verseoftheday

Jesus therefore no longer walked openly among the Jews but departed from there to the countryside near the wilderness, to a town called Ephraim, and he stayed there with the disciples. John 11:54 CSB Jesus has just brought Lazarus back from death, and the Jewish leaders are over having his popularity grow, over having people believe that Jesus is who he said he is. And they are going to have him killed.  Murder in the name of religion. In the name of God.  Just read an article that describes how in the year 988 Vladimir the Rus, a pagan king, married the daughter of the Byzantine emporer, but first had to convert to Christianity. He did that and there was a mass baptism. In Kyev. The start of the Russian Orthodox Church and the underpinning of the current conflict.  Religion at the heart of conflict.  Again. Religious based power was at the heart of the conflict that Jesus faced,  but Jesus battle was not with the Jewish leaders or the power of Rome, but with the darkness that invades

For the choir director. A psalm of David. As for me,  since I am poor and needy,  let the Lord keep me in his thoughts.  You are my helper  and my savior.  O my God,  do not delay. Psalms 40:17 NLT This is the end of this song, and David's situation does not seem to have changed, but again he lets us in.  Whether today our hearts are full of joy or sorrow, if we're at peace or wrestling with things, or anywhere in between, this song tells us it's OK to express where we're at. David expresses his heart that he wants to know he's in God's thoughts, that he's not forgotten.  And then reminds himself of who God is.  Our God is our helper and our saviour, and you are in his thoughts today.  You and I, we are known by God. We can rest in that today.  "O my God,  do not delay" The last phrase of this song echoes our hearts that all is not right in this world, that there is something more and better and fully restored that we hope and yearn for.  #psalms #

For the choir director. A psalm of David. But may all who search for you be filled with joy and gladness in you.  May those who love your salvation repeatedly shout,  "The Lord is great!" Psalms 40:16 NLT After focusing on his troubles, on those who are against him, David goes big picture in this part of the song. In the midst of my circumstances, enemies, people pulling me down, my troubles he looks up and knows that he is OK. Yahweh has and will save me. In the midst of what I'm facing there can still be this inner joy, because God is who He says He is, and we can seek Him in the midst of it all, rely on His character, and that our salvation is secure. As Paul says in Ephesians 1 we're chosen & adopted into God's family & are now heirs. In Romans 8 Paul reminds us that we are completely and irreversibly secure, safe in His love and grace.  Praying today for our whanau in the Ukraine that they know this ultimate safety.  May we sing with David that the Lo

Friday! Proverbs! Who has anguish?  Who has sorrow?  Who is always fighting? Who is always complaining?  Who has unnecessary bruises?  Who has bloodshot eyes? Proverbs 23:29 NLT The writer of this proverb  is asking us to take a little self inventory. What's going on for you? In the next few verses he then describes the danger of trying to solve whatever our problems are by drinking alcohol. He could just as easily used other things that we binge on or try to use to avoid facing our own stuff, or burying what's going on. Food, work, exercise, social media etc etc. The thing is that we all have stuff going on. Anguish.  Sorrow.  The world pushes in, Covid, war in Europe, the choices and actions of others, and our own choices.  The answer is not found in burying our stuff. The Apostle Paul says this: "If one part suffers, all the parts suffer with it, and if one part is honored, all the parts are glad." 1 Corinthians 12:26 NLT We're a community, joined together, on

For the choir director. A psalm of David. Please, Lord, rescue me! Come quickly, Lord, and help me.  May those who try to destroy me be humiliated and put to shame.  May those who take delight in my trouble be turned back in disgrace. Let them be horrified by their shame, for they said, "Aha! We've got him now!" Psalms 40:13-15 NLT I've been that person. Kind of pleased when something bad happens to the person on the other team, the other side of the argument, my "enemy".  These songs are honest. I've been that person who wants to see the "enemy" shamed. Humiliated. When I want that, it comes from a place of powerlessness. I had a job end acrimoniously and unfairly I believed and that was humiliating in how it happened. I felt powerless and I could happily echo David's words, sing this song about the person responsible. David isn't judging us for having strong feelings about things, he's just expressing them.  It's Ok to write

