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Psalm 33:6

Published by S.M. Wibberley on February 6, 2018
 
Psalm 33:6 “By the word of the LORD were the heavens made,”
 
[How powerful you are, Lord, able to create through just speaking. Praise you, Lord Jesus, that you, as the Living Word, created all that there is: “For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him” (Col. 1:16).
 
Your might is immeasurable, your strength is stupendous, your power is perpetual–greater than the width and breadth of the known heavens, greater than we will ever comprehend, for you are infinite in every way. We stand in awe of you!]
 
“their starry host by the breath of his mouth.”
 
[You are the star breather, exhaling stars great and small, burning at 10,000 degrees and beyond, blowing them into proper places, into galaxies, and clusters of galaxies, placing them purposefully in your universe.
 
You breathed billions of stars, placed them billions of light years apart, yet you can measure this all with the span of your hand.
 
You, O Lord God, are mighty beyond comprehension, worthy of worship and love, worthy of awe and fear, worthy of obedience by all your creatures. May I walk in wonder, live in your light, serve in the shadow of your splendor.]
 
 
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Psalm 33:4-5

Published by S.M. Wibberley on February 5, 2018
Psalm 33:4 “For the word of the LORD is right and true;”
 
[Praise you, Lord God, that your Word is flawlessly correct, fully trustable, totally right and true. Praise you for speaking it, preserving it, presenting it to us so we can read it, study it and memorize it, learning to think your thoughts.]
 
“he is faithful in all he does.”
 
[Faithfulness is your character! You tie yourself to your qualities, never straying outside the boundaries you have set: you are always good, always wise, always helping, always present, always protecting, always powerful, always patient. You are faithful to the end: completely, entirely, purely, perfectly faithful. Therefore you are the One to be trusted.]
 
Psalm 33:5 “The LORD loves righteousness and justice;”
 
[Your love, O Lord, is so comprehensive and wide, encompassing all that is good. Praise you that you are passionate about righteousness and do only what is correct and pure and good. Thank you that you love justice and will always judge sin, never condone evil. So, there is hope for a positive future, for an end to evil and for a Heaven where there is only goodness.
 
“the earth is full of his unfailing love.”
 
[Praise you, Lord, that in your great love you are merciful. If you interacted with us only on the basis of righteousness and justice, we would be blown away in a moment, sent into an eternity separated far from you and all that you are.
 
But in you, Righteous and Justice are accompanied by Love. Mercy triumphs over Justice because you are Love itself, providing a way for forgiveness even though it cost you greatly, and continues to bring you pain and suffering as unbelievers reject you and we believers often choose to live in rebellion and unbelief.
 
Praise you that in your Love you persist in guiding, disciplining, chastening and correcting, leading and transforming us. Praise you for your patient, gracious, powerful, ever flowing love.]
 
Praise you that I can know that you have already gone through the day, prepared things and will carry me through.
 
Help me today to be wise and godly, to think truth, to put on the armor of God and to obey what I know to be right. May I choose to have joy in Jesus, to let go of what is temporary, hold on to what is eternal and rise above. I praise you for all that you are doing, all that you are going to do.
 
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Psalm 33:1-3

Published by S.M. Wibberley on February 4, 2018

Psalm 33:1 “Sing joyfully to the LORD, you righteous; it is fitting for the upright to praise him.”

[And so it is Lord–it is so very right for us to praise you! You are worthy, for you are holy, you are great, you are wise, you are loving, you are just, you are firm; you are never fearful, negative, unbalanced, unjust, selfish, proud or evil in anyway.

You, Lord God, are Light, you are Life, you are Love–and you share all three with us lavishly! You are worthy of all praise, exaltation and glory.]

Psalm 33:2,3 “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.”

[You love beauty and music, Lord, and you have given these to us as a means of enjoying and exalting you. To sing and play instruments to give you glory is a wonderful privilege, it is a marvelous gift from you.

