Show Yourself Strong
28 Wednesday Oct 2020
Yearly Archives: 2020
Tossing Away the Wisdom of the Ages
28 Wednesday Oct 2020
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Reading: Psalm 74
(Verses 18-23)
Remember how the enemy has mocked you, LORD,
how foolish people have reviled your name.
Do not hand over the life of your dove to wild beasts;
do not forget the lives of your afflicted people forever.
Have regard for your covenant,
because haunts of violence fill the dark places of the land.
Do not let the oppressed retreat in disgrace;
may the poor and needy praise your name.
Rise up, O God, and defend your cause;
remember how fools mock you all day long.
Do not ignore the clamor of your adversaries,
the uproar of your enemies,
which rises continually (NIV).*
Early morning mist on the Ottawa River — Photo by David Kitz
Reflection
Psalm 74 was born in a time of disaster and distress. The enemies of the people of God had triumphed. The sanctuary had been destroyed and God was openly mocked. If the LORD was all powerful, why didn’t He prevent this disaster? Why didn’t He shelter His people from this violent storm? There are no quick easy answers to such questions.
Today many of God’s people are living the reality of Psalm 74. Throughout the Middle East, the birth-place of Christianity, churches have been destroyed. Young Christian men have been martyred. Women and girls have been raped and sold into slavery. The pleas expressed in this psalm are an urgent reality. Do not hand over the life of your dove to wild beasts; do not forget the lives of your afflicted people forever.
But we need not live in a land ravaged by jihadists to feel the sting of the LORD’s enemies. Daily at our universities and through various media the Christian faith is mocked. Believers are treated as imbeciles and those who stand for righteousness are ridiculed. We are not being thrown to the lions, but the wisdom of the ages is being tossed on the dung heap, so the godless can pursue their sin without the voice of conscience nattering in the background.
Over all this dissonance the voice of the psalmist—the voice of the martyr—the voice of the believer—cries out: Rise up, O God, and defend your cause; remember how fools mock you all day long. Do not ignore the clamor of your adversaries, the uproar of your enemies, which rises continually.
The help of man, though it has value, falls short. We need the help of God. The whispered voice of God has more power than the most eloquent spokesman. Know this child of God: The day will come. The LORD will arise.
Response: LORD God, defend the helpless. Arise and save your people here in our nation and abroad. Show yourself strong by turning back the enemies of the cross. Our hope is in you. Amen.
Your Turn: Are you confident that God will arise and defend His people? Why is our hope in Him secure?
* New International Version, Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica
Some good news: The first volume of 365 Days through the Psalms by award-winning author David Kitz will be published in November, 2020, by Elk Lake Publishing. Two additional volumes will follow in 2021 to complete the three volume set of devotions from the Psalms.
Lord of All
27 Tuesday Oct 2020
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As the seasons change, and our situation changes, let’s remember who is Lord of all.
Watching for Signs
27 Tuesday Oct 2020
Reading: Psalm 74
(Verses 9-17)
We are given no signs from God;
no prophets are left,
and none of us knows how long this will be.
How long will the enemy mock you, God?
Will the foe revile your name forever?
Why do you hold back your hand, your right hand?
Take it from the folds of your garment and destroy them!
But God is my King from long ago;
he brings salvation on the earth.
It was you who split open the sea by your power;
you broke the heads of the monster in the waters.
It was you who crushed the heads of Leviathan
and gave it as food to the creatures of the desert.
It was you who opened up springs and streams;
you dried up the ever-flowing rivers.
The day is yours, and yours also the night;
you established the sun and moon.
It was you who set all the boundaries of the earth;
you made both summer and winter (NIV).*
Petrie Island marsh — photo by David Kitz
Reflection
Do you watch for road signs? I’m inclined to say yes, of course I do. But if I am traveling through a familiar neighborhood or to a familiar location, I pay very little attention to road signs. After all, I know where I am going and how to get there. But put me in unfamiliar territory without a GPS, and the situation changes dramatically. I am hunting for road signs like a hungry, sharp-eyed hawk hunts for field mice. Every sign is spotted well in advance; the details are read and repeated to cement them into my memory. Landmarks and the appearance of the terrain are memorized for future reference. I do all this because I don’t like being lost.
In our reading from Psalm 74, the psalmist finds himself in unfamiliar territory. The nation has been invaded and the enemy has desecrated the temple. This is an enormous loss. But beyond the loss, there appears to be no way forward. The psalmist laments, “We are given no signs from God; no prophets are left, and none of us knows how long this will be. How long will the enemy mock you, God?”
When I am lost, I watch for signs. But in this situation God gave no signs. After the psalmist pours out his complaint before God, he does not stay there. He goes on to recall the miraculous works of God. He reminds God of His interventions into the affairs of humankind. He makes this bold personal declaration, “But God is my King from long ago; he brings salvation on the earth.”
As we pray for our nation, we would do well to pattern our prayers on Psalm 74.
Response: LORD God, you see the sins of our nation. Bring us back to you. You are the Almighty God. You do not change. Bring your salvation on the earth even as you did long ago. You are my King. Amen.
Your Turn: Is it helpful to recall God’s mighty deeds in your life? Will our nation return to God?
* New International Version, Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica
Some good news: The first volume of 365 Days through the Psalms by award-winning author David Kitz will be published in November, 2020, by Elk Lake Publishing. Two additional volumes will follow in 2021 to complete the three volume set of devotions from the Psalms.
