Worship for Today

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him in Psalm 149:1-5,
 
"Praise the Lord. Sing to the Lord a new song, his praise in the assembly of the saints. Let Israel rejoice in their Maker; let the people of Zion be glad in their King. Let them praise his name with dancing and make music to him with tambourine and harp. For the Lord takes delight in his people; he crowns the humble with salvation. Let the saints rejoice in this honor and sing for joy on their beds."

 

In this psalm, the unknown author paints a beautiful picture of worship. Here the psalmist invites the people of Zion to rejoice in their Maker and be glad in their King. He observes the Lord's delight in his people as he crowns them with salvation. He likewise observes the fitting response of the Lord's people as rejoicing "in this honor" and singing on their beds.

 

This, to me, is a beautiful picture of worship: the Lord's people praising him as they rejoice in him and the Lord taking delight in his people! Something that catches my eye this morning brings a thought that I find very compelling. The psalmist invites the Lord's people to sing to him "a new song". This brings to my mind the importance of maintaining a close relationship with my Lord that is marked by a freshness and a "new-ness" that results in fresh and new worship each day. Our Lord is so wonderful that he is due a new, fresh look each day. He is due a new consideration from me of his wonderful qualities and due my acknowledgement of his great acts each day such that my worship is fresh and new each day. Yesterday's worship won't do for today. As fulfilling and exciting it may have been yesterday, today he deserves fresh and new worship from me, a "new song".

 

Anything less is simply not worthy of him!

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share your thoughts of worship with us from your Bible reading today. We'd love to hear from you!

Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com

Worship for Today: Worshipping our wonderful Lord!

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him in Psalm 150:1-2,
 
"Praise the Lord. Praise God in his sanctuary; praise him in his mighty heavens. Praise him for his acts of power; praise him for his surpassing greatness."

 

In this, the final psalm in the book of Psalms, all are invited to praise the Lord. In the first verse, those who inhabit the environs of heaven are encouraged to praise the Lord and in the last verse we read, "Let everything that has breath praise the Lord." All life is to praise him!

 

No need for folks to go around today saying, "Praise the Lord", as the invitation or exhortation to do so has already been given, often and loudly. On the other hand, since there does seem to be so little praise offered to the Lord these days, maybe we should be encouraging others to do so. But what we certainly should be doing is praising the Lord ourselves. We don't do that by inviting others to do so, but by following the prescription provided us in verse 2. We should praise the Lord for "his acts of power" and for "his surpassing greatness". In other words, for what he does and who he is. It requires us to observe something of the Lord, for us to be moved by that something and then to extol, to tell of it, to him and others. 

 

Throughout Scripture we find that praise of the Lord, or the worship of the Lord, is always based on what the Lord has done or what he is like. Observations of the mighty deeds of the Lord, the wonderful things he has done should always move us to expressions of thankfulness, appreciation, excitement, joy, awe, reverence, and at times, fear. God, sending us his Son to take our punishment for sin, adopting us as his own children, promising us an inheritance in the resurrection, sending us his Holy Spirit to dwell within us, to change us from within, to empower us to serve him and others, all of these and so many other works of the Lord are always grounds for our worship of him.

 

Observations of what our God is like are aways grounds for our worship of him as well. His many perfections radiating a glory in his majestic splendor that showcase his tremendous love, his patience with us, his mercy, his kindness, the horrific nature of his wrath and judgment are all grounds for our worship of him. His unchanging nature, his fair, just and honest nature, his faithfulness in fulfilling all of his promises, his great power and wisdom are all grounds for our worship of him.

 

In the previous psalm we read of our Lord delighting in his people as they are praising him, Psalm 149:4. What an opportunity that is provided us in this life to share in the telling of how wonderful our Lord is!

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share your thoughts of worship with us from your Bible reading today. We'd love to hear from you!

Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com

Worship for Today: The Lord secures justice!

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him in Psalm 140:12,
 
"I know that the Lord secures justice for the poor and upholds the cause of the needy."

 

While some see these kinds of statements in the Psalms as "window dressing", language to adorn a petition, etc., I see them as insights into the very heart of our Lord. Peter tells us that when it comes to Scripture, "men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit." 2 Peter 1:21. As David acknowledges what the Lord does, it is for me a window into the workings of the Lord's heart: what he is like, the kinds of things he does.

