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"Trust in the LORD, and do good; dwell in the land, and feed on His faithfulness. Delight yourself also in the LORD, and He shall give you the desires of your heart" (Psalm 37:3,4).
I did a little shopping for Brooksyne over the weekend and noticed the meat department had a sale on Haddock which tends to be more a more expensive fish than some. While we lived in Massachusetts we acquired an appetite for fresh seafood and at the top of our favorite list is haddock. For our dinner today Brooksyne will prepare her usual (and my favorite) recipe baking the haddock along with couscous and some fresh corn on the cob. My mind is already "feeding" on the meal even as I write about it.
The fact is we are all feeding on something. Nutrition is necessary for our physical health, but we are also regularly feeding our soul and mind. An abundance and variety of "food" is available, some which has no nutritive value whatsoever; it may even be poisonous and destructive to our soul. But an abundance of that which is wholesome, and beneficial is also available. On the internet I am but a few keystrokes away from spiritually enriching resources and edifying materials to feed on. But a dark, sinister world of destruction is also available on the very same screen.
The daily text contains a number of active injunctions. Psalm 37 is a Psalm of David and begins with this command: "Do not fret because of evil men or be envious of those who do wrong." Consider today how much of our fretting in its many forms is a result of evil people or our tendency to be envious toward those who do wrong and yet prosper. We are soberly reminded of their temporality in verse 2: "like the grass they will soon wither, like green plants they will soon die away."
What is our response to be? The remainder of Psalm 37 elaborates beginning with the daily verse: "Trust in the LORD, and do good; dwell in the land, and feed on His faithfulness. Delight yourself also in the Lord…" Trust, do good, dwell, feed and delight yourself in the Lord.
But today I especially ponder just the phrase, "feed on His faithfulness". Stored in our memory banks are images of God's faithfulness and Scriptures that have fed, preserved, matured us and built up our faith over the years. The fact is we will be feeding on something, but we make the choice as to what the "food" is. I believe "feeding on His faithfulness" involves orienting our perspective to God's steadfast love and care expressed in His faithfulness from day to day, year to year.
May our spiritual appetites feed on the goodness of God's faithfulness today.
Be encouraged today,
Stephen & Brooksyne Weber
Daily prayer: Father, You are the faithful, loving God on whom I can rely for everything. You provide salvation, safety and shelter and satisfy my heart's desires when I feed upon Your Word. Help me to feed upon that which is beneficial; that which lasts not just for a season but from everlasting to everlasting. Amen.
(In some cases you may also need to click again to start the song.)
"Faithful One" Video Robin Mark
The singular best treatment of the topic of the faithfulness of God that I ever recall reading is the chapter in A.W. Pink's book "The Attributes of God". This entire book is available for reading online (turn your speakers down as for some reason they have it set to play music). The chapter on the faithfulness of God is here. You can also purchase the book by visiting the following link.
The
Attributes
of God By Arthur W. Pink / Baker
A classic bestseller built on a timeless premise: Failure to understand God's character leads to a skewed perception of the Divine---one that is too often cast in our own image. Seeking to remedy this, Pink outlines 17 key characteristics of the Almighty, including his sovereignty, immutability, patience, love, and faithfulness.
As I considered the above book I also recall another formative book I read while in Bible College preparing for ministry that I highly recommend.
Knowing
God By J.I. Packer / Inter-varsity Press
J. I. Packer's Knowing God has become a classic of the Christian faith. Why? While it gives us information about God with clarity and grace, it does much more---it aids us in actually knowing him, in building our relationship with him, and helps draw us closer to him in love and worship.
Monday, July 12, 2010
Hydrangeas for church on Sunday
Hydrangeas for church on Sunday
Listen to this message on
your
audio player."Feeding On God's Faithfulness"
"Trust in the LORD, and do good; dwell in the land, and feed on His faithfulness. Delight yourself also in the LORD, and He shall give you the desires of your heart" (Psalm 37:3,4).
I did a little shopping for Brooksyne over the weekend and noticed the meat department had a sale on Haddock which tends to be more a more expensive fish than some. While we lived in Massachusetts we acquired an appetite for fresh seafood and at the top of our favorite list is haddock. For our dinner today Brooksyne will prepare her usual (and my favorite) recipe baking the haddock along with couscous and some fresh corn on the cob. My mind is already "feeding" on the meal even as I write about it.
