The Verse of the Day for February 7, 2018 offers another word of encouragement from the Book of Psalms:
Psalm 97:10 (NIV):
Let those who love the Lord hate evil, for he guards the lives of his faithful ones and delivers them from the hand of the wicked.
The Amplified Bible renders the verse this way:
O you who love the Lord, hate evil; He preserves the lives of His saints (the children of God), He delivers them out of the hand of the wicked.
The closing phrase also brings to mind Isaiah 46:4, rendered in the New King James version:
Even to your old age, I am He,
And even to gray hairs I will carry you!
I have made, and I will bear;
Even I will carry, and will deliver you.
In reflecting on the promise that God will deliver us, this poem also came to mind as we recognize this timeless message that echoes in our lives today:
Just How God Will Deliver Us
But we had the sentence of death in ourselves, that we should not trust in ourselves, but in God which raises the dead: Who delivered us from so great a death, and does deliver: in whom we trust that he will still deliver us;
1 Corinthians 1:8-9
Just how God will deliver us this we do not know,
But of His unfailing love and power we are sure:
He can send ravens or simply command a widow
To sustain Elijah and all those who will endure.
Although He may not be early, our God is never late.
We rest in knowing that God, our Father, is faithful,
As we trust in Him, learning to labor and to wait.
For each promise fulfilled we are ever so grateful,
And we express our gratitude in word and in deed.
Despite the challenge, God has been there time after time.
Each day we will walk by faith wherever Christ may lead,
Knowing grand mountain vistas await all those who climb.
The hand of God has brought us thus far along the way,
And we will finish our course is all we have to say.
In thinking about God as a deliverer, we also recall lyrics to another original song:
I Will Deliver You
I will deliver you from the snare of the fowler.
As a bird escapes from the cage, so I will release you from captivity.
I will lift you up, out of the hand of your fiercest enemy.
I will draw you to myself and hide you under the safety of my wing.
I will deliver you from the raging deep waters.
The sea shall not overwhelm you, but I will bring you through the storms in peace.
I will lift you up, and bear you up on the wings of an eagle.
I will provide for you and hide you in my secret dwelling place.
The Verse of the Day is set to music in this Scripture Memory Song – Hate Evil (Psalm 97:10; Proverbs 3:23, 26 – NKJV)
The Verse of the Day for September 10, 2017 comes from Isaiah 46:4
Even to your old age I am He, and even to your advanced old age I will carry you! I have made you, and I will carry you; be assured I will carry you and I will save you.
Here is the Verse in the New King James version:
Even to your old age, I am He,
And even to gray hairs I will carry you!
I have made, and I will bear;
Even I will carry, and will deliver you.
The Psalmist also reminds of God’s unfailing promise:
Psalm 97:10(NKJV)
You who love the Lord, hate evil! He protects the lives of his godly people and rescues them from the power of the wicked.
The Amplified Bible renders the verse this way:
O you who love the Lord, hate evil; He preserves the lives of His saints (the children of God), He delivers them out of the hand of the wicked.
The promise that God will deliver brings to mind this poem, inspired, in part, by the Verse of the Day along with the preceding verse:
Listen to Me
Isaiah 46:3-4
Listen to me. Open your ears and clearly hear
I have always been there. Though you had not perceived
My presence in the wasteland, I was ever near.
Indeed, I knew you before you were first conceived.
Even to your old age and gray hairs I am He
Who still holds you and causes you to remember.
I open deaf ears and cause blinded eyes to see
The passion that consumes your soul was once an ember.
Though I seem to be delayed, I will not tarry
But will return for the faithful ones who remain:
Those whom I have made those I will also carry;
Those whom I have called by name I will sustain.
Rest in me: I will perform all I said to do.
Know that I will sustain you and will rescue you.
In thinking about God as a deliverer, these original lyrics also come to mind:
I Will Deliver You
I will deliver you from the snare of the fowler.
As a bird escapes from the cage, so I will release you from captivity.
I will lift you up, out of the hand of your fiercest enemy.
I will draw you to myself and hide you under the safety of my wing.
I will deliver you from the raging deep waters.
The sea shall not overwhelm you, but I will bring you through the storms in peace.
I will lift you up, and bear you up on the wings of an eagle.
I will provide for you and hide you in my secret dwelling place.