For the choir director. A psalm of David. Lord, don't hold back your tender mercies from me. Let your unfailing love and faithfulness always protect me.  For troubles surround me - too many to count! My sins pile up so high I can't see my way out. They outnumber the hairs on my head.  I have lost all courage. Psalms 40:11-12 NLT David invites us in, in to his own self reflection, his own assessment of where he is at.  Although it's written with his cry to God first, remember this is a song he's writing and he is in a place where his courage is gone.  He feels defeated. Defeated by his own sin, his own choices, thoughts and actions.  Defeated by the actions of others.  Ever been there? Maybe your there or partly there today.  Then let David's words bring comfort, courage and hope; "Let your  unfailing love  and faithfulness  always protect me." He looks to someone with strength and faithfulness and love that is bigger than his trouble, and bigger than his s

For the choir director. A psalm of David. I have told all your people about your justice.  I have not been afraid to speak out, as you, O Lord, well know.  I have not kept the good news of your justice hidden in my heart;  I have talked about your faithfulness and saving power.  I have told everyone in the great assembly of your unfailing love and faithfulness. Psalms 40:9-10 NLT Not everyone gets to speak in the "great assembly". Whatever that was it sounds like a big thing. But every now and then it's good to speak about who God is. Davids focus is on God's justice.  Then his faithfulness. Then his saving power. And his love. There's days when we need reminding about who God is and David encourages us to speak it out loud as a way of doing that.  Hearing you speak of God's justice when I need to hear it is good, but me speaking of it is needed too. You reminding me of God's saving power is good, me reminding me is needed too, speaking it out loud.  When

For the choir director. A psalm of David. You take no delight  in sacrifices  or offerings.  Now that you have made me listen,  I finally understand  - you don't require burnt offerings or sin offerings.  Then I said,  "Look, I have come.  As is written about me in the Scriptures:  I take joy in doing your will,  my God,  for your instructions  are written  on my heart." Psalms 40:6-8 NLT In David's day it seems that they thought they could offer up the sacrifices and that would make them good enough for God. In our day it seems to be if I work hard enough I can be good enough for God.  Or is it something else for you? At the heart of David's song is this "ah finally I get it, it's not about the sacrifices & the offerings, it's about the heart, my heart." We don't have to do bigger or better or more.  That's not what God wants.  He says "I love you." Right now, in this moment.  "You're family, whanau, you belong, no

For the choir director. A psalm of David. How happy is anyone who has put his trust in the Lord  and has not turned to the proud or to those who run after lies!  Lord my God,  you have done many things - your wondrous works and your plans for us;  none can compare with you.  If I were to report and speak of them,  they are more than can be told. Psalms 40:4-5 CSB This song gives us an insight into David's heart, as he shares two options, putting his trust in God, or the voices of the world around him.  David chooses Yahweh.  He's going through tough things and that's often the time we doubt God, but David is intentional, putting his trust in Yahweh and keeping front of mind who God is and what He is about.  May today that be our witness too, that in our circumstances, in our stuff, we will choose to keep thinking on who God is, what He has done, and what He is about. #sunday #worship #thisisourGod

Listen to your father who gave you life, and don't despise your mother when she is old.  Buy - and do not sell - truth, wisdom, instruction, and understanding. The father of a righteous son will rejoice greatly, and one who fathers a wise son will delight in him.  Let your father and mother have joy, and let her who gave birth to you rejoice. Proverbs 23:22-25 CSB Can we Jesus here? As you read this proverb listen for the relational dance that is happening...there's a picture here of mutual joy and rejoicing that comes from one another...in this is a glimpse of our God, triune, bringing mutual joy to one another.  It's a picture of how relationships should be, and how they will be when all of the effect of sin is washed away, when all of the distortions and destructive things that damage and destroy are no more, and once again, we will get to walk with God in the cool of the evening and commune with him in this dance of delight. Does that sound too good to be true? Impossib

Friday! Proverbs! Listen to your father who gave you life, and don't despise your mother when she is old.  Buy - and do not sell - truth, wisdom, instruction, and understanding. The father of a righteous son will rejoice greatly, and one who fathers a wise son will delight in him.  Let your father and mother have joy, and let her who gave birth to you rejoice. Proverbs 23:22-25 CSB The first part of this proverb has been used as a weapon to bring compliance to what parents want. But the core instruction here for both parent and child is to invest in  truth,  wisdom,  instruction, understanding.  The picture is to buy these things and hoard them, get as much as you possibly can, becuase this is where the real value is.  Invest in truth. Invest in wisdom. Invest in instructions. Invest in understanding. The source of these things is much bigger and broader than our parents, as this is a call to both parents and children.  And when that investment occurs, the relational things describ

