Psalm 65

Scripture  Psalm 65:1&9  “Praise awaits you, our God, in Zion; to you our vows will be fulfilled...You care for the land and water it; you enrich it abundantly.  The streams of God are filled with water to provide the people with grain, for so you have ordained it.” Observation-What does it say?  This psalm is ascribed to David.  There is no specific event this is tied to, but it could have been written at the end of a drought or maybe even a famine.  The psalm was most likely written when the tabernacle was on Mount Zion, before the temple was built in Jerusalem.  “The word translated ‘waiteth’ [awaiting] comes from a root meaning to be silent…. This does not mean that there is no praise, but on the contrary that praise is so complete that at first it can find no utterance.” (Morgan)  This silence gives the impression of being speechless because of the Lord’s greatness.  Later in the chapter, David praises God for the abundance of provision he lavishes on the earth.  The earth is barren until the rain that God helps to bring about growth. Understanding-What does it mean?  I recently went to Zion National Park.  As we were driving to the park, the only thing I could say was, “This is AWESOME!!!”  I mean once we got to the park, I also said, “It’s so hot,” quite a bit.  But that’s what happens when you visit the desert in July.  On the shuttle, I got a chance to just sit and enjoy the amazing scenery.  It’s hard to describe how the great walls or red rock inspire a sense of connection to our creator.  The contrast between the lush valley, which holds the life bringing water, and the desert up above.  The whole time we were there, the words just seemed to escape me to offer as a praise for the grandeur around me.  I was speechless. This brought new meaning to being silent in praise.  God’s word says, “Be still, and know that I am God”(Psalm 46:10).  God’s goodness and creation often inspires awe and speechlessness.  But, we are told this is praise enough.  Similarly, God tells us to look to him to learn how to pray.  “In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans.  And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for God’s people in accordance with the will of God” (Romans 8:26-27).  Changing our perspective can point us towards the Spirit, giving us direction in prayer.  Even Jesus took time to go into the wilderness to pray (Luke 5:16).   Life Application  God, help me to not fear when you are silent.  Thank you for providing me with places to see you.  Thank you for teaching me about you in the silence.  Help me to lean on the Holy Spirit when I don’t know what to pray.  -Tyler Galloway

John__1

Scripture - What stood out?

John 1:16 Out of his fullness we have all received grace in place of grace already given. Observation - What does it say?The first chapter of John lays out the beginning of Jesus’s ministry as he gathers disciples to himself. The first chapter is also John the baptist’s  testimony about who he believes Jesus to be - the son of God. God’s grace = God’s unmerited favor. Aka favor we did not earn. Understanding - What does it mean?For those of us who believe, John chapter 1 is such a breath of fresh air isn’t it? For me as I reflect on Jesus and ask God to reveal Himself to me more, this chapter is like one of my favorite “first moments of Jesus”. I like to visualize what this chapter might have looked like as Jesus was first recognized by John the baptist (as an adult), as Jesus prepares his ministry. It is just a moment that makes me smile inwardly no matter what! I love how the author of this book (many theologians believe that the author of this book is John the disciple of Jesus) puts Jesus into perspective with the old testament. I want to say this out loud again so I’ll type it here: Out of his fullness we have all received grace in place of grace already given. What a beautiful and succinct descriptor of just how the old and new testament is connected. I have grown to love the old testament bible because within those books is where I found the Father’s heart revealed and crying out to His children to come back to him. No matter how many times we messed up in the old testament, God gave us another chance to turn back to Him. And that never stopped all the way up to the birth of his son Jesus and beyond. Life Application - How can I apply this to my life today? Jesus is God the Father’s grace - in place of grace already given. This is such a beautiful reminder Lord. Continue to show me just exactly how your old and new testament are connected. Help me to spend the rest of my day growing in greater understanding of You. Help me to reflect on what is truly Amazing Grace. 

James___5

Scripture

James 5: 7-8

Be patient, then, brothers and sisters, until the Lord’s coming. See how the farmer waits for the land to yield its valuable crop, patiently waiting for the autumn and spring rains. You too, be patient and stand firm, because the Lord’s coming is near.

 

Observation

James is wrapping up his letters about the beliefs and expectations of believers by speaking about submission to God and patience in suffering. He uses an analogy of a farmer to further his main point to remain in Christ and in the faith no matter what the circumstance or situation may be. He then closes his final letter by challenging believers to live a life full of faith in order to bring others to Christ as well.

 

Understanding

Patience throughout a trial is more than a virtue, it’s a conscious lifestyle.

As a kid I had a third grade teacher who always taught us these deep truths of life that in the moment seemed really confusing, but as we got older they all began to make a lot of sense. But one that she always seemed to use with me was one that I will never forget. She would look at me over the top of her glasses and then say “Miss Khan, patience is a virtue.” It always ended up with her handing back my spelling sentences because I had rushed through them and used all the words incorrectly. And I would always say, “But at least I got it done.” Still, to my chagrin, she would hand back the sentences with the word “redo” written in red pen on the top. As I got older and worked with more people I finally began to understand the weight of “Miss Khan, patience is a virtue.”

I think this is exactly where our church finds ourselves right now. We’ve been told things like

“The harvest is plentiful!”

“This year is the year of harvest!” Or

“The best is yet to come!”

And we’ve gotten to reap our little harvests here and there, but it does not satisfy the contentment of having a full barn. But here, James says that the farmer waits to yield valuable crop. We are so set on getting to work that we just get to swinging the sickle and we turned in damaged goods. Sometimes patience produces the best yield ever. This season that we find ourselves in is a season of patience, but let’s turn our patience into a lifestyle to yield the best crop all the time.

 

Life Application

How do we yield the best crop all the time?

• We must be active in planting the seed (who has God placed around you in this time that you can be intentional with?).
• We must be active in toiling with the soil (invest with these people in a way that you truly develop a deep and personal relationship).
• At DSC we like to say it’s like having a piece of PII (Pray, Invest, Invite).
• But despite all of this, we must also remember not to forget our root (cultivate our own relationship daily with the Father).

Let’s get to turning our virtue into a lifestyle.

-Allison Khan