I will praise the LORD!
Five ducklings — photo by David Kitz
A Broken and Contrite Heart
07 Sunday Jun 2020
Tag Archives: Savior
Our Lord Lives!
17 Friday Apr 2020
Living Rock
17 Friday Apr 2020
Reading: Psalm 18
(Verses 46-50)
The LORD lives! Praise be to my Rock!
Exalted be God my Savior!
He is the God who avenges me,
who subdues nations under me,
who saves me from my enemies.
You exalted me above my foes;
from a violent man you rescued me.
Therefore I will praise you, LORD, among the nations;
I will sing the praises of your name.
He gives his king great victories;
he shows unfailing love to his anointed,
to David and to his descendants forever (NIV).*
Boulder along a Gatineau Park trail — photo by David Kitz
Reflection
The joyful exuberance of the opening lines of this final reading from Psalm 18 is well worth reflecting upon. David exults, “The LORD lives! Praise be to my Rock! Exalted be God my Savior!”
To my thinking, there’s nothing quite as dead as a rock. But here in the same breath, David praises the living LORD, his Rock and his Savior. Living rock seems to be a contradiction in terms, but our God is very much alive. He was alive and active in David’s life, and He is alive and active in your life as well—as active and alive as you allow Him to be.
But the LORD also wants to be the Rock of stability in your life—the solid foundation from which you draw strength. A life anchored in God can withstand the storms of adversity and the test of time. The LORD is that stalwart mainstay that actively trains us for eternity.
Most importantly, our LORD saves. He saved David from all of his troubles. It was God’s intervention in David’s life that brought him the victory time after time. God was not content to sit in heaven and cheer from the sidelines. The LORD got involved in David’s life. He responded repeatedly to David’s cries for mercy and help.
If David had ample reasons to praise God and be thankful, we who live on this side of the cross, under the new covenant, have far more grounds for praise. God intervened directly for us. We have a Savior in Jesus, who left his throne in glory. He put His own skin in the game. The Father sent His one and only Son to live as a man, and then suffer and die on our behalf. And Jesus did not remain dead. God the Father raised him from the dead. Now with David we can say, “The LORD lives! Praise be to my Rock! Exalted be God my Savior!”
Response: Heavenly Father, thank you for sending Jesus. Thank you for his life, his death and his resurrection. I love you, Lord Jesus. You are the living Rock on which I can build my life. Through you I am more than a conqueror. Holy Spirit help me live this day in praise of my Savior. Amen.
Your Turn: Is the LORD your living Rock? How has He helped you? Has Jesus become your Savior? How will you honor Him today?
* New International Version, Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica
This post by award-winning author David Kitz will be published in book format later in 2020 by Elk Lake Publishing under the title 365 Days through the Psalms.
He Bears our Burdens
11 Saturday Apr 2020
You Alone Are my Portion and my Cup
06 Monday Apr 2020
Tags
Reading: Psalm 16
A miktam of David.
Keep me safe, my God, for in you I take refuge.
I say to the LORD, “You are my Lord;
apart from you I have no good thing.”
I say of the holy people who are in the land,
“They are the noble ones in whom is all my delight.”
Those who run after other gods will suffer more and more.
I will not pour out libations of blood to such gods
or take up their names on my lips.
LORD, you alone are my portion and my cup;
you make my lot secure.
The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places;
surely I have a delightful inheritance.
I will praise the LORD, who counsels me;
even at night my heart instructs me.
I keep my eyes always on the LORD.
With him at my right hand, I will not be shaken (NIV).*
The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places — Photo by David Kitz
Reflection
In seed form all of the great truths of the New Testament are rooted in the Psalms. Psalm sixteen perfectly illustrates this little known fact. At the start of this psalm David declares, “You are my Lord; apart from you I have no good thing.”
In his epistle to the Romans, Paul writes, “For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh) nothing good dwells; for to will is present with me, but how to perform what is good I do not find.” His words are a rough paraphrase of David’s opening thoughts in Psalm 16. All of Romans chapter seven reflects our great need for our God and Savior. Without Jesus there is no redemption and no hope for victory over sin. But with Paul we can joyfully conclude, “Thanks be to God, who delivers me through Jesus Christ our Lord!” (Romans 7:25).
We find ourselves in full agreement with David’s words, “LORD, you alone are my portion and my cup; you make my lot secure.” Our Savior is our portion and cup—our food and drink. He alone is our cup of salvation. Unless we eat and drink of Him we die. David eloquently expresses his communion with the LORD; David ate and drank in the LORD and so must we. In seed form David grasped the New Testament concept of communion.
Jesus was echoing David’s thoughts when he said, “Very truly I tell you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day” (John 6:53-54).
Response: Heavenly Father, I want to live my life in constant communion with you. I want to live in your presence and eat and drink of you, Lord Jesus. I know apart from you I have no good thing. You are my portion and my cup. I give you thanks. Amen.
