ON THE EDGE, IN THE WAIT

Posted on November 10, 2020 by randscallawayffm

Take a beat, God, in allowing me to live with my poor decisions!  David cries out to God in the middle of extreme pain and hurt, full of guilt, because what he is now experiencing are the consequences of his own decisions.  Sometimes in our lives, it seems God pulls back his action in us because of our own pride and strong will to go our own way without consulting Him. 

It is in these times that we are allowed to live with the results of our own poor judgement.  It is also in these times that we learn from our self-produced failures.

Our proverb for today reminds us that pride is followed very quickly by an extreme fall.  We see pride in others but can we see it in ourselves?  David’s prayer is asking for help, forgiveness and a right standing with God again.  David is honest and sincere, gutsy and declarative. David knows where to run when his ego took over and horrendous mistakes were made.  David also knows that God has the solution to his problems and will answer his cries for help.

“What I do, God, is wait for you, wait for my Lord, my God—you will answer!”

When life goes south, look up to God.  Ask for forgiveness from doing life on our own. Ask for wisdom to climb out of the pit we generally dig for ourselves and then wait for God to answer.  It is in the wait that we realize our mistakes, begin to see the Light of day and see God for who He really is.  God is love.  His love never changes.  God is the Way, through Jesus His Son, to crawl out of sin and the side effects of sin and be made new because of the work of Jesus on the cross.  God always has the answer with a better plan for our lives, His created, perfect will and purpose for us, when we lay our hearts, minds and souls before Him and embrace His best.

“So, here’s what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life—your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life—and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him. Don’t become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You’ll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you.”  Romans 12:1-2, The Message

Read that again in the New International Version…Just to be sure…

“Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.”  Romans 12:1-2, NIV

Our ego driven mess will never measure up to God’s best! 

Worship and Wisdom, Psalms and Proverbs

Psalm 38, The Message

A David Psalm

38 1-2 Take a deep breath, God; calm down—
    don’t be so hasty with your punishing rod.
Your sharp-pointed arrows of rebuke draw blood;
    my backside smarts from your caning.

3-4 I’ve lost twenty pounds in two months
    because of your accusation.
My bones are brittle as dry sticks
    because of my sin.
I’m swamped by my bad behavior,
    collapsed under gunnysacks of guilt.

5-8 The cuts in my flesh stink and grow maggots
    because I’ve lived so badly.
And now I’m flat on my face
    feeling sorry for myself morning to night.
All my insides are on fire,
    my body is a wreck.
I’m on my last legs; I’ve had it—
    my life is a vomit of groans.

9-16 Lord, my longings are sitting in plain sight,
    my groans an old story to you.
My heart’s about to break;
    I’m a burned-out case.
Cataracts blind me to God and good;
    old friends avoid me like the plague.
My cousins never visit,
    my neighbors stab me in the back.
My competitors blacken my name,
    devoutly they pray for my ruin.
But I’m deaf and mute to it all,
    ears shut, mouth shut.
I don’t hear a word they say,
    don’t speak a word in response.
What I do, God, is wait for you,
    wait for my Lord, my God—you will answer!
I wait and pray so they won’t laugh me off,
    won’t smugly strut off when I stumble.

17-20 I’m on the edge of losing it—
    the pain in my gut keeps burning.
I’m ready to tell my story of failure,
    I’m no longer smug in my sin.
My enemies are alive and in action,
    a lynch mob after my neck.
I give out good and get back evil
    from God-haters who can’t stand a God-lover.

21-22 Don’t dump me, God;
    my God, don’t stand me up.
Hurry and help me;
    I want some wide-open space in my life!

TRUTH:  Wait on God.  Pray in the wait.  Don’t quit in the wait.  Love, trust and obey in the wait.  He WILL answer.

Proverb 16:16-20, The Message

Get wisdom—it’s worth more than money;
    choose insight over income every time.

17 The road of right living bypasses evil;
    watch your step and save your life.

18 First pride, then the crash—
    the bigger the ego, the harder the fall.

19 It’s better to live humbly among the poor
    than to live it up among the rich and famous.

20 It pays to take life seriously;
    things work out when you trust in God.

WISDOM:  Take life with God seriously.  Trust God to work for us not against us.  Get wisdom.  Avoid pride.

Abba Father,

Oh, how we fail miserably when we think we have a better plan that you do!  Forgive me, Lord when my own ego rises above your will and best for me.  It is in those times that I catch myself listening more to the world.  I make bad decisions.  I say and do things that don’t match what I say I believe. 

So, here is my life, all of it.  Convict and correct, but be gentle.  Bring clarity and wisdom to my thinking.  Help me to hear your voice above all others again.  Cleanse every dark place.  Wash over me and make me holy.  Renew my spirit.  Restore the joy of your salvation in me.  I will wait on you for what you want in me.  Help me to quickly obey in your timing, in your Spirit, in your ways by your will.

In Jesus Name and by Your Power working in me, Amen.  I believe!  I will wait on You.

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GOD DELIVERS AND VALIDATES

Posted on November 9, 2020 by randscallawayffm

“Keep company with God, get in on the best”, sings David.  Be honest with God, He knows what you are thinking anyway.  Be open to hear carefully what He has to say.  In order to hear Him we must be quiet before Him with all concentration on what He wants not what we want to ask Him.  Then rise up and obey.  This is a life that is validated by God as a life that is true, humbly sincere, wanting nothing but God’s best.  This is a life that is grateful that God delivered and saved him or her from death.  They want nothing less that God’s best.

NO JOKE!

“Bad guys have it in for the good guys, obsessed with doing them in.  But God isn’t losing any sleep; to him they’re a joke with no punch line.”  God knows that as we follow Him heart, mind and soul, we will contend with God-haters who oppose us, poke fun at how we live our lives for God, and who will try to bring us down while doing what God wants.  But God delivers us by stepping into those battles and conquering the foe.  This is what keeping company with God looks like in our world knowing that the best life we could live is the life lived for God. 

Worship and Wisdom, Psalms and Proverbs

Psalm 37, The Message

A David Psalm

37 1-2 Don’t bother your head with braggarts
    or wish you could succeed like the wicked.
In no time they’ll shrivel like grass clippings
    and wilt like cut flowers in the sun.

3-4 Get insurance with God and do a good deed,
    settle down and stick to your last.
Keep company with God,
    get in on the best.

5-6 Open up before God, keep nothing back;
    he’ll do whatever needs to be done:
He’ll validate your life in the clear light of day
    and stamp you with approval at high noon.

7 Quiet down before God,
    be prayerful before him.
Don’t bother with those who climb the ladder,
    who elbow their way to the top.

