Psalm and Praise, Day 148 Everything praises the Lord. Read Psalm chapter 148. When I say everything, I mean absolutely everything. There is not a part of the world or all creation that doesn’t praise the name of Jesus. This Psalm runs through such a list of all the things that praise God. Some the items may surprise us that they made the list, but still they are praising God. Are we on the list? Do we praise God for all that he is and everything that he has done?

Psalm and Praise, Day 147 God’s promises. Read Psalm chapter 147. Interestingly, the promises of God reveal the character of who God is. As we understand who God is, we have a greater love and devotion to him. We can rest in his promises knowing he will fulfill them because that is who he is. We are to continually be understanding God’s promises so that we can understand his character. As we see his promises revealed, we can also have greater faith in all that God wants to do in our lives. Are we seeking the promises of God?

Psalm and Praise, Day 146 Our help and our hope. Read Psalm chapter 146. If we’ve been in church or around church much, we’ve heard that God is our help and our hope. But when we think about it in terms of our day to day life, what does that actually mean. How is God being our help impacting what we’re doing today? We think about all of the help that we have and so much of the time we try to help ourselves. Or we try to not need help, or feel that if we do, there’s something wrong with us. God is the one who actually is our…

Psalm and Praise, Day 145 Upholds and lifts. Read Psalm chapter 145. You know, looking at this verse it’s two different concepts. The idea of someone falling is usually accidental or a mistake, and God’s word says that he upholds those who had a mistake. He will be the steadying force or the foundational rock that anyone who is struggling with mistakes can lean on. This verse also says that he lifts up those who are bowing down. Bowing down is a conscious and intentional act. This is an act of reverence and respect to God. God says that he will lift up those who are intentionally bowing down to…

Psalm and Praise, Day 144 Is the Lord your God? Read Psalm chapter 144. As we see in this chapter, so many different ways that the Lord leads and blesses his people. He helps to defend them. He defeats their enemies. He gives them purpose. God blesses them. Are we placing God first in our lives? Is he the only thing that truly matters in our lives?

Psalm and Praise, Day 143 Teach me. Read Psalm chapter 143. If God doesn’t teach us how to do his will, then we have no hope of being able to accomplish it. When we look at all that God has commanded us to do, we realize there is no way we would be able to fulfill everything that he has asked. God’s desire is perfection and we are far from that. We are to come to him and submit, and then allow him to teach us what needs to happen. God teaches us to do his will and God works through us to do his will. We must drop the…

Psalm and Praise, Day 142 Set me free. Read Psalm chapter 142. What does it mean to be set free? Do we really understand the concept of freedom as defined by God? Our freedom in Christ can sometimes feel different than freedom as defined by the world. Our freedom in Christ gives us the ability to rejoice and to praise him regardless of the circumstances that we are in. Whereas freedom in the world may mean that we are lacking restraints, but that we have limited purpose. Freedom in Christ is much more about a mindset than it is about a location or a circumstance. We need to be able…

Psalm and Praise, Day 141 What does it take to keep our mouth in check? Read Psalm chapter 141. I’m not sure that having a guard keeping watch over my mouth would keep it from saying the things that it shouldn’t say. My opinions can be pretty strong in my own head sometimes and the urge to share those can be equally strong. However, just because the thought enters our heads doesn’t mean that we should utter it to others. We must filter our thoughts through the lens of Jesus Christ and make sure that the words that come out of our mouth have been guarded and approved and that…

Psalm and Praise, Day 140 Frustration. Read Psalm chapter 140. I love reading the raw emotions that are on display throughout the psalms. People haven’t really changed much over time. We still are excited and angry, joyous and devastated, peaceful and vengeful. God knows all this about us, so it’s no surprise that when I am going through tough times, I find comfort that I’m not alone. Many of the psalmists felt all those emotions and shared them with God. He is not too big or too small to handle our feelings. He understands our feelings and can help us work through them. We are not perfect, but even when…

Psalm and Praise, Day 139 The quest to be known. Read Psalm chapter 139. For many of us, the desire to feel truly known and understood is a desire that can become overwhelming and burdensome. People want to feel that others know them. We can rest assured that God knows us. He actually knows us more than we know ourselves. We don’t ever have to feel misunderstood. God knows us.