verseoftheday

My tears have been my food day and night... Why, my soul, are you so dejected?  Why are you in such turmoil?  I will say to God, my rock, "Why have you forgotten me?" Psalms 42:3, 5, 9 CSB Ps42 is a ,"maskil", an "enlightenment" of the Sons of Korah who's  entire family line were killed (see Numbers 16) because Korah, Moses cousin, rebelled.  The Sons of Korah became musicians.  Beneath the story of this Psalm is a deeper story of loss and grieving.  God's people experienced loss, grief, cried out to God, grief that knocked them off balance, grief that led to a diet of tears as they tried to make sense of what doesn't make sense.  Just like us.  The Sons of Korah had good reason to cry.  Just like us.  And also know that in the depths of loss and grief, when all seems lost, we are not lost, we are held in the arms of Grace; Deep calls to deep in the roar of your waterfalls; all your breakers and your billows have swept over me. Psalms 42:7 CSB

I will say to God, my rock, "Why have you forgotten me?" Why must I go about in sorrow because of the enemy's oppression? My adversaries taunt me, as if crushing my bones, while all day long they say to me,  "Where is your God?" Why, my soul, are you so dejected?  Why are you in such turmoil?  Put your hope in God,  for I will still praise him, my Savior and my God. Psalms 42:9-11 CSB The roller coaster ride of talking to God, self talk, emotions, and truth continues right to the end of Ps42! With all that's going on here none of his emotions are blunted, none of his problems have disappeared, and he has still chosen to not only put his hope in God, but chooses to praise Him as well.  This song gives us the freedom to bring the "what" that is going on for us, and the "how it feels", how it impacts us part to God. To church. To those we trust.  To be real. The writer encourages us to ride the roller coaster and choose to praise God anyway

Why, my soul,  are you so dejected?  Why are you in such turmoil?  Put your hope in God,  for I will still praise him, my Savior and my God.  I am deeply depressed; therefore I remember you from the land of Jordan and the peaks of Hermon, from Mount Mizar.  Deep calls to deep in the roar of your waterfalls; Psalms 42:5-7 CSB The psalmist is giving us a glimpse here of his self-talk! In his seriously down mood, he tells himself some truth.  Reminds himself of where his hope lies, even though he can't feel it or maybe doesn't even believe it right now.  He acknowledges what's going on for him, and reminds himself of the truth.  We can follow that pattern too.  Acknowledge what's going on. Remind ourselves of what is true.  If we can't figure out what's true, find a trusted person who can help with that. Go to your favourite scripture. Remind ourselves of what is true even when it's hard to believe. You are beloved.  And then there's this wonderful phrase:

Sunday Psalms; As a deer longs for flowing streams,  so I long for you,  God.  I thirst for God,  the living God.  When can I come and appear before God?  My tears  have been my food  day and night,  while all day long  people say to me,  "Where is your God?" Psalms 42:1-3 CSB In a culture where material blessing in life was linked to God's blessing the writer of this song is not feeling anything good.  Grief is overwhelming.  Normal life has stopped. There's nothing but tears all the time.  While we may not get people knocking on our door saying "where is your God?", we may well ask ourselves that.  Even though we may not hold to a prosperity belief, when someone declares "God has blessed me with X" and I don't have X then the doubt comes in, where is my God? Am I not worth blessing?  If you've ever lived on a diet of tears, then this Psalm may be a place to sit for a while.  It's OK to cry.  It's OK to cry knowing that those aroun

"Happy are you when people insult you and harass you and speak all kinds of bad and false things about you, all because of me. Be full of joy and be glad, because you have a great reward in heaven. In the same way, people harassed the prophets who came before you." Matthew 5:11-12 CEB This is not about being happy about being insulted or harrassed or being lied about.  It's about being aligned with Jesus.  Why would those things happen "all because of me", all because of Jesus? It probably won't be because you are kind, patient, caring, see others as image bearers of God. It will be when our world, our culture, our community requires allegiance to someone or something other than Jesus.  It will be when faith in Jesus is ridiculed, and that then includes us.  It will be when someone with power (a teacher, a boss, someone with influence in your world) takes a dislike to you because you follow Jesus.  It will be when truth claims collide.  Jesus is giving us a

