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Because Your lovingkindness is better than life, My lips will praise You. Psalm 63:3 There is a law of compensation which is conspicuously exemplified in the divine government of human affairs. A balance is strikingly preserved between losses and gains, bitter disappointments and pleasant surprises. Let us not dwell unduly upon the former; and let us not fail to be grateful and return thanks for the latter. AW Pink

My soul is satisfied as with marrow and fatness, And my mouth offers praises with joyful lips. Psalm 63:5 God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied…  ( Click for more )

Once God has spoken; Twice I have heard... Psalm 62:11a Many people hear the Word of God proclaimed. Two people sit in church on Sunday, one is deeply affected; the other falls asleep. What’s the difference. One is under the Spirit’s power, the other is not. The Holy Spirit takes the Word and applies it directly to the heart of the child of God. Rev. Bruce Goettsche, La Harpe, IL. www.unionchurch.com

.power belongs to God And lovingkindness is Yours, O Lord, For You recompense a man according to his work. Psalm 62:11b, 12 Though our reward be not for our…  ( Click for more )

The ungodly . are like the chaff which the wind drives away. Psalm 1:4

The essence of folly is turning from God as the trustworthy touchstone of all reality and instead making (natural) preferences the measure of what is real. John Piper, The Pleasures of God

.the ungodly shall not stand . in the congregation of the righteous. Psalm 1:5

Heaven is a place where . the wicked cease from troubling, and the weary are at rest. Charles H. Spurgeon, 1834-92, English preacher Baptist

For the Lord knows (perceives and interacts with) the way of the righteous, But…  ( Click for more )

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.when Solomon was old, his wives turned his heart after other gods; and his heart was not loyal to the Lord his God, as was the heart of his father David. 1 Kings 11:4

Hearts that drift along currents forged by egocentric love and gratification disregard the compass of the mind, the rudder of reason and most of all the voice of Him who lovingly stands at the helm ready to affix our bearings and steer our course.

(Old) Solomon did evil (idolatry) in the sight of the Lord, and did not fully follow the Lord, as did his father David. 1 Kings 11:6

David’s…  ( Click for more )

(Queen to Solomon) Blessed are your men and your servants, who stand continually before you and hear your wisdom! 1 Kings 10:8 The majority of us lead quiet, unheralded lives as we pass through this world. There will most likely be no ticker-tape parades for us, no monuments created in our honor. But that does not lessen our possible impact, for there are scores of people waiting for someone just like us to come along; people who will appreciate our compassion, our unique talents. Someone who will live a happier life merely because we took the time to share what we had to…  ( Click for more )

Joy is the simplest form of gratitude. Karl Barth, Swiss Theologian, among the most influential of the 20th century. 1886-1968

When the queen of Sheba (around Ethiopia or Yemen) heard about the fame of Solomon and his relation to the name of the Lord, she came to test him with hard questions. 1 Kings 10:1

If believin' what they believes makes 'em the way they is, then it bares looking into. from Love's…  ( Click for more )

(Solomon praying) when . each one aware of the afflictions of his own heart (prays) . Forgive and deal with each man according to all he does, since you know his heart. 1 Kings 8:38-39

(the) heart-plague will not die out of its own accord, nor will any change of your outward condition eradicate it. Charles Haddon Spurgeon, 1834-92, British Reformed Baptist, highly influential amongst Christians of different denominations

http://www.spurgeongems.org/vols25-27/chs1489.pdf THE PLAGUE OF THE HEART

(Solomon) When Your people go out to battle., wherever You send them,…  ( Click for more )

“(Nathan, the prophet, to David) the Lord tells you that He will make you a house. And your house and your kingdom shall be established forever before you. Your throne shall be established forever." 2 Samuel 7:11-16

House: A family of ancestors, descendants, and kindred from the same stock

Forever: through endless ages

(Jesus’ humanity came from the line of David, which was held together by God)

.rejoice that he who is "great in power" is your Father and Friend. Charles Haddon Spurgeon, 1834-92, British Reformed Baptist, highly influential…  ( Click for more )

