253rd Week, Psalm Chapters 92-96 (Click on title for Video Introduction)

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Click on Title for Video Intro


Monday Psalm Chapter 92
Theme:  Be thankful and faithful every day.  This psalm was used in temple services on the Sabbath.
Author:  Anonymous
Psalm 92
Verse 1a
Jeanie Boldt

Verse 1a:  It is good to praise the Lord.

THOUGHT
This Psalm speaks of being thankful and faithful every day. It is good to thank the Lord for every day He gives us.  We can look ahead by faith and praise Him for His loving kindness.  We can look back and praise Him for His faithfulness. When we do this and realize that it is by the Lord’s power that we are still enjoying each other’s company and love and fellowship, we will understand why we will grow stronger in our faith and become as palm trees and cedars of Lebanon. 
O LORD, MAY WE EXALT YOU FOREVER.

PRAYER
Father God, we praise You in all things, for safe travel, our jobs, healthy grandchildren, vehicles that get us to and from and daily sharing with devotions by computer, we praise You.  We pray that Your Will and Way be done in each of our lives for You know what is better for us than anyone else. May our faith be strengthened so that You will smile down on us and say, “Good job, my faithful servants.” Guide us and direct us.  We love You and HONOR YOU as our KING. AMEN


Tuesday, Psalm Chapter 93
Theme: God's unchanging and almighty nature. His creation reminds us of His great power.  
Author:  Anonymous
Psalm 93
Jane Jones
January 2, 2008

THOUGHT
When the flood waters of life are rising, lay hold of three anchors that will steady you.

The following are included in this chapter:

1. God’s Throne: No matter what may come to you today “the Lord reigns”! God is sovereign, and everything is under His control. His majestic Throne is strong, established, and everlasting. His Throne is above the floods, but He is with you in your trials and will see you through.

2. God’s Word: You can trust the Bible because it never fails. Cling to His inspired Words and withstand the floods by faith.

3. God’s Temple: The Lord is in the mercy seat in the Holy of Holies and there His glory is. When the storm comes and the floods rise, you can experience peace, for the “the Lord is in His Holy Temple. Let all the earth keep silence before Him.”

PRAYER
Father God, when the flood waters of life overcome us, we need You as our King. We need Your Word so that we can hear Your guidance and direction. We need to know that You are always at the highest of places where Satan nor the world can get to You for it is YOU that we need when the flood waters of the world overcome us. We thank You for all three strengths. Help us to focus more on these strengths than the problems that are flooding our minds and our hearts. AMEN

The following is a poem of mine that has hung in my bathroom since 1996.

THE STORMS OF LIFE
When the storm clouds gather, and your life is filled with care,
  Let Jesus help you through each day for He is always there.
He’s not just watching from afar when life’s river rages through;
  For when you feel you can’t go on - with love - He carries you.
He promised to be with you. His presence you will know.
  He will help you through the storms of life because He loves you so.

Isaiah 43:2
When You pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they will not overflow you.


Wednesday, Psalm 94
Theme:  God will keep His people from the severe punishment awaiting the wicked.  Since God is holy and just, we can be certain that the wicked will not prevail.  
Author: Anonymous
Psalm 94 
Verse 14
Jane Jones

Verse 14:  For the Lord will not reject his people; he will never forsake his inheritance.

THOUGHT
Inheritance can be good or bad. It can make or break a person, a family member. God never forsakes His inheritance whether good or bad. There are things that come to mind in my life. I inherited my father’s premature graying genetics. Gary and Jeanie got this too. Boo Hoo Hoo!!!  I inherited my joy of laughter from my mom. I inherited my dad’s accounting sense. I inherited the curve of my mom’s big toe. Sis got that too! We both have one just like hers. HE HE HE I could go on and on.

Anything passed down to us through our family heritage that inhibits the full expression of freedom we should have in Christ qualifies as bondage. These yokes can be caused by severed relationships, lives left in ruins because of a loss or tragedy, or ancient family arguments and inheritances of hate.

Anything passed down to us through our family heritage that exhibits a heart of mercy, continued expressions of love in Christ qualifies as awesome traits. These traits can be gifts to us that will let our lives shine for Jesus.

Let’s work on the inheritance that we are handing down. Be assured that the cross of Calvary can set you free from every yoke. And be assured that the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ is a sure positive to pass down as an inheritance.