8-9 Bridle your anger, trash your wrath,
    cool your pipes—it only makes things worse.
Before long the crooks will be bankrupt;
    God-investors will soon own the store.

10-11 Before you know it, the wicked will have had it;
    you’ll stare at his once famous place and—nothing!
Down-to-earth people will move in and take over,
    relishing a huge bonanza.

12-13 Bad guys have it in for the good guys,
    obsessed with doing them in.
But God isn’t losing any sleep; to him
    they’re a joke with no punch line.

14-15 Bullies brandish their swords,
    pull back on their bows with a flourish.
They’re out to beat up on the harmless,
    or mug that nice man out walking his dog.
A banana peel lands them flat on their faces—
    slapstick figures in a moral circus.

16-17 Less is more and more is less.
    One righteous will outclass fifty wicked,
For the wicked are moral weaklings
    but the righteous are God-strong.

18-19 God keeps track of the decent folk;
    what they do won’t soon be forgotten.
In hard times, they’ll hold their heads high;
    when the shelves are bare, they’ll be full.

20 God-despisers have had it;
    God’s enemies are finished—
Stripped bare like vineyards at harvest time,
    vanished like smoke in thin air.

21-22 Wicked borrows and never returns;
    Righteous gives and gives.
Generous gets it all in the end;
    Stingy is cut off at the pass.

23-24 Stalwart walks in step with God;
    his path blazed by God, he’s happy.
If he stumbles, he’s not down for long;
    God has a grip on his hand.

25-26 I once was young, now I’m a graybeard—
    not once have I seen an abandoned believer,
    or his kids out roaming the streets.
Every day he’s out giving and lending,
    his children making him proud.

27-28 Turn your back on evil,
    work for the good and don’t quit.
God loves this kind of thing,
    never turns away from his friends.

28-29 Live this way and you’ve got it made,
    but bad eggs will be tossed out.
The good get planted on good land
    and put down healthy roots.

30-31 Righteous chews on wisdom like a dog on a bone,
rolls virtue around on his tongue.
His heart pumps God’s Word like blood through his veins;
    his feet are as sure as a cat’s.

32-33 Wicked sets a watch for Righteous,
he’s out for the kill.
God, alert, is also on watch—
    Wicked won’t hurt a hair of his head.

34 Wait passionately for God,
don’t leave the path.
He’ll give you your place in the sun
    while you watch the wicked lose it.

35-36 I saw Wicked bloated like a toad,
croaking pretentious nonsense.
The next time I looked there was nothing—
    a punctured bladder, vapid and limp.

37-38 Keep your eye on the healthy soul,
scrutinize the straight life;
There’s a future
    in strenuous wholeness.
But the willful will soon be discarded;
    insolent souls are on a dead-end street.

39-40 The spacious, free life is from God,
it’s also protected and safe.
God-strengthened, we’re delivered from evil—
    when we run to him, he saves us.

TRUTH:  God gives us courage, strength, tenacity, wisdom, insight and understanding to live for him.  “The spacious, free life is from God.”  He also protects, provides and keeps us safe “under the shadow of His wings”.  Run to him.  He saves us.

Proverb 16:10-15, The Message

A good leader motivates,
    doesn’t mislead, doesn’t exploit.

11 God cares about honesty in the workplace;
    your business is his business.

12 Good leaders abhor wrongdoing of all kinds;
    sound leadership has a moral foundation.

13 Good leaders cultivate honest speech;
    they love advisors who tell them the truth.

14 An intemperate leader wreaks havoc in lives;
    you’re smart to stay clear of someone like that.

15 Good-tempered leaders invigorate lives;
    they’re like spring rain and sunshine.

WISDOM:  Follow a proverb leader who follows God.  Look for those who motivate but do not manipulate.  Learn from Godly leaders who are honest, sincere, loving God and others as the basis of their moral foundation.  Love advisors who tell the Truth.  Run from anyone who is not of God.  If leaders don’t invigorate you and refresh your soul, the run from them.  Ask God for wisdom for yourself and your leaders.

Abba Father,

Help us.  I’m being still to listen.  What do you want for me to think, say or do today that will help someone else?  Thank you for defeating the foe before I get there.  You are indeed the Way to an open, spacious life!

In Jesus Name, Amen

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NOTHING GETS PAST GOD

Posted on November 7, 2020 by randscallawayffm

Mom won’t notice if one cookie is taken from the jar.  Dad won’t notice if I use this tool.  But we discover quickly they do notice.  As kids most of us thought our moms had eyes in the back of their head!  When I became a mom, I learned that it is a special knowing coupled with wisdom that God gives us to protect our kids.  For instance, the sound of the lid coming off the cookie jar is a dead giveaway.  The giggling also helped to secure the investigation.

Guess what?  Nothing gets by God, either.  He knows all, created all, is in control of all, and wants to protect us and provide for us because of his relentless, unconditional love for us.  His love is unchanging, full of grace and mercy.  God’s Word, all of it, “new and old”, is telling us of God’s love with the Way to love him back, even when our hands are caught in the cookie jar of life! 

That Way is now through Jesus Christ, His Son.  “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”  John 3:16, NIV “We love Him because He first loved us!”  1 John 4:19, NIV

Those who have no regard for God, as David writes and sings, has no love in their hearts.  For God is love. 

“My beloved friends, let us continue to love each other since love comes from God. Everyone who loves is born of God and experiences a relationship with God. The person who refuses to love doesn’t know the first thing about God, because God is love—so you can’t know him if you don’t love.”

“This is how God showed his love for us: God sent his only Son into the world so we might live through him. This is the kind of love we are talking about—not that we once upon a time loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to clear away our sins and the damage they’ve done to our relationship with God.”

“My dear, dear friends, if God loved us like this, we certainly ought to love each other. No one has seen God, ever. But if we love one another, God dwells deeply within us, and his love becomes complete in us—perfect love!”  1 John 7-12, The Message

THIS is why nothing gets past God’s notice.  He loves us!  Bullies controlled by evil will not win at the end of it all.  So, pray for your bullies.  God knows that you battle them.

Worship and Wisdom, Psalms and Proverbs

Psalm 36, The Message

A David Psalm

36 1-4 The God-rebel tunes in to sedition—
    all ears, eager to sin.
He has no regard for God,
    he stands insolent before him.
He has smooth-talked himself
    into believing
That his evil
    will never be noticed.
Words gutter from his mouth,
    dishwater dirty.
Can’t remember when he
    did anything decent.
Every time he goes to bed,
    he fathers another evil plot.
When he’s loose on the streets,
    nobody’s safe.
He plays with fire
    and doesn’t care who gets burned.

5-6 God’s love is meteoric,
    his loyalty astronomic,
His purpose titanic,
    his verdicts oceanic.
Yet in his largeness
    nothing gets lost;
Not a man, not a mouse,
    slips through the cracks.

