Category: “Listening to God” Devotional

Read chapter in full: www.biblegateway.com/passage/?version=ESV&search=Psalms+114

 

 

 

Psalm 114

English Standard Version (ESV)

Tremble at the Presence of the Lord

114      When Israel went out from Egypt,
  the house of Jacob from a people of strange language,

2          Judah became his sanctuary,
  Israel his dominion.

3          The sea looked and fled;
  Jordan turned back.

4          The mountains skipped like rams,
  the hills like lambs.

5          What ails you, O sea, that you flee?
  O Jordan, that you turn back?

6          O mountains, that you skip like rams?
  O hills, like lambs?

7          Tremble, O earth, at the presence of the Lord,
  at the presence of the God of Jacob,

8          who turns the rock into a pool of water,
  the flint into a spring of water.

 

Reflection

• When God brought the Israelites out of Egypt, he dwelt among them and ruled over them.
• The psalmist personified the Red Sea as seeing the Israelites coming and fleeing from them by parting its waters. Later when the Israelites entered the Promised Land, the Jordan River backed up as far as the town of Adam, farther north in the Jordan Valley, to let them cross. The mountains around Sinai quaked when God came down on Mt. Horeb to meet with his people.
• Therefore, everyone should tremble before the Lord (v7), as God’s creation does, because he uses his great power to save and to provide for his people. Remembering his deliverance and provision should move us to fear and be in awe of him. And we offer him praise.
• Where does your “salvation history” begin? What main events would you retell in a personal psalm?
• What in your life was: (1) Egypt? (2) The Red Sea? (3) The Jordan? (4) Sinai? (5) Water from the rock?

 

 

Prayer & Journaling:

Stay with God for a little longer. Continue to converse with God and listen to what he wants to tell me. Then write down any thought and/or prayer in the “Spiritual Journal” book.

 

Read chapter in full: www.biblegateway.com/passage/?version=ESV&search=Psalms+113

 

 

Psalm 113

English Standard Version (ESV)

Who Is like the Lord Our God?

113      Praise the Lord!

Praise, O servants of the Lord,
  praise the name of the Lord!

2          Blessed be the name of the Lord
  from this time forth and forevermore!

3          From the rising of the sun to its setting,
  the name of the Lord is to be praised!

4          The Lord is high above all nations,
  and his glory above the heavens!

5          Who is like the Lord our God,
  who is seated on high,

6          who looks far down
  on the heavens and the earth?

7          He raises the poor from the dust
  and lifts the needy from the ash heap,

8          to make them sit with princes,
  with the princes of his people.

9          He gives the barren woman a home,
  making her the joyous mother of children.
Praise the Lord!

 

Reflection

• Psalm 113 is the first of a collection of six psalms (Ps 113-118) used in the celebration of Passover. They affirmed God for raising up the oppressed (Ps 113), and for deliverance from Egypt (Ps 114). They offered the praise of the community (Ps 115), the individual (Ps 116), and all the nationals (Ps 117). The cycle concluded with an exultant shout of praise that looked forward to the coming Messiah (Ps 118).
• Passover was truly a season of praise. Each year, the Jewish people recalled all God had done for them as each Jewish family reenacted the supper held the night death struck Egypt and passed by the blood-marked homes of God’s own. At last Pharaoh agreed to release his slaves. Passover thus was a festival of freedom, a joyous celebration of God’s salvation.
• The God of Israel, who is exalted over all nations and whose glory is above the heavens, stooped down to raise “the poor from the dust”, and lift “the needy from the ash heap”. It is fitting to praise the Lord God.
• We Christians too have a Passover to celebrate. God in Christ became a man, and humbled himself to accept death, that we, who are marked with his blood through our faith, might be lifted up beyond princes, to stand before the very throne of God.
• Spend some time meditating on your own Passover experience. Offer a praise and thanksgiving to God and the Passover Lamb.

 

Prayer & Journaling:

Stay with God for a little longer. Continue to converse with God and listen to what he wants to tell me. Then write down any thought and/or prayer in the “Spiritual Journal” book.

