Good Is The Lord

Posted on 2013/06/11 by Shawn Thomas

Psalm 25:8 says: “Good and upright is the Lord; therefore He instructs sinners in the way.”
This verse reminds us that because God is good, He is gracious towards sinners; He is patient with them, and seeks to instruct them in His way. He does not just abandon them to their own devices, or give them what they deserve. Psalm 103 says: “He has not dealt with us according to our sins, nor rewarded us according to our iniquities.” Many of us can bear testimony to how patient He is with us, and how He has not given us what we deserve. Continue reading →

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Shall Perform

Posted on 2013/06/10 by Shawn Thomas

In Exodus 36:1 the Lord commanded: “Now Bezalel and Oholiab, and every skillful person in whom the Lord has put skill and understanding to know how to perform all the work in the construction of the sanctuary, shall perform in accordance with all that the Lord has commanded.” We saw previously in Exodus that God has given skill to all who are skillful (35:30-31, 31:6). The key words in this verse, then, are: “shall perform”. It is not enough for a person to be given skill and understanding by God; their assignment is to actually PERFORM what He asks of them.

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The Comfort of His Love

Posted on 2013/06/08 by Shawn Thomas

In Psalm 119:76 the Psalmist prays: “O may Your lovingkindness comfort me.” The word “lovingkindness” here is the Hebrew word “chesed”, the gracious, merciful, steadfast, unchanging, faithful love of God. Here the Bible teaches us that it is in God’s chesed that we are find our comfort.

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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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