7-9 How exquisite your love, O God!
    How eager we are to run under your wings,
To eat our fill at the banquet you spread
    as you fill our tankards with Eden spring water.
You’re a fountain of cascading light,
    and you open our eyes to light.

10-12 Keep on loving your friends;
    do your work in welcoming hearts.
Don’t let the bullies kick me around,
    the moral midgets slap me down.
Send the upstarts sprawling
    flat on their faces in the mud.

TRUTH:  NOTHING gets passed God’s notice.  “Yet in his largeness nothing gets lost; Not a man, not a mouse, slips through the cracks.”  GOOD to know and believe, right?

Proverb 16, The Message

Oh, how these words of wisdom follow up our Psalm of worship for the day! 

God’s promises…

Mortals make elaborate plans,
    but God has the last word.

2 Humans are satisfied with whatever looks good;
    God probes for what is good.

3 Put God in charge of your work,
    then what you’ve planned will take place.

4 God made everything with a place and purpose;
    even the wicked are included—but for judgment.

5 God can’t stomach arrogance or pretense;
    believe me, he’ll put those upstarts in their place.

6 Guilt is banished through love and truth;
    Fear-of-God deflects evil.

7 When God approves of your life,
    even your enemies will end up shaking your hand.

8 Far better to be right and poor
    than to be wrong and rich.

9 We plan the way we want to live,
    but only God makes us able to live it.

WISDOM:  God has the last word.  Put God in charge.  God is love and love us.

Abba Father,

What glorious words of worship and praise this morning that teaches us that you are in control.  You make all things good from whatever the world of evil tries to throw at us, or use us in his schemes.  You win at the end of the day.  You help us live for you when we turn fully to you committed to follow in your ways.  You are God and we are not.  I love you back with all my heart, mind and soul.  Help me to live the life you intended for me to live with You.  Thank you for Your Presence in my puny life.  You make all the difference.  You are the difference between life and death.  To you be all the Glory!

In Jesus Name, Amen

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DO WHAT YOU THINK IS RIGHT, GOD

Posted on November 6, 2020 by randscallawayffm

Anyone who has led anything at all for any amount of time learn very quickly that not all people will agree with you, support you, or help you with the task UNLESS you have done exactly what they want in every detail.  Even then, it is like walking a tightrope over a pit of lions.  There will always be that one who says, “Yeah, but…”  This is what we call a People Pleasing Leader.  When we fall to the ways of people pleasing in our leadership, we learn very quickly that you will never please everyone.  Even when you do what they say you should do, when it fails, they blame you first of all!  The people you tried to please turn on you quickly for these are people who want what they want, not what God wants.  Their lives demand fulfillment by your work to please them.  This is very shallow living on their part and ours, but it is even more destructive in your leading abilities.  It is also stresses your physical and emotional health. 

So, ask God.  God what do you think is right?  What do YOU want me to do?  Where do you want me to go?  Who will go with me?  What do you want me to say?  This thinking, taught to us by Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord, will not please the crowd.  (See the ministry of Jesus in the Gospels).  But, who will give you more peace, wisdom, clarity, insight and understanding?  The crowd or the Creator of all? 

PAUSE TO PRAY

Who do I want to worship and please most of all?  Will I allow the hecklers who reside on the sidelines of the work to tell me what to do while I’m doing it?  This happened to Nehemiah who led the people of God to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem.  God led him in the work he called him to be and do.  God encouraged him to encourage the people doing the work throughout the process.  God led him to finish the work. Here is the theme of how God works. God leads us.  We follow.  Peace is a result.  No regrets in doing what God wants.  There is no one like our God.  Why please anyone else? 

David survives the hecklers, discouragers, bullies, thugs, false accusers, gossipers, and the taunting jeers that try to bring him down.  He makes a very important statement in the middle of it all, after throwing in his ideas of what God should do to his enemies, “DO WHAT YOU THINK IS RIGHT, GOD”. 

This needs to be our statement of declaration to God today, right now, while we wait to see who our nation’s leader will be, as we continue to walk through a pandemic watching our friends succumb to it, while we walk through the minefields of tedious relationships with others who demand our allegiance to them while the whole world suffers without knowing Jesus.  Lord, help us.  Help us to we fight the battle of temptation to please people rather than God.  Do what you think is right, God. 

We need to decide this day whom we will serve, worship, please and adore completely and unreservedly.  Only then, like David at the end of his lament, can we raise our hallelujahs!  Let the praises flow…to God alone!  Yes, do what you think is right, God! 

Your ways are higher than our thinking.  Please do what you think is right in my life.

Worship and Wisdom, Psalms and Proverbs

Psalm 35, The Message

A David Psalm

35 1-3 Harass these hecklers, God,
    punch these bullies in the nose.
Grab a weapon, anything at hand;
    stand up for me!
Get ready to throw the spear, aim the javelin,
    at the people who are out to get me.
Reassure me; let me hear you say,
    “I’ll save you.”

4-8 When those thugs try to knife me in the back,
    make them look foolish.
Frustrate all those
    who are plotting my downfall.
Make them like cinders in a high wind,
    with God’s angel working the bellows.
Make their road lightless and mud-slick,
    with God’s angel on their tails.
Out of sheer cussedness they set a trap to catch me;
    for no good reason they dug a ditch to stop me.
Surprise them with your ambush—
    catch them in the very trap they set,
    the disaster they planned for me.

9-10 But let me run loose and free,
    celebrating God’s great work,
Every bone in my body laughing, singing, “God,
    there’s no one like you.
You put the down-and-out on their feet
    and protect the unprotected from bullies!”

11-12 Hostile accusers appear out of nowhere,
    they stand up and badger me.
They pay me back misery for mercy,
    leaving my soul empty.

13-14 When they were sick, I dressed in black;
    instead of eating, I prayed.
My prayers were like lead in my gut,
    like I’d lost my best friend, my brother.
I paced, distraught as a motherless child,
    hunched and heavyhearted.

15-16 But when I was down
    they threw a party!
All the nameless riffraff of the town came
    chanting insults about me.
Like barbarians desecrating a shrine,
    they destroyed my reputation.

17-18 God, how long are you going
    to stand there doing nothing?
Save me from their brutalities;
    everything I’ve got is being thrown to the lions.
I will give you full credit
    when everyone gathers for worship;
When the people turn out in force
    I will say my Hallelujahs.

19-21 Don’t let these liars, my enemies,
    have a party at my expense,
Those who hate me for no reason,
    winking and rolling their eyes.
No good is going to come
    from that crowd;
They spend all their time cooking up gossip
    against those who mind their own business.
They open their mouths
    in ugly grins,
Mocking, “Ha-ha, ha-ha, thought you’d get away with it?
    We’ve caught you hands down!”

