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Breakthrough!

Published by S.M. Wibberley on February 3, 2017
A new day, a new dawn, another chance to praise you, Lord. And this time not only by faith but also because of your powerful answer to our prayers yesterday. The breakthrough we’ve been waiting for in Barbara has come: she heard from you that she will get well and now has hope. She can see light at the end of the tunnel and has become almost normal!
Praise be to You, Lord. I am sure there will still be ups and downs in her healing, but the trajectory has turned from a continual downward progression into increasing darkness to an upward one towards the light.
 
As it says in Psalm 62, “He is my mighty rock and my refuge.”
 
[You have made yourself MY rock through this whole time, a mighty, majestic, massive Rock, unshaken by anything that can happen.]
 
“Trust in him at all times, O people,”
 
[This is my part, our part, and you helped us in it. You always call us to participate with you, embracing what you bring, living with and for you by choice.]
 
“pour out your hearts to him”
 
[and so often in these last months I needed to cry out to you, to lift my soul, tell you all, Lord, dump out the pollution of my old nature so that you can fill me with your joy and peace as I trust in you in the midst of distress.]
 
“for God is our refuge.”
 
[You ARE our refuge, You are OUR refuge, You are our REFUGE, and I am deeply thankful to know that. Praise you that we can move forward with you, work with you, be useful for you, whether we can sense any of that or not.
 
You, Lord God, are the good and faithful God who is moving history inexorably to the conclusion you have planned, protecting and helping us individually along the way, and in the end will resolve the problem of evil and usher in a sinless, safe eternity where we will honor and praise you forever! Glory be to you.]
 
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Psalm 2:1-2

Published by S.M. Wibberley on February 2, 2017
Psalm 2:1 “Why do the nations conspire and the peoples plot in vain?”
[Why? Because people are rebels by nature, like a proud and pugnacious rooster, and fight against God as a normal way of life. Just like Eve, they think that it is better to follow their own wisdom rather than the clear direction of God.
 
It is, of course, futile that they do this though, for no one can prevail against God. As it says in Psalm 33:10-11, “The Lord foils the plans of the nations and thwarts the purposes of the people. But the plans of the Lord stand firm forever and the purposes of his heart through all generations.”]
 
Psalm 2:2 “The kings of the earth take their stand and the rulers gather together against the LORD and against his Anointed One.”
 
[Lord, this is such a ridiculous move! To take a stand against the Mighty One, the Speaker of worlds, the Breather of Stars, the Spinner of the earth and the Bringer of the dawn. They may think they are opposing a person—king David or the man Jesus–but they are, in reality, joining forces against the living God.
 
As with the kings who fought against the children of Israel in the invasion of the promised land, there was no hope of winning, no possibility of standing. The mighty hand of God was against their rebellious plans, so no one and nothing could save them.
 
Lord, I confess that I, too, at times tend to take a stand against you, for my natural heart is that of a rebel. Alert me to this early on and help me to reject this desire to be independent of your wisdom, love and grace. Help me to quickly repent, to bow before you in brokenness and joy, allowing your Spirit full reign in this life you have given. And may I thereby bring joy to your heart and honor to your name before men and angels.]
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Wonder and Surrender

Published by S.M. Wibberley on February 1, 2017
This entry from EDIFIED! was so edifying to me that I want to share it with you.
 
“Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart.” Psalm 37:4
 
To delight in you, Lord, in one sense is so easy, for in every aspect you are wonderful beyond conception. You made all, you know all, you hold all together. You know the makeup of every atom, the information in every DNA molecule, the workings of every synapse in the brain, the condition of every artery, the reproduction of every cell—nothing escapes your attention and knowledge.
 
You have control of all events, balancing perfectly the genuinely responsible choices of billions of people with the specific plans you have for each individual, each moment, each generation, each epoch—and at the right time you will bring about the end of history, of time and of evil. You are perfect in your wisdom, perfect in your love, perfect in your justice, perfect in your mercy, perfect in your timing.
 
You are the God of grace, the Dispenser of justice, the King of righteousness and mercy, of truth and love, Heaven and Hell, light and mystery, purity and punishment, forgiveness and vengeance—each in its time and place.
 