 

To me, living in this life can be frustrating at times. As we all know, life is filled with those who take advantage of one another. People lie, people take things that are not theirs, it seems some will do whatever it takes to fulfill what their misguided hearts desire. Often it seems, those who have been victimized by such find themselves with little recourse. And the perpetrators often seem to get away with it.

 

David lets us know their day is coming. Our Lord has a heart for the poor and the needy. He secures their justice. It may not come today, but as surely as it is today, their day is coming when the Lord will right all wrongs! As David says, the inevitable outcome of God's justice for the poor and needy is that the righteous will praise the Lord and the upright will live before him!  

 

Of course, the elephant in the room here is the justice I deserve... In a fantastic display of love and mercy, the Lord pays the price of justice for culprits just like me! How this all works out is just astonishing to me. I'm one of those who deserve justice, yet the Lord has paid the penalty for me. This, I believe he does, without denying the poor and the needy, those who have been victimized by sin. Astonishing to think of isn't it?!

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share your thoughts of worship with us from your Bible reading today. We'd love to hear from you!
 
Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com

Worship for Today: Our tremendous hope in Jesus Christ!

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him in Psalm 131:3,

 

"O Israel, put your hope in the Lord both now and forevermore."

This short, 3 verse, "song of ascents", penned by David, closes with with the exhortation to Israel to place their hope in the Lord.

 

Hope is a wonderful thing. It provides us energy in our relationship with the Lord and fuels our love for him and our appreciation of him!

 

This exhortation of David brings to mind Peter's comment, "Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade—kept in heaven for you, who through faith are shielded by God's power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time." 1 Peter 1:3-5.

 

Here is a refreshing observation made by Peter. We have a wonderful hope, a "living hope"! Our hope is in an inheritance granted us by the Lord, an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade! This inheritance is none other than what is ours as co-heirs of Jesus Christ! Romans 8:17. A part of this hope is that we are shielded by God's power until resurrection day, "the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time."

 

Here is something that is coming our way that is as assured as having already happened! Here is something that is truly exciting!

 

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share your thoughts of worship with us from your Bible reading today. We'd love to hear from you!

Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com

Worship for Today

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him in Psalm 118:19-24,
 
"Open for me the gates of righteousness; I will enter and give thanks to the Lord. This is the gate of the Lord through which the righteous may enter. I will give you thanks, for you answered me; you have become my salvation. The stone the builders rejected has become the capstone; the Lord has done this, and it is marvelous in our eyes. This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it."

 

To me, the temple gate, as access to God's presence in the temple, is a metaphor for our entrance into the kingdom of God. Righteousness is required, a currency hard to come by. Since we are all sinful, none of us are righteous and do not possess the currency to enter in.

 

Proverbs 11:4 tells us, "Wealth is worthless in the day of wrath, but righteousness delivers from death." Since I lack righteousness as a sinner, what hope in life do I have? But, we read in Romans 3:21-25a, "Now a righteousness from God, apart from law, has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement, through faith in his blood."

 

As the psalmist says, "I will give you thanks, for you answered me; you have become my salvation." How wonderful! I have been made righteous through the stone the builders rejected, the capstone, Jesus Christ! I now have access to God and have gained entrance into the kingdom of God! What could be more wonderful than this?!

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share your thoughts of worship with us from your Bible reading today. We'd love to hear from you!

Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com

Worship for Today

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him in Psalm 113:4-6,

"The Lord is exalted over all the nations, his glory above the heavens. Who is like the Lord our God, the One who sits enthroned on high, who stoops down to look on the heavens and the earth?"

 

The writer of Psalm 113 clearly has the transcendence of our Lord in mind as he exhorts us at the beginning of this psalm to praise him. "From the rising of the sun to the place where it sets, the name of the Lord is to be praised." Verse 3. He asks the provocative question, "Who is like the Lord our God...?"