Thank you that we can come at any time through the Name and Blood of Jesus into your presence to praise you in song, to express the joy that we have in you–for you are the wonderful, marvelous, eternal, exalted Creator and Sustainer of the universe, full of goodness, devoid of evil, overflowing with grace, holiness and power.

May praise be the keynote of my life; may prayer be the foundation of all I do; and may whole-hearted obedience be the pattern of my days–all bringing honor to you, Lord Jesus.]

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Psalm 32:9-11

Published by S.M. Wibberley on February 3, 2018
Psalm 32:9 “Do not be like the horse or the mule, which have no understanding but must be controlled by bit and bridle or they will not come to you.”
 
[Lord, help us to be the opposite of this. Help us to move in quick and joyful obedience to your Word and Spirit, with the desire to honor you and bless those around us. Help us to act out of kindness, care and love for others.
 
I thank you, Lord, for your provision in every way, meaning I can trust you fully. May I never need the bit and bridle and instead obey out of understanding and desire.]
 
Psalm 32:10 “Many are the woes of the wicked, but the LORD’s unfailing love surrounds the man who trusts in him.”
 
[I praise you for your never-ending Love, O Triune God–Father, Son and Holy Spirit. I praise you that your love is eternal, infinite, unquenchable and powerful, always surrounding and protecting us: “As the mountains surround Jerusalem, so the LORD surrounds his people both now and forevermore” (Ps. 125:2). “The angel of the Lord encamps round about those who fear him and delivers them” (Ps. 34:7).
 
Help us all to trust in you, to fear you (care deeply what you think and obey you, to fear the consequences of disobeying you) and to find refuge in you. “I will say of the LORD, ‘He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust” (Ps. 91:3).]
 
Psalm 32:11 “Rejoice in the LORD and be glad, you righteous; sing, all you who are upright in heart!”
 
[What a privilege to rejoice in you, Lord, no matter what our circumstances are. May I be glad in you in the midst of this present difficult time of much uncertainty. I give you praise and glory, honor and exaltation now, before there is a resolution to any of the multilayered problems surrounding me.
 
I choose, like Habakkuk, to rejoice in you, not my comfort: “Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls [though I am facing starvation and death], YET I will rejoice in the LORD, I will be joyful in God my Savior” (Hab. 3:17,18).
 
This is an act of the will led by faith, against all external evidence and internal emotions, possible because You, Lord God, are good—completely, fully, unwaveringly good–worthy of trust and glory in every way, in every moment. I choose today to give you honor and praise in whatever comes. Amen.
 
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Psalm 32:7-8

Published by S.M. Wibberley on February 2, 2018
 
 
Psalm 32:7 You, Lord God, “are my hiding place;”
[In the midst of my problems, difficulties, disappointments and pain, I can come to you with my fears, my anxiety, my dread and know that you will warmly receive me, help me and protect me. In you I am safe, in you I can be obedient to what you have told me is true, no matter what my emotions tell me.]
 
“you will protect me from trouble”
 
[Praise you for your power to protect and your commitment to my goodness. You have made me one of those “who through faith are shielded by God’s power” (1 Pet. 1:5). Thank you for the assurance that whatever you allow will be for my good and for your glory. Help me to therefore praise you for whatever comes today.]
 
“and surround me with songs of deliverance.”
 
[ May my life be one long song of praise and honor to you, Lord, as I sing of your daily protection, your power, your deliverance.] Selah
Psalm 32:8 “I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you and watch over you.”
 
[Praise you for your faithfulness and wisdom as you give guidance and insight in all. Through your Word you give us clear instructions, like, “Turn left at the fork onto wisdom way, remembering my Word: ‘overcome evil with good.’ Now turn right onto the path of trust, thinking truth: ‘forgive as God has forgiven you.’ Wait here a bit in the place of restoration: ‘My soul, find rest in God alone,’ and remember the truth of Psalm 23, waiting quietly in my presence. Now you can proceed, but keep straight on the road of life, thinking my thoughts, ‘giving thanks in all things.’ And ‘fret not yourself’ but ‘trust in the Lord and do good.”
 
