Tag: God

Trusting and not Forsaking

Psalm 9 New International Version

Psalm 9

For the director of music. To the tune of “The Death of the Son.” A psalm of David.

¹I will give thanks to you, Lord, with all my heart;
I will tell of all your wonderful deeds.
²I will be glad and rejoice in you;
I will sing the praises of your name, O Most High.

³My enemies turn back;
    they stumble and perish before you.
⁴For you have upheld my right and my cause,
    sitting enthroned as the righteous judge.
⁵You have rebuked the nations and destroyed the wicked;
    you have blotted out their name for ever and ever.
⁶Endless ruin has overtaken my enemies,
    you have uprooted their cities;
    even the memory of them has perished.

⁷The Lord reigns forever;
    he has established his throne for judgement.
⁸He rules the world in righteousness
    and judges the peoples with equity.
⁹The Lord is a refuge for the oppressed,
    a stronghold in times of trouble.
¹⁰Those who know your name trust in you,
    for you, Lord, have never forsaken those who seek you.

¹¹Sing the praises of the Lord, enthroned in Zion;
proclaim among the nations what he has done.
¹²For he who avenges blood remembers;
he does not ignore the cries of the afflicted.

¹³Lord, see how my enemies persecute me!
    Have mercy and lift me up from the gates of death,
¹⁴that I may declare your praises
    in the gates of Daughter Zion,
    and there rejoice in your salvation.

¹⁵The nations have fallen into the pit they have dug;
    their feet are caught in the net they have hidden.
¹⁶The Lord is known by his acts of justice;
    the wicked are ensnared by the work of their hands.^[c]
¹⁷The wicked go down to the realm of the dead,
    all the nations that forget God.
¹⁸But God will never forget the needy;
    the hope of the afflicted will never perish.

¹⁹Arise, Lord, do not let mortals triumph;
let the nations be judged in your presence.
²⁰Strike them with terror, Lord;
let the nations know they are only mortal.

Repentance of Sins

Hosea 2 New Living Translation

2 ^[a]“In that day you will call your brothers Ammi—‘My people.’ And you will call your sisters Ruhamah—‘The ones I love.’

Charges against an Unfaithful Wife

²“But now bring charges against Israel—your mother—
    for she is no longer my wife,
    and I am no longer her husband.
Tell her to remove the prostitute’s makeup from her face
    and the clothing that exposes her breasts.
³Otherwise, I will strip her as naked
    as she was on the day she was born.
I will leave her to die of thirst,
    as in a dry and barren wilderness.
⁴And I will not love her children,
    for they were conceived in prostitution.
⁵Their mother is a shameless prostitute
    and became pregnant in a shameful way.
She said, ‘I’ll run after other lovers
    and sell myself to them for food and water,
for clothing of wool and linen,
    and for olive oil and drinks.’

Here in Hosea 2 we are told what God will do with an unfaithful wife because of the life she chose to lead. We are all sinners until we repent and come to God.

True Friends

Proverbs 18 The Message

Words Kill, Words Give Life

18 Loners who care only for themselves
spit on the common good.

²Fools care nothing for thoughtful discourse;
all they do is run off at the mouth.

³When wickedness arrives, shame’s not far behind;
contempt for life is contemptible.

⁴Many words rush along like rivers in flood,
but deep wisdom flows up from artesian springs.

⁵It’s not right to go easy on the guilty,
or come down hard on the innocent.

⁶The words of a fool start fights;
do him a favor and gag him.

⁷Fools are undone by their big mouths;
their souls are crushed by their words.

⁸Listening to gossip is like eating cheap candy;
do you really want junk like that in your belly?

⁹Slack habits and sloppy work
are as bad as vandalism.

¹⁰God’s name is a place of protection—
good people can run there and be safe.

¹¹The rich think their wealth protects them;
they imagine themselves safe behind it.

¹²Pride first, then the crash,
but humility is precursor to honour.

¹³Answering before listening
is both stupid and rude.

¹⁴A healthy spirit conquers adversity,
but what can you do when the spirit is crushed?

¹⁵Wise men and women are always learning,
always listening for fresh insights.

¹⁶A gift gets attention;
it buys the attention of eminent people.

¹⁷The first speech in a court case is always convincing—
until the cross-examination starts!

¹⁸You may have to draw straws
when faced with a tough decision.

¹⁹Do a favour and win a friend forever;
nothing can untie that bond.

²⁰Words satisfy the mind as much as fruit does the stomach;
good talk is as gratifying as a good harvest.

²¹Words kill, words give life;
they’re either poison or fruit—you choose.

²²Find a good spouse, you find a good life—
and even more: the favor of God!

²³The poor speak in soft supplications;
the rich bark out answers.

²⁴Friends come and friends go,
but a true friend sticks by you like family.

(WOMEN) What a friend we have in Jesus, all our sins and griefs to bear! What a privilege to carry everything to God in prayer! (ALL) O what peace we often forfeit, O what needless pain we bear, all because we do not carry everything to God in prayer. (MEN) Have we trials and temptations? Is there trouble anywhere? We should never be discouraged; take it to the Lord in prayer. (ALL) Can we find a friend so faithful who will all our sorrows share? Jesus knows our every weakness; take it to the Lord in prayer. (ALL) Are we weak and heavy laden, cumbered with a load of care? Precious Saviour, still our refuge; take it to the Lord in prayer. Do thy friends despise, forsake thee? Take it to the Lord in prayer! In his arms he’ll take and shield thee; thou shalt find a solace there.