Friday! Proverbs! Don't desert your friend or a friend of your family; don't go to your relatives house when disaster strikes. Better a neighbor nearby than a relative far away. Proverbs 27:10 CEB Mmm interesting to read this in a world without air travel, without cars, where walking was the most available transport.  A world where there was no internet, no ability to phone or connect with people who weren't your neighbour.  20 years ago we lived in the highlands of PNG and that was most people's experience. So when disaster strikes, a flood, a drought, an accident, a death, no water, no food, an earthquake, illness...it's the people closest to you that count.  The recent floods in Hawkes Bay took away transport and communication options in that region. This proverb is about not abandoning those who you live with, work with, do life with, in favour of a relative who you may have little to do with.  Our relational ties with people are important.  It's who is clos

When I came to Troas to preach the gospel of Christ, even though the Lord opened a door for me, I had no rest in my spirit because I did not find my brother Titus. Instead, I said good-bye to them and left for Macedonia. 2 Corinthians 2:12-13 CSB People are important. When your spirit is stirred up about someone, when you're anxious about someone, do what Paul did and go find them, call them, message them, check in on them.  Even though the door was open here for Paul in his ministry, connecting with Titus was more important. People matter.  Who is on your heart today? #corinthians #lovepeople

Blessed are the peacemakers,  for they  will be called  children of God. Matthew 5:9 NIV Do you find it easy to be the opposite to being a peacemaker? I do. It's easier to cause strife.  It's easier to stir up trouble. It's easier to take the opposite side (sometimes just to be annoying). It's easier to look for the negative, focus on differences. But Jesus says your blessed of you're a peacemaker.  When you are part of the solution, when you value peace.  The first place I go with peacemaking is when two people are in conflict and the one who brings peace between others is blessed.  But what if I'm the one in conflict? I'm one half? Then this call of Jesus is to do what I can to bring peace.  I wonder though if Jesus wants us to consider the things inside us that are the opposite of peace; Anxiety, worry. Sadness. Anger. The peacemaker has to go behind those things to make peace in our hearts and minds.  Making peace in there, now that's a mission. #wor

I call God as my witness that it was in order to spare you that I did not return to Corinth. Not that we Lord it over your faith, but we are fellow workers with you for your joy, because it is by faith that you stand firm. 2 Corinthians 1:23-24 BSB Something has been going on with the church in Corinth. The next chapter Paul and Timothy go on about the pain caused.  This little moment in the letter says that the guys wanted to come to Corinth and tell them "what for", to straighten them up, sort them out, put them in their place.  But they didn't. Becuase we have to listen to one another.  Paul and Timothy teach us here to find what we can agree on, what we do hold in common, let's start there.  They acknowledge the faith of the people in Corinth.  And they choose to hold back the use of their authority (& by writing there may be some acknowledgement that at this moment it was wiser to write than turn up in person). This week I was schooled in this: my response to

Blessed are the pure in heart,  for they will see God. Matthew 5:8 BSB When first hearing this my guess is the disciples of Jesus and the crowd listening were thinking of ritual purity, of being made pure by their actions or the actions of a priest, the sacrifice of something.  I wonder what they would've made of "then they will see God". Would they have thought about the pillars of fire and smoke that led their people in the exodus, or the burning bush that Moses experienced? I wonder if Jesus is setting the scene here for all kinds of new things, that this pure clean heart that nothing ugly or contaminated sticks to, gets that way through Jesus, and that there are new ways of seeing God that will open up.  Creation. Design. The touch of a friend. A smile. A song. Communion with God's Spirit within... Change is here, it's right in front of you, God himself embodied and just like you... Change is here.  And He reminds us that His actions and His choices make the

