Uncategorized

Uncategorized

Psalm 31:19-20

Published by S.M. Wibberley on September 8, 2016
Psalm 31:19 “How great is your goodness, which you have stored up for those who fear you,”
 
[You, O Lord, know the future and all that will come; you know what is needed for us to stand, and have prepared a rich supply of grace for us. Your one requirement is that we trust you–fear you, stand in awe of you–rather than fear men who speak loudly and destructively.]
 
“How great is your goodness…which you bestow in the sight of men on those who take refuge in you.”
[As we hide ourselves in you, Lord, you bless us clearly, publicly, visibly. You give grace and peace, you supply our needs, you carry us through difficulties, you empower us to be more than conquerors rather then just coping.
 
We can hide in you mainly through thinking the truth of your Word and responding in praise and thanksgiving for what you allow. I give you praise now for your wisdom and goodness as you go before to guide, protect and deliver.]
 
Psalm 31:20 “In the shelter of your presence you hide them from the intrigues of men; in your dwelling you keep them safe from accusing tongues.”
 
[To others we may appear to be defenseless and totally vulnerable, but in your unseen presence we are sheltered and shielded. Our responsibility is to stay in your presence, in your refuge of truth, in your Word of wisdom: “He who dwells in the shelter of the most high will rest in the shadow of the Almighty” (Ps. 91:1).
 
This means that in the midst of such pressure we can trust you, praise you and respond to evil with what we know to be right: forgiving, returning good for evil, resting in the truth that you are doing good in what appears to be bad.
Then in your mighty power you will protect us, work to guide and direct us and bring us out into a spacious place. To you be glory and honor, Lord for your goodness, power and love.]
 
Filed under:

Psalm 31:17-18

Published by S.M. Wibberley on September 6, 2016
Psalm 31:17 “Let me not be put to shame, O LORD, for I have cried out to you;”
 
[You, O Lord, desire to grant us honor, not shame: “As God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved” (Col. 3:12), “my salvation and honor depend on God, my mighty rock and refuge” (Ps. 62:7).
 
So we can be confident that as we bow before you and live for you, you will act in your faithfulness, in your goodness, and in your kindness to save us from shame. I praise you now for how you will act in the difficult situations before me and bring both resolution and honor.]
 
Psalm 31:17b,18 “but let the wicked be put to shame and lie silent in the grave. Let their lying lips be silenced, for with pride and contempt they speak arrogantly against the righteous.”
 
[There are so many lies and false accusations uttered these days against followers of Jesus–even to the point of calling us terrorists! Doing good is denigrated; committing evil is exalted. I praise you, Lord, that in the midst of this you are at work and will use the attacks of the enemy to advance your Kingdom.
 
And I thank you for your guidance on how to respond to these verbal attacks. Instead of feeling sorry for ourselves and being consumed with anger and discouragement, you call us to, “delight in weaknesses, hardships, INSULTS, persecutions and difficulties, for when I am weak, then I am strong” (2 Cor. 12:10).
 
Praise you, Lord, that these situations are opportunities to give you glory through trust, praise and doing good to those who do evil to us. May we so walk in faith, bringing you great honor before all the unseen hosts.]
 
 
Filed under:

Psalm 31:15-16

Published by S.M. Wibberley on September 3, 2016
 

Psalm 31:15 “My times are in your hands;”
 
[A strong declaration of God’s great powers, of sovereignty at work. We cannot control our times, our lives or the events that come into them, but God actively, intimately and lovingly works to bring to us what is best for us–a further reason to trust Him fully through praise before any answer to our cry comes.
 
As it says in Psalm 33:18-20 “…the eyes of the LORD are on those who fear him, on those whose hope is in his unfailing love, to deliver them from death and keep them alive in famine. We wait in hope for the LORD; he is our help and our shield.”]
 
Psalm 31:15b-16“deliver me from my enemies and from those who pursue me. Let your face shine on your servant; save me in your unfailing love.”
 
[David is unwaveringly looking to the right place, to the right One for help. He is confident that God is going to answer. As David said in Psalm 27:13-14 “I am still confident of this: I will see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living. Wait for the LORD; be strong and take heart and wait for the LORD.”
 
[Praise you, Lord God, that no matter how bad things appear, you are going to bring out of them positive and constructive happenings as we join you in faith.
 