 

Of course the answer is, no one. No one is like the Lord our God. Our God alone is supremely transcendent in his glory and in the splendor of his majesty! The question I have at times is, why does he even give mankind a thought? Why should he care about us at all? This is a big God, magnificent in the perfections of his righteousness and holiness, and me, well, I'm about as imperfect as they come. The writer tells us that the Lord "stoops down to look on the heavens and the earth." As he does so, he does wonderful things for mankind!

 

None of which is more wonderful than his sending of his Son, Jesus Christ, to take the punishment of our sins, to satisfy his own sense of justice, making a way for us. Of Jesus Christ Paul says, "Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death- even death on a cross!" Philippians 2:6-8.

 

What kind of heart must our Lord have, who is so gloriously transcendent in his splendor and perfections, and yet reaches down to the likes of someone like me?! How could my transcendent Lord take on the very nature of a servant, and that for me?! Breath-taking for me to consider this morning!

 

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share your thoughts of worship with us from your Bible reading today. We'd love to hear from you!

Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com

Worship for Today: The Lord's love is faithful for all eternity!

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him in Psalm 108:3-5,
 
"I will praise you, O Lord, among the nations; I will sing of you among the peoples. For great is your love, higher than the heavens; your faithfulness reaches to the skies. Be exalted, O God, above the heavens, and let your glory be over all the earth."

 

David tells the Lord in this psalm that he will praise his name and sing of him among the peoples because of his love and faithfulness. From time to time I think of what life might be like if the Lord were not loving. What if his heart had only room for retribution for our sin and rebellion? Where would that leave us? Of what hope would life hold for us?

 

But the Lord's heart is a heart of love! So much so, that John says "God is love." 1 John 4:8,16. What excites me most about the Lord's love is something that David points to: the Lord is faithful in his love. "For great is your love, higher than the heavens; your faithfulness reaches to the skies." I will never see the day when the Lord tells me that his love for me has grown cold. He loved us before time began, sent his Son to die for our sins and will love us throughout eternity. The previous two psalms begin with this theme as a refrain: "His love endures forever."

 

David concludes this psalm with a doxology, "Be exalted, O God, above the heavens, and let your glory be over all the earth." How wonderful the Lord's faithful love is!

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share your thoughts of worship with us from your Bible reading today. We'd love to hear from you!

Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com

Worship for Today: A view of the Lord prompts worship!

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him in Psalm 104:1-4,
 
"Praise the Lord, O my soul. O Lord my God, you are very great; you are clothed with splendor and majesty. He wraps himself in light as with a garment; he stretches out the heavens like a tent and lays the beams of his upper chambers on their waters. He makes the clouds his chariot and rides on the wings of the wind. He makes winds his messengers, flames of fire his servants."

 

It makes no difference what theological persuasion a person has, this passage is a breath-taking view of the Lord! Cast in the elements of his own creation the lofty transcendence of the Lord is on full display here! Wrapped in light as a garment, he is clothed with splendor and majesty! This calls to mind Paul's comment to Timothy, "God, the blessed and only Ruler, the King of kings and Lord of lords, who alone is immortal and who lives in unapproachable light, whom no one has seen or can see. To him be honor and might forever. Amen." 1 Timothy 6:15-16.

 

The psalmist describes in rich, beautiful and illustrative figurative language the Lord in his enchanting creation as one who "makes the clouds his chariot and rides on the wings of the wind." The Lord makes winds his messengers, and flames of fire his servants!

 

The unnamed author of this psalm uses this introduction to encourage his own soul to praise the Lord as one who is "very great", clothed in majesty, verse 1. After these observations he extols the Lord's involvement in his creation as the great and awesome Creator. In verse 24 we read, "How many are your works, O Lord! In wisdom you made them all; the earth is full of your creatures." He ends his psalm with a doxology, "May the glory of the Lord endure forever; may the Lord rejoice in his works...", verse 31. He asks that his meditation of the Lord be pleasing to him as he rejoices in the Lord.

 

This is truly a wonderful psalm of worship and one that could only be written by someone who has had a good look at the Lord. The Lord is like that: any view of him is enough to move any of us to a posture of worship!

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share your thoughts of worship with us from your Bible reading today. We'd love to hear from you!

Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com

Worship for Today: The Lord is righteous and just!

