Planted in the Psalms

One of the greatest needs of the human heart is to be loved and accepted. In Christ, we find our greatest needs met and our deepest desires satisfied. In this episode, we will turn our eyes to the event that all of human history is pointing towards: a glorious wedding day. Join me as we behold the glory of our groom and adore him for His wondrous works and His precious love.

RESOURCES

Have you ever wrestled with the question why is life so hard? If so, you are not alone. The psalmist grapples with this question and leads us to process our pain in the right way: take it to the Lord in prayer. As we turn our eyes upon Him, we fight to believe in the unchanging love God has for His people...even and especially in the trying times.

RESOURCES

Have you ever tried to pray but couldn't find the words? Psalm 43 is a precious guide that can lead us in prayer when life is hard, when we feel dry, and when we feel under attack. This Psalm leads us to the place where we yearn to go…to find God as our supreme and ultimate joy.

RESOURCES

In seasons of discouragement and heartache, where do we turn? The Psalmist shows us the way through pain by drawing near to God in honesty, preaching to his soul, and reminding himself of God's truth. Let's join the psalmist and step out of darkness and into the light of hope.

RESOURCES

What does the blessed life look like? Book 1 of the Psalms has shown us that the truly blessed person is one who has internalized the Word of God and allowed it to transform their heart and their actions. This book concludes with the great purpose of our existence: to bless our Lord and give Him the glory!

RESOURCES

Have you ever felt stuck? Have you ever felt like you were in a pit you could not get out of? Take heart, friends. God has provided a prayer for you to speak out in those times of need. I pray that this psalm would shine a ray of light into those dark places that you find yourself in. I pray in hearing the Word of God you would be strengthened, encouraged and filled with HOPE.

RESOURCES

What consumes your thoughts on a given day? What do you worry about? Dream about? Hope for? Work towards? Friends, our hearts are so easily fixed on this life, but what we need more than anything is a perspective shift. Let's join David as he prays that he might know the brevity of life, hope in God, and invest wholeheartedly in eternity.

RESOURCES

Why do the wicked prosper and the righteous suffer? Why do evildoers seem to live easy lives while the godly are weighed down by trials? We might wrestle with these questions, but ultimately, the Word of God tells us to take the long view. David urges us to fix our eyes on things above and remember our eternal reward. For the believer, the best is yet to come.

RESOURCES

What is most precious to you in this life? What hold the most value? What is your treasure? This Psalm will show us that God's love is worth more than anything this world has to offer. His love pursues, calls, convicts, saves, cleanses, heals, and remakes us into a new creation. How precious is His steadfast love!

RESOURCES

What are we to do with the Psalms where David curses his enemies? Does this contradict Jesus teaching to bless our enemies and pray for those who persecute us?

Can we pray these Psalms?

Listen in as we dive into this psalm and this question.

RESOURCES

Do you want to experience the good life, spiritually speaking? Listen in on David's song of thanksgiving for deliverance and find life-giving instruction towards the good life --- An abundant life overflowing with the fullness of Christ.

RESOURCES

Do you need help refocusing your mind in these crazy days that we live in? David instructs us to turn our eyes to the attributes of our great God. We will learn that our deepest joy is found when our focus comes off of self and onto the LORD's steadfast love. The only proper response to his revelation is to offer our lives in worship and praise.

RESOURCES

What will bring true happiness in this life? David explored every path and offers his wisdom to the only road that will lead to true joy and delight.

RESOURCES

The impact of trials in our lives can be far reaching. Suffering has the ability to impact us emotionally, physically, mentally, and spiritually. How will our heart respond when darkness seems to hide his face? Will we trust? Will we remember that our God holds everything in His hands? Will we pour out our pain or let it simmer inside? Join David as he shows us the way to trust and strength through focusing on the wondrous reality of God's steadfast love.

RESOURCES

When things go well in life, how do you respond? Are you in danger of growing self reliant, complacent, or careless in the faith? Are you in danger of taking grace for granted? David was. David fell to this temptation and experienced the grace of God’s discipline to wake Him up. Nearing death, he cried out to the Lord and his prayer was heard. This is David’s song of thanksgiving. May it become our song as we remember how the Lord changes our weeping into dancing and turns our sorrow into joy.

RESOURCES

There are many voices that seek our attention day to day, but there is One that can silence them all. The voice of the Lord. Let the reminder of His powerful voice lead you to worship. Let is cause your fear of the Lord to grow. Even in the storm, God is able to fill His children with strength and peace. 

