Who Rules over All?
28 Saturday Nov 2020
Posted in Psalm 103
Category Archives: Psalm 103
His Throne in Heaven
28 Saturday Nov 2020
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I will praise the LORD!
The close of the day — photo by David Kitz
The LORD has established his throne in heaven,
and his kingdom rules over all.
Praise the LORD, you his angels,
you mighty ones who do his bidding,
who obey his word.
Praise the LORD, all his heavenly hosts,
you his servants who do his will.
Praise the LORD, all his works
everywhere in his dominion.
Praise the LORD, my soul.
(Psalm 103:19-22, NIV)*
* New International Version, Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica
A Father’s Compassion
22 Sunday Nov 2020
Posted in Psalm 103
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Today’s verse from the Psalms:
Father God,
today I thank you
for your love and compassion.
Amen.
As a Father Has Compassion
22 Sunday Nov 2020
Tags
I will praise the LORD!
November evening reflections — photo by David Kitz
As a father has compassion on his children,
so the LORD has compassion on those who fear him;
for he knows how we are formed,
he remembers that we are dust.
The life of mortals is like grass,
they flourish like a flower of the field;
the wind blows over it and it is gone,
and its place remembers it no more.
But from everlasting to everlasting
the LORD’s love is with those who fear him,
and his righteousness with their children’s children—
with those who keep his covenant
and remember to obey his precepts.
(Psalm 103:13-18, NIV)*
* New International Version, Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica
So Far…
21 Saturday Nov 2020
Posted in Psalm 103
Today’s verse from the Psalms:
Father God,
today I thank you
for your kindness and forgiveness.
Amen.
Abounding in Love
21 Saturday Nov 2020
I will praise the LORD!
The LORD works righteousness
and justice for all the oppressed.
He made known his ways to Moses,
his deeds to the people of Israel:
The LORD is compassionate and gracious,
slow to anger, abounding in love.
He will not always accuse,
nor will he harbor his anger forever;
he does not treat us as our sins deserve
or repay us according to our iniquities.
For as high as the heavens are above the earth,
so great is his love for those who fear him;
as far as the east is from the west,
so far has he removed our transgressions from us.
(Psalm 103:6-12, NIV)*
* New International Version, Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica
He Heals All Your Diseases
15 Sunday Nov 2020
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Today’s verse from the Psalms:
LORD God,
you have been so kind and compassionate.
I give you thanks for Jesus.
Amen.
Forget Not All His Benefits
15 Sunday Nov 2020
Posted in Psalm 103
Tags
I will praise the LORD!
Praise the LORD, my soul;
all my inmost being, praise his holy name.
Praise the LORD, my soul,
and forget not all his benefits—
who forgives all your sins
and heals all your diseases,
who redeems your life from the pit
and crowns you with love and compassion,
who satisfies your desires with good things
so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.
(Psalm 103:1-5, NIV)*
* New International Version, Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica
Who’s in charge here?
11 Wednesday Sep 2019
Posted in Devotionals, Psalm 103, Psalms
Tags
Reading: Psalm 103
(Verses 19-22)
The LORD has established his throne in heaven,
and his kingdom rules over all.
Praise the LORD, you his angels,
you mighty ones who do his bidding,
who obey his word.
Praise the LORD, all his heavenly hosts,
you his servants who do his will.
Praise the LORD, all his works
everywhere in his dominion.
Praise the LORD, my soul (NIV).
Swift flowing river, Algonquin Park — photo courtesy of Liz Kranz
Reflection
Have you ever found yourself in a chaotic situation where you immediately ask this question, “Who’s in charge here?” Sometimes I have walked into an unruly classroom where that question is very pertinent. The teacher may be nowhere in sight, or is absorbed with one or two students while bedlam reigns all around. It takes very little to lose control of thirty twelve-year-olds. Trust me on this point: It takes a range of skills to get a class of youngsters motivated and moving in the same direction.
