This psalm is what caused, after much study, Martin Luther to pen the words to the grand hymn, “A Mighty Fortress is Our God.” After studying this psalm, I asked 3 members of my family to write a sermon–along with me–entitled, “What a Mighty God We Serve.” We used Harold Willmington’s The Outline Bible for our 5 major points: I. The Protection from God (verses 1-3), II. The Paradise of God (verses 4-5), III. The Power of God (verses 6-8), IV. The Peace of God (verse 9) and V. The Praise to God (verses 10-11) [page 242]. If you have not spent time with this psalm, do so. It will…

1. This psalm seems to have been written for a wedding, possibly a royal wedding. As such, much of it seems almost secular in nature, but the thoughts are grounding in holy, sacred things. 2. Verse 2 seems like an odd way to address a man in our society, but it can be translated, “You are most handsome among the sons of men.” However, to describe a man as “beautiful” or “fair” was common in dealing with royalty in ancient times. 3. Verses 3-5 are a wish for success and victory in future battles for the leader. Verse 4 is significant, though, as it wishes victory “for the cause of…

…but, just look to your right and you will notice that we have crossed 10,000 hits!Thank you to everyone who comes to this blog. Keep coming back, and keep spreading the word! Let’s see if we can’t get the next 10,000 in one year or less. –Adam, Leah, Mary Carol and Turner

1. The first verse contains a great verse about how the older generation needs to teach the younger. They are teaching about God. Verses 1-3 then “review” some of the things that have been taught to this younger generation. I find it significant that they didn’t just say, “We were taught some stuff.” Rather, this younger generation had been taught thoroughly enough that they remembered specific things that caused them to praise God! In many ways, this is the purpose of our Bible school programs. In an even more direct way, though, it is the purpose of the Christian home! 2. I think it is significant that, after this review…

Here are some articles from around the world of blogging I thought you might enjoy over the weekend. 1. Steve Sanders made a slight boo-boo, but it led to a great article entitled, “Check the Expiration Date!” 2. Drew Kizer, on Truth and Repose, posts an article dealing with how a preacher needs to have a vocabulary. Read this short, but interesting article here. 3. Paula Harrington, who I had the pleasure of meeting face-to-face last week, teaches us to “Prevent Heart Disease.” 4. While not a blog, Wayne Jackson writes a very good response to the recent comments made by the Pope on Christian Courier’s website. You may read…

1. It is interesting to read Psalms 42 and 43 without stopping. It seems almost as if 43 is written as a closing chapter (or epilogue) to 42. While that is not the case, it is an interesting study. 2. This brief poem divides very well into two parts. Verses 1-4 are a prayer to God asking for His help. Verse 5 then has the psalmist speaking to his soul. 3. Verse 1 again places God as the Lawyer for the writer. Literally the verse is, “Judge me, O God, and argue my case.” In other words, the psalmist is wishing for God to both argue his case, and be…

1. Verse 1 is the basis for one of the more famous “camp songs” of the past few years. The verse beautifully illustrates how deep our desire should be for our Lord. When thirsty, we will do nearly anything to find water. Are we that focused on serving God? 2. “My tears have been my food day and night, while they say to me all day long, ‘Where is your God?'” (verse 3) Of all the statements of loneliness and distress in the Psalms, this one stands out to me. We have all cried ourselves to sleep and wondered if we were the only ones who cared. It’s sad that…

This morning I was teaching some of our young people about Josiah. (We have a summer reading program on Thursday mornings, and this summer we are studying kings of the Bible). The more I study this young man who became king, the more impressed I am. While many of the “famous” decisions he made to serve the Lord came after he had been king for a few years, he was still very young when he made those decisions. For our project, we had our young people look through old magazines for pictures. They cut the pictures out and wrote down how that picture showed ways in which they could serve…

1. The first verse is a statement that sounds more like something from the book of Proverbs, because it is a statement of general truth. When we help others, it is generally true that God aids us in our times of need. Verses 2-3 continue the thoughts of what God will do for the one who is helpful to the ones in need. 2. Verse 4 seems to give the idea (again) that David is saying he is suffering with some type of illness because he has sinned. While we may suffer illness or injury due to a sin, it is not necessarily a direct result. However, whether we suffer…

[NOTE: Our annual VBS begins Sunday night at 9th Avenue, so my article this week reflects that. Also, there is a reference made in the first paragraph to our front-page article by brother Andy Kizer. He simply wrote an article with a short description of each story to be covered during the 4-day VBS. We pray that you will think about attending this great event. We will have VBS Sunday-Wednesday from 6:30-8:00 PM each evening.]I know our Vacation Bible School hasn’t even begun yet, but so many are already due a “thank you.” If you haven’t done so already, take a moment and read brother Andy’s article on the front…