22 Don’t you see what they’re doing, God?
    You’re not going to let them
Get by with it, are you? Not going to walk off
    without doing something, are you?

23-26 Please get up—wake up! Tend to my case.
    My God, my Lord—my life is on the line.
Do what you think is right, God, my God,
    but don’t make me pay for their good time.
Don’t let them say to themselves,
    “Ha-ha, we got what we wanted.”
Don’t let them say,
    “We’ve chewed him up and spit him out.”
Let those who are being hilarious
    at my expense
Be made to look ridiculous.
    Make them wear donkey’s ears;
Pin them with the donkey’s tail,
    who made themselves so high and mighty!

27-28 But those who want
    the best for me,
Let them have the last word—a glad shout!—
    and say, over and over and over,
“God is great—everything works
    together for good for his servant.”
I’ll tell the world how great and good you are,
    I’ll shout Hallelujah all day, every day.

TRUTH:  Do what you think is right, God.  Only then will we have peace no matter what is happening around us.  “God is great—everything works together for good for his servant.”  Shout Hallelujah to the King of kings and Lord of lords all day, every day!

Proverb 15:29-33, The Message


God keeps his distance from the wicked;
    he closely attends to the prayers of God-loyal people.

30 A twinkle in the eye means joy in the heart,
    and good news makes you feel fit as a fiddle.

31 Listen to good advice if you want to live well,
    an honored guest among wise men and women.

32 An undisciplined, self-willed life is puny;
    an obedient, God-willed life is spacious.

33 Fear-of-God is a school in skilled living—
    first you learn humility, then you experience glory.

WISDOM:  Live large.  Please God.  Be obedient.  “…a God-willed life is spacious”.  First humility, then glory.

Abba Father,

Do what you think is right.

In Jesus Name, Amen

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STILL, GOD!

Posted on November 5, 2020 by randscallawayffm

I always write my prayers of concerns, worries, cares and praises in a journal each morning before I dive into what God’s Word teaches me.  Concerns about others’ troubles or those in my family pour out on the pages.  What people are going through as well as myself are expressed to Abba Father.  Sometimes tears come.  Sometimes a heavy sigh fills the quiet of the hour.  When encouraged by the end of my lament, a hearty YES! to God is said out loud!  I am encouraged by God’s love.  I am encouraged by what God has done in the past, is doing and will do in my life as a result of what He has done for others I read about in His Word. 

No matters what is happening to you right now, what you are feeling about life or the confusion you are experiencing that leads to stress, David reminds us, “Disciples so often get into trouble; still, God is there every time.”  Seek God voice in His word.

Worship and Wisdom, Psalms and Proverbs

Psalm 34, The Message

A David Psalm, When He Outwitted Abimelech and Got Away

34 I bless God every chance I get;
my lungs expand with his praise.

2 I live and breathe God;
if things aren’t going well, hear this and be happy:

3 Join me in spreading the news;
together let’s get the word out.

4 God met me more than halfway,
he freed me from my anxious fears.

5 Look at him; give him your warmest smile.
Never hide your feelings from him.

6 When I was desperate, I called out,
and God got me out of a tight spot.

7 God’s angel sets up a circle
of protection around us while we pray.

8 Open your mouth and taste, open your eyes and see—
how good God is.
Blessed are you who run to him.

9 Worship God if you want the best;
worship opens doors to all his goodness.

10 Young lions on the prowl get hungry,
but God-seekers are full of God.

11 Come, children, listen closely;
I’ll give you a lesson in God worship.

12 Who out there has a lust for life?
Can’t wait each day to come upon beauty?

13 Guard your tongue from profanity,
and no more lying through your teeth.

14 Turn your back on sin; do something good.
Embrace peace—don’t let it get away!

15 God keeps an eye on his friends,
his ears pick up every moan and groan.

16 God won’t put up with rebels;
he’ll cull them from the pack.

17 Is anyone crying for help? God is listening,
ready to rescue you.

18 If your heart is broken, you’ll find God right there;
if you’re kicked in the gut, he’ll help you catch your breath.

19 Disciples so often get into trouble;
still, God is there every time.

20 He’s your bodyguard, shielding every bone;
not even a finger gets broken.

21 The wicked commit slow suicide;
they waste their lives hating the good.

22 God pays for each slave’s freedom;
no one who runs to him loses out.

TRUTH: “Still, God is there every time.”  God seekers find God.  He listens to every groan and sigh as well as every word we think and say inside or out loud.  God knows.  Still, God is there.  God brings resolution and peace when we ask.  So, ask.

Solomon gives advice on the ways of God.  God is One and Only One to be trusted.

Proverb 15:16-28, The Message

A simple life in the Fear-of-God
    is better than a rich life with a ton of headaches.

17 Better a bread crust shared in love
    than a slab of prime rib served in hate.

18 Hot tempers start fights;
    a calm, cool spirit keeps the peace.

19 The path of lazy people is overgrown with briers;
    the diligent walk down a smooth road.

20 Intelligent children make their parents proud;
    lazy students embarrass their parents.

21 The empty-headed treat life as a plaything;
    the perceptive grasp its meaning and make a go of it.

22 Refuse good advice and watch your plans fail;
    take good counsel and watch them succeed.

23 Congenial conversation—what a pleasure!
    The right word at the right time—beautiful!

24 Life ascends to the heights for the thoughtful—
    it’s a clean about-face from descent into hell.

25 God smashes the pretensions of the arrogant;
    he stands with those who have no standing.

26 God can’t stand evil scheming,
    but he puts words of grace and beauty on display.

27 A greedy and grasping person destroys community;
    those who refuse to exploit live and let live.

28 Prayerful answers come from God-loyal people;
    the wicked are sewers of abuse.

WISDOM:  Seek God.  With God is a life of grace and beauty, the right words at the right time, with clarity replacing confusion.  “Prayerful answers come from God-loyal people.

What do we learn?  God is God and we are not.  Why trust anyone else for help?  No matter what is happening, God is in control.  God hears us when we pray.  God is working while we are sleeping.  God already as a solution before we pray.  Still, God.

Abba Father,

What a wonder you are!  We cannot wrap our human minds around the majesty, power, intelligence, love, mercy and grace that you possess!  You want to give us all you have but we hold back from asking.  I don’t know why we do that!  Please forgive me when I try to figure out everything by myself.  I want you.  I need you every hour.  Thank you for coming to my aid when I am in trouble.  Thank you for clarity when the world causes confusion of thought.  Thank you for caring for those I care about.  Thank you for hearing my cries of help and proclamations of praise to you.  Thank you for running to meet me when I turned and began my journey with you.  Keep my eyes on You.  You are indeed still, God.