RESOURCES

What are we to do when our spirits are downcast, when circumstances press us, and when we are overwhelmed by our lives or our world? .How can we be led from lament to praise? Let us follow David's example of perseverance in prayer. In this Psalm, we will see the soul's plea poured out, the soul's petition made known, and finally, the soul's praise. 

RESOURCES

In our fallen world it is not uncommon for God's people to be weighed down by fear and anxiety. Is there an antidote to this all pervasive problem? What truths can we turn to that will free us from the bondage of fear? Let us join David in lifting our eyes to the God who is for us and will never leave us nor forsake us. May faith wither away the root of fear as we seek His face!

Do you ever wonder why life is so hard? You desire  the right path, you seek the Lord, you choose to walk in integrity, and yet life is still so difficult! Take heart, friends The straight and narrow path is sometimes hard, but it is ALWAYS WORTH IT. Keep seeking the Lord, opening your heart up to him, and putting his steadfast love before your eyes and know that, in the end, a life lived for Christ will be vindicated and you will stand on solid ground. 

RESOURCES

Do you need direction from the Lord? Do you need guidance? Join David in praying Psalm 25 and discover a pattern for praying for God's will. Let us learn to become the sort of people that God delights to lead!

RESOURCES

In a world that is all about self, we can find it difficult to keep our focus on the Lord. Psalm 24 helps us as it fixes our eyes on our Creator, our need for a Saviour, and our coming King. Gazing at His holy presence not only increases our awe and worship, it also energizes us for holy living. Let Psalm 24 prepare your heart for entering into His glorious presence. 

RESOURCES

Are you in need of green pastures and quiet waters to revive and refresh your weary soul?  Listen in to Psalm 23. Spurgeon called this the Pearl of the Psalms. This psalm is a precious gift to us in refocusing us on our Good Shepherd. It has the capacity to comfort our griefs, speak joy into our sorrows, removed us from the dungeon of doubt, embolden the discouraged, lift up the downcast, and pour balm on the heart of sick. May you find fresh encouragement in this life giving passage. 

RESOURCES

Today we stand on holy ground as we gaze up from the foot of the cross on our suffering Saviour. Do you ever wonder what was going on in Jesus' heart on that dark day? What was he thinking about? Psalm 22 gives us an intimate look into the very prayers of Christ on the cross. We will witness his agony, yes, but we will also rejoice in the victory of His triumphant faith.

Do you need encouragement that our God answers prayers? Read the intercession of Psalm 20 and then the direct answers to prayer given in Psalm 21. Our God wants us to know He hears, He cares, and He is in complete control. In this Psalm we are given a psalm of thanksgiving to pray when God has answered our prayers and when He has given us the victory. We are to take the time to praise and honor and glorify our great God who gives us strength to endure all of life's battles.

Resources

Do you struggle to know what to pray for those going through hardships? Consider soaking in Psalm 20. Here, the people of Israel pray for the King the night before an intense battle. We learn how to intercede for leaders and also those facing intense trials. The Psalm teaches us to have  eyes that look forward to the consummation of Christ’s Kingdom. No matter how bleak things look, we remember that Jesus has already won the war. Because of this, we can rejoice, by faith, that the future IS bright and victory is the Lord’s!

RESOURCES

C.S. Lewis once said this Psalm was the greatest poem in the Psalter with the greatest lyrics in all the world. It is, indeed, a special psalm. In it we find that God graciously reveals Himself to us through His world and His Word. David shows us how to commune with God in response to such awesome revelation. 

RESOURCES

Do you need encouragement today to persevere in prayer? Psalm 18 provides the strength you need as you hear David praise God for his rescue from seasons of deep trial and adversity. David prayed for a LONG time, but finally, here, we see God answer his prayers practically and powerfully.  Let us join David in praising God for past deliverances. Let us continually seek Him for future help.

 If you have ever been looked down on, treated unfairly, spoken against (or worse) because you are a Christian… then this Psalm is for you. There is a battle raging between light and darkness, good and evil, the spiritually minded and the earthly minded. David cries out to the Lord to intervene and vindicate him in these hardships. He keeps an eternal perspective and remembers that no matter how cruel the fight, seeing our Lord's face will one day make it all worthwhile.

RESOURCES

What does a true relationship with God look like? As we sing with David, we will begin to understand what it looks like to trust God and live in communion with Him. We will learn to have an undivided heart, seeking the Lord alone to satisfy our souls. The result of living in fellowship with our crucified and risen Saviour is fullness of joy in His presence and pleasures forevermore. 

