Category Archives: Psalms

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Nature Speaks!

Can You Ask For A Louder Voice Than That?

PREVIEW: St Augustine wrote, “Some people, in order to discover God, read books. But there is a great book: the very appearance of created things. Look above you! Look below you! Read it. God, whom you want to discover, never wrote that book with ink. Instead He set before your eyes the things that He had made. Can you ask for a louder voice than that?” If you can, take a walk sometime today, or if you get a clear sky tonight, go out and appreciate the beauty of what God has created. And tell him thanks!

“No voice speaks louder of the beauty and awe of the Creator than the beauty and awe of what he has created. For sure, nature speaks continual praise to our Creator God.”—Ray Noah

A Journey of Worship // Psalm 19:1-2

The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands. Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they display knowledge.

I love nature! There is nothing that speaks to my heart more clearly of the majesty of Almighty God than the beauty and wonder of creation. Whether rafting the class five rapids of a pristine Rocky Mountain River, or hiking the Pacific Coast Trail in the Cascades, or watching the sun appear over an eastern wall of an Arizona canyon, or walking through the California redwoods, or gazing up at an African sky so clear and close it seems as though you could reach out and touch a star, time and again I’ve uttered these words:

“How could anyone who sees what I see not want to bow in worship to the Mighty One who created this?”

Creation, indeed, witnesses to mankind of the loving God. St Augustine wrote,

“Some people, in order to discover God, read books. But there is a great book: the very appearance of created things. Look above you! Look below you! Read it. God, whom you want to discover, never wrote that book with ink. Instead He set before your eyes the things that He had made. Can you ask for a louder voice than that?”

Unfortunately, some people cannot see or hear God in what is plain. That’s because the god of this age has blinded their eyes. (2 Corinthians 4:4) But that shouldn’t stop you from deepening your worship of the Creator by expanding your appreciation for his creation. Take a moment to absorb what St. Basil the Great wrote,

“I want creation to penetrate you with so much admiration that wherever you go, the least plant may bring you the clear remembrance of the Creator. …One blade of grass or one speck of dust is enough to occupy your entire mind in beholding the art with which it has been made. … The earth is the Lord’s and the fullness thereof. O God, enlarge within us the sense of fellowship with all living things, even our brothers, the animals, to whom Thou gavest the earth as their home in common with us. …We remember with shame that in the past we have exercised the high dominion of man with ruthless cruelty so that the voice of the earth, which should have gone up to thee in song, has been a groan of pain. May we realize that they live, not for us alone, but for themselves and for Thee and that they love the sweetness of life.”

Now if you can, take a walk sometime today, or if you get a clear sky tonight, go out and appreciate the beauty of what God has created. And tell him thanks!

My Offering of Worship: Today, make St. Basil’s prayer your own that you lift to the Creator: “O God, enlarge within me the sense of fellowship with all living things, even my brothers and sisters, the animals, to whom you gave the earth as their home in common with us. And give me a deeper sense of awe at my home, the earth, and greater wonder at the canopy of stars and planets under which I live. And above all, thank you for the gift of nature, and make me ever aware of the beauty of what you have created.”

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The Flawless Words of God

Standing On The Promises

PREVIEW: In Psalm 18, David reflects that even though the road he has traveled to kingship has been rocky, to say the least, and at times, the success of his journey certainly hung in the balance, yet at the end of the day — at the end of each day — God had been faithful to David. God had kept him. God had delivered him. God had exalted him. And all David can do is offer this psalm of praise that recognizes the many qualities of God that have made him worthy of David’s praise. Now what was true for David is just as true for you. God is faithful, God’s Word is flawless, and God’s words to you will be fulfilled. So, are you standing on the promises of God? Are you claiming his words? Are you leaning into his Eternal Word? David would say to you, “You can depend on God’s Word—and his word. And of all people, I would know.”

The Flawless Words of God

A Journey of Worship // Psalm 18:30

As for God, his way is perfect; the word of the LORD is flawless. He is a shield for all who take refuge in him.

As you read this fairly long psalm, your eyes will likely be drawn to verse 30. Initially, it will seem that David’s words here are an abrupt, although delightful, departure from the rest of the psalm. At first blush, it seems that David has taken a sidebar to attest to the inspiration and veracity of Scripture. Yet upon further review, this verse is in complete unity with the rest of the psalm, simply and succinctly verifying David’s testimony of God’s faithfulness to him.