For the choir director. A psalm of David. He put a new song in my mouth,  a hymn of praise to our God.  Many will see and fear, and they will trust in the Lord. Psalms 40:3 CSB David is a song writer and a musician so he may well have songs in his head and he's writing here literally about new songs. But I think it's really shorthand for what's governing his heart, what the core things are in him that have shifted from when he felt like he was walking in mud, when everything felt desolate.  The "song" at his core is a hymn of praise, because he has seen or experienced God at work, moving him from despair to hope, from the mud to the rock. And it's evident in his life. Others see it.  The song at our core is evident in our life. It's not our circumstances, not what's happening today, but how we live and love in today.  May we let Jesus keep writing and rewriting the song at the core of who we are. It's a song that starts on the rock, a place where t

I waited patiently for the Lord,  and he turned to me  and heard my cry for help.  He brought me up  from a desolate pit,  out of the muddy clay, and set my feet  on a rock,  making my steps secure. He put a new song in my mouth... Psalms 40:1-3 CSB David cried out. David waited.  Yahweh turned. Yahweh heard. Yahweh brought him up. Yahweh moved him. Yahweh changed his song, gave David new words, new music. Maybe today this takes some of the pressure off, and allows us to be human, not to have to handle everything, fix everything, hold everything together on our own. David didn't just cry and wait though.  He cried to Yahweh. He waited on Yahweh. Who we cry to and who we wait on makes a difference. David's situation felt hopeless, but his faith kept his heart and mind on God.  We don't know what changed in David's circumstances, if anything, but we do know that his heart was given new words and new music. Maybe that's already been your experience, if it is, keep sing

For the choir director. A psalm of David. I waited patiently for the Lord,  and he turned to me  and heard my cry for help. He brought me up from a desolate pit,  out of the muddy clay, and set my feet on a rock,  making my steps secure. Psalms 40:1-2 CSB There was a theologian from the 4th century who's name is Athanasius, and he said "most of Scripture speaks to us;  the Psalms speak for us." Maybe this Psalm speaks for you in some way, maybe you've felt at times like you're walking in mud, or stuck in some lonely place. It's easy to rush to the good stuff, the getting pulled out of the mud, the rescue out of the pit of desolation. But this is a song, so we don't know how long David was stuck there.  And he was there.  And he wrote about it, which is a good thing to do.  Maybe this Psalm speaks for you, speaks about a time in your life, maybe right now. If you can relate, then this Psalm gives you and me permission to say things as they are, out loud, in

For the choir director. A psalm of David. I waited patiently for the Lord,  and he turned to me  and heard my cry for help. Psalms 40:1 CSB This is a song. Have you ever written a song? A poem?  Songs & poems are not step-by-step accounts of events, they're usually attempts to capture our experiences, our emotions, our hopes, our responses, our hearts on things.  If you read the lyrics of a song it can be OK, but when you hear it sung it can get to us in a whole different way.  With the Psalms, with this Psalm, we've only got the lyrics (& an English translation at that). In this first verse David is crying out for help.  Can you relate? Crying out to God. The God of Abraham, Isaac & Jacob, the God who heard His people's cry and rescued them from the Egyptians, the God who spoke through prophets and judges, men and women who followed Him. The God of covenant promises, rich in mercy, who loves with an everlasting love.  David cries out to Him. And waits. And some

"If we let him go on like this, everyone will believe in him, and the Romans will come and take away both our place and our nation..." ...So from that day on they plotted to kill him. John 11:48, 53 CSB We have this connection with power.  It has an allure and a pull and once we have it, we don't want to give it up. Even something as common as being a parent. When my children were small I had authority over them, power to decide what clothes they wore, what they ate for dinner, what time was bedtime. As they grew up more power and more authority over their lives shifted to them.  I had power, and it was for good purpose, but there was a time to hand it over, and there were times when I didn't want to. I wanted to cling to it.  The guys in this story had power in their community with good purpose and good intention, to keep themselves and their people living in line with God's word and looking forward to the Messiah coming.  And he was right there in front of them

Listen, my son, and be wise;  keep your mind on the right course. Don't associate with those who drink too much wine or with those who gorge themselves on meat.  For the drunkard and the glutton will become poor, and grogginess will clothe them in rags. Proverbs 23:19-21 CSB This proverb goes on to complete the short story. The request to listen, to think about our thinking, to take care about who we spend time with, and then unpacks consequences to our choices.  These proverbs are not weapons to be used to "fix" behaviour, but to get to the heart.  My heart.  It's not about the 2 examples here, as the writer could have used something else. Work, sport, business, sex, money, clothes, appearance, fitness, religion, church, music, movies, social media...he's warning us to be careful of making good things THE thing, looking for those things to meet our deepest needs, because they come up short and end up with unintended consequences.  Who we choose to spend time with