Sunday Psalms week 41: Blessed is the one who cares for the poor; the Lord will deliver him in the day of trouble.  This song is a lot like a country & western song, or a Bob Dylan song that tells a story, a story that starts with something that sounds like Jesus at the sermon on the mount, David is setting up his story by placing himself as someone who cares for the poor, and in need of deliverance.  I said,  "O Lord, be gracious to me; heal me, for I have sinned against You." He then confesses his sin. Even my close friend whom I trusted, the one who shared my bread, has lifted up his heel against me.  The middle part of the song is about the betrayal of others. Betrayal can only come from a friend, a family member.  And it hurts.  But You, O Lord, be gracious to me and raise me up, that I may repay them.  Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, from everlasting to everlasting.  Amen and Amen. Psalms 41:1, 4, 9-10, 13 BSB And he ends the song with three things: He wants

Tim Keller has been quoted here several times and it seems that he died last night at 72 from pancreatic cancer, so here are a few quotes from him to ponder today: The central basis of Christian assurance is not how much our hearts are set on God, but how unshakably his heart is set on us. If Jesus rose from the dead, then you have to accept all that he said. If he didn't, then why worry about any of what he said?  The issue on which everything hangs is not whether you like his teaching, but whether he rose from the dead. Describe the God you've rejected. Describe the God you don't believe in. Maybe I don't believe that God either. The only person who dares wake up a king at 3:00 a.m. for a glass of water is a child. We have that kind of access. If the suffering Jesus endured did not make him give up on us, nothing will. To be loved but not known is superficial.  To be known but not loved is our nightmare. Only Jesus knows us to the bottom and loves us to the sky. #youa

Friday! Proverbs! Oil and incense bring joy to the heart,  and the sweetness of a friend is counsel to the soul. Proverbs 27:9 BSB My guess is that the oil and incense are emblems of worship, the elements that remind the writer of who God is, elements of the temple.  These things speak to him.  It's good to have those things, and allow them to speak. What are those emblems for you? In the same way, is a friend.  When you think of your friend, how does their friendship speak to your soul? What does their friendship say to you? Say about you? In this busy world our souls need counsel, need the sweetness of friendship, and this busy world's people need our friendship. May your heart today be blessed by a friend, and the reminder of the elements that you are our God's beloved. #proverbs #wisdom #somethingtochewon #youarebeloved

It is God who enables us, along with you, to stand firm for Christ. He has commissioned us, and he has identified us as his own by placing the Holy Spirit in our hearts as the first installment that guarantees everything he has promised us. 2 Corinthians 1:21-22 NLT The first instalment. There's more, much more. How many more instalments are there? The idea here is that there's more. Our communion with God now is only at the first installment stage.  If we compared it to building a house, we've just brought the section covered with weeds and can't even see what the house will look like. But God does - He holds it all in his imagination. The Spirit we experience now is a first installment. There's more. Much more. #corinthians #youareBeloved #thebestisyettocome

Our letters have been straightforward, and there is nothing written between the lines and nothing you can't understand.  I hope someday you will fully understand us, even if you don't understand us now. Then on the day when the Lord Jesus returns, you will be proud of us in the same way we are proud of you. 2 Corinthians 1:13-14 NLT What an interesting insight into Paul and Timothy.  And us.  Even when we think we're being straightforward and easily understood, things we say and write are not always as clear to others as we hope or intend.  And Paul and Timothy just want to be accepted.  Just like us.  I've been challenged lately that my finely tuned and well practiced ability to judge others and to pin labels or pigeon hole them quickly is not very helpful.  It's not helpful in understanding people or hearing their story when I've already made judgements about them.  And it doesn't help anyone feel accepted.  Paul and Timothy are proud of the people they&#

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!" 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 40:16-17 NLT At the end of Ps 39 David tells God just to turn away from him, here in 40 he ends with "keep me in your thoughts".  Something has shifted.  His problems don't seem to have just gone away, he's still "poor and needy", but it seems in his trouble he has been seeking God, looking for Him in his trouble. And found Him there.  The invitation is for us to do the same, to seek God in our trouble.  To acknowledge who He is even in this.  To want things to change.  David ends Ps40 with this little phrase "do not delay": what do you think he means? There's more to fix - come and fix it? There's more to change in me, keep working in me? There