The title of the song seems to suggest that David penned these words after a divinely orchestrated deliverance from King Saul’s insane jealousy and murderous rage. However, the internal evidence of the psalm indicates that this is really a retrospective on the faithfulness of God over the course of David’s life in fulfilling the promise to establish David as king over an everlasting dynasty in place of Saul. (See 2 Samuel 7:8-16)

In looking back, David reflects that even though the road he has traveled to kingship has been rocky, to say the least, and at times, the success of his journey certainly hung in the balance, yet at the end of the day, at the end of each day, God had been faithful to David. God had kept him. God had delivered him. God had exalted him. And now, David offers this wonderful song of praise that recognizes the many qualities of God that have made him worthy of David’s praise.

Then we come to verse, verse 30, where David’s worship takes on an increased volume of heartfelt praise as he sings in effect, “Yes, the promises of God have proved to be true and trustworthy. Every word he has spoken over me has been flawlessly fulfilled. I can count on his word; I can stand on his promises. With God, I am on safe and secure ground.”

Of course, what David said of the words of God (see Psalm 12:6, 30:5) is also true of the Word of God. In the next psalm, Psalm 19:7-9, David proclaims,

The law of the LORD is perfect, reviving the soul.
The statutes of the LORD are trustworthy, making wise the simple.
The precepts of the LORD are right, giving joy to the heart.
The commands of the LORD are radiant, giving light to the eyes.
The fear of the LORD is pure, enduring forever.
The ordinances of the LORD are sure and altogether righteous.

Now here’s the deal: What was true for David is true for you. The Word of God is as true today as it was in David’s day. And out of God’s Word, through your time of prayer and reflection upon it, God will speak to you as he did David (remember, it will always be in line with his written Word), and give you a word specific to the circumstances you face. And you can depend on God’s Word in those times to be flawless as well. God’s promises to you are certain.

Are you standing on the promises of God? Are you claiming his word? Are you leaning into his Eternal Word? David would say to you, “You can depend on God’s Word—and his word. And of all people, I would know.”

My Offering of Worship: Take time to read, or reread, Psalm 18, and then write out a prayer of praise to God for his faithfulness to you.

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The Apple of Your Daddy’s Eye

You Are the One God Loves

PREVIEW: Did you know that God has favorites? The Bible tells us that he held the nation of Israel as the apple of his eye. Really — Deuteronomy 32:11 tells us, “God threw his arms around Jacob, lavished attention on him, guarding him as the apple of his eye.” And Zechariah 2:8 warns, “Whoever touches Israel touches the apple of God’s eye.” The good news is that God not only played favorites with Israel, he holds you as the apple of his eye, too. How so? Through Christ’s blood! You see, when you placed saving faith in Christ, God took all the love he displayed for Israel, and for his Son, and he placed it on you. Now you are the one he loves.

The Apple of Your Daddy's Eye – Ray Noah

A Journey of Worship // Psalm 17:8 (ESV)

Keep me as the apple of your eye; hide me in the shadow of your wings.

Did you know that God has favorites? The Bible tells us that he held the nation of Israel as the apple of his eye. Really — Deuteronomy 32:11 tells us, “God threw his arms around Jacob, lavished attention on him, guarding him as the apple of his eye.” And Zechariah 2:8 warns, “Whoever touches Israel touches the apple of God’s eye.”

The good news is that God not only played favorites with Israel, he holds you as the apple of his eye, too. How so? Through Christ’s blood! You see, when you placed saving faith in Christ, God took all the love he displayed for Israel, and for his Son, and he placed it on you. Now you are the one he loves.

The late Brennan Manning tells one of my favorite stories about an Irish priest who was on a walking tour of his rural parish one day. And along the way, by the roadside, he found an old man, a peasant, kneeling in prayer. The priest was quite impressed, so he walked over and interrupted the man: “You must be very close to God.”

The peasant looked up from his prayers, thought for a moment, smiled, and said, “Yes, he’s very fond of me.”

This simple man had a simple faith that revealed a profound self-awareness of his true identity — he knew he was loved by God, and that was all that mattered! Manning developed his own personal declaration from that touching story. He would say of himself, “I am the one Jesus loves.”

It sounds a little arrogant, but he’s actually quoting Scripture. Jesus’ closest friend, John, identified himself in his Gospel as, “the one Jesus loved.” If you were to ask John, “What is your primary identity in life?” he wouldn’t reply, ‘I’m one of Jesus’ disciples — actually one of the three in his inner circle!” He wouldn’t say, “I’m one of the twelve apostles.” Nor would he identify himself as “the author of the Gospel that bears my name.” Rather, John would simply say, “I am the one Jesus loves.”

I hope that you, too, will take to saying that. More importantly, I pray that you will start believing it in your heart because if, and when you truly grasp how great the Father’s love for you really is, it will change your entire life!