So, Lord God, following your instructions, I can proceed in the way I should go. Thank you for how personally and carefully you lead me on through the dangers, toils and snares of life, how specific your advice and commands are, how full of love and kindness your work is.
 
I praise you, Lord God for all that you will do in my life today–as you do every day–for you are my faithful and loving King, my powerful Shepherd and my gracious God. Praise you for how you will work all out. Help me to think your Word, to heed your counsel, to follow your instructions and to walk in your way.
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Thoughts from Psalm 86:15

Published by S.M. Wibberley on February 1, 2018
I praise you, Lord God, for the beauty of your Character as shown in Psalm 86:15 “…you, O Lord, are a compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness.”
 
You lean over the side of Heaven and in compassion follow carefully every aspect of my life, preparing each day in detail, providing protection, chastening, guiding and blessing.
 
In compassion you also take me through difficulties to break, shape and transform me. You are wholehearted and full-orbed in your compassion.
 
You are gracious: kind and good in your dealings with me. You are richly generous, pouring out upon me blessing after blessing. You have given me health, strength, the ability to see, hear, walk and talk; you have given me a fine family, good friends, meaningful work, constant protection and many belongings. And even if I had none of these, I have you! I lack nothing because you are my Shepherd.
 
You are slow to anger: deeply patient, graciously patient, perfectly patient and therefore persistent in our relationship. I so often fail, especially in my thought life and in my motives, and in each sin grieve you, giving you pain.
 
Yet you do not respond in anger, but instead kindly correct me over and over. You start with very small alerts and if I don’t respond, slowly work your way up to larger rebukes, patiently giving me chance after chance to see, confess and repent of one sin after another. I praise you for your great, rich, comforting, healing patience.
 
You are abounding in love: you are an overflowing spring of grace with an endless stream of goodness that pours out of your rich person, for you are agape love itself.
 
Praise you that your love is unaffected by any of my failures, that your love flows deeply, widely and powerfully forever. It evokes from me an answering love, a desire to do what is pleasing to your heart. Your love transforms, cleanses, equips and leads us on, consistently, abundantly and graciously.
 
You are abounding in faithfulness: you are perfect, unchanging, unwaveringly consistent. You are faithful to your Character, to your Word, to your Wisdom, to your Promises, to your Plan. We can trust you wholly, wholeheartedly, totally and eternally. You are faithful when we are not; you are faithful when it costs you. You are faithful forever.
 
Glory be to you, Lord God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. You are totally worthy of worship, of honor, of exaltation. I bow before you today in awe, I rise up in surrender, to obey in praise and thanksgiving. May you be lifted up, glorified and honored in my life today, in my motives, thoughts, words and deeds.
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A rather long entry from my worship journal:

Published by S.M. Wibberley on January 31, 2018
 
I realize that I am not close to you, Lord Jesus. My head is full of projects and plans, fears and frustrations. I want to lay these aside and follow you with all my heart, being open to you, increasingly in love with you, worshiping you each moment of the day. So, I lay aside fixing the old tractor, dealing with the renters, writing and selling books, shopping, even Barbara’s situation, and I look to you, the amazing, awesome, Almighty One.
 
You are pure and holy, completely other than anything else that exists–for all has been created, but you are from forever to forever. Everything else has a beginning, while you have always been. You are perfect, with no possibility of getting better or worse. You are stable, rock-solidly sure, unchangingly faithful to your beautiful and pure character.
 
You are infinite–infinite in power, in wisdom, in knowledge and in presence—you fill the whole universe, you are everywhere at the same time, fully present, fully engaged, fully focused on everything and everyone at once.
 
O, what pain your heart must suffer, as you see your creatures making selfish, destructive, evil choices over and over again; and as you see your children trusting themselves instead of you, choosing to follow their own deceptive hearts rather than your wonderful Word. And yet, in your great, constant, deep, gracious Love, you continue to be with us, holding our right hand, guiding us with your wisdom, and ready to receive us into glory when our time comes.
 