Decisions

Image result for Christian decisions

Proverbs 3:5-6
Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.

Most of us will have heard or used the saying ‘Decisions, decisions, decisions’ at some point in our life.

Because we have to make decisions every day of our lives decisions are usually pretty easy to make most of the time, but occasionally a tough one comes along where we find ourselves asking what do I do here? What road do I take.

It is then as Christians we should pray to the Lord for guidance and trust in the Lord to guide us in the right direction.

I’ll let the video speak for itself.

God’s Promises

2 Peter 1:4

And because of his glory and excellence, he has given us great and precious promises. These are the promises that enable you to share his divine nature and escape the world’s corruption caused by human desires.

How true the verse is in 2 Peter 1;4 the Lord will give us his great & precious promises to enable us to escape the world’s corruption caused by human desires, providing we live by God’s Promises.

1. Standing on the promises of Christ my King, See the source image
through eternal ages let his praises ring;
glory in the highest, I will shout and sing,
standing on the promises of God.
Refrain:
Standing, standing,
standing on the promises of Christ my Saviour;
standing, standing,
I’m standing on the promises of God.

2. Standing on the promises that cannot fail,
when the howling storms of doubt and fear assail,
by the living Word of God I shall prevail,
standing on the promises of God.
(Refrain)

3. Standing on the promises of Christ the Lord,
bound to him eternally by love’s strong cord,
overcoming daily with the Spirit’s sword,
standing on the promises of God.
(Refrain)

4. Standing on the promises I cannot fall,
listening every moment to the Spirit’s call,
resting in my Saviour as my all in all,
standing on the promises of God.
(Refrain)

God’s Wisdom

Proverbs 28 New International Version

²⁰A faithful person will be richly blessed,
but one eager to get rich will not go unpunished.

²¹To show partiality is not good—
yet a person will do wrong for a piece of bread.

²²The stingy are eager to get rich
and are unaware that poverty awaits them.

²³Whoever rebukes a person will in the end gain favour
rather than one who has a flattering tongue.

²⁴Whoever robs their father or mother
and says, “It’s not wrong,”
is partner to one who destroys.

²⁵The greedy stir up conflict,
but those who trust in the Lord will prosper.

²⁶Those who trust in themselves are fools,
but those who walk in wisdom are kept safe.

²⁷Those who give to the poor will lack nothing,
but those who close their eyes to them receive many curses.

²⁸When the wicked rise to power, people go into hiding;
but when the wicked perish, the righteous thrive.

God Hears

Romans 12:9-21 New International Version – UK

Love in action

⁹Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. ¹⁰Be devoted to one another in love. Honour one another above yourselves. ¹¹Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervour, serving the Lord. ¹²Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. ¹³Share with the Lord’s people who are in need. Practise hospitality.

¹⁴Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. ¹⁵Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn. ¹⁶Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position.<sup class=”footnote” style=”box-sizing:border-box;font-size:.625em;line-height:22px;position:relative;vertical-align:top;top:0;” data-fn=”#fen-NIVUK-28262a” data-link=”[a]”>[a] Do not be conceited.

¹⁷Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everyone. ¹⁸If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. ¹⁹Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: ‘It is mine to avenge; I will repay,’<sup class=”footnote” style=”box-sizing:border-box;font-size:.625em;line-height:22px;position:relative;vertical-align:top;top:0;” data-fn=”#fen-NIVUK-28265b” data-link=”[b]”>[b] says the Lord. ²⁰On the contrary:

‘If your enemy is hungry, feed him;
if he is thirsty, give him something to drink.
In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.’<sup class=”footnote” style=”box-sizing:border-box;font-size:.625em;line-height:22px;position:relative;vertical-align:top;top:0;” data-fn=”#fen-NIVUK-28266c” data-link=”[c]”>[c]

²¹Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

Decisions

See the source image

Proverbs 3:5-6
Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.

Most of us will have heard or used the saying ‘Decisions, decisions, decisions’ at some point in our life.

It is then as Christians we should pray to the Lord for guidance and trust in the Lord to guide us in the right direction.

I’ll let the video speak for itself.

The Best Gift

Luke 11:9-13 (NIVUK)

⁹‘So I say to you: ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. ¹⁰For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.

¹¹‘Which of you fathers, if your son asks for^[a] a fish, will give him a snake instead? ¹²Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? ¹³If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!’

Ask! Ask! Ask! and it shall be given;
Seek! Seek! Seek! and you’re sure to find;
Knock! Knock! Knock! and the door will open,For God! God! God! is so good and kind, O yes,
So ask! Ask! Ask! and it shall be given;
Seek! Seek! Seek! and you’re sure to find;
Knock! Knock! Knock! and the door will open,
For God! God! God! is so good and kind.

Here we are reminded of how good God is to us. Even if we fail to serve him as faithfully as we should he will always give us what we ask for, help us seek what we are looking for and he will never lock his door to our burdens

Giving God the Glory

Psalm 126

A song of ascents.

¹When the Lord restored the fortunes of^[a] Zion,
    we were like those who dreamed.^[b]
²Our mouths were filled with laughter,
    our tongues with songs of joy.
Then it was said among the nations,
    “The Lord has done great things for them.”
³The Lord has done great things for us,
    and we are filled with joy.

⁴Restore our fortunes,^[c] Lord,
    like streams in the Negev.
⁵Those who sow with tears
    will reap with songs of joy.
⁶Those who go out weeping,
    carrying seed to sow,
will return with songs of joy,
    carrying sheaves with them