Your Turn: How are you eating and drinking in God today? How does that concept become a reality for you?
* New International Version, Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica
This post by award-winning author David Kitz will be published in book format later in 2020 by Elk Lake Publishing under the title 365 Days through the Psalms.
Why are you downcast?
05 Sunday Apr 2020
I will praise the LORD!
Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com
For the director of music. A maskil of the sons of Korah.
By day the LORD directs his love,
at night his song is with me—
a prayer to the God of my life.
I say to God my Rock,
“Why have you forgotten me?
Why must I go about mourning,
oppressed by the enemy?”
My bones suffer mortal agony
as my foes taunt me,
saying to me all day long,
“Where is your God?”
Why, my soul, are you downcast?
Why so disturbed within me?
Put your hope in God,
for I will yet praise him,
my Savior and my God.
(Psalm 42:8-11, NIV)*
* New International Version, Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica
Come Quickly to Help me
01 Sunday Mar 2020
I will praise the LORD!
Wild irises, Petrie Island, Orleans, ON — photo by David Kitz
I confess my iniquity;
I am troubled by my sin.
Many have become my enemies without cause;
those who hate me without reason are numerous.
Those who repay my good with evil
lodge accusations against me,
though I seek only to do what is good.
LORD, do not forsake me;
do not be far from me, my God.
Come quickly to help me,
my Lord and my Savior.
(Psalm 38:18-22, NIV)*
* Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica
My Lifter
14 Friday Feb 2020
Posted in Devotionals, Psalm 145, Psalms
Tags
Reading: Psalm 145
(Verses 13-16)
The LORD is trustworthy in all he promises
and faithful in all he does.
The LORD upholds all who fall
and lifts up all who are bowed down.
The eyes of all look to you,
and you give them their food at the proper time.
You open your hand
and satisfy the desires of every living thing (NIV).*
Photo by David Kitz
Reflection
More than twenty years ago I went through a dark time in my life. It all began rather abruptly. I got up from the dinner table and went to put my dishes on the kitchen counter. Suddenly everything went dark. According to my wife, I hit the floor with a thud. That’s where she found me unconscious. She was able to revive me and help me to the living room couch. A quick trip to the doctor followed, but remaining conscious was a real struggle for me. The blackness kept closing in.
The diagnosis was a complete shutdown of my thyroid gland. Getting back to full health took quite some time. The severe depletion of the thyroid hormones in my body created a number of side effects. One of these side effects was clinical depression. Though I never blacked out again, I was draped in a lethargic blackness—a darkness of the soul that lasted for months. I needed an antidepressant to bring me back to balance. The medication provided the lift that I needed during this dark episode of my life. Eventually, I regained full health and I no longer needed the antidepressants.
My drug prescription provided the artificial lift that I needed during this transition back health. Today’s reading from Psalm 145 reminds us that the LORD is the true lifter. He lifts the fallen soul out of dark places. The LORD upholds all who fall and lifts up all who are bowed down.
We all came into this world with a sinful nature. Willful disobedience comes natural to us. Prompt, willing obedience to God and his commands is not my first inclination. You see, I have fallen—fallen into a life of sin. That’s why I need a Savior. I need an inner change that is propelled by the Spirit of God. Only the LORD can lift me out my condition and restore me to spiritual health.
When God reveals Himself to us as our loving Father, and our faithful provider, by His grace we can choose to put our trust in Him. The LORD is trustworthy in all he promises and faithful in all he does.
Do you have a lifter? Not an artificial lifter like drugs or alcohol, but a genuine lifter like the Lord Jesus Christ. Before he was lifted up on a cross, he spoke these words, “And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself” (John 12:32).
Is Jesus drawing you to himself?
Response: LORD God, thank you for lifting me out of the quagmire of sin. Jesus, you are my merciful Savior. Thank you for restoring my health and lifting me out of depression. You are faithful. Amen.
Your Turn: Has the LORD helped you through a dark period in your life?
*New International Version, Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica.
Good News and Great Joy
23 Monday Dec 2019
Advent Tidings of Joy
And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby,
keeping watch over their flocks at night.
An angel of the Lord appeared to them,
and the glory of the Lord shone around them,
and they were terrified.
But the angel said to them,
“Do not be afraid.
I bring you good news
that will cause great joy for all the people.
Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you;
he is the Messiah, the Lord.
Luke 2:8-11 (NIV)
Reflection
Know this: If you are born again by the Spirit of God, you have received this good news with great joy. Our Savior, the Messiah has been born.
Great Things for You
17 Tuesday Dec 2019
Advent Tidings of Joy
Photo by George Becker on Pexels.com
And Mary said:
“My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
for the Mighty One has done great things for me—
holy is his name.
Luke 1:46-47, 49 (NIV)
Reflection
Know this: If you are born again by the Spirit of God, just like Mary the Lord has done great things for you.
I love the Psalms 