 

 

Read chapter in full: www.biblegateway.com/passage/?version=ESV&search=Psalms+112

 

 

Psalm 112

English Standard Version (ESV)

The Righteous Will Never Be Moved

112      Praise the Lord!
Blessed is the man who fears the Lord,
  who greatly delights in his commandments!

2          His offspring will be mighty in the land;
  the generation of the upright will be blessed.

3          Wealth and riches are in his house,
  and his righteousness endures forever.

4          Light dawns in the darkness for the upright;
  he is gracious, merciful, and righteous.

5          It is well with the man who deals generously and lends;
  who conducts his affairs with justice.

6          For the righteous will never be moved;
  he will be remembered forever.

7          He is not afraid of bad news;
  his heart is firm, trusting in the Lord.

8          His heart is steady; he will not be afraid,
  until he looks in triumph on his adversaries.

9          He has distributed freely; he has given to the poor;
  his righteousness endures forever;
  his horn is exalted in honor.

10        The wicked man sees it and is angry;
  he gnashes his teeth and melts away;
  the desire of the wicked will perish!

 

Reflection

• Ps 112, like Psalm 111, is an acrostic psalm, with each lines beginning with a successive letter of the Hebrew alphabet. While Psalm 111 celebrates God’s mighty deeds on behalf of the people, Psalm 112 offers instruction for response to God by the people.
• This psalm puts the spotlight on humans, focusing on the blessings enjoyed by those who fear God (vv2-3). Though living in a dark and evil world, God’s people will be secure and steady because their hearts are with the Lord (vv4, 7-8, 10). Having themselves experienced God’smighty acts on their behalf as well as God’s quiet, steady action of blessing (v2), they will share with the poor what God has given them (vv5, 9).
• If our sense of security and happiness depends on the stock market, the weather forecast, the evaluation report, we will continually be anxious of the “bad news”. However, if we honour the Lord, live according to God’s commandments and respond to God in praise and worship, our lives are built upon the solid eternal foundation of the Lord. We are being transformed by our relationship with the Lord and we will not be “afraid of bad news”, and our hearts will remain “firm, trusting in theLord”.
• Do any of the lines in this psalm fit someone you admire? Do any fit yourself? Which one do you wish to fit you?

 

 

Prayer & Journaling:

Stay with God for a little longer. Continue to converse with God and listen to what he wants to tell me. Then write down any thought and/or prayer in the “Spiritual Journal” book.

 

Read chapter in full: www.biblegateway.com/passage/?version=ESV&search=Psalms+111

 

 

Psalm 111

English Standard Version (ESV)

Great Are the Lord’s Works

111      Praise the Lord!
I will give thanks to the Lord with my whole heart,
  in the company of the upright, in the congregation.

2          Great are the works of the Lord,
  studied by all who delight in them.

3          Full of splendor and majesty is his work,
  and his righteousness endures forever.

4          He has caused his wondrous works to be remembered;
  the Lord is gracious and merciful.

5          He provides food for those who fear him;
  he remembers his covenant forever.

6          He has shown his people the power of his works,
  in giving them the inheritance of the nations.

7          The works of his hands are faithful and just;
  all his precepts are trustworthy;

8          they are established forever and ever,
  to be performed with faithfulness and uprightness.

9          He sent redemption to his people;
  he has commanded his covenant forever.
  Holy and awesome is his name!

10        The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom;
  all those who practice it have a good understanding.
  His praise endures forever!

 

Reflection

• The psalmist called God’s people to praise him, and declared that he would praise God publicly. He cited examples of God’s goodness, and praised him for his redemption and faithfulness.
• God’s people should commit to memory the great characteristics and works of their God so they will remember to trust and obey Him. Try to memorize these 10 short verses and allow them to move you to praise God. As you review this psalm, you will be reminded that God has chosen to exercise his power to redeem and to care for you, his child.
• How has God worked in your recent personal history? Can you think of any “works” you could remember (v4)?

 

 

Prayer & Journaling:

Stay with God for a little longer. Continue to converse with God and listen to what he wants to tell me. Then write down any thought and/or prayer in the “Spiritual Journal” book.

 

 

 

 

Read chapter in full: www.biblegateway.com/passage/?version=ESV&search=Psalms+110

 

 

Psalm 110

English Standard Version (ESV)

Sit at My Right Hand

A Psalm of David.

110 The Lord says to my Lord:
  “Sit at my right hand,
until I make your enemies your footstool.”

2 The Lord sends forth from Zion
  your mighty scepter.
  Rule in the midst of your enemies!
3 Your people will offer themselves freely
  on the day of your power,
  in holy garments;
from the womb of the morning,
  the dew of your youth will be yours.
4 The Lord has sworn
  and will not change his mind,
“You are a priest forever
  after the order of Melchizedek.”

