Category: Weekly Word of Encouragement

God reigns over the nations;God sits on his holy throne. Psalms 47:8 (ESV) It is easy to forget that God really does reign over the earth. We are heavily influenced by our natural eyes which see all the actions of humans, all the power of governments, and all the might of armies. We elect Presidents and Prime Ministers and we pray they will wisely rule us; and this is good. But “the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal” (2 Cor. 4:18). God is unseen but he rules over the nations. He allows people to harm and destroy one another and so it seems that God is inactive. But in this age he is only letting us choose to love him or reject him. Yet he still has ultimate control and so we do not need to fear. If politicians let us down, Continue Reading →

You are my King and my God,who decrees victories for Jacob.Through you we push back our enemies;through your name we trample our foes. Psalms 44:4-5 (NIV) God is our King so who will defeat him? He makes decrees for his people, “Jacob”, so that we will have victory. When our enemy is our circumstances then he makes all things work together for good because we love him (Rom. 8:28). When our enemy is our own flesh we walk in the Spirit and defeat the desires of the flesh (Gal. 5:16). When our enemy is other people we win victory by loving our enemies (Matt. 5:11-12). When our enemy is Satan then we stand in victory wearing the armor of God and wielding the sword of the Spirit. Ultimately we do not wrestle against flesh and blood but against dark spiritual powers, and we succeed. (Eph. 6:10-17). Our weapons have divine Continue Reading →

By day the Lord commands his steadfast love,and at night his song is with me, Psalms 42:8 (ESV) God doesn’t just love us, he commands his love for us. It is his decree for the universe that he loves us and his love is unshakable, it is steadfast. His love is the anchor for our lives because no one can cancel a command of God. It will remain forever. We suffer for a little while here, but in his New Society in the next age we will soak in his love forever free of all sin and suffering. What else would he do for us if he loves us? When the night comes his love is a song in our hearts. It is is music to our souls. Its melody and harmony sooth our anxieties and lull our spirits into peaceful repose. The lyrics capture our minds and his instruments Continue Reading →

Why, my soul, are you downcast?Why so disturbed within me?Put your hope in God,for I will yet praise him,my Savior and my God. Psalms 42:11 (NIV) Psalm 42 is the psalm that begins with the Psalmist declaring that he thirsts for God like a deer thirsts for water. Then he explains his thirst: “My tears have been my food day and night” (Psalm 42:3, NIV). Later he wonders is God has forgotten him in the midst of oppression from his enemies. Sometimes it will feel like God has forgotten us. All we can see is the painful circumstances surrounding us. We cry out but nothing happens. In such times it is easy to forget how God has proven himself to us in the past. We have experienced his Spirit in our hearts; he has delivered us from trials. Therefore, our distress is an opportunity to learn deeper faith. This comes Continue Reading →

Blessed are those who have regard for the weak. Psalms 41:1 (NIV) God has a big heart for those who are weak, troubled, needy. That is why he will bless those who help the weak: they are doing God’s work. They satisfy God’s heart to help those who need help. This is one of the defining traits of a faithful Christian, to watch out for weak and determine how to help them. This encourages us because we know that even though we are not benefitting ourselves when we sacrifice our time and effort for another, God will provide a blessing even greater than if we had just focused on ourselves. Thus, the one who loves God by helping the weak comes out ahead of those who do not. Our blessing may not come until the next age but it will surely come and our joy will endure. God Is Our Continue Reading →