You are in every way the delightful God: there is no repugnant, ugly, unjust, impure, evil or wrong aspect to your nature, your character, your thoughts or your actions. All is good, all is pure, loving, just, positive, gracious, righteous, wise and perfect.
 
You are all that our hearts ever desired, you are beyond what we could conceive, you are the fulfillment of every positive dream, you are “too good to be true” and yet are not only true but Truth itself.
 
We praise you for the wonder of your persons, the joy of being your child and the privilege of walking with you every day. You have made us to be with you, to find in you alone our meaning, fulfillment, joy, peace, grace, help, direction, safety, wisdom and goodness.
 
Forgive me, Lord, for seeking these things elsewhere, wanting them now, in my way, for my reasons. Forgive me for making these my idols, the things I demand to be happy. Help me instead to turn my eyes to you, to lift up my thoughts and feelings, desires and fears to you so in the light of your presence
 
Thereby Truth may rule, Reality may reign and my heart may be united in living for you alone. Put your desires in my heart. Then I will praise you, O Lord my God, with all my heart and glorify your name forever more. For you have redeemed my soul from the pit, from the grave, from the lowest hell (Ps. 86:12,13).
 
Prayer: “You are worthy of trust, of obedience, of worship, of glory. May these overflow from my heart, my thoughts, my lips on all around me as your Spirit rules in my life today. Amen”
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Psalm 1:6

Published by S.M. Wibberley on January 31, 2017
Psalm 1:6 “For the LORD watches over the way of the righteous,”
 
[You, the infinite and eternal One, are abundantly able to care for and supply all for your children, whom you have made righteous in Christ.
 
You are actively, powerfully, intimately involved in protecting, providing and carrying us forward in this life. As we walk in the way of the righteous, you give us multiple opportunities every day to fulfill the purpose of our lives in offering thanks in every situation—especially the ones we don’t like—and thereby honor you before all the unseen hosts as well as humans. You are our Good and Gracious Shepherd.
 
“but the way of the wicked will perish.”
 
[The way of the wicked spirals downward into ever increasing darkness, for they have rejected the Grace and Mercy offered. You, O Lord, want to watch over the way of all, but sadly not all will enter your path.
 
Praise you, Lord Jesus, that you came as Savior first, and that you will come again as Judge to end wickedness, sin, evil, suffering, pain, sickness and death.
 
In you only is what we need: the goodness, grace, love, care, protection, security, significance, peace, hope and joy that every human being longs for. How sad that so many, for the sake of feeling independent, reject all this and end up in utter darkness and total binding. The way of the wicked is certainly like deep darkness (Prov. 4:19).
 
You are the opposite, the Lord of Light, who is worthy of praise, for you shine your light upon every human being, you call all, you chose those who respond, giving us more and more light. “The path of the righteous is like the first gleam of dawn, shining on every more brightly til the full light of day” (Prov. 4:18).
 
Praise you for your grace, Lord Jesus, undeserved by us, but continually poured out on us in great waves of love. You are worthy of worship, of praise, of glory, of honor. I bow before you now in surrender, and I rise up to join you in obedience, to follow your leading today.]
 
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Psalm 1:4-5

Published by S.M. Wibberley on January 30, 2017
 
Psalm 1:4 “Not so the wicked! They are like chaff that the wind blows away.”
 
[This shows that you, Lord are just, wise and good. You bless those who obey and allow those who rebel to live out the consequences of their rebellion. While those who surrender to you are like a fruitful tree, bearing good fruit, prospering in what you call them to do, those who don’t are like worthless leftovers on the harvest floor: abandoned as useless and blown away by the wind. They have, by their own choice, become of no purpose, are of no consequence and no value.
 
The sad thing is that people choose to be in this situation, to devalue themselves. You offer them love, grace, worth, purpose, protection, a present joy and a future hope–but they reject this to feast on the chaff of this world, and they become what they feed on.]
 
Psalm 1:5 “Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous.”
 