In Jesus Name, Amen

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WE’RE AT OUR BEST WHEN WE PRAISE!

Posted on November 4, 2020 by randscallawayffm

Praising God in song, in prayer, in our behavior, in adoration of all He has done and is doing, brings out the best in us because we are turning the attention from ourselves back to God, the One and Only to be worshiped and praised.  He is God and we are not!  It is good for us to praise God.  We were created to praise God, the Maker of heaven and Earth.  When we don’t, negative thoughts creep in and we look at the world differently.  We frown more, overthink, assume the worst in people, not the best.  Our circumstances begin to overwhelm us and life seems doomed to fail us.  We think we are doomed to fail.  We are not at our best when we look down or around at others who do not live up to our standards.  Yikes.  (Shudder)

Yes, we are definitely at our best when we look up to God and praise Him.  God knows that when we praise, we begin to see the world through His eyes.  We gain new perspective and begin to understand His way of thinking when we praise Him with all that is in us.  The world looks completely different after a hearty praise session with God, our Father!

When we spend more time in praise, it brings more of the God-in-us out into the open.  We become more affirming of others.  Praising God leads to loving others the way we know He loves us.  Instead of putting others down, we begin to affirm them because we see God working in them, too.  We see the best, not the worst and acknowledge what we see in praise to God for them! 

Praising God has another benefit.  We begin to be joyful, not jealous, when others grow in the blessing of God’s character traits, too. “I see Jesus in you when _________.”  One of the many mentors in my life taught me to begin talking to someone with this opening praise for God in them.  This was probably one of the most meaningful nuggets of wisdom I ever received from him.  By praising what we see God through Jesus doing in the lives of others, we are actually praising God!!  Everything goes back to God!  To God be the glory!

Yes, indeed, “Right-living people sound best when praising.” 

PAUSE TO PRAY

Lord, who can I affirm today and what will I say to encourage them as praise to You?  Show me.  Put your words in my mouth and then help me to listen.

Worship and Wisdom, Psalms and Proverbs

Psalm 33, The Message

1-3 Good people, cheer God!
    Right-living people sound best when praising.
Use guitars to reinforce your Hallelujahs!
    Play his praise on a grand piano!
Invent your own new song to him;
    give him a trumpet fanfare.

4-5 For God’s Word is solid to the core;
    everything he makes is sound inside and out.
He loves it when everything fits,
    when his world is in plumb-line true.
Earth is drenched
    in God’s affectionate satisfaction.

6-7 The skies were made by God’s command;
    he breathed the word and the stars popped out.
He scooped Sea into his jug,
    put Ocean in his keg.

8-9 Earth-creatures, bow before God;
    world-dwellers—down on your knees!
Here’s why: he spoke and there it was,
    in place the moment he said so.

10-12 God takes the wind out of Babel pretense,
    he shoots down the world’s power-schemes.
God’s plan for the world stands up,
    all his designs are made to last.
Blessed is the country with God for God;
    blessed are the people he’s put in his will.

13-15 From high in the skies God looks around,
    he sees all Adam’s brood.
From where he sits
    he overlooks all us earth-dwellers.
He has shaped each person in turn;
    now he watches everything we do.

16-17 No king succeeds with a big army alone,
    no warrior wins by brute strength.
Horsepower is not the answer;
    no one gets by on muscle alone.

18-19 Watch this: God’s eye is on those who respect him,
    the ones who are looking for his love.
He’s ready to come to their rescue in bad times;
    in lean times he keeps body and soul together.

20-22 We’re depending on God;
    he’s everything we need.
What’s more, our hearts brim with joy
    since we’ve taken for our own his holy name.
Love us, God, with all you’ve got—
    that’s what we’re depending on.

TRUTH: “Right-living people sound best when praising.”  Why do we praise God, our Father, Our Creator, Our Life?  “God’s eye is on those who respect him, the ones who are looking for his love.  He’s ready to come to their rescue in bad times; in lean times he keeps body and soul together.  We’re depending on God; he’s everything we need.”

Proverb 15:12-15, The Message

Life Ascends to the Heights

12 Know-it-alls don’t like being told what to do;
    they avoid the company of wise men and women.

13 A cheerful heart brings a smile to your face;
    a sad heart makes it hard to get through the day.

14 An intelligent person is always eager to take in more truth;
    fools feed on fast-food fads and fancies.

15 A miserable heart means a miserable life;
    a cheerful heart fills the day with song.

WISDOM:  A cheerful heart brings a smile to your face.  A leader is a learner.  A cheerful heart is a heart of praise to God and fills the day with beauty and song!

Abba Father,

Thank you for all you have done over the years.  You have saved our souls from a young age, then worked in us at each step to lead us to what you created us to be and do.  Thank you for all you are currently doing to lead us in this season of life to be and do all you created us to be and do.  Life and more life, that’s who you are!  I cannot praise you enough for you are the Giver of Life.  You are my protector, my provider, healer, Savior and Lord.  To You be the Glory.  You are my everything.  You are everything I need.  I love you with all that is in me.  Continue to show me your ways and thinking and I will obey.  For to praise You brings out the best in me!

In Jesus Name, Amen

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FRESH START WITH A PURE HEART

Posted on November 3, 2020 by randscallawayffm

Why do we worry and fret over a sin unrepented?  Worry just makes the sin grow in inside us.  Sin has side effects of grumpy moods, causing hateful words to fall from our lips that hurt others around us.  Why hold it in or hold it close to our hearts as if it were a precious prize for us to control?  Sin unresolved is uncontrollable.  Sin is like a cancer that spreads rapidly affecting every part of our being.  Sin, along with the results of our bad decisions, can’t find a comfortable place to live in a life that loves God.  Unrepented sin will not lead to an anxiety free life!  The pressure alone is like blowing up a balloon until it bursts in your face!  We are testing the limits of our lives by holding in and grabbing on tightly to all that we need to let go of for our good. 

“God holds nothing against you and you’re holding nothing back from him.”  David is proclaiming how to let it all go to God!  God is the God of fresh starts and restored joy.  Blessed are those who let it go, let the secrets out to Jesus who already knows and advocates for us to the Father who forgives us completely, never to remember the sin again! 

