Daily Archives: July 8, 2026

The Sheep and the Goats

08 Wednesday Jul 2026

Posted by in Psalm 80, Psalms

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Today’s quote and prayer from
“Psalms 365: Develop a Life of Worship and Prayer”


Today’s Reading: Psalm 80:1-7 (NIV)*

Listen to today’s reading by Jonathan Dent:

LORD God,
today I need face time with you.
Show me your kindness.
Help me to sense you smiling down on me,
like a loving parent smiles down on their child.
Thanks for your grace.
Amen.

   — — — —

 

Gospel Reading:
The Sheep and the Goats

“When the Son of Man comes in his glory,
and all the angels with him, he will sit on his glorious throne.
All the nations will be gathered before him,
and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.
He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.

“Then the King will say to those on his right,
‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father;
take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world.
For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat,
I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink,
I was a stranger and you invited me in,
I needed clothes and you clothed me,
I was sick and you looked after me,
I was in prison and you came to visit me.’

“Then the righteous will answer him,
‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you,
or thirsty and give you something to drink?
When did we see you a stranger and invite you in,
or needing clothes and clothe you?
When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’

“The King will reply,
‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for
one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’

“Then he will say to those on his left,
‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.
For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat,
I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink,
I was a stranger and you did not invite me in,
I needed clothes and you did not clothe me,
I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.’

“They also will answer,
‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger
or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’

“He will reply,
‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’

“Then they will go away to eternal punishment,
but the righteous to eternal life.”
(Matthew 25:31-46).

* * *

The one who keeps God’s commands lives in him, and he in them.
And this is how we know that he lives in us:
We know it by the Spirit he gave us.
(1 John 3:24 NIV)

Para la publicación de Salmos 365 de hoy en español haga clic aquí.

bgbg_v4.3_1501818
* NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION, COPYRIGHT ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 BY BIBLICA

Pray for peace in Israel, Iran and the Middle East
and continue to pray for peace to return
to Ukraine and Russia!

Volume I of Psalms 365: Develop a Life of Worship and Prayer won the Best Book of the Year Award from The Word Guild and Volume II has won the Best Devotional of the Year Award. For those who love God’s word, this three-book series is an ideal way to daily meet with the Lord. To purchase or for a closer look click here.

New from David Kitz.

To view further details or purchase click here.

Let Your Face Shine on Us

08 Wednesday Jul 2026

Posted by in Psalm 80, Psalms

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Today’s Devotion from Psalms 365 by David Kitz

Listen to today’s reading by Jonathan Dent:

Reading: Psalm 80:1-7 (NIV)*

Hear us, Shepherd of Israel,
    you who lead Joseph like a flock.
You who sit enthroned between the cherubim,
    shine forth before Ephraim, Benjamin and Manasseh.
Awaken your might; come and save us.

Restore us, O God;
    make your face shine on us,
    that we may be saved.
How long, LORD God Almighty,
    will your anger smolder
    against the prayers of your people?
You have fed them with the bread of tears;
    you have made them drink tears by the bowlful.
You have made us an object of derision to our neighbors,
    and our enemies mock us.
Restore us, God Almighty;
    make your face shine on us,
    that we may be saved.

Reflection

Have you been greeted by a happy face today? I’m talking about the ubiquitous, yellow, happy face stickers that pop up everywhere, especially in any form of online communication. 🙂, 🙂, 🙂! We all recognize these happy faces are intended to brighten our day—make us feel happy like the smiley face shows. I’m not sure they always succeed in their objective.

Of course, a bright, shining human face with a broad genuine smile is much better in communicating happiness than a symbolic sticker on a screen. Real live face time trumps online communication in every way—at least it should. Some things—most things—are communicated best face to face.

Here in Psalm 80, the psalmist, Asaph, pleads for face time with the LORD. In fact, in the entire psalm, Asaph repeats this request three times. Restore us, O God; make your face shine on us, that we may be saved. Clearly, the psalmist is longing to see the smiley face of God—the shining face of God.

In Hebrew literature the shining face of God represents God’s favor—His grace. The psalmist is pleading for God’s favor to rest on him and his people. The truth is we get nowhere without the favor of God. Unless the LORD is gracious to us, we are doomed to fail in this life and perish in eternity. It’s just that simple. We desperately need that happy face sticker from God. This should be our daily prayer: Restore us, God Almighty; make your face shine on us, that we may be saved (v. 7).

Response

Father God, today I need face time with you. Show me your kindness. Help me to sense you smiling down on me, like a loving parent smiles down on their child. Thanks for your grace. Amen.

Your Turn

Have you recently sensed God smiling down on you? How did that make you feel?

Para la publicación de Salmos 365 de hoy en español haga clic aquí.

bgbg_v4.3_1501818
* NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION, COPYRIGHT ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 BY BIBLICA

Pray for peace in Israel, Iran and the Middle East
and continue to pray for peace to return to Ukraine and Russia!

Volume I of Psalms 365: Develop a Life of Worship and Prayer won the Best Book of the Year Award from The Word Guild and Volume II has won the Best Devotional of the Year Award. For those who love God’s word, this three-book series is an ideal way to daily meet with the Lord. To purchase or for a closer look, click here.