PRAYER
Dear Jesus, thank You for this verse in the Bible that makes us aware of how very important inheritance is to You. May we look to You to acquire Your inheritance that You have passed down through Your son Jesus Christ.  For all the provisional blessings You have blessed us with, we say a hearty thank You. We also thank You for the spiritual blessings You have given us as You walk with us, and as we trust You with the affairs of our lives.  AMEN 


Thursday, Psalm Chapter 95
Theme:  An invitation to worship God.
Author:  Anonymous
Psalm 95 
Verse 6
Jane Jones

Verse 6:  Come, let us bow down in worship, let us kneel before the Lord our Maker.

THOUGHT
Have you ever truly knelt before the Lord? How did you feel? Did you feel as if you totally surrendered yourself at His feet, that you were humbling yourself before Him? Going that extra step by getting on your knees draws total purpose and attention to what you are doing. It seems when I am totally broken about something or have a very special request before the Lord, kneeling before Him draws Him closer and becomes more powerful.

There are times in the morning when I end my morning prayers on my knees with my face on the floor. The end of my prayer time is concluded by listening to two songs while I meditate and wait upon the Lord.  The words to my closing prayer song go something like this...

“I will come and bow down at your feet, Lord Jesus.
In your presence there is fullness of joy.
There is nothing, there is no one, who compares with you.
I take pleasure in worshipping you.”

PRAYER
Dear Lord, there are times when we need to get on our knees to totally surrender to You. You are our Maker, our Creator, and the King of Kings. To You be the honor and glory. May we not hesitate to kneel before the Lord our Maker in reverence of who You are in our lives. AMEN


Friday, Psalm Chapter 96
Theme:  How to praise God.  We can sing about Him, tell others about Him, worship Him, give Him glory, bring offerings to Him, and live holy lives. 
Author:  Possibly David because this psalm closely resembles David's hymn of praise in I Chronicles 16:23-36
Psalm 96
Verse 1
Jane Jones

Verse 1:  Sing to the Lord a new song; sing to the Lord, all the earth.

THOUGHT
Salt Shakers, you are not going to believe this one.
Well, I read Psalm 96 this morning during my quiet time at 6:30 am. I picked the first verse to do the devotion on and prayed that the Lord would assist me in writing the Salt Shakers this evening. After visiting with Jeanie on the phone in the car on the way to work, I started thinking about what I would write about this verse. Nothing really came to mind, so since I love music, I turned the radio on to our Christian radio station. The first words that came on the radio were...

“The next song is coming to you straight out of the Bible from the book of Psalms chapter 92-96. The song is “Shout to the Lord’, and the songwriter is Darlene Zschech.” Praise God!! After listening and singing along with the radio on the way to work, I decided to share with you about this song and its songwriter. The Lord had furnished me with my writing material for tonight.

Darlene Zschech is an Australian Charismatic/Pentecostal worship leader and singer-songwriter who primarily writes praise and worship songs. As a young adult, she sang jingles for a number of international companies including McDonald’s, KFC and Diet Coke. Currently, she and husband Mark have three daughters, Amy, Chloe, and Zoe Jewel.

Zeschech’s best known song is Shout to the Lord, taken from the book of Psalms 92-96 and sung by an estimated 25-30 million churchgoers every week. Darlene composed the praise anthem inspired by Psalm 92 to Psalm 96 at the time that she was feeling discouraged. She was a young mother of three at home. “I felt I could both scream and pull my hair out—-or praise God and shout to Him for help.” "Shout to the Lord" was nominated as “Album of the Year” for the 1997 Dove Awards and “Song of the Year” for the 1998 Dove Awards. It has been recorded on over 20 different albums. In 2000, Darlene received a Dove Award nomination for “Songwriter of the Year” and has received the “International Award” from the Gospel Music Assoc.

And there, my family, you have it. I prayed for material to write Psalm 96 today, and the Lord gave it to me. He gave me a song, a song writer, and the story. Thank you, Jesus. AMEN

PRAYER
For the prayer this evening I will close with the words to the song.
“My Jesus, my Savior, Lord there is none like You.
All of my days I want to praise the wonders of Your mighty love.
My comfort, my shelter, Tower of refuge and strength.
Let every breath, all that I am, never cease to worship You.
Shout to the Lord all the earth let us sing.
Power and majesty praise to the King.
Mountains bow down and the seas will roar at the sounds of Your name.
I sing for joy at the work of Your hands.
Forever I’ll love You, forever I’ll stand.
Nothing compares to the promise I have in You.  AMEN












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