You are so kind, so gracious, so forgiving, so patient. And you, in your wisdom, correct, rebuke and punish us until we are willing to repent and change our ways; and if we continue in our stubbornness, you may take us early to prevent further disgrace to your Name. You know what is best and do not shrink from making the hard decisions. Help me to be like that, too.
 
You are the all powerful One, who is able to create by speaking, by your word, by breathing. You brought out the stars by the breath of your mouth–millions of them, burning at surface temperatures of at least 10,000 degrees F, as our star does. And the sun is a just tiny star, totally dwarfed by giant ones which defy the known laws of physics, but not your laws. And you assigned each star its place, gave each its name and hold all in order.
 
On the other end of the scale, you are the One who holds all things together, including the nucleus of every atom Since likes repel, and the nucleus of every atom is made up of positively charged particles, it should, naturally, blow apart. Why doesn’t it? Scientists don’t know; they say it is held together by a “mysterious force.” Scripture tells us this is you, Lord, Jesus (“…in him all things hold together.” Col. 1:17). Such unimaginable power and presence, to hold together the zillions of atoms that make up the universe, one by one. You are beyond conception, Lord Jesus!
 
And in spite of doing all this, you are able to be intimately involved in the lives of every one of your children, working out the details that are beyond our control, protecting, guiding, providing for us moment by moment. You are so patient, so profoundly kind, so positively good to us rebellious, unbelieving and selfish creatures.
 
You are wonderful beyond words, marvelous beyond our meditations, great beyond what we can grasp and amazing beyond our ability to comprehend. I praise you that you are thus, so unlike us, so steady, so firm, so wise, so gracious, so loving, so righteous, so merciful, so faithful.
 
I praise you that all is in your hand, all is prepared and we only have to deny ourselves, take up our cross and follow you in your invitation to join you in this master plan laid out before us, looking to you, Lord Jesus, the giver and the completer of our faith.
 
May we follow you with all our hearts, embracing the joy of knowing you, knowing your love, knowing the future you have planned out, stretching throughout the rest of our lives here and extending on into eternity. There we will know you more and more, living in sinless perfection, able to join you more deeply and widely in your great plans for the new Heaven and new Earth. Praise you, Lord Jesus, for your great and wonderful, unimaginable greatness.
 
I bow before you today, surrendering myself to your knowledge, to your leadership, to your wisdom. May I be strong in you and the power of your might, being filled with your Spirit, surrendered to your plan and thinking your thoughts.
 
Thank you, Lord, for what you are doing and going to do. May I bring you one long continuous string of glory moments this day, offering the sacrifice of thanksgiving at each step.
 
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Psalm 32:6

Published by S.M. Wibberley on January 30, 2018
 
Psalm 32:5b-6 “you forgave the guilt of my sin…Therefore let everyone who is godly pray to you while you may be found;”
 
[You have proved yourself trustable in your forgivenss, giving us the opposite of what we deserve. Therefore, in every situation, we can run to you in prayer, seek you and receive your help.
 
Prayer is not our last resort, or the least we can do; it is to be our first resort and it is the most we can do for anyone. I praise you that you can always be found by your children, for you are consistently with us, always watching, always ready to help: “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble” (Ps. 46:1).
 
Praise you that have called us to a partnership in prayer, where we must seek you, come to you in intercession, and then you will answer. It is a warm and close relationship: wonderful, positive and powerful. It is a responsibility: we must reject the desire to fix things ourselves and instead come first to you, acknowledging and rejoicing in our weakness. Praise you for the possibility of entering into your presence at each moment and finding help. “In the day of my trouble I will call upon you, for you will answer me” (Psa. 86:7).]
 
“surely when the mighty waters rise, they will not reach him.”
 
[This danger is not an “if” but a “when.” Floods of trouble will come, but you will set us high upon a rock and keep us safe. “God is our refuge and strength…. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea; though the waters thereof roar and foam, though the mountains shake with the swelling thereof” (Ps. 46:1-3).
 
