Psalm 27

Scripture

Psalms 27:13 NLT

“Yet I am confident I will see the Lord’s goodness while I am here in the land of the living.”

Observation-What does it say?

In this psalm, David writes of his confidence in God. David understood that no matter how dark a situation he may be placed in, that God was with him, and would never leave him. So why should he be afraid?! His enemies were the ones who should tremble in fear because Almighty God was with David. God was his fortress, his protector, and his savior. What more does a person need?!

Understanding-What does it mean?

He is my rock. He is my fortress. He is my confidence!

David was a man after God’s heart. He was a servant of God. Yet that didn’t stop life’s struggles from happening to him. God allowed those things to occur in David’s life to mold him into the man we all know him as today. David had confidence! Confidence in knowing what kind of God he served. (A God who is loving, just, and mighty)! No matter how bad the odds were stacked against David, he knew when all the dust settled, His God would reign supreme. He knew God’s glory and power would shine to make the impossible, possible.

After all, God split the Red Sea to help His people escape from the mighty Egyptian army. God tore down the mighty walls of Jericho with one big shout from His people. God even used a lowly shepherd boy to bring down a GIANT of a warrior named Goliath.

So whatever mountain there is in my life that needs to be moved, or whatever giant I am faced with battling, I am encouraged with David’s confidence. I will wait patiently on the Lord, and expect nothing but His goodness to breakthrough in my life.

“Wait patiently for the Lord. Be brave and courageous. Yes, wait patiently for the Lord.”-Psalms 27:14

 “O Sovereign Lord! You made the heavens and earth by your strong hand and powerful arm. Nothing is too hard for you!”-Jeremiah 32:17

Life Application

My God is greater!

All I can do is give Him my praise and worship. Here is a link to a song of worship that came to mind: https://youtu.be/p-6YdT1DEO8

-Moses Gaddi

Psalm 26

Scripture 

Psalm 26: 1-3

Test me, Lord, and try me, examine my heart and my mind; for I have always been mindful of your unfailing love and have lived in reliance on your faithfulness.

Observation-What does it say?

This is another Psalm from King David. King David confidently told the Lord to test Him and examine his heart and mind to see if there was any wickedness in him, for he had been leading a blameless life.

Understanding-What does it mean?

We can learn a lot from King David. I know that I do.

Besides Deborah in the book of Judges and the Apostle Paul in the New Testament, King David is one of my favorite Biblical characters! I love how he is a musician; I love his humble story of how the Lord appointed him as King; I love how he hired skilled musicians for the Temple and assigned them their duties by asking the Lord what He wanted (I Chronicles 25:7), and I love that even in his sins/moral failure as king, he didn’t allow that mistake to define him. He took the consequence of his son’s death humbly, repented, remained blameless before God and was a man after His heart, just like when he first started/was chosen.

Through testing and hard seasons in King David’s life, He relied completely on the Lord to deliver Him, not man. As a result, God’s grace and favor was on His life, even through difficult circumstances that were beyond his control.

Life Application

During seasons of testing, are we confidently relying on Christ’s unfailing love and faithfulness towards us?

If you had to grade yourself on how you went through this past year (and continuing on) with everything from Covid, to home life, to social issues and unrest, to the 2020 election, and even grief, what grade would you give yourself? How is the Holy Spirit prompting you to be more dependent on Christ’s love, faithfulness and control through circumstances outside of our control? If you feel led to share, please do so in the comments section below.

For me, I know the Holy Spirit is teaching me how to be more self controlled, an initiator of peace with my brothers and sisters in Christ, a better listener of others’ concerns/opinions instead of venting my own, and to put my WHOLE faith, hope and trust in His perfect love, faithfulness, strength and providence alone. My husband’s favorite verse, which closes out this post perfectly is Proverbs 3:5 NIV- “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.” 

-Michelle Gaddi

Romans_3

ScriptureRomans 3:3-4³ What if some were unfaithful? Will their unfaithfulness nullify God’s faithfulness? ⁴ Not at all! Let God be true, and every human being a liar.  Observation - What does it say?The Apostle Paul pointed to a popular argument at the time: The unfaithfulness of God’s people must point to the fact that God himself is unfaithful. He argues that God is not a reflection of his unfaithful followers! Even if every human being is unfaithful, sinful, and a liar, it doesn’t take away from the fact that God is completely faithful, holy and true. Understanding - What does it mean?You cannot blame a holy God for unholy followers.We have all heard people make a negative observation of a Christian and say, “If that’s what a Christian is like, I don’t want to have anything to do with Christianity.” They get hurt or put off by one person and then use it to discredit God and the entire gospel.So many people in our culture today are wounded by Christians. It’s inevitable. None of us are perfect, and none of us (if we’re honest) can claim to be. The world will surely see our love and the positive effect that the gospel has had on our lives. But the world will also surely see that we are still imperfect. And it’s those imperfections that can lead others away from God if they believe that Christians are supposed to be perfect representations of God on the earth. Although that is our goal, none of us are there yet.Paul reminds us, human unfaithfulness doesn’t nullify God’s faithfulness! Life ApplicationHave I been hurt by someone and blamed God for it? Has my perception of God been tainted because of my experience with others?

God, we declare that you are faithful. You are good. You are holy. You are kind. Help us to see you for who you are and to not fall into the bad logic that because someone who claims to follow you is imperfect it must mean that you’re imperfect. We disregard that and acknowledge that you are perfect in every way. We worship you. Amen.

 

-Levi Thompson