Peter Kreeft insightfully wrote, “Sin comes from not realizing God’s love. Sin comes from thinking ourselves only as sinners, while overcoming sin comes from thinking ourselves as overcomers. We act our perceived identities.”

Friend, your identity is the one Jesus loves. Now start perceiving it. You are the apple of God’s eye—that is who you are. Your Father is watching over you at this moment with great delight. He will protect you, he will provide for you, and he will guide you … God’s got you covered!

Yes, you are the one Jesus loves. Now go act like it’s true, because it is!

My Offering of Worship: On a 3 x 5 card, write “I am the one Jesus loves.” Then tape it to your mirror and read it aloud each morning when you wake up and right before you go to bed at the end of the day. Try this for seven straight days and see if it makes a difference in your attitude and interactions.

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When God Is All You’ve Got

Everything Else is Icing on the Cake

PREVIEW: If you find yourself wrestling with chronic discontent, try focusing on all the blessings of just belonging to your Heavenly Father. I am quite certain that if you do that, you will come to the place where you realize that when God is all you’ve got, you’ve got it all! Even still, desiring — and asking for — God’s overflowing blessing in your life is neither selfish nor shallow — not at all. In fact, it is what God created you to desire and to experience. You see, your desiring and your asking for his abundant best is an act of faith on your part that honors him.

When God is all you’ve got, you’ve got it all! —Ray Noah

A Journey of Worship // Psalm 16:2

I said to the LORD, “You are my Lord; apart from you I have no good thing.”

When God is all you’ve got, you’ve got it all!

David’s confession that apart from God he had no good thing was not the admission of a desperate person in dire need pathetically clinging to his God. No, this was a bold and delightful recognition that being dependent on the Lord was the supreme place of:

  • Blessing — “LORD, you have assigned me my portion and my cup,” (v. 5)
  • Favor — “surely I have a delightful inheritance,” v. 6)
  • Wisdom — “the LORD, who counsels me; at night my heart instructs me,” (v. 7)
  • Security — “because he is at my right hand, I will not be shaken,” (v. 8)
  • Emotional well-being — “therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices,” (v. 9)
  • Invincibility — “because you will not abandon me to the grave,” (v. 10)
  • Satisfaction — “you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand.” (v. 11).

If you are in a place that provides all that — God’s blessing, divine favor, spiritual wisdom, personal security, emotional health, supernatural intervention, and soul-soothing satisfaction — what more could you possibly ask for? Anything else you have in life — financial abundance, physical health, relational well-being — is just icing on the cake.

Sometimes we get a little discontent when we focus on all the things we don’t have. And of course, it is appropriate to ask God for the things we need, even the things we desire — that is, if we ask in accordance to his will.

But if you find yourself wrestling with chronic discontent, try focusing on all the blessings of just belonging to your Heavenly Father. I am quite certain that if you do that, you will come to the place where you realize that when God is all you’ve got, you’ve got it all!

By the way, desiring — and asking for — God’s overflowing blessing in your life is not selfish at all. In fact, it is what God created you to desire and to experience. In fact, your desiring and asking for his abundant best is an act of faith on your part that honors him. I agree with how John Piper said it,

“Christian Hedonism says this: ‘God is most glorified in you when you are most satisfied in him.’ In fact, not only is there no conflict between your happiness and God’s glory, but his glory shines in your happiness, when your happiness is in him.”
So go ahead and ask bigly of God. It will glorify him, most importantly, and it will make you happy in the meantime. And that is not a bad thing.

My Offering of Worship: Divine blessing in your life is undeniable, irrefutable evidence for the existence of a good and involved God. So, make sure you align your life to the conditions of his blessings, and then ask bigly for his best blessings!

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The Life God Blesses

Pull Out All The Stops If You've Lost It

PREVIEW: The tides of an increasingly nasty culture and the natural drift of our own fallenness will make living out life of true integrity extremely difficult. We will have to fight opposite currents every day, if not every moment of our lives. But such a well-lived life will be worth it along the way and at the end of our journey. A life of true integrity is the only way to live! As the psalmist said, “He who does these things will never be shaken.” (Psalm 15:5)

The Life God Blesses

A Journey of Worship // Psalm 15:1

LORD, who may dwell in your sanctuary? Who may live on your holy hill?”

What is the life God blesses? David couldn’t have spelled it out any clearer than in Psalm 15: It is the life of integrity!

The person of complete integrity, which I realize, in the truest sense is redundant — spiritual, relational, financial, moral, intellectual, physical integrity — is the one upon whom God’s favor, power and provision will rest.

