All About The Relationship

Posted on 2013/06/07 by Shawn Thomas

Psalm 23 is all about the relationship of David with the Lord, whom he calls his “Shepherd.” Manifestations of the relationship are evidenced all throughout the Psalm:

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Meditation and Delight

Posted on 2013/06/06 by Shawn Thomas

Psalm 1 opens by declaring that the righteous man does not walk, stand or sit in the ways of the wicked, but :2 says, “his DELIGHT is in the Law of The Lord, and in His Law he meditates day and night. In this verse, “in His Law he meditates” is paralleled with “delight”, teaching us that you meditate on that which you delight in. How do you know where your “delight” is? Continue reading →

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I Shall Not Want

Posted on 2013/06/05 by Shawn Thomas

Most everyone is familiar with the opening words of Psalm 23: “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.” Truly understanding and applying what this verse teaches is one of the keys to the Christian life. The Hebrew is literally: “Yahweh is the One shepherding me, I shall not lack.” In other words, it is because Yahweh, the God of the Bible, is our God, that His followers will not lack anything necessary for life and satisfaction.

But we should not read this in a materialistic sense. In fact, the opposite is really true. Continue reading →

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There’s A Baby in the Condo on the Prairie!

Posted on 2013/06/04 by Shawn Thomas

Yes, there is a new addition to “The Little Condo on the Prairie”, one who has become the unwitting center of our household, commanding rapt attention at the slightest twitch of her face. Corley Jane Breland has come into our lives, which will never be the same as a result. More on her birth later — that is a story in itself! But here is a sneak peek at our family goings-on just before and after that wondrous birth …

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Nursery Lessons About God

Posted on 2013/06/04 by Shawn Thomas

Psalm 22 is about trust in God, even under adverse circumstances which might lead one to doubt. In it, David said that his first lesson in trust came at an earlier age than many might think. He wrote in :9, “You made me trust upon my mother’s breasts.” From its very first moments with a caring mother, a newborn baby learns some vital lessons:

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It’s Not “Karma”!

Posted on 2013/06/03 by Shawn Thomas

In Exodus 22:24 God warned His people that if they afflicted widows and orphans, then “your wives will become widows and your children fatherless.”
The irony of what happens to those who oppress others and who then consequently see evil return to them is so often seen that even non-Christians have made note of it. Thus they have given birth to expressions like “karma” and “what goes around comes around” to describe and explain the phenomenon. Continue reading →

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Consider Your Ways

Posted on 2013/06/01 by Shawn Thomas

In Psalm 119:59 the writer says: “I considered my ways, and turned my feet to Your testimonies.” This is exactly what we SHOULD do from time to time — step back and evaluate our lives, and adjust ourselves to the standards of God’s word. Continue reading →

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You Live What You Believe

Posted on 2013/05/31 by Shawn Thomas

Psalm 14:1 says: “The fool has said in his heart, ‘There is no God.’ They are corrupt, they have committed abominable deeds. There is no one who does good.”
This Psalm goes on to describe how “they have all turned aside”. Romans 3 famously quotes Psalm 14 as proof of the depravity of all mankind. But the ungodly practices of those who are corrupt and do no good have their origin in :1, where they say, “There is no God.” Their lives are corrupt because their hearts reject God.
This verse reminds us that it very much matters what you believe.

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Charge That To My Account

Posted on 2013/05/30 by Shawn Thomas

In Philemon:18 the Apostle Paul speaks of the debts that the runaway slave, Onesimus, owed to Philemon: “charge that to my account.” We see in the Apostle Paul an analogy of what Christ has done for us. We are like the slave Onesimus; we have transgressed and are in debt. Jesus is like the Apostle Paul in this passage; He has an account with the debt-holder which is plenty enough to pay the debt which was owed. Onesimus was blessed to have someone like Paul, who would declare of his debts: “charge that to my account.” In the same way, WE are blessed to have Jesus say for the debt of our sins: “charge that to My account!”
But we would be remiss if we did not highlight a second application, regarding the debts that OTHERS owe US. Continue reading →

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Come Up In The Morning

Posted on 2013/05/29 by Shawn Thomas

In Exodus 34:2 God commanded Moses: “So be ready by morning, and come up in the morning to Mount Sinai, and present yourself there to Me on the top of the mountain.”
Here, just before God would show His glory to Moses, He commanded him to come to the top of the mountain and “present yourself there to Me.”
There is a sense in which we are also to do that same thing each day. Continue reading →

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