278th Week, Psalm Chapter 150 & Titus Intro-Chapter 3 (Click on Title for Video Intro)

 

Click on Title for Video Intro

Monday, Psalm Chapter 150

Psalm 150 

Delores Little

THOUGHT

So many of the Psalms were written by David.  They tell us of his walk with the Lord and his successes and failures.  Through it all we see the heart he had for the Lord.  The Psalms tell of the coming of Jesus, our Lord and King.   Psalms share about everything we read in the books before this book of the Bible.  It has the longest chapter, as in chapter 119 and the shortest chapter, as in Chapter 117.  The book ends with Praising our Lord in the following 6 verses.

SANCTUARY-HEAVENS-ACTS OF POWER-TRUMPET-HARP-LYRE-TAMBOURINE-DANCING-WITH STRINGS-FLUTE-CLASH OF CYMBALS-AND LAST OF ALL OUR BREATH.

Let us shout everyone together, “PRAISE THE LORD”!!

Verse 1: Praise the LORD. Praise God in his sanctuary;

         praise him in his mighty heavens.

Verse 2: Praise him for his acts of power;

         praise him for his surpassing greatness.

Verse 3: Praise him with the sounding of the trumpet,

         praise him with the harp and lyre,

Verse 4: Praise him with tambourine and dancing,

         praise him with the strings and flute,

Verse 5: Praise him with the clash of cymbals,

         praise him with resounding cymbals.

Verse 6: Let everything that has breath praise the LORD.

         Praise the LORD.

PRAYER

Heavenly Father, thank You for Your beautiful Psalms. Forgive us when we get so busy we forget to truly spend time just praising You in words and songs. We can Praise You by how we act with clean humor and laughing. Trees bow before You, and birds sing early in the morning and during the day. Flowers open up to You, and some close at night but open up again. It goes on and on.  Continue to put the joy of the Lord in our hearts. In Jesus Name.  AMEN

Tuesday, Titus Introduction

Titus

Introduction 

THOUGHT

I like these instructional letters that Paul wrote to these young spiritual believers of the early church. As a young Christian, it is good to have these letters to not only help me grow as a disciple of Christ, but how I can contribute to my church that would be pleasing to God and help build up those around me. In Paul's letter to Titus, we again gain God's insight as to the Godly ways to organize and function as the church of Christ. Read Titus and continually ask, "Am I applying these truths in my local church setting?" "Am I helping to build up my church through these truths?" 

PRAYER

Lord God, we want so much to do things that are pleasing to you. Help us to be good servants in our church settings. Help guide us into the position and roles that you want us in. We ask that as we read Titus, speak to us the truths of your word and help us to grow as Disciples of Christ in Jesus name! AMEN 

Wednesday, Titus Chapter 1

Titus 1 

Verse 16

Bart Strayer

Verse 16: They claim to know God, but by their actions they deny him. They are detestable, disobedient, and unfit for doing anything good.

THOUGHT

When I read this verse, I thought of one word: sanctification. A few years ago I couldn’t really give you a good definition of this word or explain its meaning. The unbeliever, and to a certain extent, the non practicing Christian, will not understand the process or definition of this word. To be sanctified, or changed, (i.e. made holy) into the image of Christ is part of being a disciple of Christ.  When unbelievers look at our lives, they may see us as having to give up certain worldly pleasures because we are “religious”.  People look at me and think I have to sacrifice a good living for the cause of Christ.  They see me ‘giving up’ worldly stuff. In reality, we don’t feel like we are giving up anything, rather we see ourselves gaining everything God has to offer.  How can this be? Sanctification.

From my limited understanding, sanctification is God’s work in your life as a result of repentance, prayer, reading God’s Word, and the application of the Christian life. It’s amazing to me how many people go to church but do not apply any of these four actions God has called us to.  They have gone to church for years and still ‘sanctification’ is a mystery.

PRAYER

God, we thank You for Your constant work in our lives.  We thank You for conforming us to Your Son’s image. Help us to be more like Him. We admit much work has to be done in each of our lives.  Continue to mold and shape us so that we may be more like You.  We pray in Jesus Name.  AMEN

Thursday, Titus Chapter 2

Titus 2 

Bart Strayer

THOUGHT

Instead of me writing commentary, I think I will summarize the chapter instead. It would be good for us to hear these words again. 

Paul's instructions to the gender and age groups: pick yours and read it. 

Older Men: to be temperate, worthy of respect, self—controlled, sound in faith, show love and endurance. 

Older Women: to be reverent (Respectable) in the way they live, do not be slanderers or drink too much alcohol. 

Young Women: be self-controlled and pure, busy in the home, kind, and subject to their husbands. 

Young Men: self-controlled, doing well by example, showing integrity, seriousnesdd and soundness of speech so those that oppose you will have nothing bad to say about you.

Notice that there is one recurring command amongst all age/gender groups: self-control.  Reflect on the areas of your life that you can’t control and apply it to God’s Word.

PRAYER

Dear God, we know that we have areas of our life that we struggle with being obedient to You. We struggle with doing well, having sound faith, and having self-control. We ask that You continue to expose these areas of our lives. Help give us the power to overcome destructive habits. We thank You for this time of devotions this week and pray for Your blessings this weekend.  May we be pure of heart and fruitful for Your Kingdom.  We pray in Jesus Name. AMEN 

Friday, Titus Chapter 3

Titus 3 

Verses 1-2

Kristen Strayer

Verses 1-2: Remind the people to be subject to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready to do whatever is good, to slander no one, to be peaceable and considerate, and to show true humility toward all men.

THOUGHT

Our Sunday school class this week talked about the Will of God and how often we view it as pertaining to the big things in life (where to live, what profession to be in, who to marry, etc.). God is very concerned about these things, but our lesson pointed out that sometimes we forget that God’s Will for us is to live a holy life in our everyday lives. These 2 verses remind us of ways we can live out God’s Will.

I think sometimes it is harder to live out God’s Will in the small choices than in the big ones, because the small choices have to be made every day, multiple times a day. Doing what is good, which is the title in my Bible for chapter 3, isn’t an easy thing to do consistently and thank God we do not have to do it on our own strength!

PRAYER

Holy Spirit, we ask You to fill us with the desire to do good, self-control, and abounding love, so that we can do Your Will in our everyday lives. Help us to recognize where we are moving in our everyday lives and how we can reach out to do good to those around us. Amen.