These lyrics also bring to mind yet another song of great comfort and assurance: “I Will Carry You” offered by Michael W Smith:
The Verse for the Day for September 10, 2016 provides great comfort and strength, as the Word of God speaks from Isaiah 46:4 in the Message Bible:
“Listen to me, family of Jacob, everyone that’s left of the family of Israel. I’ve been carrying you on my back from the day you were born, And I’ll keep on carrying you when you’re old. I’ll be there, bearing you when you’re old and gray. I’ve done it and will keep on doing it, carrying you on my back, saving you.
The opening phrase, “Listen to me,” brings to mind to mind a number of thoughts regarding the distinction between hearing and listening, as I recall a previous blog entry related pointing out the difference between “hearing” and “listening.” These two terms are not synonymous. Hearing is “the process by which sound waves are received on the ear; it is the sense by which sound is perceived.” We hear the ambient sounds that surround us without really paying any attention to the fan on the computer or the air conditioning or the ticking of the clock. On the other hand, listening is the act of interpreting and evaluating what is being said; it is an active activity that involves receiving, deciphering, and perceiving a message with intent to respond. Hearing is passive, whereas listening should be active. Keith Davis comments, “Hearing is with the ears; listening is with the mind.”
In Chinese calligraphy, the character for “to listen” consists of pictures of the ear, the eye, and the heart, illustrated in this way:
The discussion regarding hearing and listening also brings to mind that listening is an art that is perfected over time by conscious, consistent effort to improve. This is especially true in a spiritual context whereby believers must learn to listen to God. We find that God is always speaking; indeed, God is never not speaking. As we continually place our ears near to the lips of God, we develop our proficiency in listening to hear the Master’s voice, as we practice in order to perfect this art:
The Art of Listening
God has something to say to you,
God has something to say.
Listen, Listen, Pay close attention.
God has something to say.
Children’s Song
The Lord GOD has given me the tongue of the learned, That I should know how to speak
A word in season to him who is weary.
He awakens Me morning by morning,
He awakens My ear
To hear as the learned.
The Lord GOD has opened My ear;
And I was not rebellious,
Nor did I turn away.
Isaiah 50:4-5
Listen, listen, my son: hear with the inner ear.
Tune your ears to hear in the center of your heart.
I will whisper cherished secrets as you come near.
To listen intently and obey is an art,
Practiced and perfected day by day.
As you hide my Word in the center of your heart,
I perform and bring to pass each word that I say.
In my unfolding Kingdom, you too have a part,
For to walk in love is the more excellent way.
Partake of my promises and consume my Word.
As precious as life-giving water, hold it dear
And do my will, proving all things that you have heard.
Listen intently and obey: Perfect this art.
Listen, listen, my son: hear with the inner ear.
Although I use this poem when I teach the section on listening in the oral communication classes that I teach, quite providentially, I wrote the poem years before I started teaching these classes. When I first read the poem at a Bible study, someone pointed out that at the center of the piece is the word “heart” which encompasses hear, ear, and art, all of which reinforce the message, as illustrated in this remarkable way:
HEART
HEAR
EAR
ART
H*E*A*R*T
To conclude our discussion, we offer this musical selection by Twila Paris, “I will listen.”
The Verse of the Day for November 20, 2015 comes from Psalm 95:1-2 and serves as prelude to Thanksgiving Day, the coming holiday observed on the fourth Thursday in November:
Psalm 95:1-2
O come, let us sing unto the Lord: let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation. Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving, and make a joyful noise unto him with psalms.
For the believer, every day is a celebration whereby we come into God’s presence with hearts overflowing with gratitude.
In examining previous blog entries from the Psalms, I came across this particular post that provides great encouragement at this time. I am re-posting an entry based on another verse from the Book of Psalms:
Psalm 97:10
You who love the Lord, hate evil! He protects the lives of his godly people and rescues them from the power of the wicked.
The Amplified Bible renders the verse this way:
10 O you who love the Lord, hate evil; He preserves the lives of His saints (the children of God), He delivers them out of the hand of the wicked.
The closing phrase brings to mind Isaiah 46:4, rendered in the New King James version:
Even to your old age, I am He,
And even to gray hairs I will carry you!
I have made, and I will bear;
Even I will carry, and will deliver you.
The promise that God will deliver caused me to think of a poem composed a few years ago, but I revised it and now recognize that it has a timeless message that echoes in our lives today:
Just How God Will Deliver Us
But we had the sentence of death in ourselves,
that we should not trust in ourselves,
but in God which raises the dead:
Who delivered us from so great a death, and does deliver:
in whom we trust that he will still deliver us;
1 Corinthians 1:8-9
Just how God will deliver us this we do not know,
But of His unfailing love and power we are sure:
He can send ravens or simply command a widow
To sustain Elijah and all those who will endure.
