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Psalm 9:19-20

Published by S.M. Wibberley on November 11, 2015
Psalm 9:19 “Arise, O LORD, let not man triumph;”
 
[Yes, Lord, as we see the attempts of terrorist groups on the Middle East to wipe out anyone who disagrees with their beliefs, let them not win. Prevent sinful man from overcoming your plans, your purposes and your people; bring them low, defeat them in their attempts to bring harm so that your name may be honored.]
 
“let the nations be judged in your presence.”
 
[Praise you that you will judge nations in righteousness and people with justice. “Vengeance is mine, I will repay,” says the Lord (Rom. 12:19). We don’t have to carry the burden of making it all right, we are just called to be your lights in our sphere of influence and trust you to bring judgment to the nations.]
 
Psalm 9:20 “Strike them with terror, O LORD; let the nations know they are but men.”
 
[Yes, Lord, may terror overwhelm them because of your greatness, may fear seize them because of your righteousness, may anxiety grip them because of the judgment to come.
 
May many be brought to belief and surrender to you by a supernatural fear descending on them: fear of death , fear of judgment and condemnation, fear of the future, fear of what lies beyond death. May they realize clearly that they have nothing to trust in and turn to you–who offers them forgiveness, cleansing, adoption and eternal life–instead of trusting in their traditions which can give them nothing in the end.
 
Break through, Lord, bring great awakening, sweep many in to your Kingdom!]
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Psalm 9:17-18

Published by S.M. Wibberley on November 10, 2015
 
Psalm 9:17 “The wicked return to the grave, all the nations that forget God.”
 
[In you, Lord, there is justice: those who forget you will be forgotten. You are the most important One in existence, the most important Being in history, the most important Point of the Universe—how could we forget you–you who are the source of all good–and not be guilty of the fatal sin of unbelief (John 16:9)? You, O Lord, are worthy, not just of remembering, but of totally absorbing our attention, our affection, our adoration!]
 
Psalm 9:18 “But the needy will not always be forgotten, nor the hope of the afflicted ever perish.”
 
[You, O Mighty and Loving heavenly Father, remember and watch over the needy, you see each one, you care for every one. You are the God of goodness, giving support to those who are hurting, comfort to those who are suffering, help to those who are hopeless. “The LORD is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit” (Ps. 34:18).
I praise you that you are the God of hope, giving “joy and peace to those who trust in you so” our lives can “overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit” (Rom. 15:13).
 
In you, Lord God, there is all we need and desire: there is hope, there is meaning, there is purpose, there is a certain and positive future because you are moving history to a definite conclusion and taking us, your children, with you.
 
Help us to keep our eyes on you, to let go of what is temporal, to hold on to what is eternal and to rise above the turmoil and tragedy of life in a fallen world, remembering that we are destined for a re-created and perfect world, where there will be no sin, rebellion or evil. In you, Lord Jesus, we are safe, secure and can be satisfied, no matter what our situation may be.
 
Help us to live out today this truth of your faithful guidance, protection, provision and plan by offering the sacrifice of thanksgiving in every circumstance (Ps. 50:23), thereby honoring you in faith and cooperating with you in being open to the help you will bring.]
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The Call to Greatness

Published by S.M. Wibberley on November 9, 2015

An excerpt from the devotional book EDIFIED!

Paul writes in Colossians 1:9 “…we have not stopped praying for you and asking God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding.”

You, Heavenly Father, have made it possible that we can know you and know your will, not just on a human level, but on a supernatural level, for you have granted us spiritual wisdom and understanding through your Spirit. We can know and understand you far beyond what we could before being born again. How wonderfully you love us, provide for us, reveal yourself to us, and give us understanding of your will!

“And we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way….”

Praise you, Lord God, that you make it possible for us to live according to your character, to please you in spite of our being sinful creatures, still having our flesh to fight against. You call us to join you in your great work, then you help us, you guide us and strengthen us.

