In His Grip

( Click here for an audio version . Music is from 'Godpleaser' by Petra. )   ""For I proclaim the name of the LORD; Ascribe greatness to our God! "The Rock! His work is perfect, For all His ways are just; A God of faithfulness and without injustice, Righteous and upright is He." ( Deuteronomy 32:3-4 )   "I will bow down toward Your holy temple And give thanks to Your name for Your lovingkindness and Your truth; For You have magnified Your word according to all Your name." ( Psalms 138:2 )   "The law of the LORD is perfect, restoring the soul;’ ( Psalms 19:7 a)   " How blessed are those whose way is blameless, Who walk in the law of the LORD. How blessed are those who observe His testimonies, Who seek Him with all their heart." ( Psalms 119:1-2 )     Approach As I introduce this topic, I encourage you to approach it with two key principles in mind: perfection an

 ( Click here for an audio version.  Music is from 'Run for the Prize' in vintage vinyl by Petra.) In the last couple of sessions we have examined, primarily from the Psalms, the desire of the godly to be taught and to be changed .   The surrender of repentance is the crucial first step, and yet, the process is anything but passive. What is next as we sharpen our focus on Jesus? "But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit."   (2 Corinthians 3:18) "… but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus ."     (Philippians 3:13-14) "Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles

( Click here for an audio version . Music is from 'Godpleaser' by Petra. ) " Teach me , O LORD, the way of Your statutes, And I shall observe it to the end. Give me understanding , that I may observe Your law And keep it with all my heart. Make me walk in the path of Your commandments, For I delight in it. Incline my heart to Your testimonies And not to dishonest gain. Turn away my eyes from looking at vanity, And revive me in Your ways. Establish Your word to Your servant, As that which produces reverence for You. Turn away my reproach which I dread, For Your ordinances are good. Behold, I long for Your precepts; Revive me through Your righteousness." (Psalm 119:33-40) How do the prayers of the Psalmist here compare to yours?  What are you asking God FOR? Continuing our theme from last week, ‘Teach Me’ , we go further to ask God to change us.  Notice the Psalmist does not pray things like, ‘Lord enable me to…’ , o

(Click here for an audio version.    Music is from 'Godpleaser' by Petra. ) "Make me know Your ways, O LORD; Teach me Your paths. Lead me in Your truth and teach me, For You are the God of my salvation; For You I wait all the day." (Psalm 25:4-5) I wake up desperate.   No matter how refreshed my rest, my mind just takes off, and more often than not in a negative direction, one that, if left in its default mode, will sink into anxiety and depression. I desperately need God to teach me. Earlier this week I read Psalm 119:66: "Teach me good discernment and knowledge, For I believe in Your commandments." Strongly implied here is that I will be lost unless God directs me – and so will you.   Objectively speaking, the amount that we don’t know is infinitely greater than the amount that we do. God began to bring to mind other verses with the phrase ‘teach me’, and so I did a search for the phrase in the Bible.   It o

(Click here for an audio version.    Music is from 'Godpleaser' by Petra. ) ""Cease striving and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth."" (Psalm 46:10) "More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ,"   (Philippians 3:8) "We proclaim Him, admonishing every man and teaching every man with all wisdom, so that we may present every man complete in Christ. For this purpose also I labor,  striving according to His power, which mightily works within me."    (Colossians 1:28-29) What is your goal?   What are you aiming at?   By what do you measure if a day, week, month, year, or lifetime is ‘successful'?   What do you want to look back at and see accomplished? In short, what brings you the most