THE STORY OF JESUS: Psalm 47 “Clap your hands, all you nations; shout to God with cries of joy.” (Psalm 47:1) Imagine being bullied for years, then finally being vindicated. Think of your joy and gratitude for your protector and benefactor. This is the feeling behind Psalm 47, the praise of the victim vindicated. This psalm was likely…
Category: daily meditations
We get what we seek!
THE STORY OF JESUS: 1 Kings 14-16 “You made for yourself other gods and turned your back on me.” (1 Kings 14:9) In these chapters we see things going from bad to worse in Judah and Israel. Despite God’s warnings, the kings and the people abandoned God for corrupt living. But is God to blame for the consequences of…
Following His direction!
THE STORY OF JESUS: 1 Kings 12-13 “I have been told by the word of the Lord…” (1 Kings 13:17). This poor prophet, tricked by another prophet into disobeying the Lord! Rehoboam foolishly followed bad advice, but this prophet listened to a prophet!? Both Rehoboam and this prophet learned the hard way not to listen to everyone. As a…
A witness to fear or to faith?
THE STORY OF JESUS: Mark 5:14-20 “The people began to plead with Jesus to leave their region.” (Mark 5:17) I’ve heard interesting theories as to why the spirits wanted to sent into the pigs. The reason is obvious: they wanted to scare people away from Jesus. This is how Satan works, scheming to distract, deceive, discourage and…
Get behind me Satan!
THE STORY OF JESUS: Mark 5:1-13 “Come out of this man, you impure spirit!” (Mark 5:9) Do you believe that there are spirit beings out there, good and bad? I believe everyone is harassed by evil spirits (as well as helped by good spirits). We are not helpless, we can resist evil spirits and make them flee…
Death will be destroyed!
THE STORY OF JESUS: Mark 5:35-44 “Jesus told him, ‘Don’t be afraid; just believe.’” (Mark 5:36) I recently spoke on trusting God through difficulty as a guest pastor. A man, recently widowed, approached me with tears in his eyes. ‘Your words sounds so good, but it doesn’t work for me!’ His wife had died, and no amount…
God’s kingdom seed!
THE STORY OF JESUS: Mark 4:30-34 “It is like a mustard seed, which is the smallest of all seeds on earth.” (Mark 4:31) The message of Jesus seems weak and insignificant. Love, humility, self-sacrifice, forgiveness – can that really change the world? The dominion of darkness seems so strong, it even seems to be winning. Often many…
Be still and know that Jesus is God!
THE STORY OF JESUS: Psalm 46 “Be still, and know that I am God.” (Psalm 46:10) If you do not feel this peace, try repeating these words. Our world may be falling apart, and nations be in crisis, but God is still in charge. Because God is here, the world will not collapse, He will help those…
Angry love?
THE STORY OF JESUS: 1 Kings 9-11 “The Lord was angry because his heart had turned away from the Lord.” (1 Kings 11:9) In his wisdom and power, the Enemy found Solomon’s weakness… and exploited it. Solomon gave in to women and detestable idol worship (including child sacrifice). God wasn’t being petty or jealous, He was concerned for His people’s well-being….
God lives where???
THE STORY OF JESUS: 1 Kings 7-8 “But will God really dwell on earth?” (1 Kings 8:27) God – the awesome, uncontainable Creator – wants to live with you and me! The temple was meant to symbolize God’s greatness AND goodness. It showed that God wanted to live with them, to be at home among us. Don’t get stuck…