I give thanks, Lord God, for your care and protection, your grace-filled help in each difficulty, and for your allowing challenges into our lives to deepen, mature and equip us.
 
Help us to keep our eyes on you this day. I bow before you, O Lord God, wanting to give you the honor due your name by offering the sacrifice of thanksgiving in all.]
Filed under:

Psalm 31:9-14

Published by S.M. Wibberley on September 2, 2016
Psalm 31:9 “Be merciful to me, O LORD, for I am in distress;”
 
[You, Lord, are the One I should flee to immediately when anxiety and fear, worry and distress strike, for you alone have the power to do something about it.
 
You are mighty and merciful, you are gracious and good, you are wise and wonderful. Praise you for how you will help us in our situations, few of which could be more distressing than David’s, which involved every area of his life, emotional and physical, social and positional:]
 
Psalm 31:9b-12 “my eyes grow weak with sorrow, my soul and my body with grief. My life is consumed by anguish and my years by groaning;my strength fails because of my affliction, and my bones grow weak.
Because of all my enemies, I am the utter contempt of my neighbors; I am a dread to my friends—those who see me on the street flee from me. I am forgotten by them as though I were dead;”
 
[What a devastating picture of severe distresses, ones which you, Lord, allowed, for you were at work with them, doing significant things in David’s life. And so you are in ours as we move into and through difficult times. In these we can trust you, no matter how painful it may be, as David goes on to describe.]
 
Psalm 31:12b-13 “I have become like broken pottery.
For I hear the slander of many; there is terror on every side;
they conspire against me and plot to take my life.”
 
[David was weak and vulnerable, surrounded by threats, assaulted by fears and attacked by men–in real danger of death. It looks bad. However, the next word makes all the difference:]
Psalm 31:14 “BUT I trust in you, O LORD;”
 
[In spite of the circumstances, in spite of how he felt, in spite of the very real dangers, in spite of getting no answers yet, David makes the choice to trust in Jehovah, the great and holy God, to expect help from Him based on His perfect character and wide wisdom.
 
In using the word “BUT,” David chooses to reject the natural tendency to let his feelings, thoughts and circumstances rule him, saying instead,]
 
“I say, ‘You are my God.’”
 
[This is looking away from the seen to the unseen. It is a declaration that Jesus is his final authority and David is going to trust Him and obey Him, not feelings, “facts” or fear. David is submitting his intellect and perceptions to the higher authority of Scripture.]
 
And this is what you call us to do, too, Lord God. This is the response of faith, “But, I trust in you, O LORD!” What a privilege to be able to think and act in faith in the face of fears. Thereby we can bring you great honor, demonstrating to all around us the power of your grace, the wisdom of your way and the support of your Spirit.
 
Help us to be honest before you about how we feel, lifting our souls to you, Lord, while always ending with “But, I trust in you, Lord!”
 
Filed under:

Psalm 31:7,8

Published by S.M. Wibberley on August 31, 2016
 
Psalm 31:7 “I will be glad and rejoice in your love,”
 
[Your love is enough for rejoicing, O God, for you are love itself. You, heavenly Father showed your love in sending Jesus into this violent, deadly world; you, Lord Jesus, showed your love in suffering immeasurably to save your enemies; you, Holy Spirit, show your love in working here in this fallen, twisted world to bring the elect to faith and to mature them in Truth.
 
You all three show your love in patiently allowing us to grieve you daily as we zigzag through life, bouncing from belief to selfishness, from obedience to rebellion. Truly your love is great, powerful, wise, endless, enduring and wonderful. To know you is enough for joy, to be your child is more than enough reason to praise.”
 
“for you saw my affliction and knew the anguish of my soul.”
 
[You, Lord God, are omnipresent and omniscient. You see and know the difficulties of my life, my disturbed soul, my anguished heart. And you are consistently at work bringing the healing fruit of peace and righteousness as you help me respond to your gifts of guidance and grace. May I consistently cooperate with you in belief and surrender.
 
Psalm 31:8 “You have not handed me over to the enemy but have set my feet in a spacious place.”
 
[Praise you, Lord Jesus, my Savior, my Redeemer, my Protector, for you brought me out of the prison of sin into a spacious place. And you did this because you delighted in me—against all reason, all odds, all facts, you delight in me, your enemy, your rebellious son, your uncooperative child.
 