Yes, blessed indeed are those who “get it and repent it” and know the slate is clean forever when they do.  This is what God wants and how God works in our lives.  “This is how much God loved the world: He gave his Son, his one and only Son. And this is why: so that no one need be destroyed; by believing in him, anyone can have a whole and lasting life. God didn’t go to all the trouble of sending his Son merely to point an accusing finger, telling the world how bad it was. He came to help, to put the world right again. Anyone who trusts in him is acquitted; anyone who refuses to trust him has long since been under the death sentence without knowing it. And why? Because of that person’s failure to believe in the one-of-a-kind Son of God when introduced to him.”  John 3:16-18, The Message

Jesus died for our sins, paying the debt we owed, and rose again to make redemption possible for us.  Nothing is held against us any longer.  Debt paid in full.  No more secret lies to self or to others.  No more placing blame on someone else or trying to rationalize our sin.  We just repent of it all and be made clean, washed in the blood of Jesus Christ and made whole by His saving grace!  God is a merciful God, but we must let go of all that is not of God in our lives. 

Ready for a fresh start?  Tell Jesus. 

Worship and Wisdom, Psalms and Proverbs

Psalm 32, The Message

A David Psalm

32 Count yourself lucky, how happy you must be—
    you get a fresh start,
    your slate’s wiped clean.

2 Count yourself lucky—
    God holds nothing against you
    and you’re holding nothing back from him.

3 When I kept it all inside,
    my bones turned to powder,
    my words became daylong groans.

4 The pressure never let up;
    all the juices of my life dried up.

5 Then I let it all out;
    I said, “I’ll make a clean breast of my failures to God.”

Suddenly the pressure was gone—
    my guilt dissolved,
    my sin disappeared.

6 These things add up. Every one of us needs to pray;
    when all hell breaks loose and the dam bursts
    we’ll be on high ground, untouched.

7 God’s my island hideaway,
    keeps danger far from the shore,
    throws garlands of hosannas around my neck.

8 Let me give you some good advice;
    I’m looking you in the eye
    and giving it to you straight:

9 “Don’t be ornery like a horse or mule
    that needs bit and bridle
    to stay on track.”

10 God-defiers are always in trouble;
    God-affirmers find themselves loved
    every time they turn around.

11 Celebrate God.
    Sing together—everyone!
    All you honest hearts, raise the roof!

TRUTH:  “Lucky” in this paraphrase is synonymous with blessed.  To be blessed is to grow in the characteristics of God.  God-affirmers find themselves loved every time they turn around. Amen!  We love God because He first loved us.

Proverb 15:10-11, The Message

It’s a school of hard knocks for those who leave God’s path,
    a dead-end street for those who hate God’s rules.

11 Even hell holds no secrets from God—
    do you think he can’t read human hearts?

WISDOM:  Know God knows exactly what you think you are trying to hide! 

“But God told Samuel, “Looks aren’t everything. Don’t be impressed with his looks and stature. I’ve already eliminated him. God judges persons differently than humans do. Men and women look at the face; God looks into the heart.”

1 Samuel 16:7, The Message

Abba Father,

Who do we think we are to hold back and hold on so tightly to sins that destroy us?  You see our hearts, know our minds and want more, so much more for us because of your love.  I repent of worry, anxiety and thinking it will resolve itself.  I repent of all that offends you in me.  I ask for a fresh start today, cleansing me of all things not right for me to hold on to any longer.  Wipe the slate clean, Lord.  We don’t need to talk about this any longer for it is forgotten in your mind.  Wow, what a mighty, merciful, gracious God you are.  Thank you, dear Jesus, for saving my soul and making me whole.  Continue to transform my life to be all you created me to be and then do.  I love you with all my heart, mind and soul.  To you be the glory!  In Jesus Name, Amen!   

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EXPECT GOD, BE ENCOURAGED!

Posted on November 2, 2020 by randscallawayffm

David was singing praises of thanksgiving to God in the previous psalm, but now he is running to God for help again.  “I run for dear life to you, God.”  “You are my hiding place”, David laments to God.  The battles we face in life come when we least expect it, but one piece of wisdom that we cling to is knowing we can expect God to be there.  He knows what we struggle with now and in the future.  God will use these trials to comfort, convict, challenge and encourage us to grow in His character through them.  We are not perfect people, but we are perfectly forgiven by Jesus Christ, God’s Son, who died for all our sin.  We live in an imperfect world but with the help of a perfect God!

WHAT TO EXPECT FROM GOD…

We can expect God to forgive us when sincerely ask in Jesus Name.

We can expect God to hear us when we humbly pray.

We can expect God to be found when we look for Him.

We can expect God to fight our battles when we ask for help.

We can expect God to help us in our troubles with other imperfect people.

We can expect God to give us wisdom, insight and understanding beyond ourselves.

We can expect God to give us peace right in the middle of the biggest storm we face.

We can expect God to increase our joy when we are saddened by circumstances beyond our control.

We can expect God to lead, guide and direct each step we take toward Him and His will for our lives.

We can expect our God to always be with us.

How do I know?  The Bible tells me so.  AND I have experienced God in all these ways and more!  Praise God who helps, protects, provides and guides!

Live expecting God to be with you.  Live expectant lives for God.  What does that mean, exactly?  “Prophetic events show the need to live each moment in Christlike readiness. In view of the sure promises of Christ’s return, as believers, we are to do more than merely be ready; we are to be expectant.”  –David Jeremiah, “How to live expectantly”

Vance Havner once suggested that in our day of “anarchy, apostasy and apathy,” expectant living means: “We need to take down our ‘Do Not Disturb’ signs and snap out of our stupor and awake from our apathy.”

God’s Word calls us to awake out of our sleep, and to walk in righteousness, in the light that Christ gives us (Romans 13:11; 1 Corinthians 15:34; Ephesians 5:14).

PAUSE TO PRAY

Am I living expectantly for Jesus’ return?  If not, why?

Am I living knowing God is with me and knows me inside and out? 

David calls out to God, “Take me seriously this time!”  Have we called out to God in this way?

Do we expect God to answer?

Worship and Wisdom, Psalms and Proverbs

Psalm 31, The Message

A David Psalm

1-2 I run to you, God; I run for dear life.
    Don’t let me down!
    Take me seriously this time!
Get down on my level and listen,
    and please—no procrastination!
Your granite cave, a hiding place,
    your high cliff aerie a place of safety.

3-5 You’re my cave to hide in,
    my cliff to climb.
Be my safe leader,
    be my true mountain guide.
Free me from hidden traps;
    I want to hide in you.
I’ve put my life in your hands.
    You won’t drop me,
    you’ll never let me down.

6-13 I hate all this silly religion,
    but you, God, I trust.
I’m leaping and singing in the circle of your love;
    you saw my pain,
    you disarmed my tormentors,
You didn’t leave me in their clutches
    but gave me room to breathe.

Be kind to me, God—
    I’m in deep, deep trouble again.
I’ve cried my eyes out;
    I feel hollow inside.
My life leaks away, groan by groan;
    my years fade out in sighs.
My troubles have worn me out,
    turned my bones to powder.

