trust God – Be Still…

Isaiah 25:1 – Get Your Praise On!

“O Lord, I will honor and praise your name,
for you are my God.
You do such wonderful things!
You planned them long ago,
and now you have accomplished them.”
(Isaiah 25:1)

Are you one of those people who praise God only when you’re in church surrounded by other believers? Or are you someone who always has a praise song on their lips? Chances are, realistically speaking, you find yourself somewhere in between, aspiring to be more worshipful in your waking moments. Life gets in the way, doesn’t it? Sometimes the heaviness of a life situation makes it hard to feel grateful to the point you overflow with praise.

Context: For Isaiah, as a prophet of the LORD, he struggled with his own demons of distraction as he took on the abuse of his audience. He was being used by God, but the people weren’t listening. However, this verse opens a chapter full of hope, giving God the glory for being true to his word. Isaiah calls out both judgment and salvation, so depending on your relationship with God, these verses make you celebrate because of the hope or cower because of fear of doom. Continue reading “Isaiah 25:1 – Get Your Praise On!”

Psalm 103 – Praise the Lord!

Read Psalm 103

Praise the Lord! What an uplifting tribute to God’s majesty, provision, and love. If ever you find yourself at a loss of words in prayer, lean into this truth of who God is. When we remember and call out God’s goodness, more and more examples just flood out of us. God loves to hear our praise.

The psalmist cries out, “Let all that I am praise the Lord.” That some sincere devotion. How many of us have ever been that “all-in” for God in our lives? We tell ourselves we have responsibilities, tasks, people counting on us, jobs, only 24 hours in a day. Yes, we have those things. But are they more important than God? Continue reading “Psalm 103 – Praise the Lord!”

Psalm 46 – Our Fortress

Read Psalm 46

God is “always” ready to help the psalmist says. Do you believe that, too? It is certainly knowledge to cling to in the uncertain world we live in. Our confidence can soar when we think of how God wants to be in relationship with us.

One of my favorite verses comes from this psalm. However, knowing the whole context of the psalm gives it a bit of a different flavor than how I usually focus on the direction. Verse 10 says, “Be still, and know that I am God! I will be honored by every nation. I will be honored throughout the world.” The first part of this verse calling us to “be still” was the inspiration for my devotional blog. Continue reading “Psalm 46 – Our Fortress”

Job 36:1-21 – Defending God

Read Job 36:1-21

Elihu must believe that God needs defending. Or perhaps he wanted to set the record straight in terms of his understanding of God. I would agree, talking about God and his mighty power should be a priority for us. Why is it we keep quiet about the creator and provider of all things?

It’s all about obedience to God according to Elihu. That’s how he would suggest we spend our lives if we want God’s favor and to experience abundance. I would note that our obedience should not be because we expect something but because we can’t help ourselves but want to please God. After all, he created us, gave us a purpose, and allows us to make choices in each season of life until he takes us home where we truly belong. Continue reading “Job 36:1-21 – Defending God”

Job 19:1-29 – Patience

Read Job 19:1-29

Job has such patience. He is putting up with his very annoying friends, and he is waiting on a very silent God. I’m not sure I could have endured all of this. It’s Job’s turn to speak again. He doesn’t walk away from the attacks but tries to counter once again.

Job feels abandoned. In this speech he calls out relatives, his wife, his friends, his close friends, servants, and young children. He is sitting among three of those “friends,” and from what we’ve seen so far, they have indeed turned against him. Interesting that the three we’ve seen attacking Job are not considered his “close” friends. The sacrifice of time they have made to spend time with Joel is commendable at least. It’s hard to believe Job’s closest friends have long since forgotten him. That is, according to Job’s account of their whereabouts. Continue reading “Job 19:1-29 – Patience”