5 The Lord is at your right hand;
  he will shatter kings on the day of his wrath.
6 He will execute judgment among the nations,
  filling them with corpses;
he will shatter chiefs
  over the wide earth.
7 He will drink from the brook by the way;
  therefore he will lift up his head.

 

Reflection

• This psalm acknowledges God as the eternal King-Priest who will settle all disputes and judge all nations. The New Testament often uses this psalm to refer to Jesus as the Anointed One (Messiah) in the continuing dynasty of David. It refers both to His kingly role (v1, Acts 2:34-35) and the priestly role (v4, Heb 5:6).
• Think about the enemies you have. Picture them and yourself one day coming to Christ the Supreme Justice who will settle all disputes and rule with an iron hand. That means submitting any of your own behaviors and beliefs that are not conformed or submissive to the Lord. How do you feel as you consider this scene?
• Whatever battles you are engaged in right now, rest assured that the Lord will ultimately triumph and that the Lord’s army will tackle those problems with you.
• What battles or problems can you turn over to him now for his intercession and judgment?

Prayer & Journaling:

Stay with God for a little longer. Continue to converse with God and listen to what he wants to tell me. Then write down any thought and/or prayer in the “Spiritual Journal” book.

 

 

Read chapter in full: www.biblegateway.com/passage/?version=ESV&search=Psalms+109

 

 

Psalm 109

English Standard Version (ESV)

Help Me, O Lord My God

To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David.

1 Be not silent, O God of my praise!
2 For wicked and deceitful mouths are opened against me,
  speaking against me with lying tongues.

6 Appoint a wicked man against him;
  let an accuser stand at his right hand.
7 When he is tried, let him come forth guilty;
  let his prayer be counted as sin!
8 May his days be few;
  may another take his office!
9 May his children be fatherless
  and his wife a widow!
10 May his children wander about and beg,
  seeking food far from the ruins they inhabit!
11 May the creditor seize all that he has;
  may strangers plunder the fruits of his toil!
12 Let there be none to extend kindness to him,
  nor any to pity his fatherless children!
13 May his posterity be cut off;
  may his name be blotted out in the second generation!
14 May the iniquity of his fathers be remembered before the Lord,
  and let not the sin of his mother be blotted out!
15 Let them be before the Lord continually,
  that he may cut off the memory of them from the earth!

21 But you, O God my Lord,
  deal on my behalf for your name’s sake;
  because your steadfast love is good, deliver me!
22 For I am poor and needy,
  and my heart is stricken within me.
23 I am gone like a shadow at evening;
  I am shaken off like a locust.
24 My knees are weak through fasting;
  my body has become gaunt, with no fat.
25 I am an object of scorn to my accusers;
  when they see me, they wag their heads.

 

26 Help me, O Lord my God!
  Save me according to your steadfast love!
27 Let them know that this is your hand;
  you, O Lord, have done it!
28 Let them curse, but you will bless!
  They arise and are put to shame, but your servant will be glad!
29 May my accusers be clothed with dishonor;
  may they be wrapped in their own shame as in a cloak!

30 With my mouth I will give great thanks to the Lord;
  I will praise him in the midst of the throng.
31 For he stands at the right hand of the needy one,
  to save him from those who condemn his soul to death.

 

Reflection

• Puzzled and distraught, David listed the crimes of those who wanted to kill him for they returned attack for kindness, tried to corrupt the court, wished for the ruin of his family and lied constantly. So, David wanted God to turn the evil back toward his enemies, to curse and shame them. He appealed to God’s steadfast love and care for the poor and the needy and prayed for his vindication. But he left justice in God’s hands rather than acting vengefully on his own. This is a valuable lesson for us today.
• For most of us, anger is not a comfortable emotion. We know the damage that anger can do, the pain it can cause. We know that we have been hurt, and anger feeds our desire to hurt back. Feeling anger and expressing it honestly to God and to others makes it possible for us to continue growing toward forgiveness.
• What do you usually do when you are angry with someone who is important to you? What anger do you want to express to God today?
• How would expressing your anger to God be helpful to you? How can other people be helpful to you in your struggle with anger?

Prayer & Journaling:

Stay with God for a little longer. Continue to converse with God and listen to what he wants to tell me. Then write down any thought and/or prayer in the “Spiritual Journal” book.

Read chapter in full: www.biblegateway.com/passage/?version=ESV&search=Psalms+108

 

 

Psalm 108

English Standard Version (ESV)

With God We Shall Do Valiantly

A Song. A Psalm of David.