Friday! Proverbs! Listen, my son,  and be wise;  keep your mind on the right course.  Don't associate with those who... Proverbs 23:19-20 CSB Can you picture when this wisdom is being shared? Maybe they've found a cool spot after a long hot day and an older person is simply passing on the wisdom learned from experience... Listen, my son :) You're someone who I care about, who I love and I want you to be wise in what you do.  We've talked about wisdom being the most important thing. And it starts in our minds, in our thinking, and while we can't stop thoughts popping in, we can control what we dwell on, and what we choose to focus on. Try it and see if I'm right.  It takes work, but you can keep your mind on the right course. And one of the key things that helps is who you choose to spend time with. Choosing what to focus our thinking on and who we spend time with are kind of the same thing, just one happens in our head and one outside in the day-to-day.  A thoug

One of them, Caiaphas, who was high priest that year, said to them, "You know nothing at all! You're not considering that it is to your advantage that one man should die for the people rather than the whole nation perish." He did not say this on his own, but being high priest that year he prophesied that Jesus was going to die for the nation, and not for the nation only, but also to unite the scattered children of God. So from that day on they plotted to kill him. John 11:49-53 CSB There's a lot going on here with Caiaphas. I often miss the reality that the Jews were under brutal Roman rule that they wanted to break free from, that a Messiah would lead them out of, and into freedom.  Roman rule was big and in their face all the time. And in that reality they missed who Jesus really was. They had part of the picture (including a prophesy), but they didn't see Jesus for who he really was, despite all the signs. Sometimes there's big things going on in our lives

So the chief priests and the Pharisees convened the Sanhedrin and were saying,  "What are we going to do since this man is doing many signs?  If we let him go on like this, everyone will believe in him, and the Romans will come and take away both our place and our nation." John 11:47-48 CSB These guys were the religious, cultural, political leaders. They had all the power in the community, and their response to the signs Jesus had done? Shut him down because we have too much to lose.  And let's catastrophise it into losing our whole nation while we're at it.  Who Jesus is, what he was about, exposed their hearts which turned out to be completely about their own self interest. Their personal empires would crumble if Jesus was allowed to keep going. There's a picture here for me that as I let Jesus in to my inner self, that the power structures, the personal empire can feel like it's being turned upside down.  It can feel catastrophic. But Jesus is Grace, Light,

Therefore, many of the Jews who came to Mary and saw what he did believed in him. But some of them went to the Pharisees and told them what Jesus had done. John 11:45-46 CSB These people had all it seems just seen Jesus bring Lazarus back from death.  He'd been dead four days.  They'd just seen Lazarus walk out in graveclothes, called back from death by God's power.  Resurrected. As a result many believed in Jesus, but it seems not everyone. Not sure how they held what they'd seen as having happened, and yet, didn't believe that Jesus was who he said he was.  The signs were obvious.  There's something in us that when we see things we don't want to believe, we find ways in our own thinking not to.  No one seemed to be denying that Lazarus was brought back from death, just not accepting Jesus authority to do it. His authority over death.  When we accept Jesus for who he is, believe in him, it shifts how we see ourselves in relation to Jesus, shifts how we shou

Now may the God of peace, who brought up from the dead our Lord Jesus - the great Shepherd of the sheep - through the blood of the everlasting covenant, equip you with everything good to do his will, working in us what is pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever.  Amen.  Hebrews 13:20 - 21 CSB This weekend in NZ we have the opportunity to consider the covenant on which our country was formed. A covenant with a story and background, hopes and intentions, and a covenant that was not kept.  We are people of a covenant. An everlasting covenant. A covenant that doesn't rely on the frailties of people, but sits immovably in the character of God, and is secured for us by Jesus' work on the cross.  A covenant that allows God's character and heart to connect with ours, to equip us, to change us, to "get" Him, his heart, and live God's heart out in this world.  No matter how hesitantly or how poorly we might do that, the trips and f

Don't let your heart envy sinners;  instead, always fear the Lord.  For then you will have a future,  and your hope will not be dashed. Proverbs 23:17-18 CSB Can we see Jesus in this proverb written hundreds of years before his birth? Yes! It's Jesus who trod that path in his humanity withstood the best efforts of the enemy to sway his heart - see Matthew 4:1-11. His antidote was God's word. Fear of the Lord lived out.  And is in Jesus that our future is secured through his once-and-done sacrifice at Calvary. Paul reminds us at the beginning of Romans 8 that there is no condemnation for those who are in Jesus, and at the end of that chapter that nothing, nothing can separate us from His love. Nothing.  Our future is secure. Our hope, will not be dashed, but realised when we see Jesus face to face, a reality that we're all one day closer to.  #sunday #worship #jesusatthecentre #thisisourGod #myhopeisbuiltonnothinglessthanJesusbloodandrighteousness

