Psalm 84 - 11.5.25

Scripture: Psalm 84:5

Blessed are those whose strength is in you,
    whose hearts are set on pilgrimage.

Observation

Blessed are those who walk in God’s power, not their own. I can do very few things, but He can do all things.

Blessed are those whose hearts are set on pilgrimage – setting aside everything to go to the temple to meet with the most holy God, in the place where He reveals Himself.

Application

Ephesians 3:20 Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, 

To walk in God’s power, we need to be connected with Him. And only by spending time with Him can we truly connect. Our hearts should be set on seeking Him. The Israelites would make a pilgrimage to go to the temple to meet with God. We can meet with God whenever and wherever we want.

Jeremiah 29:13 You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.

But we have to truly seek – we have to want God’s presence more than we want all else. We can and should talk to God throughout our day and bring our concerns to Him as they arise. But we need to make sure to take time alone each day, setting everything else aside, to seek His presence. And when you seek, He will meet you there.

Psalm 34:8 Taste and see that the Lord is good;

Prayer

Thank you for your promise to meet me and reveal yourself to me when I come to You and sit at your feet and seek your presence. Your presence is better than all else.

- Debbie Dunn

Jeremiah 13 - 11.4.25

SCRIPTURE:  JEREMIAH 13:1-11

1 This is what the Lord said to me: “Go and buy a linen belt and put it around your waist, but do not let it touch water.” 2 So I bought a belt, as the Lord directed, and put it around my waist.

3 Then the word of the Lord came to me a second time: 4 “Take the belt you bought and are wearing around your waist, and go now to Perath[a] and hide it there in a crevice in the rocks.” 5 So I went and hid it at Perath, as the Lord told me.

6 Many days later the Lord said to me, “Go now to Perath and get the belt I told you to hide there.” 7 So I went to Perath and dug up the belt and took it from the place where I had hidden it, but now it was ruined and completely useless.

8 Then the word of the Lord came to me: 9 “This is what the Lord says: ‘In the same way I will ruin the pride of Judah and the great pride of Jerusalem. 10 These wicked people, who refuse to listen to my words, who follow the stubbornness of their hearts and go after other gods to serve and worship them, will be like this belt—completely useless! 11 For as a belt is bound around the waist, so I bound all the people of Israel and all the people of Judah to me,’ declares the Lord, ‘to be my people for my renown and praise and honor. But they have not listened.’

OBSERVATION

The Lord is providing a visual story to reflect several things. One is that it shows how their pride has caused them to become useless in the big picture of what God wants from His people. The other part is the belt, a personal and important part of clothing, is used to show how close God wants to be to His people. Unfortunately, Israel and Judah have stubborn hearts, are prideful, wicked, refuse to listen, and worship idols which caused them to be useless.

Even though Judah and Israel had turned their back on God, verse 11 shows He still wants to be bound to them, to be “my people” seeking their praise and worship. He could have said “that’s it, I’ve had enough!” – just like most of us would say in His situation. Now don’t get me wrong, God is also about judgment and Judah and Israel will soon see the results of their disobedience, but how can God still want to be bound to them when they’re full of pride? Sometimes It’s hard to fathom the depth of God’s love. He is so patient, full of love, and forgiving. This reminds me of Christ’s sacrifice on the cross:

“But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”  Romans 5:8

APPLICATION

We see in this Scripture how pride has infected the hearts of the people of Israel and Judah and turned them away from their purpose in God. A prideful heart leads to all the things mentioned in Jeremiah: refuse to listen, are stubborn, and worship other gods.

Pride is a topic that is covered in many ways in Scripture:

”Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall.” Proverbs 16:18

“In his pride the wicked man does not seek him; in all his thoughts there is no room for God.” Psalm 10:4

“When pride comes, then comes disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom.” Proverbs 11:2

“Where there is strife, there is pride, but wisdom is found in those who take advice.” Proverbs 13:10

A prideful heart turns to “self” and not to God. This was so true of my teenage years when I thought “I don’t need God.” For about 5 years, I led a very sinful, prideful, and destructive lifestyle. Those years were also the loneliest, and I felt so distant from God. I can remember the day I fell to my knees crying out to God to forgive me and bring me back to relationship with Him. I knew that doing “life” on my own was impossible and I desperately needed God back in my life.

Do you ever feel “I can do this on my own”? Maybe you’re going along in life without God’s direction. Do you feel there is any pride in your life? You’ll need to first remove your “self” from the throne of your life, and humbly come before His throne because you need and want Him in your life. Just like Judah and Israel, God wants to be bound to you in an intimate and special relationship where His love can flourish in your life.

PRAYER

Lord, I come before your throne asking forgiveness for any time where pride caused me to think I don’t need you. God, I need you more now than ever! I can’t live without you in my life and only want to be bound to you. My heart craves to know you more, to seek your face, and to hear your voice. Help me when the busyness of life gets in the way of spending more time with you. In Jesus name. Amen

- Mary Oberg

Revelation 19 - 11.3.25

Scripture

Revelation 19:10

10 At this I fell at his feet to worship him. But he said to me, “Don’t do that! I am a fellow servant with you and with your brothers and sisters who hold to the testimony of Jesus. Worship God! For it is the Spirit of prophecy who bears testimony to Jesus.”

Observation 

John was so in awe of the prophecy from God that the angel told him to write down. As a result, he started to worship the angel. The angel quickly corrected him and said to worship Jesus only because he (the angel) was only a fellow servant too.

Angels have power because of God. Their mission is the same as ours though, to testify about our good Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ! Their job is to be His messengers and point others to Him alone!

Application

Worship Christ alone, not any of His created beings. Give honor and glory to Him alone for the good things He has done! 

The only One who conquered sin and death is Jesus. The only One who is eternal is the Lord. The only One who has the power to save us from our sins and get us in right relationship with God is Jesus. 

When we are tempted to put our hope not just in angels, but in any amazing servant of the Lord, please be reminded they (we) are still fallible (aka imperfect). God is the only One who is infallible. He never fails. He never grows tired or weary. 

We are limited in wisdom, power and strength. None of us has ever conquered sin or death. People are just a reflection of who Christ is, but they were never meant to replace Christ to us. 

“Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom. He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.” -Isaiah‬ ‭40‬:‭28‬-‭31‬ ‭NIV‬‬

Prayer

Dear Lord,

You are God alone and the only One worthy of my worship and praise! Please forgive me when I try to replace You with anything or anyone who can’t even save my soul. Thank You for all of Your messengers and amazing servants, both in Heaven and on earth, but I pray that I would never put my hope in them, but only on You. As Jesus prayed, “For YOURS is the Kingdom and the power and the glory forever.” Amen! 

-Michelle Gaddi