139th Week, Psalm Chapters 47- 51 (Click on Title for Video Introduction)

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Click on Title for Video Introduction


Monday, Psalm Chapter 47
Theme:  God is still King of the world.  All nations of the earth will eventually recognize His Lordship.  
Author:  The sons of Korah (temple assistants)
Psalm 47
Verse 1-2
Tanya Ruden

Verse 1:  Clap your hands, all you nations;
      shout to God with cries of joy.
Verse 2:  How awesome is the LORD Most High,
      the great King over all the earth!

THOUGHT
WOW!! This verse is so perfect for my week this week. First of all, I have clapped my hands in praise to God more this week as song leader at VBS than any other time in my life. It is so wonderful to hear the kids “cry” to God with joy and excitement! I truly think the ‘buzz’ is excitement for Jesus and what they have done that night.

Second, each night we have a key statement about God that the kids learn.  Tonight the saying is ‘God is AWESOME’.  I am going to have Psalm 47 to use for tonight. We are teaching the kids the Rich Mullins version of Awesome God to use as our closing for the church service on Sunday morning.  I just want to share that hearing children from K-5th grade ‘rap’ the verses to Awesome God gives me the Holy Spirit chills.  I am so excited for God to receive this praise from the kids and congregation on Sunday. It will be Awesome.

So in closing today - I guess just remember that God is Awesome! Clap and rejoice to God with shouts of Joy!
He loves to hear them!!

PRAYER
Dear God, You are awesome! What a great word to use for You! We pray that we never forget the awesomeness of Your power and the Joy it brings us. Without it, our Joy wouldn’t be close to Awesome. AMEN


Tuesday, Psalm Chapter 48
Theme:  God's presence is our joy, security, and salvation.  God is praised as the defender of Jerusalem, the holy city of the Jews.  He is also our defender and guide forever.  
Author:  The sons of Koran.
Psalm 48
Tanya Ruden

THOUGHT
Great is the LORD, and most worthy of praise. 
Our Lord is so Great!!!  He has the greatest plan for our lives no matter what it is or whether or not we agree with it.  He is due all of our praise.  I do feel like I Praised the Lord a lot last week with VBS. It was great to share my energy for Jesus with so many other people. 

The sermon on Sunday was just the VBS kids singing praises to God.  It was wonderful. But we must remember that there are so many ways to praise God. Song is usually the first that comes to my mind, but thank God there are other ways.  Some people would be out of luck if this were so, for there are many people who just don’t like to sing.  That is OK! We can praise God through prayer and meditation, through sharing with friends and through studying and reading the Bible.  All of these things bring God praise as well. 

So no matter your method - PRAISE THE LORD!

PRAYER
Dear Jesus, may our hearts always be eager to give You praise, no matter what method we use.  May we praise You in all we do, knowing You are oh so worthy of it! AMEN


Wednesday, Psalm Chapter 49
Theme:  Trusting in worldly possessions is futile. You cannot take possessions with you when you die, and they cannot buy forgiveness from sin.  
Author:  The sons of Korah
Psalm 49
Verses 13-15
Tanya Ruden

Verses 13-15 (The Message Version)
This is what happens to those who live for the moment,
     who only look out for themselves:
Death herds them like sheep straight to hell;
     they disappear down the gullet of the grave;
They waste away to nothing—
     nothing left but a marker in a cemetery.
But me? God snatches me from the clutch of death,
     he reaches down and grabs me.

THOUGHT
AMEN - Thank God we have the promise of eternal life when we die, or else where would our comfort come from?  My friend’s grandpa died last week, and she was with him when he died.  She said it was the most peaceful experience that she has ever had in her life that a person was on their way to Heaven.  The sorrow for her family is leaving quickly, and they are enjoying life as he would want them to. 

It also reminds me of something that was said at Grandma Hall’s funeral by a very wise ‘Bartman’.  I will never forget when he said, “Some look at death as a tragedy, but this is not a tragedy.  We should look at this as a means for HOPE which is a good thing.”   

I don’t mean to focus on death, but I love the way this version states, “God snatches.”   It reminds me of a superhero grabbing you as you are falling and saving you! What a great picture!!

PRAYER
Dear Jesus, thank You for the promise of Heaven. I know You are the only person who can save us and ‘snatch’ us from the clutches of death. Always create peace in our hearts when we become uneasy regarding death. We have the ultimate life ahead, and You will never allow us to miss it. AMEN


Thursday, Psalm Chapter 50
Theme:  'The contrast between true and false faith.  God desires sincere thanks, trust, and praise.  
Author:  Asaph, one of David's chief musicians.
Psalm 50
Verse 23
Jeanie Boldt

Verse 23:  He who sacrifices thank offerings honors me, and he prepares the way so that I may show him the salvation of God.

THOUGHT
I couldn’t help but think of one word while reading this chapter. The word is hypocrite. It spoke so much about how acts of giving thanks through sacrifice are done without putting our hearts into it. God wants righteousness and not an empty ritual. This can also be noted when we worship, pray, speak of God, teach, sing and rejoice. 

Where is your heart? Are you a mechanical Christian or do you really love so much that your sacrifice is felt in your heart and with your body? Are your prayers so sincere that they bring moments of personal closeness with the Holy Spirit? Do you sing with love and feeling like Tanya last week and her little ones at VBS or do you just mouth the words because everyone is watching you? 

We need to give, to pray and to praise.  I pray that it is done in spirit and in truth so that the Lord knows without a doubt that we have honored Him.

PRAYER
Father God, help me to live the light and walk the walk of a Christian so in love with Jesus the Christ.  May we be willing to sacrifice for You and worship with our whole heart.  I just pray that our actions will bring total honor and rejoicing in You.  AMEN


Friday, Psalm Chapter 51
Theme:  David's plea for mercy, forgiveness, and cleansing.  God wants our hearts to be right with Him.  
Author:  David
Psalm 51
Verse 10
Jeanie Boldt

Verse 10:  Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.

THOUGHT
This chapter is a prayer of confession for David. It is a prayer to the Lord sharing with Him all David’s wrongdoing and asking for the Lord’s forgiving grace and mercy. There are times in our lives when we have really messed up and thought to ourselves that there is no way out. We are ashamed of our actions and feel so disappointed in ourselves because we have disappointed and hurt our Lord. I think it is so neat that David admits right out loud about his wrong doings. 

Rory and I learned about asking our mates for forgiveness in one of our couple’s classes. We learned to admit right out loud to the other, “I have hurt you by what I did___________. I can plainly see that it was wrong of me to do. Please forgive me for_____________. I will ask the Lord for forgiveness too. I will try very hard never to ____________ this again.”  After the admitting of the sin then our verse comes into action. Praise God for that!!! We can again ask for the Lord to give me a pure heart and renew my spirit as a strong and faithful one to the Lord.

PRAYER
Father, thank You for Your compassion that never fails. Thank You for continually accepting our forgiveness when we do wrong. Keep our hearts full of mercy so that we can admit when we fall short and so in return accept another’s forgiveness. Keep us always focused on You so that our heart’s desire is not to hurt You.  Help us keep our actions as pure as possible here on earth. Thank You for healing our hearts each time we injure the precious tissue. Keep us steadfast in spirit, rejoicing with others about Your love.
AMEN



 







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