[When judgment comes–and it will, for you are righteous and just–those who have rejected you will be swept away. They will suffer the rejection they have given you. As a consequence, they will be excluded from all goodness, banished from your presence and lost in darkness—by their own choice.
Praise you, Lord God, that this is not your desire. It is your will that “all men be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth…” (1 Tim 2:4). It is your desire that no one be condemned; but you give human beings the power of choice, first exercised by Adam and Eve in disobeying you, and then in a growing cascade of rebellion through the ages, as many people have chosen against you. And so, in the judgment to come, there will be consequences. As John 3:36 says, “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on him.”
 
John 3:18 adds, “Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son.”
 
In spite of the ongoing rebellion of many, Our Heavenly Father continues to call all to repentance as Hebrews 4:7 states, “Therefore God again set a certain day, calling it Today…as was said before: ‘Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts.’”
 
So, we should be guarding our own hearts, while praying for and sharing with those who haven’t yet believed, so they may not condemn themselves, and so there may be more worshipers both here and in Heaven.]
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(Untitled)

Published by S.M. Wibberley on January 29, 2017

Psalm 23 is very familiar to everyone, but recently the Lord has shown me some new, very interesting points in it from the perspective of praise. Praise in and for all things is really the act of surrendering to the Lord at that moment and in that situation. In addition, it is resisting the devil and his suggestion that “this situation is just awful! Poor me!”

Psalm 23 says, “The Lord is my shepherd.” That means He is watching over me all the time, with great care and attention, holding at a distance what is truly bad.

He “makes me lie down in green pastures.” That is, He finds for me the situations which are profitable for growth and brings me there. He doesn’t ask if I like it, nor does He ask my opinion. He makes me lie down there until I’ve learned what is needed. In this I can cooperate with Him by praising Him for what He is doing whether I like it or not.

“Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death….” This refers not just to physical danger and death, but to other aspects, such as dying to self, to ego, to my plans and desires and opinions. This can mean having my plans fail, my vision perish, my hopes dashed.

“I will fear no evil for you are with me…” The difficult happenings in this “valley” are not evil but are allowed by God for my good—being all powerful He could easily prevent them, especially since He is with me all the time, but He allows what He knows is useful for my growth and for my giving Him glory.

Thinking through this Psalm in terms of praise has brought great joy to me and removed some of my natural thought patterns (the tendency to resent what is hard, to complain, to fear being hurt or rejected)–patterns which make it difficult to praise in and for all things. Take a look at the rest of Psalm 23 from this perspective and see what things you can find to encourage you to praise Him in and for all.

 

Prayer: “Lord, keep opening my eyes to your view of things; speak to me through your Word as I read it daily; move me forward in the discipline of praise. Amen.”

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Psalm 1:3

Published by S.M. Wibberley on January 28, 2017
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Psalm 1:3 “He is like a tree planted by streams of water,”
 
[Planted, put down in one spot and kept there—it seems this is the result of a cooperation between you, Lord, and the person, as he avoids the three sins of verse 1 and then delights and meditates on your Word, he is planted in the right spot. And not by just one stream, but streams of water to put his roots down in, draw sustenance from and grow strong.
 
This is your good desire for us, Lord, that our roots go down into your Word, which brings deepening growth, maximum maturing, and spiritual strengthening. There is no end to the insights, understanding, wisdom and guidance you give us from your Word as we meditate on it. Your desires are good!]
 
“which yields its fruit in season”
 
[For the person who meditates on God’s Word day and night, when it’s time to bear fruit, you, Lord, will bring it forth. And it will be the right fruit, whether it be the fruit of the Spirit, or the fruit of praise, or the fruit of good works, or the fruit of those who come to Christ. Praise you, Lord, that you make us fruitful as we abide in you, for without you we can do nothing.]
 
“and whose leaf does not wither.”
 
[No matter what happens around this tree, it remains green—in drought, dryness, winds, dust storms or disasters, failure of the seasons, failure of other streams, this tree always has water to draw from, for its roots are deep down into the true source of vitality and strength, the Word of God.
 
Whatever difficult events come to us—weakness, hardship, insults, persecution, difficulties or loss—we can prosper, remain lush and green, bear our fruit, be a delight to those around us. This is all because of you, Lord, for you gave us your Word and draw us into it. And this is what I am experiencing right now as my wife goes through her deep depression—I am not withering up, but remaining green and bearing fruit because you are empowering me to do so.]
 
