Category: Weekly Word of Encouragement

The Lord’s unfailing love surrounds the one who trusts in him. Psalms 32:10 (NIV) We have many challenges to faith in God in our lives. We are constantly tempted to worry instead of trust. We are constantly tempted to fix problems on our own because we do not want to entrust them to God and let his words guide us. We are tempted to shade the truth and deny the truth about ourselves. In short, we are tempted to live in fear and self-reliance instead of living in God’s love. This passage promises us that his love surrounds us when we trust in him. What is more secure and comforting than that? True, we can’t see him, and we don’t hear his audible voice telling us that he loves us and will work all things together for good. But, we do have his promises. So it is much wiser to Continue Reading →

10 My life is consumed by anguishand my years by groaning;my strength fails because of my affliction,and my bones grow weak.11 Because of all my enemies,I am the utter contempt of my neighborsand an object of dread to my closest friends—those who see me on the street flee from me. Psalms 31:10-11 (NIV) 19 How abundant are the good thingsthat you have stored up for those who fear you,that you bestow in the sight of all,on those who take refuge in you. Psalms 31:19 (NIV) Today we look at Psalm 31. In this psalm the author describes his miserable life. It is so bad that he says his whole life is consumed with anguish and he has spent years groaning about it. His neighbors hold him in contempt. His closest friends dread the sight of him! Apparently his life was so disastrous that his friends didn’t want to talk to Continue Reading →

“[Yahweh] blesses his people with peace” Psalms 29:11 (NIV) The Hebrew word for “peace” in this passage is the well-known Hebrew word “shalom”, which means all-around harmony and prosperity in one’s life. In the Old Testament this included one’s physical circumstances. God promised faithful believers that he would bless their finances, their families, and their living conditions. Yet we do not see the same promises in the New Testament. Why? The New Testament often promises peace, using a Greek translation of the Hebrew word shalom. Yet in the New Testament believers are promised persecution, the pain of carrying their Cross and general rejection by the world. So how can this be peace? The New Testament promises a deeper interior peace. The peace in the New Testament is actually superior to the peace of the Old Testament. We have the peace that is beyond understanding (Phil. 4:7). We are instructed to Continue Reading →

The Lord is my light and my salvation —whom shall I fear?The Lord is the stronghold of my life—of whom shall I be afraid? Psalms 27:1 (NIV) This passage is a reminder that Yahweh is our light, our rescuer and the protector of our lives. His light enables us to see what is true and what is good. On our own we would just stumble. And he saves us, he rescues us, from ourselves and from everything that tries to steal our happiness. Finally, he is our protector, our fortress against attackers who slander us and damage our lives. Nothing can separate us from his love. And since he too is Lord, Jesus is also the one who is our light. He is the light of the world (John 8:12). He is also our salvation because he is the door to salvation (John 10:9). Remember that salvation includes our future Continue Reading →

He guides the humble in what is rightand teaches them his way. Psalms 25:9 (NIV) God wants to guide us and teach us but if we allow pride to reside in us then he is not so willing to guide and teach. Why? Perhaps because he doesn’t want to encourage and magnify our pride by giving us more blessing. Instead, God’s blessings flow when we keep in mind that all the good that we have began with God’s grace. We are weak and corrupt by nature but he still accepts us. We can think of ourselves as students, not masters. We can remember that in our ministry we are just messengers of his teachings, we did not create the truth. We can understand that we are servants of God and others, not king over others. In short, if we embrace an attitude of the heart that reflects who we are Continue Reading →