I praise you that your love is not dependent on my performance, but upon your unchanging, rock solid Character of holiness, purity, love, wisdom and mercy that triumphs over justice.
 
To you be endless glory and honor, Lord Jesus, for your great work of salvation, your continued work of sanctification and your future work of recreation. May you be honored in all my responses to the little things of today as I actively trust you.
 
Filed under:

Psalm 31:2-4

Published by S.M. Wibberley on August 29, 2016
Psalm 31:2b “be my rock of refuge, a strong fortress to save me.”
 
[Praise you that you are consistently with us, O Lord God: you have made yourself our Refuge by redeeming, adopting and embracing us. You have made yourself our Rock of stability in a world of uncertainty, the personal Refuge of every one of your children. And you are our strong Fortress that we can run into and be saved in the way you deem best. We can trust you by fleeing to you in every trouble.]
 
Psalm 31:3 “Since you are my rock and my fortress, for the sake of your name lead and guide me.”
 
[Yes! Because you are my Rock and Fortress, I have hope! There is help! There is hindrance of my enemy and his plans! You will answer my cry and act for the sake of your holy Name.
 
It is wonderful that we can appeal to you on this basis, for we are then tapping into what you want: as you lead and guide us and we follow, our lives become a source of praise and acclaim for you. May we wholeheartedly follow your guidance, remembering that this gives you more honor; may we be trusting and obedient so that you may have more glory for your Name.]
 
Psalm 31:4 “Free me from the trap that is set for me, for you are my refuge.”
 
[Based on what you have declared yourself to be, Lord God (our Refuge, our Deliverer, our Fortress, our Rock), we can appeal to you to take us out of the traps of the devil, of evil men and of our own old nature.
 
And so you have done in your mighty act of redemption, opening the door of our cell in the kingdom of darkness and calling us out into the Kingdom of Light. You, Lord Jesus, are greater and more powerful than any enemy and, by in joining us in our weakness, you have defeated the enemy in every way. And you continue to set us free as we walk in the light with you, keeping on the armor you have given and thinking truth.
 
I exalt you, my Refuge, Lord Jesus; I exalt you, my Rock, O Heavenly Father; I exalt you, my Guide and Comforter, O Holy Spirit.
 
In you I can trust, in you I am safe, in you I am secure.
Praise be to you, O Triune God, for your great and wonderful faithfulness and love. May you be endlessly honored as I follow your leading today in my motives, thoughts, desires and words. Amen!
 
Filed under:

Delighting in Jesus

Published by S.M. Wibberley on August 27, 2016
Meditating on Psalm 37 about delighting in the Lord.
 
I want to delight in you, Lord Jesus–you who were at the same time both entirely man and God, fully finite and infinite. You were the star breather, and the table maker. You were the galaxy former and the sawdust sweeper. You were the history maker and the box builder. You were the one who set up kings and took down tools from your carpenter’s rack. You were the pivotal person in all history and you were the sharpener of chisels. You were the owner of all the universe and lived on the gifts of others.
 
You are unfathomable, amazing, wonderful and awe inspiring. To delight in you is to approach the essence of life, the meaning of existence, the light of being.
 
You are delightful in your purity, wonderful in your grace, marvelous in your goodness, dazzling in your wisdom and overwhelming in your greatness.
 
To delight in you is to enter further into reality, to let the shadows of our natural thoughts and values fade into the background as the Truth and Love of your inner beauty shine out onto our hearts. This brings transformation, joy, acceptance, forgiveness and security.
You are delightful, you are delightable, you are infinitely wonderful and I bow before you as all else falls away and only your gracious, glorious presence remains.
 
To know you is so, so inexpressibly sweet and powerful at the same time. I choose to delight in you, Lord Jesus, rejecting the tinsel of this world along with my pride and self-centered sinfulness. In you I am forgiven, in you I am cleansed, in you I am accepted. What more could I want?
Filed under:

Rocked

Published by S.M. Wibberley on August 23, 2016
Praise you, Lord God, that I wake up each morning to your goodness. My experience last night of losing all my luggage, computer included, turned out to be a dream–but I didn’t know that while living it! And this gave me the chance to again trust you in the midst of loss.
 
