Devotions

The past two days I have been in Psalm 97, verses 10-12. Those three verses contain four thoughts that I have been meditating on. The first is that those who love the LORD are to hate evil; and the second is that God rescues us and promises eternal protection no matter what trials and sorrows we face in this life.

The third thought lifts the soul and spirit! “Light shines on the godly, and joy on those whose hearts are right.” [vs 11 NLT]

Light & Joy!

Light: “For he has rescued us from the kingdom of darkness and transferred us into the Kingdom of his dear Son.” [Colossians 1:13 NLT]

Joy: “Oh, the joys of those who trust the Lord.” [Psalm 40:4 NLT]

The promises of light and joy are for those whose hearts are right. And how do we make our hearts right?

We can’t become godly through our only efforts – but we can see our hearts made right by surrendering our lives to the One who died for us, Jesus the Messiah. Amen & Amen

I’m spending a couple days meditating on four thoughts found in Psalm 97:10-12. Psalm 97 begins with the declaration “The LORD is King!”

Verse 10 reminds us first that “You who love the LORD, hate evil,” and continues “[The LORD] protects the lives of his godly people and rescues them from the power of the wicked.” [NLT]

Repeatedly in the Scriptures we are promised protection and rescue but exactly what does that mean? Does it mean we will never face opposition, never experience difficulties, or always live a trial-free life? What about Christians that are persecuted or martyred? And did not Jesus Himself promise that “Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows.” [John 16:33 NLT]

Those kinds of questions have existed for millennia.

Jesus said, “you will,” not “you might” have many trials and sorrows. But He also promised that He “told you all this so that you may have peace in me,” and that we can take heart because He has “overcome the world.”

Whatever we may face, whatever trials and sorrows, opposition or even persecution we may face in this world, we have the promise of eternal protection and rescue. We are going to a place where wickedness and evil will have no entrance. Amen & Amen

A recent daily verse took me to Psalm 97. That song begins simply, “The LORD is King!” [NLT]

What follows immediately are the reactions to that declaration by the earth and the heavens, the godly and the ungodly. It concludes in verse 9 with “For you, O Lord, are supreme over all the earth; you are exalted far above all gods.” [NLT]

But this morning it was the three verses that follow that conclusion that ministered to my heart. There are four thoughts in those three verses that I want to meditate on in the next few days. Verse 10 begins with the first, “You who love the Lord, hate evil!” Proverbs 8:13 reiterates that thought, “All who fear the Lord will hate evil.”

This world is full of evil; wickedness is found everywhere. No nation, no people are immune, no matter how “civilized.” Evil is the manifestation of the devil’s hatred of God. It is the release of the wickedness of hearts living apart from God.

We are to hate it.  And that hatred is more than a feeling. It means we seek to spread the goodness of the Gospel of Christ Jesus everywhere … because it is only the Good Gospel of Salvation that has the power to overcome evil.

“Do not be overcome by evil but overcome evil with good.” [Romans 12:21]

What a weekend of sports. The 2026 Winter Olympics began. The wild PGA Phoenix Open took place. And then there was that Super Bowl. It was a weekend of winners and losers, successes and failures. All of which brought to mind that verse in 1Corinthians 15 (the Resurrection Chapter) …

“But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ!” [vs 57 HCSB]

The NLT translates it this way … “But thank God! He gives us victory over sin and death through our Lord Jesus Christ.”

Sin and its penalty death have plagued mankind since the Garden of Eden. The fear of death (Thanatophobia) is identified as the most profound fear. It is universal. The unknown aspects of death raise it above all others.

But those who have surrendered their lives to Christ Jesus (the Living One Who died but is alive forever and ever and the One Who holds the keys of death and the grave [Rev 1:18]), can thank God for the victory given to them over sin and death.

That victory is an eternal one that can never be taken away! Amen & Amen

I had the privilege of bringing the team devotion yesterday at church. I brought a very simple reminder of what I have found to be the three most important things we must experience as Christians.

Number One: Jesus Loves Me! ME! With all my faults and failures Jesus Loves Me. When I don’t get it right. Jesus Loves Me. I may please or displease Him, but I will never have the power to change His love for me. (Colossians 3:12: “God chose you to be the holy people he loves.”)

Number Two: I am a “Child of God.” There is no title man can bestow on me, no title I might earn that is greater than the one God bestowed. I am a “Child of God.” (1 John 3:1: “Look at how great a love the Father has given us that we should be called God’s children.)

Number Three: God’s Grace Wins! No matter what I might face in this life, Grace Wins. No matter that my mind might fade and my body fail, Grace Wins.  (2Corinthians 12:9: “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.”)

These are the things that I seek to live in every day of my life. I find in their simplicity that they are so deep and so vital to remember.

The brain is a wacky, wonderful thing. I try to listen to my Christian playlist before going to bed, otherwise my brain will dreg up some goofy song from a commercial to sing all night. The last song I listened to last night was “I Surrender All.” I hoped its beautiful words would resonate in my spirit all night.

