Psalm 136

Give thanks to the LORD , for he is good. His love endures forever.

Give thanks to the God of gods. His love endures forever.

Give thanks to the Lord of lords: His love endures forever.

to him who alone does great wonders, His love endures forever.

who by his understanding made the heavens, His love endures forever.

who spread out the earth upon the waters, His love endures forever.

who made the great lights- His love endures forever.

the sun to govern the day, His love endures forever.

the moon and stars to govern the night; His love endures forever.

to him who struck down the firstborn of Egypt His love endures forever.

and brought Israel out from among them His love endures forever.

with a mighty hand and outstretched arm; His love endures forever.

to him who divided the Red Sea asunder His love endures forever.

and brought Israel through the midst of it, His love endures forever.

but swept Pharaoh and his army into the Red Sea; His love endures forever.

to him who led his people through the desert, His love endures forever.

who struck down great kings, His love endures forever.

and killed mighty kings- His love endures forever.

Sihon king of the Amorites His love endures forever.

and Og king of Bashan- His love endures forever.

and gave their land as an inheritance, His love endures forever.

an inheritance to his servant Israel; His love endures forever.

to the One who remembered us in our low estate His love endures forever.

and freed us from our enemies, His love endures forever.

and who gives food to every creature. His love endures forever.

Give thanks to the God of heaven. His love endures forever.

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I've been looking over this one for the past day or so now... though it mirrors the first half of Psalm 135 it's still very powerful. It reminds us that God's love endures forever and that his ways are higher than our ways. Don't you think that God still loved those that chose to oppose him? He does, but he also remains faithful to what he has set down as law.

2 Peter 3:9-12
The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance. But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare. Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming. That day will bring about the destruction of the heavens by fire, and the elements will melt in the heat.

This week

I've been bouning around back and forth between chapters and other devotionals this week. So I'll try and catch up as I go along and put down some thoughts.

I hope everyone is having a great day and that your quiet times have been enriching and insightful. Feel free to share them if you want.

~Chris

Psalm 135:15-21

The idols of the nations are silver and gold, made by the hands of men.

They have mouths, but cannot speak, eyes, but they cannot see;

they have ears, but cannot hear, nor is there breath in their mouths.

Those who make them will be like them, and so will all who trust in them.

O house of Israel, praise the Lord; O house of Aaron, praise the Lord;

O house of Levi, praise the Lord; you who fear him, praise the Lord.

Praise be to the Lord from Zion, to him who dwells in Jerusalem.

Praise the Lord.

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I think this sums it up rather nicely as far as idol worship goes. Incidentally, don't forget about the modern ways we make our own idols....

I was watching an episode of Way of the Master on tv the other day and they were goining over this very topic. You see, the easiest way to make an idol (false god) taht you worship, is to start with "to me, God is"... see you're already projecting your thoughts on what God is, when it's the other way around. God is who he is, without change without fail for everyone equally... there is no "to me God wouldn't send someone to hell" etc... You're making a graven image in your mind... you're creating a god in your own mind that doesn't truly exist and therefore you're worshiping an idol. Eventually your "god"/"idol" will like what you like and hate what you hate that way you feel you can go through life without conviction for sins... till the day of judgement when the real God will fullfill his promise to judge us according to his standards.

See, instead of God creating you in his image, you're trying to play creator and make God in your image, which is just outright dumb and pointlessly egotystical.

Psalm 135:1-14

Praise the Lord.
Praise the name of the Lord;

praise him, you servant of the Lord,

you who minister in the house of the Lord,
in the courts of the house of our God.

Praise the Lord, for the Lord is good;

sing praise to his name, for that is pleasant.

For the Lord has chosen Jacob to be his own,

Israel to be his treasured possession.

I know that the Lord is great, that our Lord is greater than all gods.

The Lord does whatever pleases him,

in the heavens and on the earth,

in the seas and all their depths.

He makes clouds rise from the ends of the earth;

he sends lghtning with the rain and brins out the wind from his storehouses.

He struck down the firstborn of Egypt,
the firstborn of men and animals.
He sent his signs and wonders into your midst,
O Egypt, against Pharaoh and all his servants.

He struck down many nations and killed mighty kings-

Sihon king of the Amorites,
Og king of Bashan and all the kings of Canaan-

and he gave their land as an inheritance,

an inheritance to his people Israel.

Your name, O Lord, endurse forever,

your renown, O Lord, through all generations.

For the Lord will vindicate his people and have compassion on his servants.

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Remember that God is in control of everything. He IS the rule of the universe and all that is in it.

Also remember that God does as he pleases, he's not at our beck and call, yet he wishes to communicate daily and intimately with his children (followers of Christ).

Take to heart these verses.

Matthew 5:45

"...He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous."

However, God does bring judgement upon the universe, as you can see in the verses above. He has every right to do this because he is the creator and he is perfect.

Ecclesiastes 12:14

For God will bring every deed into judgment, including every hidden thing, whether it is good or evil.

Acts: 14:16-17

In the past, he let all nations go their own way. Yet he has not left himself without testimony: He has shown kindness by giving you rain from heaven and crops in their seasons; he provides you with plenty of food and fills your hearts with joy."

Remember that regardless the circumstances, God is faithful.

He is faithful to keep his promises of blessings for those who keep his commands...

He is faithful to keep his promises of punishment & correction when we are unfaithful to him.

He doesn't choose favorites and make exceptions in this regard and I for one am thankful for that. There are absolute truths and to deny that is foolishness.

I'll close with this...

2 Timothy 2:11-13

Here is a trustworthy saying: If we died with him, we will also live with him; if we endure, we will also reign with him. If we disown him, he will also disown us; if we are faithless, he will remain faithful, for he cannot disown himself.

Psalm 134

Praise the Lord, all you servants of the Lord

who minister by night in the house of the Lord.

Lift up your hands in the sanctuary and praise the Lord.

May the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth, bless you from Zion.

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The first thing that comes to mind when I read this was:

Joshua 1:8
Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful.

Of course Joshua 1:8 is reffering to being prosperous and successful in God's eyes, rather than what the world thinks is such, but that's for another discussion.
The fact that this psalm references those who minister by night in the house of the Lord, reminds us that serving the Lord is a 24/7 thing... there is no "me time" away from God... it's all God or nothing. We're called to remain watchful...

Colossians 4:2-4
Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful. And pray for us, too, that God may open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ, for which I am in chains. Pray that I may proclaim it clearly, as I should.

We should be in constant prayer and while we pray, give thanks to God for all that he has done. We should praise him through the good and the bad times, for he is Lord over all and we deserve everything that comes our way, including death, which in itself is a blessing as well. And God deserves our praise for his mercy and grace that he shows us daily.

Take a moment to thank God for what he has done in your life.