I praise you for this demonstration of your rich and powerful love wherein you delight in us, you love us dearly, you are pleased when you think of us. You invite us into your presence through prayer and are glad when we come in intercession, for then we give you honor: acknowledging our weakness and your power, our inability and your mighty competence, our ignorance and your deep wisdom, our fickleness and your absolute trustworthiness.

To be your child, to be able to please you, to know your rich, warm, wholehearted delight in us—not based on our performance, but upon being justified in the shed blood of Jesus—to bask in your love, your acceptance, your delight and pleasure in us because of what you, Lord Jesus, have done—this is one of the great gifts your salvation has brought into our lives.

Glory be to you, Lord God, Eternal King, Mighty Shepherd, Ruler of all. Lead me today in walking in your way, bearing fruit in every good work and growing in the knowledge of your Being. Help me to spend time in your Word because I love you, in worship because you are worthy, in working for you today and every day because you invite me to join you in your great plans. Amen.

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Amazing Love

Published by S.M. Wibberley on November 8, 2015
After lifting my soul to God, receiving His insight, conviction and forgiveness.
 
Praise you, Lord God, for you are the King of Glory and the Lord of Grace, who reaches down into my life consistently: guiding, providing, protecting, teaching, correcting, forgiving and transforming.
 
It is such a wonder to belong to you, the Creator of all, the Sustainer of all there is. On the level of universe-wide thinking, I live on a tiny speck of cosmic dust, tucked under one arm of the Milky Way, which is a smallish, inconsequential galaxy among millions of others—and yet you have the desire and ability to be intimately, consistently involved in my life.
 
You can do this because you are infinite, you are powerful, you are loving and good.
 
Forgive me to taking for granted your love for me–I so easily forget how great you are, how huge the universe is, and how much I deserve the opposite of your love and tender care.
 
You are marvelous in your love, magnificent in your forgiveness, munificent (splendidly generous) in your provision and magnanimous in your grace. You are truly worthy of wholehearted worship, lavish love, supreme surrender and outlandish obedience.
 
Help me today to remember your greatness, my unworthiness and your rich, redeeming love, so that I may respond by living worthy of your Name and calling.
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Psalm 9:15-16

Published by S.M. Wibberley on November 7, 2015
 
Psalm 9:15 “The nations have fallen into the pit they have dug; their feet are caught in the net they have hidden.”
 
[Praise you for your faithfulness to judge in righteousness, Lord: you bring on evil doers what they have prepared for others. At the top of the list is Satan himself, who has been judged and will end up in the lake of fire where he has sought to send so many others.
 
I think of the destruction that came on Germany and Japan after WWII for the cruel and oppressive regimes that ruled there. I think of how the dictators ruling in Egypt, Libya and Tunisia were taken down in the Arab Spring. It takes time, but in the end evil doers are consumed by their own plans.
 
Praise be to you, Lord, that you bring justice at the right time: “Fret not yourself because of the man who prospers in his way…for evil men shall be cut off, but those who hope in the Lord shall inherit the land.” (Ps. 37:7,9)]
 
Psalm 9:16 “The LORD is known by his justice; the wicked are ensnared by the work of their hands.”
 
[Your justice, O Lord, is strong and broad, sure, right and certain. You will bring judgment on all who, in their evil independence, refuse the refuge of your love and forgiveness. The evil we do will come back to capture us if we refuse your refuge, forgiveness and cleansing. This is good, for evil without justice brings hopelessness.
 
Praise you, Lord God, that your character is the measure of all. You are all we truly seek: the Great Good, the Perfect Peace, the Total Truth, the Wholly Holy and Loving Lord.
 
To you belongs exaltation, glory, praise and honor. To you I bow in worship, for you I rise to obey, with you I go forth into the day to join you in your great and beautiful plans. May you be glorified in my life today.
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My Wonderful God, Jesus

Published by S.M. Wibberley on November 5, 2015

Hello, Lord Jesus, it’s good to wake up and know that you are waiting for me, ready to spend some time visiting with me, giving encouragement, direction and guidance. I praise you for your wide wisdom and complete knowledge, for you understand what is right and wrong, what is good and evil. You know the outcome of every possible choice and you are willing and desirous of giving me the input I need to make good, healthy, constructive decisions.