“All to Jesus, I surrender. All to Him, I freely give. I will ever love and trust Him. In his presence daily live. I surrender all, I surrender all. All to Thee, my blessed Savior, I surrender all.”

My brain didn’t sing at all last night. Instead, I realized in that twilight sleep just before awakening, I was trying to remember all nine of the “Fruit of the Spirit.”  I got to eight and could feel myself fussing about that last one. (I missed “faith/faithfulness.”)

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faith, gentleness, and self-control.” [Galatians 5:22-23 HCSB]

When I was finally awake, I realized that the Holy Spirit within me did something amazing. He connected the song I was singing before bed, “I Surrender All,” to the “Fruit of the Spirit.”

Somehow even in my sleep I realized you aren’t going to produce the “fruit” apart from the “surrender.” Amen & Amen

There is a song titled, “I Will Trust in You,” written by Lauren Daigle, Paul Marbury, Michael Farren. The song talks about how we stay strong when God doesn’t move the mountains or part the sea or give us the kind of answers we expect or want.

How do we handle trudging over that mountain? How do we continue when we have to walk through the floods? What kind of heart attitude must we bear when the answers to our prayers don’t rescue us from situations, illnesses, or circumstances of life?

The song says that it is then we must trust. “I will trust, I will trust in You.”

That’s not a new thought. David during trouble said, “I trust in you, O LORD; I say, ‘You are my God.’ My times are in your hands.” [Psalm 31:14-15 NIV]

Jesus told us, “Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me.” [John 14:1 NIV]

We commit our spiritual well-being to God. No matter what we see with our natural eye. No matter what we must go through, endure, or overcome in this life, our belief in God and in His Christ holds us steady.

The mountains may loom, but God will give us hinds-feet for high places. The sea may seem to overwhelm, but Jesus can quiet our soul just as He quieted the sea of Galilee. And the answers to our prayers may be different than expected, but He will never leave us, nor forsake us.

I WILL trust, I CAN trust, in Him.

I have been doing a lot of thinking about the tenderhearted mercy of God – that mercy that we are commanded to also practice towards others, even our enemies. I was looking up “mercy” references in the concordance and found one in the opening of the Letter of Jude. “May God give you more and more mercy, peace, and love.” [Jude 1:2 NLT]

When I look up a reference, I will usually read the chapter it is found in because I want to understand it in context. Jude is only one chapter, and the next part of the chapter isn’t very uplifting. It warns of the dangers of false teachers.

After that Jude issues a call to remain faithful, especially in the “last times” when there will be scoffers and people seeking to divide the church. Jude reminds us to build each other up, to show mercy, to rescue those who are perishing.

But it is the end of Jude that lifts my soul in a prayer of praise to the heavenlies. “Now all glory to God, who is able to keep you from falling away and will bring you with great joy into his glorious presence without a single fault.  All glory to him who alone is God, our Savior through Jesus Christ our Lord. All glory, majesty, power, and authority are his before all time, and in the present, and beyond all time! Amen.” [Jude 1:24-25 NLT]

Do you see that wonderful promise in that passage, the promise that I cling to, “God, who is able … will bring you with great joy into his glorious presence WITHOUT A SINGLE FAULT.” [emphasis mine]

Not even a SINGLE fault! Amen & Amen

In Luke 6 there is a passage that tells us how we are to love our enemies (vs 27-36). The last verse in that passage sums it up. “Therefore be merciful, just as your Father also is merciful.” [NKJV]

If that were the only passage about loving our enemies we might be able to ignore it – but it’s not. There are more.

We are to practice always the tenderhearted merciful attitude of our Father God to everyone. The word mercy means we are to be compassionate, having the same deep pity God has for people who look to Him for help in their difficult situations.

We are to do this because we have been chosen and loved by God Himself. “Since God chose you to be the holy people he loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. Make allowance for each other’s faults and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others.” [Colossians 3:12-13 NLT]

God loved us when we were still sinners. Our Father sent His beloved Son to die for us while we were His enemies. [Romans 5]

If the LORD God Almighty was willing and eager to do that for us, how should we be to our “enemies?”

I had an appointment last Friday with the rheumatologist who oversees my PMR and GCA. (PMR stands for polymyalgia rheumatica. GCA is giant cell arteritis. Big words for lots of pain everywhere caused by inflammation, and inflammation of the major arteries respectively.)

This is the doctor that prescribed infusions for the past six years to treat the PMR and GCA. Side effects from that medication is why I was in the hospital the beginning of this year.

I prayed before going to the appointment, asking God for wisdom in how I would approach this appointment. In the past when I suggested that we stop the infusions, I was told that my conditions were under control, not in remission. And if I stopped the meds … well, they could flare out of control.

When the Rheumatologist walked in the room the first words were “well, we are going to stop the infusions.” YES! I did not even have to broach the subject. God had gone ahead of me. NOW I just need to trust HIM to keep the PMR and GCA in remission. But I figure He’s already one step ahead me there too.

“Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take.” [Proverbs 3:6 NLT]