Although He may not be early, our God is never late.
We rest in knowing that God, our Father, is faithful,
As we trust in Him, learning to labor and to wait.
For each promise fulfilled we are ever so grateful,
And we express our gratitude in word and in deed.
Despite the challenge, God has been there time after time.
Each day we will walk by faith wherever Christ may lead,
Knowing grand mountain vistas await all those who climb.
The hand of God has brought us thus far along the way,
And we will finish our course is all we have to say.
In thinking about God as a deliverer, I also recall lyrics to another original song:
I Will Deliver You
I will deliver you from the snare of the fowler.
As a bird escapes from the cage, so I will release you from captivity.
I will lift you up, out of the hand of your fiercest enemy.
I will draw you to myself and hide you under the safety of my wing.
I will deliver you from the raging deep waters.
The sea shall not overwhelm you, but I will bring you through the storms in peace.
I will lift you up, and bear you up on the wings of an eagle.
I will provide for you and hide you in my secret dwelling place.
These lyrics bring to mind yet another song of great comfort and assurance: “My Deliverer” offered by Chris Tomlin:
The Verse of the Day for February 7, 2015 is a source of great encouragement:
Psalm 97:10
You who love the Lord, hate evil! He protects the lives of his godly people and rescues them from the power of the wicked.
The Amplified Bible renders the verse this way:
10 O you who love the Lord, hate evil; He preserves the lives of His saints (the children of God), He delivers them out of the hand of the wicked.
The closing phrase brings to mind Isaiah 46:4, rendered in the New King James version:
Even to your old age, I am He,
And even to gray hairs I will carry you!
I have made, and I will bear;
Even I will carry, and will deliver you.
The promise that God will deliver caused me to think of a poem composed sometime ago, but I revised it and now recognize that it has a timeless message that echoes in our lives today:
Just How God Will Deliver Us
But we had the sentence of death in ourselves,
that we should not trust in ourselves,
but in God which raises the dead:
Who delivered us from so great a death, and does deliver:
in whom we trust that he will still deliver us;
1 Corinthians 1:8-9
Just how God will deliver us this we do not know,
But of His unfailing love and power we are sure:
He can send ravens or simply command a widow
To sustain Elijah and all those who will endure.
Although He may not be early, our God is never late.
We rest in knowing that God, our Father, is faithful,
As we trust in Him, learning to labor and to wait.
For each promise fulfilled we are ever so grateful,
And we express our gratitude in word and in deed.
Despite the challenge, God has been there time after time.
Each day we will walk by faith wherever Christ may lead,
Knowing grand mountain vistas await all those who climb.
The hand of God has brought us thus far along the way,
And we will finish our course is all we have to say.
In thinking about God as a deliverer, I also recall lyrics to another original song:
I Will Deliver You
I will deliver you from the snare of the fowler.
As a bird escapes from the cage, so I will release you from captivity.
I will lift you up, out of the hand of your fiercest enemy.
I will draw you to myself and hide you under the safety of my wing.
I will deliver you from the raging deep waters.
The sea shall not overwhelm you, but I will bring you through the storms in peace.
I will lift you up, and bear you up on the wings of an eagle.
I will provide for you and hide you in my secret dwelling place.
These lyrics bring to mind yet another song of great comfort and assurance: “My Deliverer” offered by Chris Tomlin:
The Verse of the Day for September 10, 2014 is taken from Isaiah 46:4, rendered in the New King James version:
Even to your old age, I am He,
And even to gray hairs I will carry you!
I have made, and I will bear;
Even I will carry, and will deliver you.
The closing promise that God will deliver me brought to mind a poem composed sometime ago, but it has a timeless message that echoes in my life today:
Just How God Will Deliver Me
But we had the sentence of death in ourselves,
that we should not trust in ourselves,
but in God which raises the dead:
Who delivered us from so great a death, and does deliver:
in whom we trust that he will still deliver us;
1 Corinthians 1:8-9
Just how God will deliver me I do not know,
But of His unfailing love and power I am sure:
He can send a raven and command a widow
To sustain Elijah and all who will endure.
Though He may not be early, God is never late.
I rest in knowing that our Father is faithful,
As I trust Him, learning to labor and to wait.
For each promise fulfilled I am ever grateful
And express my gratitude in word and in deed.
Despite the gross darkness of these perilous times,
Each day I walk by faith wherever Christ may lead,
For grand mountain vistas await the one who climbs.
The hand of God brought me thus far along the way,
And I will finish my course is all I can say.
