Psalm 50, 53, 60, 75 Don’t turn your back on the Lord and His teaching.  That is the message I take from today’s reading. The wording is so vivid: 17 You hate my instruction and cast my words behind you. God is talking to those who do evil. Have I ever “cast” the Lord’s words behind me?  Search  my heart and my life, Lord.  Help me to see if there is any evil thing in me, and help me cast it aside.  Let all the “casting” that I do be to remove those things that keep me from you.  Let … Continue reading Casting

2 Samuel 8-9; 1 Chronicles 18 These two passages are almost identical, and they tell of more of David’s victories over the surrounding kingdoms.  The Lord gave David victory everywhere he went. Then chapter 9 of 2 Samuel records David’s act of kindness towards his friend Jonathan’s son, Mephibosheth, who was crippled in both feet.  Because of his loyalty to his old friend Jonathan, he found out that one of his sons was still alive, although crippled.  David brought him to Jerusalem and let him live and eat with him. Some men would have been threatened — kings have been … Continue reading No Impossibilities Allowed

Psalm 25, 29, 33, 36, 39 Rushing through life is my mode of operation.  From the moment I wake until my head hits the pillow, I am in a hurry.  I resemble that country song where the singer laments, “I’m in a hurry to get things done…oh I….rush and rush until life’s no fun.  All I really gotta do is live and die, but I’m in a hurry and don’t know why…” Part of my hurried, harried lifestyle is due to poor planning on my part.  It always takes longer to get out the door than I expect it to … Continue reading The Speed of Life

2Samuel 7; 1 Chronicles 17 Both of these passages are nearly identical, and they illustrate a time when a man, King David, had a thought of something great he could do for God…but God told him that he had other plans.  Rather than get offended, David was honored.  He shows us how we can navigate those times when we suddenly realize that the path we *thought* was right is actually not the one the Lord has chosen for us. David was decked out in his new palace made of cedar when it occurred to him that the Lord’s dwelling place … Continue reading A Gracious Detour