Category: QuietTimes

9th (Day 71) “Oh, magnify the LORD with me, and let us exalt his name together! I sought the LORD, and he answered me and delivered me from all my fears. Those who look to him are radiant, and their faces shall never be ashamed.” Psalms 34:3-5

Hello all! At our Elder’s Meeting this Monday Pastor Steve invited us to join him in Prayer and Fasting every Thursday. I definitely plan to join him. I’d like to encourage you, as my safe harbor and accountability group, to join in this. If you have never fasted before hit me up in the comments and I will talk you through what I do plus some scripture that explains it a bit more. I’ll have to be honest and say that the state of things in regard to our current climate has my mind and body tired, but; my heart is strong and my reliance on my Savior is growing more and more. Hope you are all doing well. I sure miss hearing from some of you and what the Lord is speaking into you during this time.

8th (Day 70) “I will bless the LORD at all times; his praise shall continually be in my mouth.” Psalms 34:1

There could not be a more appropriate verse for my day today. ‘I will bless the Lord at ALL times’ Honestly, today, I did not FEEL like blessing the Lord. It was a rough start to write an email that communicated something that should have gone out days earlier. Then I had meeting after meeting where each was a glaring reflecting of so much I have not done right at my job. All the while I could hear my wife tackling the littles who are in a weird transition time and feeling like I am not pulling my weight at home. Then I sit down in to read this verse…my mind immediately went to all I have and the full life that God has given me. Health for my whole family, a wonderful home, a job that God has provided that gives way over what I deserve. Today —> I will bless the Lord!

7th (Day 69) “Our soul waits for the LORD; he is our help and our shield. For our heart is glad in him, because we trust in his holy name. Let your steadfast love, O LORD, be upon us, even as we hope in you.” Psalms 33:20-22

After tonight’s Elder’s meeting this passage is such a great representation of the hearts of the leadership of our church. I was so encouraged by the openness to hear all spiritual convictions and in the end we were united in the decisions we made. This part of serving in the church in this way is awe inspiring. I walk away encouraged in HOPE, God’s Strength, and His grace through His Son. So thankful!

6th (Day 68) “Blessed is the one whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. Blessed is the man against whom the LORD counts no iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no deceit.” Psalms 32:1-2

This is the world we as believers live in. We are blessed because of our Salvation; we are blessed because God counts none of our sin against us. When our hearts are right before God without deceit, we are also blessed. Marianne and I did a late night stop at Relaxation Station last night and I didn’t write up my study for the day before falling asleep. 🤪 Please pray today for the Elders meeting tonight. That God would impart His wisdom and that the whole of the elders would be aligned on decisions we make.

5th (Day 67) “Love the LORD, all you his saints! The LORD preserves the faithful but abundantly repays the one who acts in pride. Be strong, and let your heart take courage, all you who wait for the LORD!” Psalms 31:23-24

Waiting for the Lord takes faith but the rebuke for the prideful is scary. PRIDE is an issue I find myself dealing with routinely. It is probably the one think I ask God for the strength to combat and crucify daily.  I just love that charge of David – ‘be strong and let your heart take courage’. This is mantra to learn to tell ourselves. God gives this strength so that you can give your heart permission to take courage. These two verses for me are VERY timely today.

4th (Day 66) “For his anger is but for a moment, and his favor is for a lifetime. Weeping may tarry for the night, but joy comes with the morning.” Psalms 30:5

This verse is so awesome and can be an anchor verse for so many situations. The first part ‘Gods anger is just for a moment’ is a testament to the love the Lord has for us  in that He isn’t angry with our failures for long. He is quick to grab us up and hold us close even when we are not so quick to forgive ourselves. Then ‘His favor is for a lifetime’; now because of His Son, His favor falls on me for eternity. Finally, ‘weeping at night will turn to joy in the morning’; I am pretty sure the joy here is joy in the Lord.  I might have a heavy heart of loss in the evening but because I rest in the strength of God, I can rejoice in Him and His power over my grief can overcome. The Psalms are like an ointment for the soul – I know someone has said this before but it has rung true in my study over the past several weeks.

3rd (Day 65) “The LORD sits enthroned over the flood; the LORD sits enthroned as king forever. May the LORD give strength to his people! May the LORD bless his people with peace!” Psalms 29:10-11

I love this simple exclamation by David calling out the fact that God SITS enthroned over the flood; meaning that even over a wiping out of everything but what was on the ark, God sits as King. He is the same God today Who presided over the flood. That power that He wields provides us strength, peace, and comfort. As we enter more lockdowns and distance from our loved ones, God SITS enthroned. Isn’t that comforting?  Question we need to ask ourselves – Are we capitalizing on this season? Are we looking for the places, situations, and opportunities God is putting in front of us to learn and prepare for what’s next?

2nd (Day 64) “The voice of the LORD is powerful, The voice of the LORD is majestic. The voice of the LORD breaks the cedars; Yes, the LORD breaks in pieces the cedars of Lebanon.” Psalms 29:4-5

The Cedars of Lebanon were known as an image of wealth and strength. Here David talks about the voice of the Lord being powerful and majestic. Gods word has power and His voice can break the strong and wealthy. When I hold my Bible, I hold on my hands this voice of God. This is just another reason to hide Gods word in my heart through memorization – to wield His word at a moments notice to strike down my own pride or break temptuous thought. I have re-picked up my memorization of Romans 5:1-8.

1st (Day 63) “shepherd the flock of God that is among you, exercising oversight, not under compulsion, but willingly, as God would have you; not for shameful gain, but eagerly; not domineering over those in your charge, but being examples to the flock.” 1 Peter 5:2&3

Today I did a study of all passages with the word Shepherd in it. There’s a lot (57 by my count).  This is part of my work in search of God’s will for our church during COVID restrictions. I had new revelations today that I am still distilling but God has been so faithful to give me something new each day that more and more fills in the gaps. This time, day after day, in Gods word, has been so good! 

Spent time tonight searching Gods word for continued work on my position regarding our response to COVID in regards to shepherding the church body. Marianne and I both ended our evening in the kitchen pouring over passages. She is such a great partner and her closeness with the Lord is an asset as I seek His will and purpose in hard to answer questions. We are taking time every night this week to sync up on what the Lord has revealed to us through prayer and supplication.