Tag Archives: Paul and Silas

Praying and Singing Hymns to God,

22 Tuesday Apr 2025

Posted by in Psalm 103

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

 Reading: Psalm 103:1-6

Heavenly Father,
I genuinely want to learn to praise you
in all situations.
You are always good,
loving, and worthy of praise.
Along with David I declare,
“Praise the LORD, my soul!”
Amen.

— — —

The crowd joined in the attack against Paul and Silas,
and the magistrates ordered them
to be stripped and beaten with rods.
After they had been severely flogged,
they were thrown into prison,
and the jailer was commanded to guard them carefully.
When he received these orders,
he put them in the inner cell
and fastened their feet in the stocks.

About midnight Paul and Silas were praying
and singing hymns to God,
and the other prisoners were listening to them.
Suddenly there was such a violent earthquake
that the foundations of the prison were shaken.
At once all the prison doors flew open,
and everyone’s chains came loose.
The jailer woke up,
and when he saw the prison doors open,
he drew his sword and was about to kill himself
because he thought the prisoners had escaped.
But Paul shouted,
“Don’t harm yourself! We are all here!”

The jailer called for lights,
rushed in and fell trembling before Paul and Silas.
He then brought them out and asked,
“Sirs, what must I do to be saved?”

They replied,
“Believe in the Lord Jesus,
and you will be saved—
you and your household.”
Then they spoke the word of the Lord to him
and to all the others in his house.
At that hour of the night
the jailer took them and washed their wounds;
then immediately he and all his household were baptized.
(Acts 16:22-33 NIV)*

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

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* NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION, COPYRIGHT ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 BY BIBLICA

Please pray for peace to return to Israel, Gaza, and Ukraine!

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.

Today’s review of “The Soldier Who Killed a King“


This biblically accurate novel is ideal for the Lent/Easter season.
For details click here.

The Dead of Winter and the Spirit’s Fire

16 Sunday Jan 2022

Posted by in Psalms

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It’s the dead of winter, the coldest time of the year. My back is aching. A pandemic is raging. Nerves are frayed. Patience has collapsed in a heap of ruin. And it’s the best time to praise God. Yes, you read that correctly. It’s the best time to lay aside our troubles and worries, and praise our Creator.

Praising God in good times, for good times, is easy. Praising God in hard times requires more afore thought—more raw determination. Perhaps it’s the best measure of our faith.

The apostle Paul challenges us with this admonition: “Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. Do not quench the Spirit” (1 Thessalonians 5:16-19, NIV).*

My Bible breaks the statement above into four separate verses and then tosses “Do not quench the Spirit” into an entirely new paragraph. But in the original Greek, there are no verse numbers, or indented paragraphs. These four statements all flowed together as one.

The Spirit’s fire is stoked or quenched by our rejoicing, our prayer and our thanksgiving. None of these responses—our rejoicing, prayer and thanksgiving—should be driven by the circumstances we find ourselves in. Our circumstances may vary, but God’s love for us is constant.

Paul and Silas perfectly illustrated the presence of God’s Spirit in their lives, as they prayed and sang hymns after being severely flogged and imprisoned in Philippi. See Acts 16:16-40. Did their circumstances inhibit their rejoicing? Apparently not. They refused to quench the Spirit’s fire. Instead, they stoked it.
Fireplace

Is your fire going out? Can you still find some glowing embers among the ashes? Then take some action. Add some fuel. Throw on a few splinters of rejoicing. Log on some prayer time. Top it all with some heartfelt thanksgiving.

In the dead of winter, at the coldest time of year, in defiance of a pandemic, let’s build the warmest fire.

* NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION, COPYRIGHT ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 BY BIBLICA

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David Kitz is the chair of The Word Guild. His most recent book series is Psalms 365: Develop a Life of Worship and Prayer.
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Sing Joyfully

18 Friday Aug 2017

Posted by in Bible, Devotionals, Psalm 33, Psalms

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Reading:                                            Psalm 33

            (Verses 1-5)
Sing joyfully to the LORD, you righteous;
it is fitting for the upright to praise him.
Praise the LORD with the harp;
make music to him on the ten-stringed lyre.
Sing to him a new song;
play skillfully, and shout for joy.
For the word of the LORD is right and true;
he is faithful in all he does.
The LORD loves righteousness and justice;
the earth is full of his unfailing love (NIV).

Reflection
It’s a good to wake up with a song of praise to the LORD on your lips. How do I know that’s true? I listen to birds. Their joyous songs are new every morning. If they have cause to sing praise to the LORD, surely I do as well.

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I sing for joy at what your hands have done — photo by David Kitz

Jesus said, “Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground outside your Father’s care. And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. So don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows” (Matthew 10:29:31).

If a sparrow has grounds for praising the LORD each and every day, surely we have more. His constant care sustains us moment by moment. If the Father keeps count of my hair, He must be concerned about even the tiny details of my life. His loving mercy is new every morning; therefore, it is fitting for the upright to praise him.

Here in Psalm 33 we are instructed to: Praise the LORD with the harp; make music to him on the ten-stringed lyre.

Forgive me, LORD. I’m an instrumental disaster. Playing skillfully is nigh unto impossible. But with my voice I will praise you. I can’t compete with robins and cardinals, but I will sing my praise. For the word of the LORD is right and true; he is faithful in all he does.

The steadfast love of the LORD is unchanging. My praise for Him should be just as steadfast—unaffected by my current circumstances. I have heard the birds break into song at sunrise even on a gray rainy morning. At the very least my praise for God should be as constant. Paul and Silas sang praises to God after being severely flogged and imprisoned in Philippi. See Acts chapter 16. Their worship was unaffected by their circumstances. They were obedient to the LORD’s command: Sing joyfully to the LORD, you righteous; it is fitting for the upright to praise him. 

Response: Thank you, LORD God, for each day you set before me. Give me a heart of praise for you. You sustain me. Today give me a new song to praise you, O LORD. It’s always good, right and fitting to sing my praise to you. Amen.

Your Turn: Do you love to praise God? Does it lift your spirit when you do? Are there times when the Lord given you a new song to sing?