To my enemies I’m a monster;
    I’m ridiculed by the neighbors.
My friends are horrified;
    they cross the street to avoid me.
They want to blot me from memory,
    forget me like a corpse in a grave,
    discard me like a broken dish in the trash.
The street-talk gossip has me
    “criminally insane”!
Behind locked doors they plot
    how to ruin me for good.

14-18 Desperate, I throw myself on you:
    you are my God!
Hour by hour I place my days in your hand,
    safe from the hands out to get me.
Warm me, your servant, with a smile;
    save me because you love me.

Don’t embarrass me by not showing up;
    I’ve given you plenty of notice.
Embarrass the wicked, stand them up,
    leave them stupidly shaking their heads
    as they drift down to hell.
Gag those loudmouthed liars
    who heckle me, your follower,
    with jeers and catcalls.

19-22 What a stack of blessing you have piled up
    for those who worship you,
Ready and waiting for all who run to you
    to escape an unkind world.
You hide them safely away
    from the opposition.
As you slam the door on those oily, mocking faces,
    you silence the poisonous gossip.

Blessed God!
    His love is the wonder of the world.
Trapped by a siege, I panicked.
    “Out of sight, out of mind,” I said.
But you heard me say it,
    you heard and listened.

23 Love God, all you saints;
    God takes care of all who stay close to him,
But he pays back in full
    those arrogant enough to go it alone.

24 Be brave. Be strong. Don’t give up.
    Expect God to get here soon.

TRUTH:  God takes care of all who stay close to him.  Expect God to get here soon.  In the meantime, be brave, strong and don’t give up.

The wisdom of proverb 15 follows this thought of expectancy knowing God does not miss a moment in our lives!  He knows us.  He knows the people around us.  He knows what we face each day.  He gives wisdom…

Proverb 15:1-11, The Message

God Doesn’t Miss a Thing

A gentle response defuses anger,
    but a sharp tongue kindles a temper-fire.

2 Knowledge flows like spring water from the wise;
    fools are leaky faucets, dripping nonsense.

3 God doesn’t miss a thing—
    he’s alert to good and evil alike.

4 Kind words heal and help;
    cutting words wound and maim.

5 Moral dropouts won’t listen to their elders;
    welcoming correction is a mark of good sense.

6 The lives of God-loyal people flourish;
    a misspent life is soon bankrupt.

7 Perceptive words spread knowledge;
    fools are hollow—there’s nothing to them.

8 God can’t stand pious poses,
    but he delights in genuine prayers.

9 A life frittered away disgusts God;
    he loves those who run straight for the finish line.

10 It’s a school of hard knocks for those who leave God’s path,
    a dead-end street for those who hate God’s rules.

11 Even hell holds no secrets from God—
    do you think he can’t read human hearts?

WISDOM:  Knowing and realizing that God doesn’t miss a thing going on in our lives brings humbly to truth.  Accept the blame, right the wrong, make peace the best you can, forgive and be forgiven and then move on with God, not against Him.  There are no secrets from God.  He knows us better than we know ourselves.  He reads human hearts and understands us.  Know God who knows us.  Be honest in prayer, thought and behavior.  That’s what God wants.  That’s what is best for us.

Abba Father,

What a wonderful God you are that you would care for us so much!  We could wander around wondering about life, but You provide help in every way we need.  You are God and we are not.  You know all we need to know.  You are with us and we thank you and praise you.  You are our hiding place until we understand what we need to do next.  You are love, joy, peace.  You are a gracious God full of mercy for our missteps and sinful ways.  Thank you for forgiveness and restoration.  Thank you for the expectant hope of your return with life eternal.  Thank you for saving us right now.

In Jesus Name, Amen!  I believe!

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I CAN’T THANK YOU ENOUGH!

Posted on October 31, 2020 by randscallawayffm

Truth:  Grateful hearts drive away grumpy attitudes.  Who would you rather hang out with at home, work, church or any other place with people?  As for me, I would much rather hang out with smiling, positive people who are grateful for all God as done and is doing in their lives and they are not quiet about it!  I’m discovering, as I mature, that among the extremely grateful believers I know and love, their humbled gracious attitude comes from times of suffering. 

It seems suffering are indeed teachable moments in God’s Kingdom.  Those who have suffered the most in their lives are the very ones who are most grateful to God for getting them through it.  Wait, what?!  Yes, it’s true.  Until you are at the end of your rope, hanging on, asking and trusting God for help, you might not know what pure, from the heart, gratitude is.  “I can’t thank you enough!”, says David.  He has been through battles, betrayals, dysfunctional family relationships, sometimes being on the run from his enemies.  He called out to God, asked God to forgive and help Him in and through these trials and suffering and God did. 

David writes another song of thanksgiving to God.  We can almost hear David shouting his praise from the rooftops.  “I give you all the credit, God”, “You put me together”, “I can’t keep quiet about you”, “I can’t thank you enough”! 

What is our attitude quotient today?

Worship and Wisdom, Psalm and Proverbs

Psalm 30, The Message

A David Psalm

30 I give you all the credit, God—
    you got me out of that mess,
    you didn’t let my foes gloat.

2-3 God, my God, I yelled for help
    and you put me together.
God, you pulled me out of the grave,
    gave me another chance at life
    when I was down-and-out.

4-5 All you saints! Sing your hearts out to God!
    Thank him to his face!
He gets angry once in a while, but across
    a lifetime there is only love.
The nights of crying your eyes out
    give way to days of laughter.

6-7 When things were going great
    I crowed, “I’ve got it made.
I’m God’s favorite.
    He made me king of the mountain.”
Then you looked the other way
    and I fell to pieces.

8-10 I called out to you, God;
    I laid my case before you:
“Can you sell me for a profit when I’m dead?
    auction me off at a cemetery yard sale?
When I’m ‘dust to dust’ my songs
    and stories of you won’t sell.
So listen! and be kind!
    Help me out of this!”

11-12 You did it: you changed wild lament
    into whirling dance;
You ripped off my black mourning band
    and decked me with wildflowers.
I’m about to burst with song;
    I can’t keep quiet about you.
God, my God,
    I can’t thank you enough.

TRUTH:  God, I can’t thank you enough! 

In the background I hear an old song of thanks playing in my mind and it makes me smile.  “My Tribute” by Andrae Crouch

How can I say thanks
For the things You have done for me?
Things so undeserved,
Yet You gave to prove Your love for me;
The voices of a million angels
Could not express my gratitude.
All that I am and ever hope to be,
I owe it all to Thee.

To God be the glory,
To God be the glory,
To God be the glory
For the things He has done.