108 My heart is steadfast, O God!
  I will sing and make melody with all my being!
2 Awake, O harp and lyre!
  I will awake the dawn!
3 I will give thanks to you, O Lord, among the peoples;
  I will sing praises to you among the nations.
4 For your steadfast love is great above the heavens;
  your faithfulness reaches to the clouds.

5 Be exalted, O God, above the heavens!
  Let your glory be over all the earth!
6 That your beloved ones may be delivered,
  give salvation by your right hand and answer me!

7 God has promised in his holiness:
  “With exultation I will divide up Shechem
  and portion out the Valley of Succoth.
8 Gilead is mine; Manasseh is mine;
  Ephraim is my helmet,
  Judah my scepter.
9 Moab is my washbasin;
  upon Edom I cast my shoe;
  over Philistia I shout in triumph.”

10 Who will bring me to the fortified city?
  Who will lead me to Edom?
11 Have you not rejected us, O God?
  You do not go out, O God, with our armies.
12 Oh grant us help against the foe,
  for vain is the salvation of man!
13 With God we shall do valiantly;
  it is he who will tread down our foes.

 

Reflection

• David began this psalm, which is a prayer for help against Israel’s enemies, with an expression of total confidence in the Lord. David’s very petition was worship, for he knew that “your steadfast love is great above the heavens; your faithfulness reaches to the clouds”.
• God has promised the victory that David claimed. To “cast my shoe” (v9) represented Israel’s domination of a humbled and submissive Moab. David, even before the battle, so relied on the covenant commitment of God to be with Israel’s armies, that he spoke as if the victories were already won.
• This is a great expression of dependence on God and trust in Him for the deliverance He promised. We who are God’s people should face our spiritual enemies with the same humility and confidence.
• How has God’s provision or rescue for you in the past give you hope for the future?

 

Prayer & Journaling:

Stay with God for a little longer. Continue to converse with God and listen to what he wants to tell me. Then write down any thought and/or prayer in the “Spiritual Journal” book.

 

Read chapter in full: www.biblegateway.com/passage/?version=ESV&search=Psalms+107

 

 

Psalms Book Five

(The Book of Praise)

Psalm 107

English Standard Version (ESV)

Let the Redeemed of the Lord Say So

107 Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good,
  for his steadfast love endures forever!
2 Let the redeemed of the Lord say so,
  whom he has redeemed from trouble
3 and gathered in from the lands,
  from the east and from the west,
  from the north and from the south.

4 Some wandered in desert wastes,
  finding no way to a city to dwell in;
5 hungry and thirsty,
  their soul fainted within them.
6 Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble,
  and he delivered them from their distress.
7 He led them by a straight way
  till they reached a city to dwell in.
8 Let them thank the Lord for his steadfast love,
  for his wondrous works to the children of man!
9 For he satisfies the longing soul,
  and the hungry soul he fills with good things.
10 Some sat in darkness and in the shadow of death,
  prisoners in affliction and in irons,
11 for they had rebelled against the words of God,
  and spurned the counsel of the Most High.
12 So he bowed their hearts down with hard labor;
  they fell down, with none to help.
13 Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble,
  and he delivered them from their distress.
14 He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death,
  and burst their bonds apart.
15 Let them thank the Lord for his steadfast love,
  for his wondrous works to the children of man!
16 For he shatters the doors of bronze
  and cuts in two the bars of iron.

Reflection

• The hungry, thirsty, and homeless of Judah cried to the Lord. God redeemed, and with unfailing love led them to a city where they could settle.
• The pattern seen here is followed in each portrait of redemption. (If time permits, try to read through the whole Psalm.) Calamity leaves God’s people in desperate straits. They cry to God. He rescues them. Each calamity and rescue enriches our understanding of redemption, that we might praise God.
• In response to God’s rescue, the psalmist calls us to: “thank the Lord for his steadfast love…” (vv8, 15, 21, 31). Thanksgiving leads us to remember God’s action, but even more, it gives witness to God’s character – his goodness, his steadfast love, etc.
• Are you likely to call out to God in the midst of your trouble as those in this passage did? Why or why not?
• In what ways can you imitate the goodness of God displayed in this psalm?

 

Prayer & Journaling:

Stay with God for a little longer. Continue to converse with God and listen to what he wants to tell me. Then write down any thought and/or prayer in the “Spiritual Journal” book.