This is true today—as the tide of culture now is flowing against you, Lord, against your Word and your children. I praise you, Lord, and give you glory and honor, praise and exaltation, because, whatever might come, you are there in power, in love and in grace. “My soul, find rest in God alone; my hope comes from Him” (Ps. 62:5).
 
Help us to rest in you and your greatness today, Lord Jesus, rejecting worry, fear and anxiety, instead embracing love, joy and peace, trusting in you, living out your desire: “May the God of hope, fill you with all joy and peace AS YOU TRUST IN HIM, so that your lives may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit” (Rom. 15:13).
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Reveling in the WOW of God!

Published by S.M. Wibberley on January 29, 2018
 
I praise you, my Heavenly Father, for your steadfast, unwavering love and goodness. I am so much the opposite: my emotions are up and down, my sense of achievement and worth waver, and my happiness with myself fluctuates with what I perceive to be success or failure. My feelings change with how people interact with me, with how well I sleep and even with my dreams.
 
But you, Lord God, have made yourself my Rock, my Protector, my Fortress, my Forgiver, my Cleanser and my Father. I praise you for the whole-hearted, deep and full acceptance you have given me in Christ. I thank you for the gracious correction, the loving help, the continual support from your glorious riches, from your constant presence, your protection and provision.
 
In you I am forgiven; in you I am being transformed; in you I am on the upward journey to heaven; in you I have worth and meaning and unfailing love.
 
Lord Jesus, my wonder at you grows as I consider what I am in myself: selfish, proud, weak, unstable, lustful, lazy, impatient, unbelieving and rebellious, to name a few of my sins. And then my wonder grows more as I consider what I, as a sinner, deserve: rejection, punishment, suffering, failure, death and eternal separation from you.
 
In the light of this, I am more and more amazed at your unending, rich, powerful and enthusiastic love, poured out over me every day. You are too good to be true, too wonderful to be real, too positive to be grasped–you are beyond human conception.
 
Yet, this is what you are! Your love is real, demonstrated at the culmination of history at the Cross and Resurrection–and then repeatedly affirmed in my life each day by your forgiveness, patience, kindness and grace.
 
What a privilege to bask in your love, exult in your goodness, revel in your acceptance, and rejoice in your forgiveness. May I never take any of this for granted, may my wonder at your great goodness ever increase and spill over into ongoing revival, which results in worship through obedience, praise through faith, and rejoicing through surrender.
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Psalm 32:3-5

Published by S.M. Wibberley on January 28, 2018
 
 
Psalm 32:3,4 “When I kept silent, [not confessing, not acknowledging my sin] my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long. For day and night your hand was heavy upon me; [this is your love, moving us towards repentance.] my strength was sapped as in the heat of summer. Selah”
 
Psalm 32:5 “Then I acknowledged my sin to you [may I ever do so quickly, immediately!] and did not cover up my iniquity. I said, ‘I will confess my transgressions to the LORD’—and you forgave the guilt of my sin.”
 
[Because you are Love, Lord Jesus, because you are Faithful, because you have paid the great price and you love to forgive, we can eagerly and boldly come to you to confess and repent. We are safe in you, we are protected in you, for “you are good and ready to forgive and abounding in mercy to all who call on you” (Ps. 86:5).
 
Why hold back, why prolong the painful resistance? And for what? A little more indulging in anger or resentment or lust? We grieve the Spirit and end up with a mouthful of gravel!
 
Let us instead run to His open arms, eager to lay our sin at His feet, to be forgiven, cleansed and back into fellowship. This is wisdom, this is freedom, and this is what He desires for us–the restoration of our joy in Him.
 
Praise be to you, Lord Jesus, my great Shepherd, my Brother, My Lord, my King, my Creator and Sustainer, my God. You are worthy of worship, of honor, of glory and exaltation. May I give you these through whole-hearted faith, quick repentance, immediate obedience and ongoing praise in all things.
 
Help me to walk in the light of your presence today, Lord, clearly, unreservedly accepting what you have to say to me about my sin and about your love.
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