Psalm 1:3c “Whatever he does prospers.”
 
[As a result of avoiding the three sins mentioned in verse 1 and meditating on God’s Word day and night with delight, whatever situation or work you call us to do, Lord, you promise to prosper both it and us.
 
This is partly because we will be thinking as you think, acting in accord with your Word, obeying what we know to be true, and living in your power not our own. It is partly because you will act on our behalf. This is the promise I will rest on.
 
Of course, your definition of “prosper” may be different from ours. What may look like failure of our efforts, can be what you will be using to make us prosper spiritually. And from this we can prosper in other areas, like relationships that are difficult, in being light and salt, in being hope carriers to all around us.
 
One example of this is that our last church plant failed; humanly speaking this is not prospering. But we know that you can bring something better out of this death of a vision.
 
For one thing, the believers all moved to other fellowships, taking their training, maturity and drive with them. Some of those have gone through very difficult situations since and have stood strong in their faith, trusting you.
 
You have deepened us through this, showing me that I put too much importance on being successful from a human standpoint instead of keeping you in first place. You are prospering our efforts in a way that is different from what we wanted, but you are bringing growth and direction.
 
You, Lord God, are certainly worthy of worship, of glory, of adoration, of obedience, of surrender. I praise you now for what you will do today, as well as for what you will not do and for the opportunity to give you glory at each step of the way as you cause us to prosper as you define it.]
 
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Psalm 1:2

Published by S.M. Wibberley on January 27, 2017
 
Psalm 1:2 “But his delight is in the law of the LORD,”
 
[Your Word is so delightful, Lord, so full of rich glimpses of your Majesty, insights into your marvelous character, demonstrations of your might and holiness, displays of your wisdom, grace and righteous wrath against sin.
 
Your Word has all that we need to know you and to know how to live. It is deep, powerful, revealing and convicting. “For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart” (Heb. 4:12).
 
As we delve into it, you use it to delve into us, convicting us of the next sin we need to repudiate. As we dig in through memorization and meditation, you lead us into an endless discovery of gems of wisdom and treasures of truth. These make our lives rich and spiritually powerful, leading us to being glory-givers, wholehearted worshipers and grace receivers and givers–all of which leads to more delighting in your Word.
 
It is not hard to delight in your Word: we just need to spend time there and divest ourselves of the taste for the ashes of the world and get used to the rich, heady fare of your Truth!]
 
“and on his law he meditates day and night.”
 
[To internalize your Word by memorizing and meditating on it is wonderful. It is a marvelous privilege to be permeated with your Truth, to think as you do, to set our hearts and minds on things above, to be able to say “Whom have I in heaven but you, and earth has nothing I desire besides you.” (Ps. 73:25).
 
To meditate on your Word day and night results in having a Teflon-like cover for our mind and heart, coating them with Truth, so the mud of the world does not stick, and is daily washed away by the water of the Word.
 
When we memorize, personalize and pray through your Word, the Holy Spirit works powerfully to transform, to undo and redo, to break and reshape in the image of Christ. He opens our eyes to new things, He replaces human thought with His thoughts, natural responses with supernatural ones, selfishness with God centeredness, lust with worship.
 
Lord, to have your Word in my mind through memorization, in my heart through personalizing it, in my will through praying it—this means that all through the day I can think on your Word, measure my motives, my thoughts and my words by it, reject what is natural, choose what is of you.
As I daily meditate and pray through the armor of God in Ephesians 6:10-18 and the prayers of 3:16-19, and other verses, you take me down into a greater and more glorious understanding, into deeper and more dynamic insights. You work more widely and powerfully in the renewing of my soul. You manifest yourself more and more in my life.
 
Praise be to you for the great privilege of meditation on your Word, thereby knowing, living with, walking with, and working with the King of Creation, the Lord of Love, the God of Goodness. I praise you, I exalt you, I glorify you. May you be magnified in my life today so that people also meet you when they meet me and that you may be more honored.]
 