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him in Psalm 97:1-6,
 
"The Lord reigns, let the earth be glad; let the distant shores rejoice. Clouds and thick darkness surround him; righteousness and justice are the foundation of his throne. Fire goes before him and consumes his foes on every side. His lightning lights up the world; the earth sees and trembles. The mountains melt like wax before the Lord, before the Lord of all the earth. The heavens proclaim his righteousness, and all the peoples see his glory."

 

In these verses the psalmist paints a picture of the Lord for us that reflects an important aspect of his nature: the Lord is righteous and just! This is the Lord's fearsome side. The Lord has his own nature and he will judge all within his creation that does not reflect his nature. For example, the Lord does not lie, he is always truthful. All who lie will be cast into the lake of fire. In Revelation 21:8 we read, "The cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars—their place will be in the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death."

 

As the just and righteous judge, "fire goes before him and consumes his foes on every side." We read of clouds and thick darkness that surround him. "Mountains melt like wax before him." As the world witnesses his lightning lighting up the world, it sees and trembles. The writer of Hebrews tells us, "We know him who said, 'It is mine to avenge; I will repay,' and again, 'The Lord will judge his people.' It is a dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the living God." Hebrews 10:30-31.

 

This is a picture of a fearsome God who will hold everyone accountable for every word, every thought and every action. How astonishing this same divine judge would send his Son to pay the death penalty for my sin! Because of his love of us we have access to God's mercy and forgiveness! For me, the recognition of the Lord's righteousness and justice create a masterful background for his love and mercy to be painted on!

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share your thoughts of worship with us from your Bible reading today. We'd love to hear from you!

Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com

Worship for Today: To be where the glory of the Lord dwells!

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him in Psalm 85:9,
 
"Surely his salvation is near those who fear him [the Lord], that his glory may dwell in our land."

 

As the writer of this psalm ("of the Sons of Korah") makes his plea that the Lord restore Israel yet again, he makes this observation. His desire is that if Israel is restored, the glory of the Lord will return to her.

 

Those who acknowledge who the Lord actually is, those who have a clear view of him, will fear him. Because the Lord is fearsome in his anger and judgment, because the Lord is all powerful and supremely sovereign over all, the Lord is the One to fear, to have a deep sense of reverence for. The people who fear him are "near" his salvation.

 

While this is perhaps an obvious point, the writer is looking for the result that the Lord's glory "may dwell in our land." The thought of what this looks like captures my imagination this morning. What does a land, a country, a nation look like when the glory of the Lord dwells in it? Is there a reduced crime rate? Do the people treat one another differently, in a more loving manner? Is their relationship with other countries marked by honesty, integrity, sincerity and honor? Is there a higher standard of living in a land where the glory of the Lord dwells? Is there a sense of intrigue or enchantment, say, as in the Wizard of Oz, where seekers make their pilgrimage to where the glory of the Lord dwells?

 

I'll admit that these are rambling thoughts, but I find them helpful to muse about life in the resurrection where we will live in a land where the glory of the Lord dwells. My focus on what will be ours, what life will be, what our existence will be like with the Lord in the resurrection is woefully inadequate. I find such passages as this an opportunity to consider just how wonderful our inheritance in the resurrection will be. Surely, to be anywhere where the glory of the Lord is has to be breathtaking!

 

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share your thoughts of worship with us from your Bible reading today. We'd love to hear from you!

 
Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com

Worship for Today: God has made us for eternal life!

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him in Psalm 78:39,
 
"He [the Lord] remembered that they were but flesh, a passing breeze that does not return."

 

As Asaph recounts the "praiseworthy deeds of the Lord, his power, and the wonders he has done", verse 4, he tells of how the Lord blessed his people. But following his blessing, his people would wander from him, turn their backs on him and so the Lord would judge Israel. After their suffering the Lord's judgment, the people would cry out and return to the Lord and the Lord would bless them again. "Whenever God slew them, they would seek him; they eagerly turned to him again," Verse 34. It became a cycle in the history of Israel. As Asaph puts it, at the point in the cycle where Israel would cry out to the Lord in their suffering his judgment, the Lord would be merciful, forgive their iniquities, restrain his anger and not "stir up his full wrath," Verse 38. This is because the Lord "remembered that they were but flesh, a passing breeze that does not return."

