false gods

Posted on April 27, 2021 by Jefferson Vann
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Psalm 58:1-2 (JDV)

Psalm 58:11 Are you really saying the right things, you gods? Do you judge people fairly?
Psalm 58:2 No, you practice injustice in your hearts; with your hands you weigh out violence in the land.

Before David asks for God to overcome the plots of the wicked, he steps back and speaks brashly to the gods who are controlling them. These gods are not people, they are demons who use people like pawns. Our God is God and there is no other. Most of us live in societies who promote “inclusiveness.” We must certainly respect and befriend people who are different from us. But the Christian has to draw the line at being religiously inclusive.

Unbeliever, your god is plotting unfairness, injustice and violence. You should be rebuking and forsaking  him or her, and running to Jesus, because only he saves.

Lord, draw our friends and relatives away from their false gods and to you.

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alarm clock

Posted on April 26, 2021 by Jefferson Vann
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alarm clock

Psalm 57:8-11 (JDV)

Psalm 57:8 Wake up, my throat! Wake up, harp and lyre! I will wake up the dawn.
Psalm 57:9 I will praise you, Lord, among the peoples; I will sing praises to you among the nations.
Psalm 57:10 For your covenant faithfulness is as high as the sky; your faithfulness reaches the clouds.
Psalm 57:11 God, be exalted above the sky; let your glory be over the whole land.

alarm clock

These are the words of someone with a great burden, which he brought to the Lord, and now he has emerged from his depression and fear with a new zeal to worship God. Normally, the dawn was his alarm clock. It wakes him up, but now he cannot wait for the day’s new light so that he can tell the world about his wonderful Savior. He has become the world’s alarm clock.

Lord, fill us with a burning desire to wake up the dawn with your praise.

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the joy of depression

Posted on April 25, 2021 by Jefferson Vann
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the joy of depression

Psalm 57:6-7 (JDV)

Psalm 57:6 They prepared a net for my steps; I was depressed. They dug a pit ahead of me, but they fell into it! Selah.
Psalm 57:7 My heart is confident, God, my heart is confident. I will sing; I will sing praises.

the joy of depression

No, that is not a type-o.  I said the joy of depression. It is the joy we can get after our depression (which is real and terrible) brings us back to our knees before our God, who is also real and the solution to depression. Spending some time back in the sanctuary of God’s presence helps pull us out of the pit that other people and bad circumstances can get us in.

I have friends who are struggling with anxiety, and I tell them to go back to the word of God and prayer on a regular basis. He works when drugs and rehab will not. He is strong enough to pull anyone out of their depths.

Lord, thank you for the low times because you pull us out of them.

 

 

 

 

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reason for our rescue

Posted on April 24, 2021 by Jefferson Vann
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reason for our rescue

Psalm 57:5 God, be exalted above the sky; let your glory be over the whole land.

reason for our rescue

Right in the middle of a prayer ridden with anxiety, in which the psalmist cries out because he is surrounding by hungry lions ready to eat him — he stops and prays for God’s exaltation.

The reason any of us can come to God for help is that we are connected to him by covenant. Our covenant with Christ is reason enough for us to pray for his deliverance during hard times, because he wants to be exalted by our rescue.

Lord, rescue us, and so glorify your name, which we have taken.

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surrounded by lions

Posted on April 23, 2021 by Jefferson Vann
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surrounded by lions

Psalm 57:4 I am surrounded by lions; I lie down among devouring lions – people whose teeth are spears and arrows, whose tongues are sharp swords.

surrounded by lions

It’s hard to sleep when you feel like there are dangerous predators all around you, waiting for a chance to pounce. You feel the need for God during such times. We always need him, but we are not always as aware of that need.

Thank you Lord, for those times of danger that draw us back to a realization of our dependence upon you.

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man-cave

Posted on April 22, 2021 by Jefferson Vann
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Psalm 57:1-3 (JDV)

man-cave

Psalm 57:1 Be gracious to me, God, be gracious to me, for I take refuge in you. I will seek refuge in the shadow of your wings until danger passes.
Psalm 57:2 I call to God Most High, to God who fulfills his purpose for me.
Psalm 57:3 He reaches down from the sky and saves me, challenging the one who tramples me. Selah God sends his covenant faithfulness and truth.

man-cave

David’s man-cave was an actual cave, but he didn’t hide in it for his entertainment. He was seeking refuge from the king, who wanted him dead. As he does so, it just so happens that king Saul himself would enter that cave. David learned that a man-cave is not deep enough to hide from your troubles, because they will find you there. But he also learned that God can be your refuge no matter where you are.

Lord, be our refuge. We will rest in your shadow.

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obligated

Posted on April 21, 2021 by Jefferson Vann
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obligated

Psalm 56:12-13 (JDV)

Psalm 56:12 I am obligated by vows to you, God; I will make my thank offerings to you.
Psalm 56:13 You see, you rescued me from death, my own feet from stumbling, to walk before God in the light of life.

obligated

The Christian feels the obligation to worship out of gratitude for the rescue. God accomplished our rescue from the penalty of death that we deserve. Our rescue sets our feet back on the right path, a path of walking before God. We are under this obligation not in order to be rescued, because neither our worship nor our walk can accomplish that. No, we are obligated to worship and walk in his light because he has rescued us by his grace.

Lord, thank you for the grace by which we stand, walk and worship.

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praising God’s word

Posted on April 20, 2021 by Jefferson Vann
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praising God’s word

Psalm 56:10-11 (JDV)

Psalm 56:10 In God, whose word I praise, in Yahveh, whose word I praise,
Psalm 56:11 in God I trust; I will not be afraid. What can mere humans do to me?

praising God’s word

The reason this psalmist could face his fears and overcome them is that he had confidence in God’s word. He praised God, and he also praised God’s word.

Friend, what is your reaction to that book? Do you praise God’s word? Your respect and love for the Bible will show when you face the challenges of life.

Lord, we praise your word, and put our trust in you.

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bottle and book

Posted on April 19, 2021 by Jefferson Vann
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bottle and book

Psalm 56:8-9 (JDV)

Psalm 56:8 You yourself have recorded my wanderings. Put my tears in your bottle. Are they not in your book?
Psalm 56:9 Then my enemies will retreat on the day when I call. This I know: God is for me.

bottle and book

Do you ever feel like no one actually cares about the troubles you feel? Are you tired of being ignored? Sometimes I feel like that. When I walk into a crowded room, and no one even acknowledges my existence, it’s hard to shake something like that off.

This psalm talks about God having a bottle into which goes all the tears — a book that records them. God cares. He can take care of us, because he knows and cares about what we are experiencing.

Lord, I sometimes don’t feel it, but I know you’re there, and I know you care.

 

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uncensored prayers

Posted on April 18, 2021 by Jefferson Vann
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uncensored prayers

Psalm 56:5-7 (JDV)

Psalm 56:5 They twist my words all day long; all their thoughts against me are evil.
Psalm 56:6 They stir up strife, they lurk; they watch my steps while they wait to cut my throat.
Psalm 56:7 Will they be delivered from their trouble? God, bring down the nations in wrath.

uncensored prayers

Now, David, that does not sound like a very Christian prayer. You are supposed to love your enemies.

But I have learned something about prayer by listening to my grandchildren, and some of my friends who do not seem to have a regulator for their mouths: honesty is refreshing. When my sky Father is listening in his confessional, he does not want me to censor my prayers. Belt them out and blurt them out. He wants my prayers to be brutally honest.

Father, here’s what I’ve got. Here’s what I feel.

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