RESOURCES

Who is the true worshipper? Who is the one God accepts into His dwelling? It is not the one who sings the most passionately on Sunday morning, or even has the most quiet time. This Psalm shows that our religious activity must translate into the nitty gritty details of everyday life if we would dwell with the Lord. Our love for God must be evident in our relationships and interactions with others.

RESOURCES

Join us for a new series sprinkled throughout the year called Spiritual Training. Each episode will look at a new habit of grace we can implement into our lives to exercise ourselves unto godliness. This week we will look at the discipline of copying Scripture. Make sure to listen till the end for details on a giveaway for all B.C. residents!

RESOURCES

What is wrong with world? We are. Sin has infected every human heart. We have all chosen our own way. Our only hope is God's intervention. 

When God awakens our heart to the gospel, we are changed. We can now seek Him, do good deeds, and spread His light. The Lord is with His chosen people and our final salvation will be realized when Jesus comes back. Come, Lord Jesus!

RESOURCES

When feelings of abandonment overwhelm David, he cries out to the Lord in his despair. He prays for God to light up his eyes to see his circumstances clearly and soon his heart is filled with joy and song for God's great salvation. 

RESOURCES

The godly are gone. The wicked prowl. How do we survive in such a culture? In times when lies and deceit seem to reign, we can cling to the perfect trustworthiness of the Word of God. The Bible is a precious treasure for the believer that can provide hope and direction in the darkest of times. 

RESOURCES

When the foundations are destroyed, what can the righteous do? Will we follow the voice of fear or the voice of faith? Let us turn our eyes with David upon the  One seated upon HIs throne. He is the only one who can give stability in these unsettling times. 

RESOURCES

Do you take your questions to God? The Psalmist does. He pour out his "why's" and his frustrations to the Lord. If you have ever questioned why God doesn't always intervene in the face of evil, you can join David in praying this Psalm. Though this song begins with confusion and questioning it ends with confidence in the Lord's sovereignty in the midst of suffering. 

*For clarification: good theology only leads to right action when we know God and do not just know about Him. Knowing about God can puff us up, but if we truly know the Lord in relationship, we will grow in a great view of God and a humble view of self. It is this theology that leads to right action. 

RESOURCES

Even amidst difficulty, David chooses to praise the Lord with whole being. He recalls that God will judge all evil and rescue His people. Those who forget God will be forgotten, but those who remember Him will be the apple of His eye. He will be a stronghold for them in trouble and He will never forsake them. 

RESOURCES

The earth is full of God's majesty. He is high and exalted yet He delights to work through the lowly and the humble. 

The starlit sky tells of his glory. But as amazing as the moon & stars are, the pinnacle of His work is not the heavenly host, but us. 

God is mindful of us. 

RESOURCES

Slander. Lies. False Testimony. David is under verbal attack and turns to God as his only hope in trouble. He flees to the Lord for refuge, examines his own heart, and leaves judgment in the Lord's hands. When David remembers God’s righteous and just character, his heart overflows with praise and thanksgiving. 

RESOURCES

Have you ever been weary from suffering? Weary from crying? Weary from life? David has. In his hour of intense darkness, he calls on the Lord to be gracious to Him. The Lord hears and fills David with a defiant confidence. May we also be filled with confidence that the Lord hears our prayers and will fight for His people. 

RESOURCES

When troubles increase, where will our eyes be fixed? David cries out to the Lord and then fixes his eyes on God and His unchanging character. He remembers God's holiness & justice towards sinners and contrasts it with God's steadfast love & kindness to His repentant people. This fills David with joy as He delights in God's special protection & blessing over the righteous. 

RESOURCES

In seasons of trial, where do we turn? When David recounts past blessings, remembers his identity, and meditates on truth, he is filled with God's joy and peace. This psalm presents a pattern that is instructive for followers of Christ to draw near to Him and dwell on the Biblical truth in tough times.

RESOURCES

When nothing around us looks certain and our hearts are heavy and afraid, what should we do? David gives us a pattern of prayer in times of fear and anxiety and exemplifies true faith through the trials of life.

Resources

The world rages, but God is in control. His plans shall stand. The true King shall rule from the river to the ends of the earth. Find your refuge in King Jesus today. 

RESOURCES

Psalm 1 forms a rich preface to the book of Psalms. Join in as we look at the blessed man and the path that truly satisfies. 

RESOURCES