 

It is a fascinating dynamic to follow in the history of Israel. What captures my thoughts this morning, however, runs a bit afield of Asaph's observations, but one he points to. In this life we are "but flesh, a passing breeze that does not return". We are here in this life in a very temporary way. All of the folks involved with the historical account of the nation of Israel have been long gone, but the Lord is very much still here. Each successive generation passes away but the Lord remains very much still here. He is eternal, he is ever existent, we are but temporary in this life. We all soon pass from this life.

 

This is in stark contrast to what comes to us in the resurrection. Paul tells us that all those who are his will be raised, 1 Corinthians 15:23. In the resurrection we will not be just a "passing breeze that does not return." In 1 Corinthians 15:42-44 we read, "The body that is sown is perishable, it is raised imperishable: it is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory; it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power; it is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body." Later we read, "I declare to you, brothers, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed— in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed. For the perishable must clothe itself with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality. When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come true: 'Death has been swallowed up in victory.'" 1 Corinthians 15:50-54.

 

Here there is permanence! Here there is life that will never end! Here there is opportunity for our lives to continue to build for an eternity! Here is what God has purposed for us in his making of us!

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share your thoughts of worship with us from your Bible reading today. We'd love to hear from you!

Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com

Worship for Today: The Lord reveals himself in our worship of him through the Scriptures!

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him in Psalm 73:16-17,

 

"When I tried to understand all this, it was oppressive to me till I entered the sanctuary of God; then I understood their final destiny."

 

"This" in the verses above refers to Asaph's consternation over the health, strength, prosperity and freedom from struggles the wicked enjoy in life. Asaph observes that the wicked have callous hearts, verse 7, and scoff. They are violent, prideful and arrogant. They speak with malice and make threats. Not only this, but Asaph observes that, because of these things, the wicked gain a following, verse 10!

 

Because Asaph was a man who kept his heart pure and purposed to live an innocent life, verse 13, he found it all oppressive. He says, "All day long I have been plagued; I have been punished every morning." Verse 14.

 

But Asaph's perspective changed, as he recounts in verse 17. He found trying to understand it all oppressive till he entered the sanctuary of God! There he gained an understanding, that although the wicked might be enjoying good things in this life, they will experience their "final destiny" at the hand of God's judgment following this life!

 

While Asaph eventually found the resolution to the conflict he felt, his observation that the wicked don't appear to suffer in this life for their wickedness initially brought him some turmoil in his understanding of God. It wasn't until Asaph "entered the sanctuary of God" that he gained the resolution to his turmoil. Worship is like that. I have found that as I focus on the Lord, learn to love him as he has revealed himself, the conflicts and concerns my inadequate understanding of him bring are relieved. The more I worship my Lord (enter his sanctuary) through the Scriptures, the better I understand him and what he teaches me about life today and life in the resurrection. I love the Lord who has decided to reveal himself to us!

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share your thoughts of worship with us from your Bible reading today. We'd love to hear from you!

Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com

Worship for Today: The Lord hears the needy!

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fascinating, fearsome, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him in Psalm 69:33,
 

"The Lord hears the needy and does not despise his captive people."

 

In this psalm, David speaks of crying out to the Lord in his great need. He calls to the Lord to save him as the "waters have come up to my neck", verse 1. He talks of sinking in the miry depths where there is no foothold, in deep waters where a flood engulfs him, verse 2. He speaks of his foes, that he is "disgraced and shamed", verse 19. He has a broken heart and has looked for sympathy and not found it.

 

Now he turns to the Lord.

 

David knew of his great need. He was in great trouble and distress and found that "the Lord hears the needy and does not despise his captive people."  I can relate to this all too well. Held captive to sin and facing the consequences for that sin in the judgment of God, I was in great need.

 

Just as David was able to say when the Lord delivered him, "I will praise God's name in song and glorify him with thanksgiving", verse 30, I hear Paul say, "But thanks be to God that, though you used to be slaves to sin, you wholeheartedly obeyed the form of teaching to which you were entrusted. You have been set free from sin and have become slaves to righteousness." Romans 6:17-18. How wonderful the Lord hears the needy and does not despise captives!
 
Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share your thoughts of worship with us from your Bible reading today. We'd love to hear from you!

Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com

Worship for Today: The Lord is our refuge!

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him in Psalm 61:4,
 
"I long to dwell in your tent forever and take refuge in the shelter of your wings."

 

Why is it that David longed to dwell in the Lord's tent forever? What was it about the Lord that David found so desirable, so attractive, that the yearning of his heart was to spend eternity as close as possible to the Lord?

 

David speaks of God being his refuge and strong tower "against the foe." As he articulates his desire he frames it in the message of one who is looking to take refuge in the "shelter of your wings." David had his enemies, his foes. He faced real danger and real threat and found in God someone not only capable to come to his rescue and be a refuge for him, but someone who desired to be his rescue and refuge - and would be so reliably and faithfully!

 

David was no fool and recognized the state of his possibilities. Although a very capable military man with strong men who supported him, he knew his vulnerabilities. As such he was not bashful about going to the Lord with the threats he faced. He found in the Lord strength, protection from his foe, a bright hope for the future and a wonderful, loving and protective Lord to share it with!

 

We face a foe as we enter into this life. As progeny of Adam and Eve, we come into life under the judgment of God himself for sin. We face a certain future of eternal judgment in the lake of fire. But, as David found with God, we can flee to God himself for rescue and refuge! His love and mercy toward us trumps his judgment as he has paid the penalty for our sin himself! When we flee to the Lord as our refuge we find in him a loving protector who provides us an eternity with him in the light of life!

 

What kind of God does this?! What a heart!
 
Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share your thoughts of worship with us from your Bible reading today. We'd love to hear from you!

Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com

Worship for Today: Our God, the King over all the earth, ascends to his throne!

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him in Psalm 47:5-9,

"God has ascended amid shouts of joy, the Lord amid the sounding of trumpets. Sing praises to God, sing praises; sing praises to our King, sing praises. For God is the King of all the earth; sing to him a psalm of praise. God reigns over the nations; God is seated on his holy throne. The nobles of the nations assemble as the people of the God of Abraham, for the kings of the earth belong to God; he is greatly exalted."

 

God is magnificent in all of his perfections. Within the book of Psalms we see celebration of what he is like, that is, his character and nature. We also see the many acknowledgments of the wonderful things he has done. In this psalm by the sons of Korah the wonderful works of God are in view and we are invited to participate in joy together with all the nations in the exaltation of our God as the matchless King over all the earth ascends to the throne!

 

Lofty in its view, sweeping in the grandure it presents, this psalm is breathtaking in the event described as the nobles of the nations assemble as the people of the God of Abraham! Here is a celebration of shear joy and one that we will all participate in on that day! What a day that will be! What a King our God is that brings such joy to our hearts!

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share your thoughts of worship with us from your Bible reading today. We'd love to hear from you!
 
Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com

Worship for Today: Jesus saved me from my sin against God!

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fascinating, fearsome, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him in Psalm 41:4,
 
"O Lord, have mercy on me; heal me, for I have sinned against you."

 

When David confessed sin, he did so by acknowledging his sin was against the Lord. He confessed his sin in the same way when he was confronted by the prophet Nathan after he had committed adultery with Uriah's wife, Bathsheba, and murdered him. There, and quite astonishingly, David says, "Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight..." Psalm 51:4. While David's sin was clearly against the married couple, it was David's perspective that first and foremost, he had sinned against the Lord.

 

All sin is committed against the Lord, not because the Lord is a moral principle, but because the Lord, as a person, is sinned against as the Creator. Whenever we sin, it is an expression of our rebellion and rejection of who the Lord made us to be and his purpose for which he made us. Because the Lord is a God of justice (see Jeremiah 9:24), he will hold all accountable for every sin ever committed. This is quite sobering considering the words of the author of Hebrews, "We know him who said, 'It is mine to avenge; I will repay,' and again, 'The Lord will judge his people.' It is a dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the living God." Hebrews 10:30-31.