The fact is we are all feeding on something. Nutrition is necessary for our physical health, but we are also regularly feeding our soul and mind. An abundance and variety of "food" is available, some which has no nutritive value whatsoever; it may even be poisonous and destructive to our soul. But an abundance of that which is wholesome, and beneficial is also available. On the internet I am but a few keystrokes away from spiritually enriching resources and edifying materials to feed on. But a dark, sinister world of destruction is also available on the very same screen.
The daily text contains a number of active injunctions. Psalm 37 is a Psalm of David and begins with this command: "Do not fret because of evil men or be envious of those who do wrong." Consider today how much of our fretting in its many forms is a result of evil people or our tendency to be envious toward those who do wrong and yet prosper. We are soberly reminded of their temporality in verse 2: "like the grass they will soon wither, like green plants they will soon die away."
What is our response to be? The remainder of Psalm 37 elaborates beginning with the daily verse: "Trust in the LORD, and do good; dwell in the land, and feed on His faithfulness. Delight yourself also in the Lord…" Trust, do good, dwell, feed and delight yourself in the Lord.
But today I especially ponder just the phrase, "feed on His faithfulness". Stored in our memory banks are images of God's faithfulness and Scriptures that have fed, preserved, matured us and built up our faith over the years. The fact is we will be feeding on something, but we make the choice as to what the "food" is. I believe "feeding on His faithfulness" involves orienting our perspective to God's steadfast love and care expressed in His faithfulness from day to day, year to year.
May our spiritual appetites feed on the goodness of God's faithfulness today.
Be encouraged today,
Stephen & Brooksyne Weber
Daily prayer: Father, You are the faithful, loving God on whom I can rely for everything. You provide salvation, safety and shelter and satisfy my heart's desires when I feed upon Your Word. Help me to feed upon that which is beneficial; that which lasts not just for a season but from everlasting to everlasting. Amen.
Friday
night we went to a minor league baseball game in Lancaster with our
friends Rick and Rachel who were invited by his insurance company. Not
only did the Barnstormers win but the game concluded with a great
Fireworks Display!
Today's
Suggested Music and Supplemental Resources
Click
on the link to open and play.(In some cases you may also need to click again to start the song.)
"Faithful One" Video Robin Mark
The singular best treatment of the topic of the faithfulness of God that I ever recall reading is the chapter in A.W. Pink's book "The Attributes of God". This entire book is available for reading online (turn your speakers down as for some reason they have it set to play music). The chapter on the faithfulness of God is here. You can also purchase the book by visiting the following link.
The
Attributes
of God By Arthur W. Pink / BakerA classic bestseller built on a timeless premise: Failure to understand God's character leads to a skewed perception of the Divine---one that is too often cast in our own image. Seeking to remedy this, Pink outlines 17 key characteristics of the Almighty, including his sovereignty, immutability, patience, love, and faithfulness.
As I considered the above book I also recall another formative book I read while in Bible College preparing for ministry that I highly recommend.
Knowing
God By J.I. Packer / Inter-varsity PressJ. I. Packer's Knowing God has become a classic of the Christian faith. Why? While it gives us information about God with clarity and grace, it does much more---it aids us in actually knowing him, in building our relationship with him, and helps draw us closer to him in love and worship.
Send
a message to Stephen &
Brooksyne.
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Text only version for printing: To make a text only version for printing (without photos or any of the supplemental materials)
1) Open the basic text editor that comes with all computers (known as wordpad, textpad, etc.) You can also use a program like Word and select paste text only.
2) Select and copy the text from the portion of the message you want to print.
3) Paste into the text pad. (The photos won't show up but you will have a brief text description of the photo which you can delete or just ignore.)
4) Format if you desire (change font, increase or decrease size, etc.)
5) Print!
Scripture
references are from The Holy Bible: New International Version.
© 1984 by International Bible Society; NEW AMERICAN STANDARD
BIBLE®, Copyright © 1995 by The Lockman Foundation,
New King James
Version (NKJV) Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. and the
King
James Version.
Personal
Mission Statement:
"I am created by God to bring Him glory. Through God's Son Jesus Christ
I have been redeemed and I make it my life's goal to please the Lord.
My mission in life is to honor God through my faith and obedience and
to prepare myself and all whom I may influence for eternity."
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Copyright 2010
Stephen C. Weber - All Rights Reserved
Daily Encouragement Net - 495 Kraybill Church Road - Mount Joy, PA 17552 USA
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