So David said to Michal, (his wife who belittled him and his worship of God), "It was before the Lord, who chose me instead of your father and all his house, to appoint me ruler over the people of the Lord, over Israel. Therefore I will play music before the Lord. 2 Samuel 6:21

Cure yourself of the condition of bothering about how you look to other people. Be concerned only...with the idea God has of you. Miguel de Unamuno 1864-1936

(David’s response to Michal’s criticism of his undignified public worship of God) I will be more lightly esteemed…  ( Click for more )

Now it was told King David, saying, "The Lord has blessed the house of Obed-Edom and all that belongs to him, because of the ark of God." So David went and brought up the ark of God from the house of Obed-Edom to the City of David with gladness. 2 Samuel 6:12

Cause me to be a mirror of thy grace, to show others the joy of thy service. The Valley of Vision, Puritan Prayers and Devotions 1600/1700s

(As they brought the ark to the Jerusalem) David danced before the Lord with all his might; . and all the house of Israel brought up the ark of the Lord with shouting…  ( Click for more )

(moving the ark to Jerusalem) They set the ark of God on a new cart (God had given specific instructions for the ark to be carried on poles by priests). 2 Samuel 6:3

Our ignorance of God and His word leaves us to serve and worship Him in a precarious way.

(Escorting the ark of God to Jerusalem on a cart rather than as God directed) Uzzah put out his hand to (steady the ark when) the oxen stumbled . and God struck him there for his error; and he died. 2 Samuel 6:6-7

Any time people choose to exalt a move of God above the Creator himself, they risk the…  ( Click for more )

He alone is my rock and my salvation, my strong tower; I shall not be greatly moved. Psalm 62:2 No soul can be really at rest until it has given up all dependence on everything else and has been forced to depend on the Lord alone. Hannah Whitall Smith

My soul, wait in silence for God only, For my hope is from Him. Psalm 62:5 In the soul-searching of our lives; we are to stay quiet so we can hear Him say all that He wants to say to us in our hearts. Charles Swindoll My salvation and my honor depend on God. Psalm 62:7a A devout heart, purged from self-conceit,…  ( Click for more )

Through God we shall do mighty things; for He shall tread on our oppressors. Psalm 60:12 Victorious lives flow from victorious thoughts. Thinking victorious thoughts come from setting our focus on a victorious God. Beth Moore, b1957, Christian author, teacher, Breaking Free

From the end of the earth I call to You when my heart is faint; Lead me to the rock that is higher than I. Psalm 61:2 Cause me to hear thy strengthening and encouraging voice of grace lifted up in my spirit, reanimating my feeble faith. Jean Baptiste Massillon, 1663-1742, French bishop, preacher…  ( Click for more )

My God in His lovingkindness will go before me; God will let me look triumphantly upon my foes (physical and spiritual). Psalm 59:10 Regardless of how things appeared, there was no need to fear. God has already gone ahead and "sawed through" the enemy's defenses. Voice of the Lord, Lewis/Harriet Lederer Foundation, Messianic Jewish Publishers

.I shall joyfully sing of Your lovingkindness in the morning, For You have been my stronghold And a refuge in the day of my distress. Psalm 59:16b The Christian is cheerful, not because he is blind to injustice and…  ( Click for more )

I will cry to God Most High, To God who accomplishes all things for me. Psalm 57:2 Faith is that act of our soul that turns away from our own insufficiency to the free and all-sufficient resources of God. John Piper, b. 1947

He shall send from heaven and save me; He reproaches the one who would swallow me up. Selah God shall send forth His mercy and His truth. Psalm 57:3 The dispensations of divine grace are to the fullest degree sovereign and irrespective of human merit; yet in the dealings of Providence there is a rule of justice by which the injured are at length…  ( Click for more )

This I know, that God is for me. Psalm 56:9b What we understand of Him is good and loving. Let us be sure that what we do not yet understand is good and loving too. Alexander Maclaren, 1826-1910, British Baptist expository preacher

Your vows are binding upon me, O God; I will render thank offerings to You. Psalm 56:12 Committed to trust Thee during the storms of night; Lord I gratefully sing Thy praises for bringing me into the morning light.

