Psalm 121 - 8.8.23

SCRIPTURE:  Psalm 121:1,2  "I lift up my eyes to the hills - where does my help come from?  My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth."

OBSERVATION:  It's not known who wrote this psalm, but some scholars suggest it was Hezekiah. This psalm is the second song of ascents.  As the God-fearing Jews approached the hills of Judea, they sang this psalm.  God had proved Himself faithful by protecting them as they journeyed through distant and hostile lands, and how exciting it must have been for them to finally catch a glimpse of the Holy City!

APPLICATION:  I am reminded in this psalm to look to God, Who is my Protector.  Even when hostile forces come against me, God is the ultimate Protector of my soul!  He never slumbers.  He is always watching over me!  He protects my comings and my goings, all day and every night!  He shields me from danger by giving me His Truth.  He protects me by the power of His name, and my main defense is prayer!  I look to the Lord Who strengthens and protects me from the evil forces that come against me.

PRAYER:  As I lift my eyes to You Lord, I am reminded of the countless ways You have protected me.  You've given me Your Word, Your Holy Spirit, and Your protective armor so that I am able to withstand the evil attacks that come against me.  I pray I will do my part to depend on Your supernatural strength and power, and that I will use every piece of Your protective armor to ensure victory over every battle that I face until You return.

- Robin Orefice

Psalm 120 - 8.7.23

Scripture

Psalms‬ ‭120‬:‭1‬ ‭NLT

“I took my troubles to the Lord; I cried out to him, and he answered my prayer.”

Observation

This is a psalm that pilgrims would sing on their way to Jerusalem for the holy feasts-Passover, Pentecost, and Tabernacles. In this psalm, the psalmist is crying out to God for relief from the hostile environment they are currently in. They are for God and for peace, but they are surrounded by ungodly people who speak only of war and violence. They are in an unfavorable situation. What are they to do? Well, as verse 1 reminds us, take your troubles to God, and He will answer you.

Application

Whenever troubles arise in life, God is the first One we should turn to for help.

“Give your burdens to the Lord, and he will take care of you. He will not permit the godly to slip and fall.”-Psalms‬ ‭55‬:‭22‬ ‭

I know some of us out there may try to do the “macho” thing, and feel like we can figure things out on our own whenever troubles comes our way. We refuse to get help. We refuse to be helped. ‬‬And when everything else fails, then and only then do we turn to God. May I encourage everyone out there to make God your first option when things go haywire? The Bible tells us time and time again of God’s love for us. The Bible tells us that God is concerned over every little detail in our lives. God yearns for us to come to Him because He wants that relationship with us. He wants to help us in our time of need. So what are we waiting for? Turn to God. Call out to Him. He is just a prayer away. 🙏🏽

“Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you.”-1 Peter‬ ‭5‬:‭7‬

‭‬”Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.”-Philippians‬ ‭4‬:‭6‬-‭7‬

Prayer

Dear Heavenly Father,

Thank You for Your love and for caring over every little detail in my life. Forgive me whenever I choose to not come to You first whenever I’m in a jam. Forgive me of my stubbornness and pride for thinking I can get it done on my own. May I always remember to turn to You first whenever I’m in trouble. May I turn to You first even when I’m not. May I come to You with a heart of praise and thanksgiving because You are almighty and sovereign and You are my God that I choose to follow. I know nothing is impossible for You. In Jesus name I pray, Amen. 🙏🏽

-Moses Gaddi

Revelation 9 - 8.4.2023

Scripture - Pick one verse that stood out to you.

Revelation 9:15-16

And the four angels who had been kept ready for this very hour and day and month and year were released to kill a third of mankind. The number of the mounted troops was twice ten thousand times ten thousand. I heard their number.

Psalm 119:170

May my supplication come before you;
    deliver me according to your promise.

Revelation 9:4

They were told not to harm the grass of the earth or any plant or tree, but only those people who did not have the seal of God on their foreheads.

Observation - What about this verse stands out to you?

There is a direction that humanity is headed in. While I don’t fully understand all of the book of Revelation, I feel like I understand glimpses of what is to come. Based on what I read the number of mounted troops alongside the angels was:

“twice ten thousand times ten thousand”

That number could either be (2x10000x10000) = 200,000,000 = 200 million     OR

(100,000,000) x (100,000,000) = God’s army is wow = was exponential math around back then?

To put that into perspective  

According to worldpopulationreview.com, the total number of active duty, paramilitary, and reserve military personnel in the world equals 69,404,020.

Application - How will you apply this to your life?

My hope is that I am not around for the above even where a third of mankind is wiped out by this particularly fearsome army. Help me to apply my faith in You today. I reaffirm my belief that You are my God, and my Maker. You are my Salvation and my Deliverer.

Prayer - Write out a prayer.

Lord, while I don’t understand what it means to have Your seal on my forehead, I pray that I won’t need it. Whatever is required of me in those days however I put my faith in You o, Lord. If You ask me of it, I will do it. No questions asked. I love You Lord, and I am in awe of Your might and Your power. I pray that the entire world would wake up and declare You their God in their hearts and souls. And I pray that You continue to watch over Your flock. I thank You and love You, Lord.

In the name of Jesus do I pray, amen.

-kenneth lee