I thank you for your deep, rich, powerful love which is unwavering, immutable, gracious and firm. To be loved by you is such a privilege, the opposite of what I, in my natural rebellion and unbelief, deserve. You are kind, patient, gracious, good and wise.

As you embrace me this morning in greeting, sit with your arm around my shoulder and talk with me about yesterday, about today, about my growth, you constantly radiate warm affection, full affirmation and gracious acceptance. These flow out of your pure and pristine heart, out of your beautiful being: you don’t just love, you are love itself, a step far beyond loving; there is no way you can’t love.

I am glad that part of your love is chastening (“for whom the Lord loves he chastens” Heb. 12:6), as well as correction and rebuke when necessary, with ongoing teaching and guidance. I praise you that you don’t let me continue in my own self-centered, unhealthy thinking, but draw me out into a wider place by your wisdom and example. Through your Word and Spirit you help me to see things from your point of view. This gives me a higher, broader, bigger understanding of life, of events, of the role you have given me of being your hands to those around me.

Thank you for your provision of prayer, which is your invitation to join you in your great plans to spread Truth, to proclaim the gospel, to nurture and equip believers for the ministry. Praise you that you call us into eternally significant activity which affirms the meaning, purpose and significance you have bestowed on your creatures by loving them.

I praise you that you have bestowed upon us worth, belonging and competence. As you had Paul express it in Ephesians 1:18-19, “I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you [belonging], the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people [worth], and his incomparably great power for us who believe [competence].

Help me to live in these great Truths today, Lord, knowing you, living in your presence, joining you in your plans with all you have given to make me an effective instrument in your hands. Glorify yourself in my life today by keeping me resting in the shelter of the Most High.

 

 

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Psalm 9:13-14

Published by S.M. Wibberley on November 3, 2015

Psalm 9:13 “O LORD, see how my enemies persecute me! Have mercy and lift me up from the gates of death,”

[Lord, there are many believers around the world who are literally being pursued to the gates of death. Praise you that you are there, helping them, strengthening them, delivering them, whether it be through the gates of splendor into eternity or out of the clutches of groups like ISIS and Boko Haram. You are both faithful and merciful in the help you powerfully provide.

Protect them, engrace them, help them to respond with your thoughts: praise for the privilege of suffering, prayer for the persecutors and blessing for those who misuse them (Matt 5:11,12,43,44). May this result in many coming to faith in Christ.]

Psalm 9:14 “that I may declare your praises in the gates of the Daughter of Zion and there rejoice in your salvation.”

[One major purpose of deliverance is to give you glory, Lord, to praise you for your goodness, to rejoice in you–not just to be relieved at the end of our pain and turn back to our self-centered, futile living.

Praise be to you for your power to preserve, for your strength to save, your promise to protect, your commitment to keep. May we live in the light of that today, passing through difficulties with the power of the Spirit, praising you for your deliverences–past, present and future.]

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Prayer for November

Published by S.M. Wibberley on November 2, 2015
Prayer for This New Month
 
Praise be to you, Lord, for a new month, a new opportunity to live with you, for you, by your strength. Help us to join you today in your plans, to discern what you are doing and partner with you in it.
 
May we honor you by keeping on the armor of God, effectively fighting the right enemies, keeping up the shield of faith, offering the sacrifice of thanksgiving, rejecting complaining, no matter how slight it may be.
 
Help us to regularly lift our souls to you, emptying out the bitterness that has collected over the day and fully process with you our thoughts, feelings and desires, aligning with your thoughts and surrendering to your wise and good leadership.
 
Fill us with your Spirit, so that all who meet us will meet you. Help us to choose to live the truth that knowing Jesus is enough for joy.
 
Help us to move towards the position of Paul stated in 2 Corinthians 12:9-10, “I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.”
 
Help us to look at life with the eyes of Asaph, the author of Psalm 73 who wrote, “Whom have I in heaven but you? And earth has nothing I desire besides you.”
 