You have delivered my soul from death, Indeed my feet from stumbling, So that I may walk before God In the light of the living.…  ( Click for more )

Cast your burden upon the Lord and He will sustain you. Psalm 55:22a By His providence, He works for us: by His grace, He works in us to silence our fears and still the tumult of the spirits. Matthew Henry, 1662-1714, Welsh-born, English nonconformist minister and Bible commentator

He will never allow the righteous to be shaken. Psalm 55:22b No matter where we are, no matter what we do, no matter how bleak or frightening our prospects, each and every one of us who believe, each and every day lies in the same safe and impregnable place, in the hollow of God's hand.' Tony…  ( Click for more )

Give heed to me and answer me; I am restless in my complaint and am surely distracted.. Psalm 55:2 Sometimes God delays the answer to our prayer in final form until we have time to build up the strength, accumulate the knowledge, or fashion the character that would make it possible for him to say yes to what we ask. Samuel Pepys, 1633–1703

Fear and trembling come upon me, And horror has overwhelmed me. "Oh, that I had wings like a dove! I would fly away and be at rest.” Psalm 55:5-6 Whenever you run from fear, fear will be waiting at the front door.…  ( Click for more )

Every one of them has turned aside; together they have become corrupt; There is no one who does good, not even one. Psalm 53:3 The terrible condition of man's heart will never be recognized by people who assess it only in relation to other men. John Piper, 1946-, Pastor for Bethlehem Baptist Church, Minneapolis, Minnesota

(Psalm by David) Save me, O God, by Your name, And vindicate me by Your power. Psalm 54:1 Diligently ponder the revelation of God's character, and summon every attribute to advocate our cause. Henry Law, Exposition of Psalms, 1878

Behold, God…  ( Click for more )

I am like an olive tree flourishing in the house of God; I trust in God’s unfailing love for ever and ever. Psalm 52:8 He does not need to transplant us into a different field, but right where we are, with just the circumstances that surround us, He makes His sun to shine and his dew to fall upon us, and transforms the things that were our greatest hindrances into the chiefest and most blessed means of our growth. Hannah Whithall Smith, 1832–1911

I will give You thanks forever, because You have done it.. Psalm 52:9a A state of mind that sees God in everything…  ( Click for more )

You do not delight in sacrifice, otherwise I would give it; You are not pleased with burnt offering. Psalm 51:16 We are so easily seduced into believing that we actually can gain all the approval we need by our behavior. Dr. R. Albert Mohler, Jr., President of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary

The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit.. Psalm 51:17a I have my own will, yet I will the good will of God. Watchman Nee, 1903-72, Chinese Christian evangelist and author

A broken and a contrite heart, O God, You will not despise. Psalm 51:17b Acknowledge your problems…  ( Click for more )

(As the Philistines prepared to attack) . David inquired of the Lord, and He said, ‘You shall not go up (frontal attack like last time); circle around behind them, and come upon them in front of the mulberry trees. 2 Samuel 5:23

Trust God. Follow His rules of combat. As illogical as they may seem they inevitably lead to victory. Kevin Pauley, Christian pastor, writer

(God to David) And it shall be, when you hear the sound of marching in the tops of the mulberry trees, then you shall advance quickly. 2 Samuel 5:24

Timing is so important! If you are…  ( Click for more )

Restore to me the joy of Your salvation. Psalm 51:12a Man cannot find true essential joy anywhere but in his relationship to God. Oswald Chambers, 1874–1917

.sustain me with a willing spirit. Psalm 51:12 My lips are ready to confess, but my heart is slow to feel, and my ways reluctant to amend. The Valley of Vision, Puritan Prayers and Devotions, 1600/1700s (After King David ask God to restore and sustain him) Then I will teach transgressors Your ways, And sinners will turn back to You. Psalm 51:13 Take your mess and turn it into a message. Don Piper, Baptist…  ( Click for more )