Now integrity is a word that gets thrown around a great deal these days — and that’s part of the problem: It gets thrown around instead of lived out.

So, just what is integrity? I think the simplest and best definition I know is this: The congruence of what you believe with how you behave. For the Christian, it is the marriage of Biblical values, principles, and world-view with our moment-by-moment attitudes and actions. In short, it is to practice what we preach at all times and under every circumstance.

David provides some very specific areas of integrity that are absolutely critical to living under the blessing of God:

  • Moral Purity—Verse 2: “He whose walk is blameless and who does what is righteous.”
  • Compassionate Honesty—Verse 2: “who speaks the truth from his heart.”
  • Rejection of Destructive Opinion—Verse 3: “and has no slander on his tongue, who does his neighbor no wrong and casts no slur on his fellowman.”
  • Revulsion of Evil People—Verse 4: “who despises a vile man.”
  • Promotion of Good People—Verse 4: “but honors those who fear the LORD.”
  • Ruthless Trustworthiness—Verse 4: “who keeps his oath when it hurts.”
  • Risky Generosity—Verse 5: “who lends his money without usury.”
  • Rigid Honor—Verse 5: “and does not accept a bribe against the innocent.”

Any person who lives organically, unbendingly, and consistently this way will themselves live, as verse 5 concludes, in the stability and security of the palm of the Heavenly Father’s hand:

He who does these things will never be shaken. (Psalm 15:5)

The tides of an increasingly nasty culture and the natural drift of our own fallenness will make living out this kind integrity extremely difficult. We will have to fight opposite currents every day, if not every moment, of our lives. But such a well-lived life will be worth it along the way and at the end of our journey.

A life of true integrity is the only way to live!

My Offering of Worship: A life of integrity, from beginning to end, is no small matter. You cannot achieve it apart from God’s daily help. So, ask God today, and ask him every day, to equip and empower you to live a life of complete integrity.

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Nobody’s Fool

Refuse to Live as if God Doesn't Exist

PREVIEW: As Israel’s king, David was concerned with the steady stream of people who were bright enough to work themselves into positions of influence within his government yet lived and acted without regard for the laws of God. He knew that powerful leaders who acknowledged God with their lips but dishonored him by their actions were the ingredients to a recipe that would produce great damage in Israel. You know people like that, too. They’re quite smart, very successful, and uber-magnetic in their personalities, but they live with no thought for God. They act without regard for his moral law, with no consideration of his right to rule their lives, and oblivious to his eternal purposes in this world. They are practical atheists. At times, we, too, are that foolish. We think, plan, and do without giving God the highest consideration. We don’t mean to live that way, yet we neglect to give God his rightful place as Lord and Ruler over all the details of our lives, both big and small. What say we do what Jesus called the early Christians to do who had fallen into that same trap of practical atheism: “Remember the heights from which you have fallen. Repent and do the things you did at first.” Let’s get back to the practice of putting God first in every waking thought we have.

"Let’s get back to the practice of Putting God First in every waking thought we have."—Ray Noah

A Journey of Worship // Psalm 14:1

Only fools say in their hearts, “There is no God.” They are corrupt, and their actions are evil; not one of them does good!.”

David is not referring here to the atheist who flat-out denies the existence of God — although we could easily argue the foolishness of such a position. Nor is he speaking of someone who is intellectually challenged. Rather, he is speaking of the person who is morally lacking. That one may even be very bright and believe in God, but for all intents and purposes, live as if God doesn’t exist. That kind of person, in effect, is a practical atheist.

You might find it interesting to know that David referred to such a person more than once in the Psalms. He uses identical language in Psalm 10:4, and in Psalm 53:1, where he actually gives us a clear definition of how the fool lives: “In all his thoughts there is no room for God.”

As king of Israel, David was concerned with the steady stream of people who were bright enough to work themselves into positions of influence within his government yet lived and acted without regard for the laws of God. He knew that powerful leaders who acknowledged God with their lips but dishonored him by their actions were the ingredients to a recipe that would produce great damage in Israel.

You know people like that, and so do I. They are very smart, extremely successful, and perhaps even quite magnetic in their personalities, but they live with no thought for God. They act without regard for his moral law, with no consideration of his right to rule their lives, and oblivious to his eternal purposes in this world. They are practical atheists. In fact, some of these “fools” might even be sitting next to you in church.

You know, I must confess that, at times, I am a fool. I think, plan, and do without giving God the highest consideration. I have a feeling you do too. I don’t mean to live that way; neither do you. I just neglect to give God his rightful place as Lord and Ruler over all the details of my life — both big and small. In that sense, you and I are no different from the type of person David calls the fool. Yet, at some level, we must accept those stinging words as a rebuke to the way we have lived.