Praise you for all the times that you have protected the possessions you have given us, as well as allowing us at times to lose some. You, O Lord, are good and gracious and kind–but, even if I lose it all and have only you, that will be far more than enough!
 
I thank you, Lord, for your care, your compassion, your constant presence. You are the One to be sought continually, to be thought about consistently, to be sought in prayer in every situation. “In the day of my trouble I call to you for you deliver me” (Ps. 86:7).
 
Psa 31:2 “Turn your ear to me,”
 
[Thank you, Lord Jesus that you listen to us intently, that you have opened the way for us to cry to the Father and that our prayers are heard. Praise you that you are the One who thought up prayer, who hears prayer and answers prayer.]
 
“come quickly to my rescue;”
 
[Praise be to you, Heavenly Father, that in answering prayer, you are never late, never miss the mark, never lose an opportunity. You know the best way to answer, which sometimes means leaving us in our desperation as long as it takes to produce the growth you know we need, the surrender that will open the way for deepening, and the maturing which will enable us to give you more glory.
 
Praise you that you answer out of your wisdom, your love, your grace and your goodness, rather than out of our impatience. Help us to rest in you rather than in getting our way.]
 
Filed under:

August 21, 2016

Published by S.M. Wibberley on August 21, 2016
“I will extol the LORD with all my heart in the council of the upright and in the assembly. Great are the works of the LORD; they are pondered by all who delight in them.”
Psalm 111:1,2
 
Lord God, my Triune Elohim, praise be to you this morning, praise be to you forever. You are marvelous in your character, beautiful in your desires, lovely in your grace, and astounding in your wisdom. You deserve that I extol you, the LORD, with all my heart, for who and what you are. As it says in Psalm 111:2-9,
 
“Great are the works of the LORD
Glorious and majestic are his deeds,
and his righteousness endures forever.
He has caused his wonders to be remembered;
the LORD is gracious and compassionate.
He provides food for those who fear him;
he remembers his covenant forever.
He has shown his people the power of his works,
The works of his hands are faithful and just;
all his precepts are trustworthy.
They are steadfast forever and ever,
done in faithfulness and uprightness.
He provided redemption for his people;
he ordained his covenant forever—
holy and awesome is his name.”
 
What a list of greatness! You, O Lord Jesus, tower far above all creation; you are so perfect, so pure, so powerful, so priceless—you deserve eternal praise, daily obedience, moment-by-moment trust. To live otherwise is an insult to your character, to your person, to your being. To see in Word and deed such a God as you, to know such a Lord as you, to walk with such a Savior as you—these are great, awesome, overwhelming, totally undeserved privileges.
 
Truly, “the fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom; all who follow his precepts have good understanding. To him belongs eternal praise” (Ps. 111:10).
 
–From the devotional book EDIFIED!
Filed under:

Great Goodness

Published by S.M. Wibberley on August 21, 2016
Praise you, Lord, for your undeserved goodness, given to us daily, manifested in multiple minor ways, like the gifts of sight, speech, hearing, smell, taste, and touch–things we take for granted, but missed much if we lose them.
 
Then there are the major, majestic, mighty ways you pour out your goodness on us: pardon from definitely deserved death, the gift of eternal life, the indwelling of the Spirit, the wonder of your Word, an intimate relationship with you, meaning, guidance and protection in life, help in every circumstance, membership in the Body, and abundant grace at all times There is wonderfully no end to the flow of your goodness, just as there is no end to learning about your marvelous and magnificent character.
You are the Triune One: the Father who plans, the Son who brings it to pass, the Holy Spirit who finishes it up. You are the perfect Person, the perfect Personality, the perfect Planner, the perfect Partner who invites us into your work.
 
You are marvelous in your personality, majestic in your judgments, mighty in your redemption and magnificent in your mercy.
 
To you belongs all affection, all loyalty, all commitment, all awe, all reverence, all obedience, all honor–for in you there is no flaw, no imperfection, no error, no lack. You are worthy of eternal, complete, wholehearted, total love.
 
So I bow before you, Lord God: I praise you, Heavenly Father, I honor you, Lord Jesus, I surrender to you, Holy, Spirit. To you be what you deserve: exaltation, magnification, obedience and glory in my life today. Amen.
 
Filed under: