Is this how it all started?

The answer is both no and yes. No, because the Zion I hear about on the news is not the Zion of Scripture. But yes, because the original Zion, the place where God chose to dwell, is where the story begins. To understand it, we need a full picture of what Zion truly is.

Zion is a hill in Jerusalem, not just any hill, but the one where God established His dwelling. There, His people gathered to worship. Yet Psalm 87 reveals something remarkable. The city’s register includes names from far beyond Israel: Rahab (Egypt), Babylon, Philistia, Tyre, and Cush (v. 4). Nations once known for slavery, pride, and sin are written as if they were born there. Even Babylon, later described in Revelation 17:5 as “the mother of prostitutes and of the abominations of the earth,” is named among those who belong.

How can that be? Because Zion isn’t about who controls the ground; it’s about who is welcomed home. It isn’t about who has sinned and who has not. We all have. Zion points higher to God’s presence among His people and His desire to gather the nations to Himself.

Zion is a picture of Jesus. Through Him, we are purified and made worthy to live in God’s presence. He writes our names in His book, making us citizens of His eternal city, permanent residents in His household, together on that holy hill where God dwells with His people.