Heart Issues
26 Monday Oct 2020
Posted in Psalms
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In the introduction to Psalms 365: Develop a Life of Worship and Prayer, which will be released about a month from now, I make this statement, “Whatever state you find yourself in, there’s a psalm for that—a psalm for every situation and human need.”
When you make statements like that you can expect your words to be put to the test. And they have!
This summer on July 16th, I collapsed on the floor of my study, and was rushed to hospital by ambulance. On July 24th, I had open-heart valve repair surgery. Three of my heart’s four valves needed repair.
The recovery process has been long, slow and painful, but it’s now apparent the worst is behind me.
What have I learned during that time? It can be summarized in the verse pictured below. 
When your flesh and your heart fail, is God there to receive you—to strengthen you?
From personal experience, I can now say, “Yes, He is. God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.”
This verse from the Psalms speaks of resilience—a resilience that comes from a relationship with God. He is after all the God of resurrection and restoration. It’s this heaven-born resilience that we all need during these trying times of economic woes and pandemic setbacks.
My collapse this summer came as a shock, but it wasn’t totally unexpected. For my entire adult life, I was aware that I had heart issues. At age seventeen in preparation for college entrance, I was diagnosed with a barely perceptible heart murmur, technically called a mitral valve prolapse. None of this hindered my involvement in sports or fitness activities. In fact, later in life, my cardiologist encouraged me to stay active and go jogging.
I largely followed that advice. In the months and days before my collapse, I was averaging 10,000 steps per day on a weekly basis. The day before my first fainting spell I did 41 pushups extending myself out from the seat of a chair. Not too shabby for a 68 year-old man.
Suddenly, despite superior fitness, my flesh and my heart failed me. Did my heart fail me during an exercise routine? No. I collapsed while sitting at my desk staring at a computer screen. Apparently, sudden reversals like this are common for people with heart valve disfunctions.
The road to recovery has been hard on this old body—despite my recovery being aided by overall fitness before my collapse.
When your heart and flesh fail God is free to step in. You have nothing left. The reserve you need doesn’t come from within. It comes directly from Him. “Underneath are the everlasting arms.” See Deuteronomy 33:26-28.
Heart issues are best left in His hands.
A Time of Disaster and Distress
26 Monday Oct 2020
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Reading: Psalm 74
A maskil of Asaph.
(Verses 1-8)
O God, why have you rejected us forever?
Why does your anger smolder against the sheep of your pasture?
Remember the nation you purchased long ago,
the people of your inheritance, whom you redeemed—
Mount Zion, where you dwelt.
Turn your steps toward these everlasting ruins,
all this destruction the enemy has brought on the sanctuary.
Your foes roared in the place where you met with us;
they set up their standards as signs.
They behaved like men wielding axes
to cut through a thicket of trees.
They smashed all the carved paneling
with their axes and hatchets.
They burned your sanctuary to the ground;
they defiled the dwelling place of your Name.
They said in their hearts, “We will crush them completely!”
They burned every place where God was worshiped in the land (NIV).*
Rising autumn morning mist — Photo by David Kitz
Reflection
This is a psalm that was born in a time of disaster and distress. The enemies of the people of God had triumphed. In reality Psalm 74 begins as a lament as the psalmist calls out to God with these words. Turn your steps toward these everlasting ruins, all this destruction the enemy has brought on the sanctuary.
Foreign armies had invaded the land. Not only had they attacked the people of God, they had desecrated God’s sanctuary. They burned your sanctuary to the ground; they defiled the dwelling place of your Name.
It may be hard for many of us to imagine the destruction of war and the invasion of our country by foreign forces. But on the spiritual level our land has already been invaded and the attacks on the sanctuaries of God are unrelenting.
Take a walk or a drive about any large city in Canada or Europe and you will see abandoned church buildings. Some have been turned into concert halls or night clubs. Today this statement describes our present reality. Your foes roared in the place where you met with us; they set up their standards as signs.
Sadly, in many places the standard of the cross has been replaced by standards of hedonism and human pride. This would be easier to fathom if this was the work of some sinister foreign power, but in reality our own people have turned their backs on God and have instead embraced the gods of this world. God have mercy on our land.
Response: LORD God, help us to become agents of change in our land. We want people throughout this country to turn to you in repentance and faith. Open their eyes to their need and your reality. Amen.
Your Turn: What will it take to awaken your nation to God? What conditions bring about renewal?
* New International Version, Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica
Some good news: The first volume of 365 Days through the Psalms by award-winning author David Kitz will be published in November, 2020, by Elk Lake Publishing. Two additional volumes will follow in 2021 to complete the three volume set of devotions from the Psalms.
I Will Not Look
25 Sunday Oct 2020
Posted in Psalm 101
I Will Sing of Your Love
25 Sunday Oct 2020
Posted in Psalms
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I will praise the LORD!
I will sing of your love and justice;
to you, LORD, I will sing praise.
I will be careful to lead a blameless life—
when will you come to me?
I will conduct the affairs of my house
with a blameless heart.
I will not look with approval
on anything that is vile.
(Psalm 101:1-3, NIV)*
* New International Version, Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica
The LORD Is God
24 Saturday Oct 2020
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Today’s verse from the Psalms.
Worship the LORD with Gladness
24 Saturday Oct 2020
Posted in Psalms
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I will praise the LORD!
I love the Psalms 