 

Since we have all sinned and are convicted by the law the Lord gave Moses, how wonderful it is that he has sent his Son, Jesus Christ to take my place of punishment! All sin is sin against the Lord and all sin has been payed for by our matchless Savior, Jesus Christ! Through faith in him I have been made "righteous", just as if I had never sinned! What kind of a God sends his Son to die a horrible death to accomplish such thing for someone like me?!

 
Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share your thoughts of worship with us from your Bible reading today. We'd love to hear from you!

 
Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com

Worship for Today: The Lord holds a wonderful inheritance for us in the resurrection!

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him in Psalm 39:5-7,
 
"You have made my days a mere handbreadth; the span of my years is as nothing before you. Each man's life is but a breath. Man is a mere phantom as he goes to and fro: he bustles about, but only in vain; he heaps up wealth, not knowing who will get it. But now, Lord, what do I look for? My hope is in you."

 

David acknowledges something his son will observe later in the book of Ecclesiastes: the temporary and transitional nature of this life leads us to the realization that life here is so short that it seems like it is just a breath. David asks the Lord in verse 4 to show him his life's end and the number of his days. He wanted to know just how fleeting his life was. He observes that what motivates so many seems meaningless from this perspective. "Man is a mere phantom as he goes to and fro: he bustles about, but only in vain; he heaps up wealth, not knowing who will get it."

 

What a perspective! Were we to adopt such an outlook we would be suspected of depression and in need of counseling! But, David has it right. An honest appraisal of life does lead us to the inevitable conclusion David espresses here: there just isn't a whole lot that makes a difference in what the mainstream of society pursues. Our lifetimes are not that long from the perspective of eternity. What wealth and possessions we accumulate will all be left behind. Our accomplishments, wealth, acknowledgements, awards, success and fame all follow us to the grave, eaten up by cancer, heart disease, a car accident or whatever.

 

It is from this very clear view of reality that the hope we have in Jesus Christ springs forth. A purposeful and rich life lived well here is always done so in the light of what is coming next: eternity for all. Will we be headed for eternal life or eternal death? Will the quality of my life in eternity be that which brings me an exciting anticipation? David goes on to say in this psalm, "But now, Lord, what do I look for? My hope is in you. Save me from all my transgressions..." David looked ahead to life in the resurrection. He sought a place with the Lord where he knew he had a wonderful hope.

 

We, likewise have our hope in the Lord. This hope is what brings an exciting edge to our relationship with him and buffers the pull of the false entrapments of this life. How wonderful the inheritance is the Lord is holding for each of us who have embraced him in faith!

 
Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share your thoughts of worship with us from your Bible reading today. We'd love to hear from you!

Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com

Worship for Today: We are saved by faith!

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him in Psalm 32:1-2,
 
"Blessed is he whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered. Blessed is the man whose sin the Lord does not count against him and in whose spirit is no deceit."

 

Paul quotes this comment of David in Romans 4:7-8. There in Romans Paul makes the point that a good standing with God, that is, "justification" or "righteousness" does not come by keeping the law. He looks to Abraham as the model of how God has chosen that all who will embrace him in the faith Abraham did will be credited with righteousness and will be justified. Paul quotes Genesis 15:6, "Abraham believed the Lord, and he credited it to him as righteousness."

 

How wonderful my salvation is not based on my performance. How wonderful I don't have to do anything to receive salvation from God's wrath and have a place in his family for all eternity but believe in him! Just as Abraham was credited with righteousness for his faith, so am I. Enough cannot be said about this! What a cause for praise and worship of God!
 
Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share your thoughts of worship with us from your Bible reading today. We'd love to hear from you!

Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com

Worship for Today: The Lord is our confidence!

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him in Psalm 27:1,
 
"The Lord is my light and my salvation- whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life- of whom shall I be afraid?"

 

These words of confidence from David came from his absolute certainty that he lived in the Lord's favor. The Lord was David's light and salvation, he was David's "stronghold". David certainly lived his life in a demonstration of this confidence as he found it grounds for being fearless in the face of the threats he faced. In verse 10 he says, "Though my father and mother forsake me, the Lord will receive me."

 

If someone where to make that claim in the media today, he might very likely be taken as arrogant in his assumption about his relationship with the Lord. How could anyone say such a thing?