May we remember the purpose of our lives–honoring you–and that every disappointment, difficulty, frustration and problem is a chance to fulfill this purpose by obeying Psalm 50:23. “He who offers the sacrifice of thanksgiving honors me and opens the way so that I might show him the salvation of the Lord.”
 
Open our eyes to the God sightings you give us daily, causing our understanding of you to expand and our faith to deepen.
 
Help us to remember to pray about everything, especially when we lose things, so we can experience your love that surpasses understanding as you answer in wisdom, grace and power.
 
Praise be to you now for how you will help us by answering these prayers, bringing glory to your name and light to those around us. Amen
 
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Psalm 9:11-12

Published by S.M. Wibberley on November 1, 2015

Psalm 9:11-12

“Sing praises to the LORD, enthroned in Zion; for he who avenges blood remembers; he does not ignore the cry of the afflicted.”

[Praise you, O Great Lord, for you are just; you will avenge evil, you will not forget.   I thank you that you pay close attention to the cry of the afflicted, you know each person’s heart, each person’s suffering, each person’s deep desire for security and significance, for belonging, worth and competence.

As it says in Isaiah 51:12-15, “I, even I, am he who comforts you. Who are you that you fear mere mortals, human beings who are but grass, that you forget the LORD your Maker, who stretches out the heavens and who lays the foundations of the earth, that you live in constant terror every day because of the wrath of the oppressor, who is bent on destruction? For where is the wrath of the oppressor? The cowering prisoners will soon be set free; they will not die in their dungeon, nor will they lack bread. For I am the LORD your God, who stirs up the sea so that its waves roar– the LORD Almighty is his name.”

We all long for freedom from the oppression of the enemy, primarily Satan, and you, Lord, have provided for that in the death and resurrection of Christ. I praise you, Heavenly Father, for your care for us, your guidance and your protection. You are truly worthy of worship, glory and honor. Today we offer you praise, exaltation and obedience. Amen.

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God's Character Revealed in the Beauty of Fall

Published by S.M. Wibberley on October 31, 2015

From my morning worship journal

October 31, 2015, Saturday, the last day of October. As I step outside on the porch, the moon shines brightly in the west, Mars, Venus and Jupiter form a clear triangle in the east and the Big Dipper points unfailingly to the North Star. The horizon is touched with the fingers of dawn, a golden line against the black of night. A frost lies on the grass; I can’t see it yet, but feel it in the crispness of the morning darkness.

Thank you, Lord, for your greatness, revealed in the glory of this morning. I praise you for your beautiful, pristine character. Like this dawn of darkness and light, brightness of stars and promise of the day, your attributes are perfectly balanced. In you there are both justice and mercy, judgment and love, hatred for sin and love for sinners. You are fully sovereign while bestowing the gift of responsibility on your creatures.

I praise you for your rich display of your being in your Word, showing us that you are eternal, without beginning or end; you are wise and joyful, powerful and kind, mighty and loving, and majestic while paying attention to minute detail. You are all knowing while forgiving and choosing to forget sin. You are wonderful beyond conception, and for that I am glad—for that proves you are God, completely separate and outside your creation—no human being could ever think up a Creator like you!

This fall season’s display of beauty also reminds me of your character, Lord. The trees are clothed in brilliant colors and fiery glory. Some have three colors at once–red, yellow and green—reminding me both of your triuneness and of your love for variety. This is echoed in maples of bright yellow standing next to pines of soft green and oaks of crisp brown. Everywhere there is diversity, a contrast and compliment of colors. This is truly a reflection of your character, where the diversity doesn’t divide but produces a richer beauty, a deeper grace and a more astounding complexity within a powerful unity.

You, Lord God, are the ultimate in every aspect: beauty and wisdom with power, along with judgment and love. I praise you, Lord God for how wonderful you are, worthy of our worship, deserving of our adoration, meriting our obedience.

May we dwell today in the light of your beauty, in the grace of your unified diversity and in awe of your monumental and majestic greatness. To you be honor and glory in all.

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