Lamentations 3:22-2 - New every morning

Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed,
     for his compassions never fail.
They are new every morning;
     great is your faithfulness.
I say to myself, “The Lord is my portion;
     therefore I will wait for him.”

You may or may not have noticed I have written very rarely the last month or so. I've been having a hard time getting up in the morning and chose to sleep in instead of do my bible study. I am praying for a renewal, for an extra bolt of energy in the morning to get out of bed early enough to do this short bible study.

Lord, thank you for your faithfulness. Please help me to renew my dedication to the study of your word. Amen.

Psalm 132:11a - Promises

The Lord swore an oath to David,
     a sure oath he will not revoke:

Psalm 132 is about a promise David made to God and a promise God made in return, This is something I am going to have to study on more, I believe God has made us many promises in the bible, but I'm not sure about promises beyond that. Have you ever felt like God asked you to do something specific with a promise of something if you complete your task?

Lord, thank you for being so faithful. Please help us to understand you and your will. Amen.

Psalm 119:90 - Forever

Your faithfulness continues through all generations;
     you established the earth, and it endures.

This section of Psalm 119 is about how God is eternal. Not only is he eternal, but his word has endured through generation after generation. God is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow. His plan for salvation has always been the same. Salvation only comes through his son as the perfect sacrifice. The law is still good and we can learn so much about God from it, but the law did not save. Jesus does.

Lord, thank you for your eternal nature. Please help us to trust you and your enduring faithfulness. Amen.

Psalm 117 - The shortest chapter in the Bible

Praise the Lord, all you nations;
     extol him, all you peoples.
For great is his love toward us,
     and the faithfulness of the Lord endures forever,

Praise the Lord.

Did you know that Psalm 117 is the shortest chapter in the Bible? I didn't until today. And what a beautiful psalm it is. This is one I challenge you (and myself) to memorize.

Lord, thank you for your word. Please help us to memorize your word and keep it on our hearts at all time. Amen.

Psalm 43:3 - Light and care

Send me your light and your faithful care,
     let them lead me;
let them bring me to your holy mountain,
     to the place where you dwell.

Such a beautiful verse. I ask the same thing David did in this Psalm.

Lord, Thank you for sending us light, your faithful care, and leading us here on earth and to your holy dwelling place. Amen.

Psalm 36:5 - God is big

Your love, Lord, reaches to the heavens,
     your faithfulness to the skies.

God is big. He is bigger than me and my problems, bigger than America and it's problems, bigger than the world and it's problems. God is omnipotent, all powerful. He is omnipresent, everywhere. He is omniscient, knows everything. But with all this bigness, he still cares about me and my problems. He loves each and every one of us. Amazing!

Lord, thank you for being so big. Please help us to know that you love us no matter what. Amen.

Psalm 23:4 - Darkest Valley

Even though I walk
     through the darkest valley,
I will fear no evil,
     for you are with me;
your rod and your staff,
     they comfort me.

We all walk through dark valleys. There is a vast difference between walking through that valley alone and walking through with God. Alone, we are fearful and anticipating the worst. We can only see the situation from one perspective. Walking with God, we are not alone. We have someone who has been here before and sees everything. We have a guide and a friend. The tighter we cling to his had, the safer we will be.

Lord, thank you for guiding us through the darkest valleys. Please help us to cling to your hand and listen to your directions. Amen.

2 Thessalonians 3:3 - Strength and protection

But the Lord is faithful, and he will strengthen you and protect you from the evil one.

We know satan exists and is in the world today, but we also know if we are Christians God will strengthen and protect us from him. We do not have to live in a fearful state. Living in fear of satan will only give him power. So put on the armor of God (Eph. 6:10-18) and stand firm in His promises.

Lord, thank you for giving us strength and protection from the evil one. Help us to not be fearful, but to stand firm. Amen.

Genesis 48:21 - GOD is in contol

Then Israel said to Joseph, “I am about to die, but God will be with you and take you back to the land of your fathers.

Yes, God was with Joseph and the people of Israel (the you here is plural, more like "y'all") and they eventually make it back to Canaan, but I'm sure Israel (Jacob) never could have imagined what would happen and how long it would take. None of them expected to be in Egypt for over 400 years or for their descendants to become slaves. God's time is almost never our time. Discouragement comes easy when things don't happen the way we think they will. This story is evidence of God's faithfulness. Even when all seems lost, God is still in control.

Lord, thank you for being faithful and never leaving us, even when things are not happening the way we want them to happen. Please help us to be patient and remain faithful to you always. Amen.

Genesis 35:3 - Do you have a story?

Then come, let us go up to Bethel, where I will build an altar to God, who answered me in the day of my distress and who has been with me wherever I have gone.”

God asked Jacob to this location and build an altar. Jacob had a testimony. God had been with him in the day of his distress and continued to be with him wherever he went. Do you have a testimony? How do you share it? If God has been there for us and continues to be with us, we need to let people know. We need to build and alter, probably not a pile of rocks in our front yard where we make sacrifices, but something that people may ask about and will help us remember our story.

Lord, thank you for your faithfulness, for being there for us in our time of distress and wherever we go. Help us to share our story with others. Amen.