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.  ... I take joy in doing your will, my God, for your instructions are written on my heart. Psalms 40:6, 8 NLT In the middle of David's song we see that he has figured out or had some revelation that it's not about the externals, about how we look or what we bring to God or do for Him on the outside, even tho they're good things, it's our hearts that God is after. Our rituals, like going to church, can be helpful in bringing us closer to God, giving us info about God, can even be honouring of God, but what He wants is our hearts.  Our heart in communion with His.  The "have to's" and the "shoulds" can stop, and we can listen to God's heartbeat of love and grace.  Then the good things take on new meaning.  #psalms #psalm40 #itsaheartthing   

I waited patiently  for the Lord  to help me,  and  he turned to me  and heard my cry.  He lifted me  out of the pit  of despair,  out of the mud  and the mire.  He set my feet  on solid ground  and  steadied me  as I walked along.  He  has given me  a new song to sing... Psalms 40:1-3 NLT Psalm 39 is one of only two psalms that don't end well. 39 ends with the psalmist just wanting God to leave him alone. Not sure how long the sing writer is in that space.   Just assuming that 40 is the next one, something has shifted. Sometime between the end of 39 and the beginning of 40 David feels heard, he's no longer walking in mud, and the songs that had been going around in his mind have been replaced with something new.  As Jazz Thornton reminds us: Hope is real.  Change is possible.  Perhaps this has been your experience, that hope has arisen again, that new song has started to form, and if that's the case keep building on it, keep holding space, holding hope for those who are ye

Like a bird wandering from its nest, so is one who wanders from home. Proverbs 27:8 CEB In Luke's gospel Ch15 Jesus shares several stories of wandering off, of being lost, of being searched for, being found, and being welcomed home.  The gospel, the good news of God's redemptive story, is not one of rejection, of closed doors, of "not good enough" or "why didn't you", or "what were you thinking wandering off from your place of belonging?" The gospel is full of grace.  Come as you are.  If you've wandered off, head back. The reality is that we all have wandered off in some way.  Jesus stories talk of seeking the lost, celebrating the found, and welcoming the one who has wandered off.  That's grace. Supernatural grace. #proverbs #wisdom #comeasyouare

Friday! Proverbs! Like a bird wandering from its nest,  so is one who wanders from home. Proverbs 27:8 CEB Mmm is this a good thing that the bird is exploring the world and finding its own place? Is it that the world away from the nest is dangerous and staying close to home keeps it safe? Does "home" in the ancient world mean the same thing as the flat that you share, or the house you moved into last month? What if the word translated "home" here was the Hebrew word "maqom" which means "place", "standing place". Like a bird wandering from its nest,  so is one who wanders from their place.  (The NKJV uses "place") It's more like a belonging,  A place to stand. A place where I fit. A turangawaewae.  We all need that place of belonging, and the land, the space can be important, but if there was no one there, or the people I belong to aren't there, then it's not the same.  We all need to belong somewhere. We all need a

Indeed, we felt that we had received the sentence of death, so that we would not trust in ourselves but in God who raises the dead.  He has delivered us from such a terrible death, and he will deliver us.  We have put our hope in him that he will deliver us again while you join in helping us by your prayers. Then many will give thanks on our behalf for the gift that came to us through the prayers of many. 2 Corinthians 1:9-11 CSB Following on from the despair and overwhelm of yesterday is the Truth that Paul holds on to: There will be a resurrection, and that's all God's doing.  God has saved him. And at the same time God is still saving him (we are both saved and being saved in some way, delivered and being delivered) And his community is all part of it. We're in this together and Paul seems to be saying that his "deliverance" by God is in part happening thru those in his life.  This is the church, how it should be, in all our not being OKness, holding together i

