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Memorize Scripture: Psalm 119:69-72

Hiding God’s Word In Our Hearts

The first half of this stanza, in verses 65-88, the psalmist began to examine the goodness of God in the midst of suffering. In this second half, we will see two more examples of God’s goodness. Take at look at this passage in Psalm 119:69-72:

Psalm 119:69-72

While this theme of suffering and affliction will carry on through the next two stanzas, this ninth stanza centers the subject properly in the goodness of God. It is impossible to understand affliction properly without understanding, at least as much as possible, the goodness of God. Otherwise, we will fall into hopelessness and despair. Only with a proper perspective of the goodness of God can we see clearly to navigate the badness of a fallen world.

This knowledge of God’s goodness brings us to obey and understand the Word of God. The psalmist stressed obedience to God’s Word in verse 67, and here, in verse 71, he stresses an understanding of Scripture. Those might seem to be be reversed, but in actuality, they are not. What the psalmist is saying here is that his affliction caused him to turn to God’s Word, and to obey it. As he read and studied it, it led to a deeper and more full understanding of it, which in turn led to a more complete obedience. It’s an ever deepening cycle.

In the first half of this passage, the psalmist used the word “good” in three separate statements, revealing that God uses our sufferings to our own benefit because of his goodness. In this passage, we find two more of these statements in verses 71 and 72.

It seems as if anger is the currency of the day, and everyone expresses it freely. But doing so isn’t what God desires of us. So how do we control our anger? Dr. Jim Newheiser gives some brief insights into a gospel-centric approach to controlling our tempers.

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The Birth Of Jesus

Matthew 1:18-25

Perhaps what Matthew chapter one is most known for is the account of the birth of Jesus that it contains. Matthew gives us a perspective that is a bit different than that of Luke, and he provides some details that are worth taking a look at, even though we may be very familiar with this Christmas story.

The Birth Of Jesus

The birth narrative is one of those biblical events that we have become overly familiar with, since we hear it every year around Christmas. As a result, we often gloss over it when we read the Bible, thinking we’ve heard it all. And when we do that, we miss some things that are worth looking at a little more deeply.

In verse 18, Matthew writes, “Now the birth of Jesus Christ…” The word rendered here “birth” is the same in Greek that is translated “genealogy” in verse 1. This is the finishing statement of the genealogy given in the preceding verses, and is the point of the whole chapter. This event is worth taking the time to consider fully and deeply, with reverence and awe. The birth of any child is a wonderful occurrence, but the birth of Jesus is nothing short of a miracle.

Matthew shares the details of the engagement between Mary and Joseph. In Jewish culture, couples were engaged ten to twelve months prior to marriage. So sacred was the engagement that it could only be broken by divorce. Mary and Joseph were engaged, not married. Such a relationship was, from patriarchal times, a formal ceremony (see Genesis 24-25, the servant’s search for Rebekah, Isaac’s wife). It was regarded a binding obligation. Unfaithfulness in engagement was punishable by death (Deuteronomy 22:23-28; Leviticus 20:10).

However, Matthew adds a complicated wrinkle to the narrative. Mary is pregnant, and the two are not yet married. Both Matthew and Luke were careful to mention his miraculous conception (Luke 1:26, 34). This is a critical piece of information, because Christ’s physical nature was “begotten” by the Holy Spirit. Christ is the only example of such a birth in all of history. His birth, like his life and his resurrection, was a miracle. Mary, for the first three months following her visit by the angel to give her this news, was away at Elizabeth’s home (Luke 1:36). It was when she returned to Nazareth that Joseph learned of these circumstances. It must have been devastating to him.

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Bring Me To McDonald’s

Godly Men: Being Deliberate With Our Wives and Kids

The things my kids say… This happened when my son, Jadon, was four years old. He is now nine.

Bring Me To McDonald’s

My wife was at her doctor’s appointment for this last (hopefully!) week of her pregnancy.

I was at home with the rest of the kids. All of them were still asleep except for my four-year-old.

So I took advantage of the moment and had some good conversation with my son. In the course of our talking, laughing, and enjoying our time together, I asked him what I could do to be a better dad. This was mostly tongue in cheek, since he’s four…

He scrunched up his face, thought for a moment, and said, “Ummmm… Bring me to McDonald’s!”

Now, I could explain why we don’t eat often at McDonald’s, and the unhealthiness of it, and the expense of it, and lots of reasons why this is a bad idea. In fact, I can count my visits to McDonald’s in the past five years on one hand. Or I can explain that his happiness shouldn’t depend on what I buy him.

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Coffee Break – 06.25.2018

Your Monday Dose Of Inspiration

On this day in history: In 1867, Lucien B. Smith patented the first barbed wire. In 1876, Lt. Col. Custer and the 210 men of U.S. 7th Cavalry were killed by Sioux and Cheyenne Indians at Little Big Horn in Montana. The event is known as “Custer’s Last Stand.” And in 1968, Bobby Bonds, of the San Francisco Giants, hit a grand-slam home run in his first game with the Giants. He was the first player to debut with a grand-slam.

Coffee Break

Today Is National Leon Day!
Leon is Noel backwards, and it’s 6 months until Christmas!

5 Lies About Decaf You Probably Believe – I don’t drink a lot of decaffeinated coffee, but since I started roasting my own coffee, I have found that a high quality decaf doesn’t taste as bad as most people think. In fact, I have roasted several pounds of a Costa Rican decaf that is a fruity explosion of flavor in your mouth. But that stuff you buy at the grocery store? Get rid of it and find some better decaf. You’ll be glad you did.

Puzzling Gravestones – While I probably wouldn’t ever do this, it is kind of… puzzling.

A Man’s Introduction To Color – Most men I know are notoriously bad when it comes to matching their clothing. That’s because they do not understand color. Check out this explanation from RMRS, and step up your men’s fashion game!

View Of Earth – This was a live view of Earth from the International Space Station, posted on NASA’s Twitter. It’s a beautiful view!

Spring – Summer officially began last week, but around here there are still a lot of the signs of spring. We have some vines blooming down the road from our house that are beautiful. So here’s a time lapse video full of reminders of spring.