With His blood He has saved me,
With His power He has raised me;
To God be the glory
For the things He has done.

Just let me live my life,
Let it pleasing, Lord to Thee,
And if I gain any praise,
Let it go to Calvary.

Proverb 14:27-35, The Message

The Fear-of-God is a spring of living water
    so you won’t go off drinking from poisoned wells.

28 The mark of a good leader is loyal followers;
    leadership is nothing without a following.

29 Slowness to anger makes for deep understanding;
    a quick-tempered person stockpiles stupidity.

30 A sound mind makes for a robust body,
    but runaway emotions corrode the bones.

31 You insult your Maker when you exploit the powerless;
    when you’re kind to the poor, you honor God.

32 The evil of bad people leaves them out in the cold;
    the integrity of good people creates a safe place for living.

33 Lady Wisdom is at home in an understanding heart—
    fools never even get to say hello.

34 God-devotion makes a country strong;
    God-avoidance leaves people weak.

35 Diligent work gets a warm commendation;
    shiftless work earns an angry rebuke.

WISDOM:  God’s Wisdom is at home in an understanding, grateful heart.  Awe, (healthy fear), of God is a spring of LIVING water.  To God be the glory!

Abba Father,

We, like David, cannot thank you enough!  You have helped us all our lives.  You saved our souls, dear Jesus.  We had troubles and you helped us through them.  We have been betrayed by people who said they loved you and us, and you helped us see truth.  We have been slandered and you brought truth to light.  We were brought low but You brough us out of suffering and filled us with peace and healing.  You lifted us up when we were down. 

You picked us up and put us back together when we fell under the load of worry and confusion.  Yes, you provided wisdom in place of confusion.  You provided for our needs at just the right time.  You provided miracles of physical and emotional healing.  You have always given us all we needed for the missions you asked us to join you.  Yes, you provide where you guide.  You have protected us at times when we didn’t even know we were being attacked. 

You are God, and we are not.  There is NO ONE like You!  Why would we trust anyone else but You?  I am humbly grateful for all you have done, are doing now and will do until we see you face to face in all your glory.  Wow.  Just Wow.  There are truly not enough words to express my gratitude!

In Jesus Name, Amen

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CONFIDENCE!

Posted on October 30, 2020 by randscallawayffm

We all want it and need it.  We want to walk through life with the kind of confidence that gives us peace and joy with power to be all we are created to be. Where does this confidence come from?  The Lord!  The Lord’s confidence in us is more than enough to live life to the full! 

“God makes his people strong.  God gives his people peace.”  Hold on to those words and repeat them often today and see what happens in and through us! 

Worship and Wisdom, Psalms and Proverbs

Psalm 29, The Message

A David Psalm

1-2 Bravo, God, bravo!
    Gods and all angels shout, “Encore!”
In awe before the glory,
    in awe before God’s visible power.
Stand at attention!
    Dress your best to honor him!

3 God thunders across the waters,
Brilliant, his voice and his face, streaming brightness—
God, across the flood waters.

4 God’s thunder tympanic,
God’s thunder symphonic.

5 God’s thunder smashes cedars,
God topples the northern cedars.

6 The mountain ranges skip like spring colts,
The high ridges jump like wild kid goats.

7-8 God’s thunder spits fire.
God thunders, the wilderness quakes;
He makes the desert of Kadesh shake.

9 God’s thunder sets the oak trees dancing
A wild dance, whirling; the pelting rain strips their branches.
We fall to our knees—we call out, “Glory!”

10 Above the floodwaters is God’s throne
    from which his power flows,
    from which he rules the world.

11 God makes his people strong.
God gives his people peace.

TRUTH:  Above all—GOD!  “God makes his people strong.  God gives his people peace.

Proverb 14:20-26, The Message

An unlucky loser is shunned by all,
    but everyone loves a winner.

21 It’s criminal to ignore a neighbor in need,
    but compassion for the poor—what a blessing!

22 Isn’t it obvious that conspirators lose out,
    while the thoughtful win love and trust?

23 Hard work always pays off;
    mere talk puts no bread on the table.

24 The wise accumulate wisdom;
    fools get stupider by the day.

25 Souls are saved by truthful witness
    and betrayed by the spread of lies.

26 The Fear-of-God builds up confidence,
    and makes a world safe for your children.

WISDOM: ABOVE ALL—GOD!  “The Fear-of-God builds up confidence”—GOD-fidence!  We trust God for wisdom, protection, provision, insight, understanding, knowing the right way to go, clarity and focus.  There is no one like our God!  Most of all, God saves us through Jesus Christ, His Son.  That’s where our GOD-fidence comes from along with the power within us to help us overcome troubles and enemy attacks! 

NEED MORE CONFIDENCE?

Here are just a few of over hundred or so verses in God’s Word about His confidence that flows through us…

2 Timothy 1:7 

For God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.

Proverbs 14:26 ESV

In the fear of the Lord one has strong confidence, and his children will have a refuge.

Romans 15:13 ESV

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.

Philippians 1:6 ESV

And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.

James 4:10 ESV

Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you.

1 Corinthians 10:13 ESV

No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.

John 16:23 ESV

In that day you will ask nothing of me. Truly, truly, I say to you, whatever you ask of the Father in my name, he will give it to you.

James 1:2 ESV

Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds,

Romans 5:1 ESV

Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.

1 John 1:9 ESV

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

Ephesians 5:8 ESV

For at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light

John 20:19-24 ESV

On the evening of that day, the first day of the week, the doors being locked where the disciples were for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said to them, “Peace be with you.” When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord. Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you.” And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you withhold forgiveness from any, it is withheld.” …

2 Timothy 3:1-4:22 ESV

But understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power. Avoid such people. …

1 Corinthians 16:13 ESV  

Be watchful, stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong.

Psalm 118:8 ESV

It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in man.

Galatians 6:9 ESV

And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up.

Jeremiah 29:11 ESV

For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.

Isaiah 43:18-19 ESV

“Remember not the former things, nor consider the things of old. Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.

Ephesians 2:10 ESV

For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.

1 John 5:13-14 ESV

I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God that you may know that you have eternal life. And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us.

NOW, DO WE HAVE GOD-FIDENCE?

Abba Father,

Thank you for all you are to us and all the confidence you place in us as your created followers and believers!  Thank you for Your Holy Presence with us always.  Thank you for saving our souls.  Thank you for peace you give when we are hard pressed or confused.  Thank for clarity when we are confused.  Thank you for your relentless love, mercy and grace that saved us from ourselves.  Yes, we want all the God-fidence you are willing to give.  We need you every hour.  Every hour we need you and your confidence living and abiding in us.  Thank you, Lord for your consistent work in me.

In Jesus Name, Amen

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