We don't want you to be unaware, brothers and sisters, of our affliction that took place in Asia. We were completely overwhelmed - beyond our strength - so that we even despaired of life itself. 2 Corinthians 1:8 CSB Ever felt this way? Great if you haven't, but many people have experienced this, people in your church, workplace, sports team, school, uni, perhaps even in the place that you live. Afflicted. Completely overwhelmed. Beyond our strength. In despair. When life seemed too much to bear.  If you've ever felt like this, then you're in good company right here with Paul. He wasn't ashamed of how he felt, he states it as it was. And in that is a model for us too...there's no shame in feeling this way; Afflicted. Completely overwhelmed. Beyond our strength. In despair. When life seemed too much to bear.  State it how it is to someone you trust, do what Paul did and write it down. Our culture, often our church culture too, tells us we have to put on a brave f

Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy. Matthew 5:7 NIV Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy. I wonder if this is a call on living, the values that we live by will bless us in some way. If we choose to be merciful, we will receive it somehow.  There's always the mystery of how - and sitting with this today Jesus was all about the heart, and perhaps this means that as we choose to be merciful (does that start with small things?), we will experience mercy in some way, in our heart, our spirit. These words of Jesus are to get us thinking, to slow down, to take a moment, to consider the meaning He might have for us... Is there some small way that I can be merciful today? Can I, do I need to be, merciful to me, towards me?  Do you? Blaming ourselves for things that are not our fault, that we never wanted or asked for yet carry the weight of, the shame of, an act of mercy is to release ourselves from those things.  Blessed are the merciful. For they will

Hear my prayer,  LORD!  Listen closely  to my cry for help!  Please  don't  ignore  my  tears!  I'm just a foreigner - an immigrant staying with you,  just like  all my ancestors were. Psalms 39:12 CEB The psalmist is writing on a page blotched with his own tears. And in that moment feels unheard. Out of place. Not belonging. The Psalms are a wonderful place to find our emotions already expressed. If this resonates with you in some way today then know that your heart is found here in the Bible.  Jesus came to bind up the broken hearted, to welcome in the rejected, the unacceptable, to capture our tears, and one day, to make all things new, unhurt all the hurt, ungrief all the grief, and in the meantime walks with us in the valley, in the shadow. Some of the pages we write on are blotched with tears.  And that's OK. Maybe today someone you know needs to hear from you, that their tears are not ignored. Who comes to mind? #monday #Godsgym #psalms #psalm39 #tearsareOK

Sunday Psalms: We are merely moving shadows,  and all our busy rushing ends in nothing.  We heap up wealth,  not knowing who will spend it.  And so,  Lord,  where do I put my hope? My only hope is in you. Psalms 39:6-7NLT Part of the opening of the coronation ceremony last night: Samuel Strachan, a Chapel Royal chorister, addresses the King: Your Majesty, as children of the kingdom of God we welcome you in the name of the King of kings. The King replies: In his name and after his example I come not to be served but to serve. We saw on display symbols of wealth and power and the might of the church and the state, and yet in all of that, in all of the ceremony there was this underlying gospel theme that was spoken. There were words of whose kingdom this ultimately is, and where our hope really does lie, words of following the Servant King, Jesus.  This morning, rather than wondering how King Charles will live out his oath to serve others, I'm wondering how well I'm doing that.  M

God blesses those who hunger and thirst for justice, for they will be satisfied. Matthew 5:6 NLT To be hungry is to be in need.  To be thirsty is to be in need.  Or it can mean we really want something. What is the object of this want or need? "dikaiosuné" is the word that the NLT translates as justice, some others use the word righteousness, as in being right before God.  Maybe it depends on what's going on for us as to how we see this, do I need to be right with God, or do I need justice? I'm wondering that as it's Jesus speaking, that if you need to be made right with God, and/or you are really wanting justice, then you'll find that right here.  In me.  It's Jesus that makes us right before God. Sometimes I like to think if I do enough good that helps (& in some sense maybe it does, but not all my good stuff without Jesus).  It's Jesus who creates the space for justice now (if we as communities step into it) and will ultimately make all things &