 

For David, the confidence lies in the fact that the Lord was David's light. As opposed to being lost in the confusion of the claims of many who say "this is the way", or "that is the way", David followed the Lord as his light. In Psalm 119:105, in speaking of the word of the Lord, we read, "Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path." In John 8:12, we read Jesus' words, "I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life."

 

David had his confidence in the Lord because the Lord provided unmistakable and understandable light, revealing himself to David. We have that light as well! Those of us who have embraced the Lord as he has revealed himself share in the same confidence David had! I find it just wonderful that the Lord has provided light for us just as he had David!
 
Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share your thoughts of worship with us from your Bible reading today. We'd love to hear from you!

Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com

Worship for Today: The Lord has been good to us!

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him in Psalm 13:6,
 
"I will sing to the Lord, for he has been good to me."

 

David pens these words at a time when he felt abandoned and forsaken by the Lord. "How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me?" He faced his enemy, verse 4, and had concern that he would gloat over his destruction.

 

But we read of David's persistent faith, his tenacity in clinging to the Lord. He says "But I trust in your unfailing love; my heart rejoices in your salvation." In the end David finds his relief in the Lord. "I will sing to the Lord, for he has been good to me."

 

Such is our Lord. He is good to us. I am reminded of Paul's words in Romans 8:28, "We know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose." There Paul tells us that in the very midst of what we find difficult and challenging, the Lord is there, and he is working those circumstances for our good.
 
Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share your thoughts of worship with us from your Bible reading today. We'd love to hear from you!

Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com

Worship for Today: God makes us fit for a new order of things!

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him in Psalm 7:9,
 
"O righteous God, who searches minds and hearts, bring to an end the violence of the wicked and make the righteous secure."

 

Living in the world with its collective sin nature is often a daunting place to be. Populated with people dominated by a sin nature that expresses itself in the way they treat one another, the greed, the lies, the deception, the unfairness can often be a struggle to live with. Political seasons often seem to be so characteristic of this. As those who exploit others and seem to get away with it, as those who hold positions of responsibility and use those very positions to feed their greed and aggrandizement and seem to get away with it, we often ask, where is the justice of it all? When those who would introduce our children to drugs or sexual immorality, endanger our persons and property through criminal activity seem to get by without paying the penalty, it can be discouraging. When we learn a murder suspect had been recently paroled early from prison after a previous string of felonies, we struggle.

 

I sense the cause of David's plea to the Lord in some of this. He seeks the Lord's judgement for these things, and a great desire for a better environment to live in, one absent the violence of the wicked and security for the righteous. Such is life in this fallen world.

 

How wonderful it is the Lord will bring us this relief! We are told that in the resurrection, "'Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.' He who was seated on the throne said, 'I am making everything new!' Then he said, 'Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.' He said to me: 'It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. To him who is thirsty I will give to drink without cost from the spring of the water of life. He who overcomes will inherit all this, and I will be his God and he will be my son. But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars—their place will be in the fiery lake of burning sulfur.'"

 

How wonderful we have an eternal life that will be free from the discouragements this sinful and fallen world brings! More importantly, how wonderful it is the Lord has made me - a sinner who has certainly contributed as much as many to the discouragement this world brings - fit for his home in heaven! How wonderful is that?!

 
Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share your thoughts of worship with us from your Bible reading today. We'd love to hear from you!

Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com

Worship for Today: Praise the Lord for his great deliverance!

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him in Psalm 3:8,
 
"From the Lord comes deliverance. May your blessing be on your people."

 

As David acknowledges the wonderful deliverance the Lord provided him on the many occasions we read of in Scripture, I am reminded of the great deliverance the Lord has provided us in his Son, Jesus Christ.

 

Condemned and consigned to the inevitable judgment of the lake of fire for my sin, God sent his Son, Jesus Christ to deliver me from the wrath of his own justice. Out of a love that transcends my comprehension, God made a way for me. How wonderful this love he has for us! All he has asked of me is that I embrace him in faith! The kindness, mercy and grace displayed in the death of Jesus Christ on the cross to take the penalty for my sin is astounding!
 
Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share your thoughts of worship with us from your Bible reading today. We'd love to hear from you!

Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com