So often in times of distress and discouragement, we call out to God for help. Recently I recall reeling and feeling overwhelmed by the challenges that confronted me on a number of fronts, and I cried out to God, “Lord, help me!” As I reflected upon that particular experience, I thought of one of Charles Haddon Spurgeon’s Daily Devotionals that focused on Isaiah 41: 14:
“I will help thee, saith the Lord.”
This morning let us hear the Lord Jesus speak to each one of us: “I will help thee.” “It is but a small thing for me, thy God, to help thee. Consider what I have done already. What! not help thee? Why, I bought thee with my blood. What! not help thee? I have died for thee; and if I have done the greater, will I not do the less? Help thee! It is the least thing I will ever do for thee; I have done more, and will do more. Before the world began I chose thee. I made the covenant for thee. I laid aside my glory and became a man for thee; I gave up my life for thee; and if I did all this, I will surely help thee now. In helping thee, I am giving thee what I have bought for thee already. If thou hadst need of a thousand times as much help, I would give it thee; thou requirest little compared with what I am ready to give. ‘Tis much for thee to need, but it is nothing for me to bestow. ‘Help thee?’ Fear not! If there were an ant at the door of thy granary asking for help, it would not ruin thee to give him a handful of thy wheat; and thou art nothing but a tiny insect at the door of my all-sufficiency. ‘I will help thee. ‘”
O my soul, is not this enough? Dost thou need more strength than the omnipotence of the United Trinity? Dost thou want more wisdom than exists in the Father, more love than displays itself in the Son, or more power than is manifest in the influences of the Spirit? Bring hither thine empty pitcher! Surely this well will fill it. Haste, gather up thy wants, and bring them here-thine emptiness, thy woes, thy needs. Behold, this river of God is full for thy supply; what canst thou desire beside? Go forth, my soul, in this thy might. The Eternal God is thine helper!
“Fear not, I am with thee, oh, be not dismay’d! I, I am thy God, and will still give thee aid.”
The closing line of the devotional comes from the ever popular hymn “How Firm a Foundation”:
In the poem “Protect me,” from a series of teachings entitled “A Five-fold Prayer,” I recognize who God is and what He will do.
As a child runs to safety in his father’s arms,
So I, too, run to you, “my shelter from life’s storms.”
Lord, I long to dwell with you in the secret place,
My buckler, my shield, deliverer, my fortress,
Strong tower, defender, who responds to my prayer.
For Lord, you are faithful, who will establish me
And protect me and deliver me from evil.
I make reference to God as “My deliverer who knows me by name,” in a poem inspired by series of teachings from Nehemiah related to rebuilding the wall and restoring the gates of Jerusalem:
A Prayer While Waiting at the Horse Gate
Some trust in chariots, and some in horses:
but we will remember the name of the LORD our God.
Psalm 20:7
May I remember the source of true strength at this gate,
As I recall the matchless name of the Almighty,
Who may seem to tarry but indeed is never late.
May I understand His ways, for I have eyes to see,
As I come to recognize that God is my resource,
While ever striving toward the place of my destiny.
May I not place my trust in a chariot or horse,
Symbolic of authority, worldly goods and power,
But trust in God and not presume to chart my own course.
May I come to know God as my defense, my strong tower,
My deliverer who knows me by name, the all-wise one,
Who calls me into the Kingdom for this very hour.
God gives power and renews the strength of those who wait.
May I remember the source of true strength at this gate.
I conclude this blog entry with the closing verse from my favorite psalm: Psalm 27:14:
Wait on the Lord, be of courage, and He shall strengthen your heart. Wait, I say, on the Lord.
Here is a magnificent rendition of this verse in song offered by Donnie McClurkin and Karen Clark Sheard:
Ye that love the Lord, hate evil: he preserveth the souls of his saints; he delivereth them out of the hand of the wicked.
The Verse of the Day for February 7, 2014 provides comfort found in the Scriptures which proclaim over and over that God delivers those who love Him. The concept of God as a deliverer was the focus in a previous blog entry which is reposted here:
So many times the Verse of the Day seems custom-crafted just for me, as the message speaks directly to my situation. This was the case with the word for September 10, 2013 taken from Isaiah 46:4, rendered in the New King James version:
Even to your old age, I am He,
And even to gray hairs I will carry you!
I have made, and I will bear;
Even I will carry, and will deliver you.