Friday! Proverbs! A person who is full loathes a honeycomb; but to the hungry, any bitter thing is sweet. Mishlei (Pro) 27:7 CJB This got me thinking about what I miss because I'm "full".  What don't I "get" about another person's life because mine is so different? And of all the things I take for granted as "normal".  In 2002 we lived in a house with no running water to the shower. There's a bucket with a shower rose on the bottom connected to a pulley that was filled in the kitchen with warm water and carried back and connected up to the pulley and that was the shower.  I wouldn't consider living with that in NZ.  And yet at the same time, just 200 metres away, there was a whole community of people who had no tap in their house at all, and no warm water.  In 2004 we lived in a house with a "proper" shower.  I wonder, looking back, if I thought I deserved it. That somehow I was a "better" person becuase I didn't

He's the one who comforts us in all our trouble so that we can comfort other people who are in every kind of trouble. We offer the same comfort that we ourselves received from God. 2 Corinthians 1:4 CEB If we take David's Psalm 23 as a guide for how this works: The Lord is my shepherd, I have everything I need. We can check in, and where we can, meet the needs of others. He leads me beside quiet waters We can be a place of peace, take someone for a walk beside the water somewhere, the beach, the river.  You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies In the midst of the "trouble" we can feed people, drop a meal around, get coffee together. Even when I go through the darkest valley,  I fear no danger,  for you are with me. We can be with people in the valley. Sit quietly. Listen. Walk together. And as we do the fears can start to subside... This is good and holy work.  Both Paul and David echo Jesus when he said "in this world you will have trouble,&qu

May the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ be blessed! He is the compassionate Father and God of all comfort. 2 Corinthians 1:3 CEB This passage can be a tough read when we're going through a difficult time. We want to hold this as true, but at the same time there's the struggle, hurt, suffering, grief, loss... Paul was not immune to suffering and yet this is where he starts: With God.  Who He is.  Even when we can't see it, feel it or experience it our God is compassionate.  He is the God of all comfort.  This truth connects us and our story to the Big Story of God and people, creation, redemption, and one day, the restoration of all things.  This truth lets us into the underlying reality that something else is going on, and in that there is hope.  We are not hopeless.  #corinthians #youareBeloved #wearenothopeless #Heiscompassion

From Paul,  an apostle of Christ Jesus by God's will, and Timothy our brother.  To God's church that is in Corinth, along with all of God's people throughout Achaia.  Grace to you  and peace  from God our Father  and from our Lord Jesus Christ. 2 Corinthians 1:1-2 CEB Have you ever wondered who all those people are that Paul is writing to? The church in Corinth. All God's people in Achaia. Their stories of how they became followers of Jesus, what they looked like, what their day-to-day life was like.  What their hopes were.  Paul's greeting to them echoes down the centuries to us today: Grace to you.  Grace to you right where you are today.  Grace to you in the things that burden you. Grace to you in your hopes for what is next. Grace to you in the inmost part of who you are.  Grace to you in the community, the whanau in which you live  And peace Peace from our heavenly Father and from Jesus himself. May that peace be yours today  #greetings #blessings #gracetoyou #

How blessed are the meek!  for they will inherit the Land! Mattityahu (Mat) 5:5 CJB My dictionary says this about the word "praus", translated as "meek"; This difficult-to-translate root (pra-) means more than "meek". Biblical meekness is not weakness but rather refers to exercising Gods strength under His control - i.e. demonstrating power without undue harshness. [The English term meek often lacks this blend i.e. of gentleness (reserve) and strength.] Gentleness is having power but holding it back, choosing not to use it (& this applies to our words as well as our actions). Some Bible versions use humble, not sure why they don't use gentle.  So maybe this verse is "Blessed are those who are gentle for they will inherit the land". The land. The Bible story started on the land, God's people were heading towards the promised land, and here Jesus is saying something about the land.  In our modern world we tend to move a lot, concrete o