So, what say we do what Jesus called some of the early Christians to do who had fallen into that same trap of practical atheism: “Remember the heights from which you have fallen. Repent and do the things you did at first.” (Rev 2:5) In other words, let’s get back to the practice of putting God first in every waking thought we have. Or, as Paul taught in Romans 12:1,

Take your everyday, ordinary life—your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life—and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him. Don’t become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You’ll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it.

That’s what you might call practicing the presence of God. And it is the best antidote to practical atheism.

My Offering of Worship: Read, memorize, and most importantly, do what Revelation 2:5 enjoins you to do: 1) remember, 2) repent, 3) redo the things you did when you first accepted Jesus as Savior and Lord of your life.

Your priorities must be God first, God second, and God third, until your life is continually face to face with God.

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Don’t Lose Your Sparkle

And How to Get It Back If You Have

PREVIEW: Do you ever wonder why there are some people whose eyes just always seem to sparkle? Is it because they have such a naturally sunny disposition? Is it because things are continually going their way? Is it because they are just so much better at life that they outshine the average person? What is it about these sparkly people? Well, it could be any or all of the above factors contribute to their winsome approach to the world. But I would venture to guess that these folks have also developed the ability to practice hopefulness in the midst of all the negative stuff that might send a less hopeful person into the tank. My friend, put your hope in the promises of God.

“The #1 contributing factor that leads people to quit in life—in relationships, in vocation, in spiritual matters—is the failure to practice hope. Friend, choose daily to put hope in God’s promises.” —Ray Noah

A Journey of Worship // Psalm 13:3

Turn and answer me, O Lord my God! Restore the sparkle to my eyes, or I will die.

Do you ever wonder why there are some people whose eyes just always seem to sparkle? Is it because they have such a naturally sunny disposition? Is it because things are continually going their way? Is it because they are just so much better at life that they outshine the average person? What is it about these sparkly people?

Well, it could be any or all of the above factors contribute to their winsome approach to the world. But I would venture to guess that these folks have also developed the ability to practice hopefulness in the midst of all the negative stuff that might send a less hopeful person into the tank.

Aaron Beck, a leading marriage researcher, found the number one belief that kills marriages is that a spouse will never change. Once that belief set in, there was the loss of motivation, surrender of perseverance, and simply giving up. Here’s the thing: Underneath the failure to endure and quitting on the relationship, there was a loss of hope.

The Bible tells us in Proverbs 13:12 that “hope deferred makes the heart sick.” But when hope is practiced, whether in marriage specifically or life in general, there is tremendous motivation not only for growth and change but for that winsome radiance to dominate our personality in a way that both elevates our moods and is consistently visible to those we are around.

That is why we must choose daily to put our hope in the promises of God.

That’s what David did. He practiced hope. In the first two verses of this six-verse psalm, David focused on the overwhelmingly bad things in his life that were dragging him down. But in the last two verses, his focus has shifted to the overwhelming mercy and grace of God — and it changed everything. What did David do to pull off that turnaround?

  1. He prayed. David went to God, pouring out his complaint: “How long, Lord? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me? How long must I wrestle with my thoughts and day after day have sorrow in my heart? How long will my enemy triumph over me?” (vv. 1-2)
  2. He made a bold request: “Look on me and answer, Lord my God. Give light to my eyes, or I will sleep in death, and my enemy will say, ‘I have overcome him,’ and my foes will rejoice when I fall.” (vv. 3-4)
  3. He put on hope. He went back into the memory banks of his experience with God and recalled that God had never failed him — not even once — and since God had been faithful in David’s past, it only made sense to trust him in the present: “But I trust in your unfailing love; my heart rejoices in your salvation.” (v. 5)
  4. He praised. David began to sing of God’s constant goodness and never-ending love: “I will sing the Lord’s praise, for he has been good to me.” (v. 6)

David practiced hope — and before knew it, the sparkle had returned to his eyes.

Hebrews 6:19 says of the practice of hope: “We have this hope as an anchor of the soul, firm and secure.”

And when we practice, too, hope — praying, reflecting, singing — we can expect the sparkle to return to our eyes. As Romans 5:5 says, “hope does not disappoint us.”

My Offering of Worship: If at the moment worrisome circumstances have you feeling down, David’s psalm has provided a recipe for doing the most powerful thing you can do to turn any situation around for your good. He prayed, he asked boldly, he praised, and he put on hope. Try that if you are going through a rough patch, and see if the sparkle doesn’t return to your eyes.