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Psalm 1:1b

Published by S.M. Wibberley on January 26, 2017
Psalm 1:1b “Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked”
[This is a call to discern and reject the wrong way: will I agree with God, or will I make human understanding the measure of right and wrong? Praise you, Lord, that you give discernment, based on your Word and the direction of the Spirit, to see and avoid the advice of the wicked—and I find that the majority of the wicked advice I encounter arises from my own heart!
I praise you, Lord God, that you are light, continually shining wisdom and understanding into our lives. “The path of the righteous is like the first gleam of dawn, shining ever more brightly til the full light of day” (Pro. 4:18).
 
You give us enlightenment each moment so that, if we take it, we can discern and avoid the traps of the wickedness. Blessed are those who have learned to walk in the light of your presence. And the more we avoid the counsel of the wicked, the more we walk in your light, in your love and into your blessings.
 
I praise you for the joy of being able to avoid the wiles of the devil, to recognize when he puts out the bait for me, to reject it, grasping clearly that the devil’s way only leads to misery, fear, oppression, failure and death. But you, O Lord, in your true wisdom, offer us just the opposite: joy, security, freedom, success and eternal life!]
 
“Blessed is the man who does not…stand in the way of sinners”
 
[This, I believe, is to watch what sinners do and desire to do the same. This is so common, so easy, so attractive: TV, movies, music, shopping, catalogues, colleagues, books, magazines, newspapers, the internet—all call us to stop and view, look and lust.
 
It is so natural to do this, but to walk instead in the way of Jesus is so much better. “Let your eyes look straight ahead, fix your gaze directly before you. Make level paths for your feet and take only ways that are firm. Do not swerve to the right or the left, keep your foot from evil” (Pro. 4:25,26).
 
Yesterday at the photographers, I failed in this, looking twice at an unhealthy picture; forgive me, Lord, help me to heed instead to the voice of the Spirit, and stand not in the way of sinners.]
 
“Blessed is the man who does not…sit in the seat of mockers.”
 
[Lord, it is such a part of my nature to be judgmental, to criticize, to make fun of others. It makes me feel good, to set myself above and to decide who is acceptable and who isn’t, who is cool and who is a nerd.
 
But this is destructive, negative, unhealthy, ensnaring and evil. To do so is pleasing to the devil and grievous to you. It is the opposite of what you do with us—and since you know us completely, you have abundant reason to judge, condemn and reject us, yet you choose to love and elevate us to being your beloved children.
 
I praise you, Lord God, that you have worked so consistently in my life, convicting me of my negativeness and bringing me to the point of surrender, to stop speaking negative things, and to work at being positive–in my thoughts as well as words–to follow your command in Philippians 4:8 to think on what is true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent and praiseworthy.
 
You yourself, Lord Jesus, are the great positive: in you there is only good, only purity, only holiness; there is no evil, no sin, no negative, no dark side. You are thoroughly, completely, perfectly good and all you do is good. You are the One for me to think on, rejoice in, delight in, and I choose to do so because your beautiful, shining, lovely, wonderful character is worthy of all worship and honor.
 
Praise be to you, glory be to you, honor be to you today in my life. May those around me benefit from the overflow of your Spirit and the goodness you pour into me, so when they meet me, they may also meet you.]
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Psalm 1:1a

Published by S.M. Wibberley on January 25, 2017
Psalm 1:1 “Blessed is the man…”
 
[Praise be to you, O Lord God, for your desire is to bless people, to bring goodness and grace into their lives, to give them joy and satisfaction, fulfillment and positive pleasure. But this is not automatic, as the rest of Psalm 1 tells us.
You give us the power to choose–power we can use to bring blessing or curses down on ourselves. It is like you give us a powerful machine which can lift gigantic blocks of stone: with the push of a button, the pull of a lever, we can move great weight and volume.
 
In the spiritual realm, as we obey your principles, as we submit to the clear directions of your Word, as we obey the leading of your Spirit, as we whole-heartedly embrace your commands, then you move mountains to accomplish your will, to do great things in and through us, while bringing joy, grace, goodness, provision and safety to us and those around us.
 
As you said in John 15:10-11, “If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love. I have told you this so that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be complete.”
In you, Lord Jesus, is all we need, and you have given us the privilege and power to access it as we choose your way over that of the world, of our old nature and of the devil.
 
Help us to choose for you through each moment of today that you may be lifted up before humanity and the spiritual forces that surround us.]
 
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