The closing promise that God will deliver me brought to mind a poem composed sometime ago, but it has a timeless message that echoes in my life today:
Just How God Will Deliver Me
But we had the sentence of death in ourselves,
that we should not trust in ourselves,
but in God which raises the dead:
Who delivered us from so great a death, and does deliver:
in whom we trust that he will still deliver us;
1 Corinthians 1:8-9
Just how God will deliver me I do not know,
But of His unfailing love and power I am sure:
He can send a raven and command a widow
To sustain Elijah and all who will endure.
Though He may not be early, God is never late.
I rest in knowing that our Father is faithful,
As I trust Him, learning to labor and to wait.
For each promise fulfilled I am ever grateful
And express my gratitude in word and in deed.
Despite the gross darkness of these perilous times,
Each day I walk by faith wherever Christ may lead,
For grand mountain vistas await the one who climbs.
The hand of God brought me thus far along the way,
And I will finish my course is all I can say.
One of Spurgeon’s Daily Devotionals inspired by Isaiah 41:14 ministered to me in a powerful way.
So often in times of distress and discouragement, we call out to God for help. Recently I recall reeling and feeling overwhelmed by the challenges that confronted me on a number of fronts, and I cried out to God, “Lord, help me!” As I reflected upon that particular experience, I thought of one of Charles Haddon Spurgeon’s Daily Devotionals that focused on Isaiah 41: 14:
“I will help thee, saith the Lord.”
This morning let us hear the Lord Jesus speak to each one of us: “I will help thee.” “It is but a small thing for me, thy God, to help thee. Consider what I have done already. What! not help thee? Why, I bought thee with my blood. What! not help thee? I have died for thee; and if I have done the greater, will I not do the less? Help thee! It is the least thing I will ever do for thee; I have done more, and will do more. Before the world began I chose thee. I made the covenant for thee. I laid aside my glory and became a man for thee; I gave up my life for thee; and if I did all this, I will surely help thee now. In helping thee, I am giving thee what I have bought for thee already. If thou hadst need of a thousand times as much help, I would give it thee; thou requirest little compared with what I am ready to give. ‘Tis much for thee to need, but it is nothing for me to bestow. ‘Help thee?’ Fear not! If there were an ant at the door of thy granary asking for help, it would not ruin thee to give him a handful of thy wheat; and thou art nothing but a tiny insect at the door of my all-sufficiency. ‘I will help thee. ‘”
O my soul, is not this enough? Dost thou need more strength than the omnipotence of the United Trinity? Dost thou want more wisdom than exists in the Father, more love than displays itself in the Son, or more power than is manifest in the influences of the Spirit? Bring hither thine empty pitcher! Surely this well will fill it. Haste, gather up thy wants, and bring them here-thine emptiness, thy woes, thy needs. Behold, this river of God is full for thy supply; what canst thou desire beside? Go forth, my soul, in this thy might. The Eternal God is thine helper!
“Fear not, I am with thee, oh, be not dismay’d! I, I am thy God, and will still give thee aid.”
The closing line of the devotional comes from the ever popular hymn “How Firm a Foundation”:
In the poem “Protect Me,” from a series of teachings entitled “A Five-fold Prayer,” I recognize who God is and what He will do:
As a child runs to safety in his father’s arms,
So I, too, run to you, “my shelter from life’s storms.”
Lord, I long to dwell with you in the secret place,
My buckler, my shield, deliverer, my fortress,
Strong tower, defender, who responds to my prayer.
For Lord, you are faithful, who will establish me
And protect me and deliver me from evil.
I make reference to God as “My deliverer who knows me by name,” in a poem inspired by series of teachings from Nehemiah related to rebuilding the wall and restoring the gates of Jerusalem:
A Prayer While Waiting at the Horse Gate
Some trust in chariots, and some in horses:
but we will remember the name of the LORD our God.
Psalm 20:7
May I remember the source of true strength at this gate,
As I recall the matchless name of the Almighty,
Who may seem to tarry but indeed is never late.
May I understand His ways, for I have eyes to see,
As I come to recognize that God is my resource,
While ever striving toward the place of my destiny.
May I not place my trust in a chariot or horse,
Symbolic of authority, worldly goods and power,
But trust in God and not presume to chart my own course.
May I come to know God as my defense, my strong tower,
My deliverer who knows me by name, the all-wise one,
Who calls me into the Kingdom for this very hour.
God gives power and renews the strength of those who wait.
May I remember the source of true strength at this gate.
I conclude this blog entry with the closing verse from my favorite psalm: Psalm 27:14:
Wait on the Lord, be of courage, and He shall strengthen your heart. Wait, I say, on the Lord.
Here is a magnificent rendition of this verse in song offered by Donnie McClurkin and Karen Clark Sheard:
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