The House You're Building

Psalm 37:4 says, “He will give you the desires of your heart.”   Does that mean you get everything you want?   No, it means that God gives us the desires He wants us to have if we are redeemed and serving Him.   These desires always match up with his word and character.   So how to you know His desires and what pleases Him for your life?   In Psalm 40 and others we will study this week we will find the answers through the work of His spirit…pray that He will open your eyes to see His truth for you!   Psalm 35 ·          This psalm describes David and his enemies and how each respond to one another.   List what his enemies have done to him.   How did he respond to them? ·          Read Matthew 5:43-48 and Luke 6:27-36.   What does Jesus’ teaching relate to how we treat our enemies?   Did David follow Jesus as described in Psalm 35? ·  ...

“God’s anger is but for a moment, His favor is for a lifetime; Weeping may last for the night, But a shout of joy comes in the morning.”   Psalm 30:5   “How blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, Whose sin is covered!   How blessed is the man to whom the Lord does not impute iniquity, And in whose spirit there is no decent!”   Psalm 32:1-2   Like David in these verses we too can be confident that, no matter how bad we screw up, God’s love for us is boundless and His capacity to forgive unlimited!   We only have to recognize our sin, confess, and ask for forgiveness.   God is faithful and righteous to forgive.   1 John 1:9     ·          Compare and contrast Psalms 28 and 29.   What is the main idea of each psalm?   ·          Read Psalm 30.   List all of the things David is thankful for.   Are you thank...

Psalm Study 4:   Psalms 22-27   “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.”   This sentence opens one of the most well known, memorized psalms in the Bible.   It encapsulates (summarizes) in one brief phrase who God is and what He does for us.   Our next six psalms in this study also describe who God is and what He can do for you to bring you comfort, peace, restoration and answers to your troubles.   Read Psalm 22 ·          Compare with Matthew 27: 38-46, Mark 15: 22-37, Luke 23:33-46, John 19:17-37, Hebrews 2:9-12, Revelation 19:5 ·          When Davis and Jesus cried out these words, where does this Psalm say God is? ·          What does Psalm 22 promise?   Read Psalm 23 and John 10:1-16 ·          How do these verses help you understand your relationship t...

In whom do you trust?   If you wonder, ask yourself where you turn when life becomes stressful or you feel threatened.   Do you eat?   Do you work hard to avoid pain?   Do you try to make all things perfect in your life and never fail so you can stay safe? Do you lean on others’ sympathy, advice, or help instead of turning to God?   Do you rely on money to bail you out or to buy things to distract you when you are hurting?   As you study these psalms, find ways that God is more worthy and powerful and truly able to save other than the false things that you put your hope in.   Key Verse:          I call upon the LORD, who is worthy to be praised,                                 and I am saved from my enemies. (Psalm 18:3 ESV)   Psalm 18 ...

*An apology to our regular followers...we've had a 6 week break from the study for relationship building but are back up to posting.  Expect a weekly update once again!  Thanks again for studying God's word along with us!   Psalms Study Guide 2:   Psalm 9 through 17   When nations are at war, God is there.   When the wicked seem to prosper, God is there.   When life is in chaos, God is there.   In every situation, God is there.   Our next nine psalms express the author’s grief over evil in the world.   Notice, however, the Psalmist’s comfort in knowing that in every situation God is there and knowing that He will judge the world to make all things rights.   Key Verse: “And those who know Your name will put their trust in You, For You, O Lord, have not forsaken those who seek You.”   Psalm 9:10   Read Psalm 9 ·          Make note of the repeated phrase in th...

But I have calmed and quieted my soul, like a weaned child with its mother; like a weaned child is my soul within me. Psalm 131:2   Being still has always been a struggle of mine.   From a young age, I sought to find significance in things the world valued as I hadn’t discovered the soul-satisfying peace of finding worth in God.   My main go-to was being productive to get praise from others.   I could work very hard and strove to have others notice my efforts.   It made me feel a part of things, essential and valuable as my inner heart was missing this grace.   Even now, when I’m most upset or worried, instead of crying or yelling I often storm around the house cleaning!   At those times I believe the lie that when I work I matter.   When I make the outside look good, the inside will follow.   In my Christian life, I have been told that it is important to have a “quiet time” with God.   This is phrase means: sit down by your...

Do you like music?   Though everyone has different styles, most people have a genre that they listen to.   You may not be a great singer or play an instrument, but it is hard to imagine not having music on while working out, driving, or at a party.   God made music to connect to our spirit in a unique way.   The book of Psalms in simply a collection of poems and songs.   Some are historical and prophetic, some to magnify God, some express the personal fears and questions involving the journey of faith.   There are 150 Psalms arranged in 5 books.   Though they aren’t arranged in a particular order, each has a theme and is meant to focus us on God.   Throughout our study you will learn much of Him and we pray that your worship and personal connection with Him will be strengthened.     Each week we will read several Psalms.   Our format will be to read the Psalm, find its theme, and then reflect more using the study questio...

Ladies (and men...do men read this blog)? Just a quick update to let you know that Callie and I will be back at in again this fall with a series on studying the Psalms!  As always, modified and inspired from the inductive study method of Kay Arthur.  Hope you will  join us.  Our first study should be posted the week of September 9th.  Nice to see there has been some traffic this summer from all over the world.  We are blessed to minister to you and give you guidance in your time with God. What has God been teaching (and reteaching) me? 1.  Less is more 2.  See the value in people because I made them (this God talking) 3.  Look at your kids and not your phone when they need to talk to you 4. Enjoy good friends 5. Trust Me and not yourself 6. Be sincere 7. You don't have to know everything right away 8. Pray when you brush your teeth 9. Say no sometimes and don't feel bad about it 10.  Always assume the best intent of...

If you need wisdom—if you want to know what God wants you to do—ask Him and He will gladly tell you.   He will not resent you’re asking.   But when you ask Him, be sure that you really expect Him to answer, for a doubtful mind s as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind.   People like that should not expect to receive anything from the Lord.   They can’t make up their minds.   They waver back and forth in everything they do.                                          James 1:5-8   Hello blog readers!   Thanks for your patience in this break as my group is doing a book study with prepared questions I haven’t been posting.   I will start up again in the fall.     The book we are reading is Lineage of Grace by ...