Today’s reading from the psalms gives us an answer to that age old question, “Who’s in charge here?” The LORD has established his throne in heaven, and his kingdom rules over all.
So there is your answer. The LORD is in charge here. He’s in charge of everything—the orderly and the controlled, and the seemingly random. Above this world and its mixture of order, routine, bedlam and chaos, the LORD sits enthroned as ruler over all.
Often the LORD is blamed for the bedlam and the chaos, but is that a fair assessment? Yes, He could control everything—every detail, but then there would be no humans on this planet—no free moral agents. To be human is to have the ability to choose both good and evil. If God sovereignly decided that we could only do good, then we would be robotic humanoids—not true humans at all.
Can there be true love, if love is enforced from on high rather than freely chosen? Can there be genuine worship, if this divine privilege is induced by the Creator rather than willingly offered by the created? No, the LORD calls for our worship, but He forces it on no one. The God I serve is not a spiritual rapist; He is a true lover.
So I will freely join with all creation to praise Him. I will join the angels, the heavenly hosts and all his works everywhere in his dominion. I will join in praising my Creator and my Redeemer, who was born in a stable and raised high to suffer on a cross, but now His throne is established in heaven and His kingdom rules over all. He is the One I will praise. How about you?
Response: Father God, I appreciate the free will that you have given me. I choose to worship you. You are the lover of my soul. Thank you for the world you created, and all you have done. I owe my life to Lord Jesus. Amen.
Your Turn: Do we choose God or does He choose us, or are both answers correct?
God is completely mind-boggling!
10 Tuesday Sep 2019
Posted in Devotionals, Psalm 103, Psalms
Tags
Reading: Psalm 103
(Verses 13-18)
As a father has compassion on his children,
so the LORD has compassion on those who fear him;
for he knows how we are formed,
he remembers that we are dust.
The life of mortals is like grass,
they flourish like a flower of the field;
the wind blows over it and it is gone,
and its place remembers it no more.
But from everlasting to everlasting
the LORD’s love is with those who fear him,
and his righteousness with their children’s children—
with those who keep his covenant
and remember to obey his precepts (NIV).
Photo by Jeff Nissen on Pexels.com
Reflection
Last week I heard a news report that stated that new research has led astronomers to realize that there are ten times more stars in the universe than they previously estimated. A minor miscalculation you may assume. Not really!
Our own Milky Way galaxy contains about 400 billion stars of varying sizes. The most recent astronomical estimate counts 170 billion galaxies in the observable universe. To do a rough calculation of the total number of stars in the universe, you multiply 400 billion stars X 170 billion galaxies and get a number with twenty-five zeroes tacked on the end. Now that’s astronomical!
So how does that ginormous number connect with today’s reading from Psalm 103? It tells us the LORD’s care for us is nothing short of astounding. The God who created all that vast array of stars cares even for you and me. As a father has compassion on his children, so the LORD has compassion on those who fear him; for he knows how we are formed, he remembers that we are dust.
Dust… We are nothing more than dust. From dust we were formed and to dust we will return. (See Genesis 3:19.) Yet despite our humble origin and our body’s grave fate, we have a God who has the compassion of a father for his children. Furthermore, this care and compassion is not fleeting; it’s eternal. Our time on earth may be transitory, but God’s love for us persists. But from everlasting to everlasting the LORD’s love is with those who fear him, and his righteousness with their children’s children—with those who keep his covenant and remember to obey his precepts.
Why would a God of such infinite capacity commit Himself to a creature of such minuscule significance? The LORD is mind-boggling; God is completely mind-boggling! You can see it in the stars. You can count it in the grains of dust—dust that the LORD loves!
Response: Father God, you are matchless. There is none like you. Your compassion is astonishing. Your grandeur is beyond my ability to even imagine. I love you, LORD. I bow in awe before your everlasting majesty. Amen.
Your Turn: How big is your God? How tiny are you before this awesome God?