Don't let your heart envy sinners;  instead, always fear the Lord.  For then you will have a future,  and your hope will not be dashed. Proverbs 23:17-18 CSB We've all had our hopes dashed, or literally cut off.  This proverb dosen't mean that nothing bad will ever happen to us or those we care about, but it steps us up to a bigger picture, a bigger story than our own, and it's wrapped up in who God is.  This proverb is a reminder that I am safe because of who God is, because of His character.  My future in His Big Story is safe with Him. And that helps keep my heart from being captured by other things.  The things of this world, others, the culture we live in, the fickleness of my own heart are at work though all the time producing counterfeits for the character and heart of God.  One day though, the place we live will be completely aligned to who God is, and there will be no hopes to be dashed, because all of the longings of our hearts will be fulfilled.  #heaven #pro

Friday! Proverbs! Don't let your heart envy sinners;  instead, always fear the Lord. Proverbs 23:17 CSB This proverb is concerned about us, our hearts, the "leb", the inner person, who we really are.  It tells me that I am prone to envy others, others who in some way in their choices and actions are opposed to God, and have something that seems desirable.  Actually it is desirable.  If I let my heart wander, there's a direction it will wander in, and this proverb reminds me that I don't have to let it.  It reminds me to keep who God is, His story, His heart of redemption and restoration of His creation in mind and that changes things. When I do that it dials down my wandering hearts desire, and dials up heart for the things that are important to Him.  We do not have to be slaves to the culture, to the people and things that do their very best to capture our hearts.  In Matthew 22 Jesus gave a beautiful simple summary of what is a complex question that in different

The dead man came out bound hand and foot with linen strips and with his face wrapped in a cloth. Jesus said to them, "Unwrap him and let him go." John 11:44 CSB Jesus power brought Lazarus back from the dead, you'd think he could've cleaned him up and put some new clothes on him to finish the job.  But he didn't. Jesus invited Lazarus's community to roll away the stone, and he invites his community to step towards him, towards the stench and mess, and set him free.  Jesus did the supernatural part, and he called those around Lazarus in to help with the rest.  I wonder if I'd been in that crowd if I'd have stepped in. Would I have accepted Jesus invitation to partner with him in this work of resurrection?  Lazarus needed help to get out of the graveclothes, get cleaned up, get some new clothes, he'd been sick (& died) so probably was hungry and thirsty, needed somewhere to lie down, and someone to talk to about his experience, what it all meant

After he said this, he shouted with a loud voice, "Lazarus, come out!" The dead man came out bound hand and foot with linen strips and with his face wrapped in a cloth. John 11:43-44 CSB The heading for this passage in my Bible is "the seventh sign". John tracks through seven signs that Jesus is who he says he is by exercising power and authority over creation, and here, the final one, over death itself.  Jesus is who he says he is. But this bringing Lazarus back to life, as miraculous and powerful as it was, was not enough. Lazarus still needed Jesus to smash into death itself by submitting to it, to bring Lazarus, and us, Life. Signs point us somewhere, and these signs point us to Jesus.  Lazarus, like us, had no power over death any more than he could've changed the water into wine in Ch2, the first of the signs.  The signs are not the thing. Bringing Lazarus back is not the thing. Jesus is. Jesus is the hope we have of Life. Life in him, Life with him, capit

So they removed the stone. Then Jesus raised his eyes and said, "Father, I thank you that you heard me. I know that you always hear me, but because of the crowd standing here I said this, so that they may believe you sent me." John 11:41-42 CSB The implication is that part of Jesus prayer is not recorded, just this end part. There's (at least) 3 things  we can take away: Jesus is confident that his Heavenly Father hears his prayers. We can be confident of that too.  Jesus is grateful, thankful, and says that he's thankful, that his prayers have been heard. We can be thankful and express that too. In the middle of his sorrow, in the times of distress and suffering, Jesus is praying. We too can pray. Pray in the middle of what's going on, pray when life hurts, when we're suffering, crying.  Jesus is Jesus and had a good idea what the outcome would be.  We don't.  But we do have a Heavenly Father who bends down to hear our prayers and to who our tears matter