What is His Name?

When Abram was 99 years old, the LORD appeared to him, saying, "I am God Almighty. Live in My presence and be blameless." (Gen. 17:1)(NLT)

"When I come unto the children of Israel," Moses said, "and shall say unto them, The God of your fathers hath sent me unto you; and they shall say to me, What is his name? what shall I say unto them?" (Ex. 3:13). Yes, what shall he say? If the "heaven of heavens cannot contain God," how then can one name describe Him?

The fact is, no one name fully describes or defines our great God. The names of God are self-revealed; they were not assigned to Him by man. Far-reaching revelation is involved, therefore, in the names of God as they are progressively indicated to us in His Word. The revelation of each name is announced in relation to some new experience of man, some critical need through which he is passing, or some enlarged capacity which has been attained. Each name discloses a fresh and fuller quality of God's character and greatness:

Elohim (Gen. 1:1), with the English translation, "God," occurs about 2,500 times in the O.T., and means "the Strong One."

Jehovah (Gen. 2:4), English "LORD," means the self-existent One, the eternal "I AM."

Jehovah Elohim (Gen. 3:1-5), "LORD God" in the English, occurs about 7,500 times in the O.T., and has in it the idea that "He causes to become." It suggests His gracious covenant-keeping quality.

El Elyon (Gen. 14:22), English "most high God," means the actual "possessor of heaven and earth," and was so revealed to Abram in a critical hour, as the supreme giver of good and perfect gifts.

Adonai (Gen. 15:2), English "Lord," small letters, only the first is capital. It speaks of God as the supreme Master, who is entitled to our fullest allegiance.

El Shaddai (Gen. 17:1), English "Almighty God," indicates "The God who is enough," the God who is able to meet every emergency, every peculiar need that you and I may have even today.

Jehovah-Jireh (Gen.22:14), which has the significant meaning, "The LORD will see to it," or "The LORD will provide." In Abraham's experience it was the "ram caught in a thicket," the substitute which God provided.

"His name alone is excellent" (Psalm 148:13)

(this meditation by Dr. N. A. Woychuk)

What A Holy God

Isaiah 6:1-3---In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord seated on a throne, high and exalted, and the train of his robe filled the temple. Above him were seraphs, each with six wings: With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they were flying. And they were calling to one another: "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory." (NIV)
                                  I Peter 1:16---for it is written: "Be holy, because I am holy." (NIV)

 I've often wondered how we would respond or react if we could get a glimpse of the Lord like  Isaiah did. When we realize just how holy He is, and how unholy we are, would we fall on our  face and cry out to the Lord like Isaiah, or would we turn away from the Lord in disdain? Would  we volunteer for the mission God had for us, or would we walk away with indifference in our  heart?

 So many people have no reverence or fear of the Lord. They don't regard Him as holy, or in any  case, you sure don't see any evidence that they do by the way that they live their lives. Many  don't feel that they need a relationship with God. They don't particularly worry about the  afterlife because they think that they are pretty good people. Some have been mislead by the  erroneous concept that their good deeds are going to be weighed against their bad deeds, and if  the good outweighs the bad, then they will be able to go to heaven. They compare themselves to  others, and say "Hey, I'm not a rapist or a killer or anything, so I'm a pretty good person. I'm a  much nicer and better person than a lot of people I've seen, so I think I'll be okay. I'll take my  chances when it comes to what's after this life, because God knows that I'm not nearly as bad as  others."

 They forget that Jesus said that the man who looks at a woman with lust is the same as an  adulterer, and that the one who hates his brother is the same as a murderer. They have no  understanding of how holy God is. They don't grasp the idea that if God is perfect in  holiness(which He is), then we can't come into His presence because of our sinful nature. The  best we could ever hope to do falls way short of the mark. In fact, God's Word states that "even  our righteousness is like filthy rags" (Isa. 64:6) when we compare it to how pure and holy God is.  We can never be good enough, or do enough good things in this lifetime to earn or work our way  into heaven. Unfortunately there are many mislead cults that strive to do just that. They think  that if they give a certain number of years of their life to witnessing or teaching or helping the  poor, etc., that they will be able to earn what God has already provided through the only means  possible: the sacrifice of His only Son--Jesus. Jesus was the only perfect man Who ever lived. He 

 is the only One Who can give us hope of an eternity in heaven because He alone lived a truly holy  life. No one else who has ever lived on this earth was without sin. Jesus alone met that mark set  by our Father in heaven. Only by Jesus taking the penalty for our sins, could we ever hope to be  reconciled with a holy God.

  Let's see some of the scripture references to how holy God is from the New Living Translation    (NLT):

• Ps. 77:13--O God, your ways are holy
• Ps. 99:3--Your name is holy!
• Ps. 99:9--for the Lord our God is holy!
• Ps. 111:9--What a holy, awe-sinpiring name he has!
• Isa. 57:15--The high and lofty one who inhabits eternity, the Holy One
• Lev. 11:44--You must be holy because I am holy
• 1 Sam. 2:2--No one is holy like the Lord!
• Isa. 40:25--"To whom will you compare me? Who is my equal?" asks the Holy One
• 1 Pet. 1:15--just as God-who chose you to be his children-is holy

  There are also verses in the (NLT) which mention God's holiness:

• Ex. 15:11--Who is glorious in holiness like you
• Ps. 29:2--Worship the Lord in the splendor of his holiness
• Ps. 96:9--Worship the Lord in all his holy splendor
• Isa. 5:16--The holiness of God is displayed by his righteousness
• Ez. 28:25--I will reveal to the nations of the world my holiness among my people
• Heb. 12:10--we will share in his holiness

 As Christians, we are called to be holy and to live a life of holiness which sets us apart from the  world. We are referred to as a peculiar people, a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation.  (1 Pet. 2:9)We are to be a reflection of the goodness and purity of God. Here's some scriptures  from the (NIV) that testify to that fact:

• Ex. 19:6--holy nation
• Ex. 20:8--Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy
• Lev. 20:7--Consecrate yourselves and be holy
• Lev. 20:26--You are to be holy to me
• Rom. 12:1--holy and pleasing to God
• Eph. 5:3--improper for God's holy people
• 2 Thess. 1:10--to be glorified in his holy people
• 2 Tim. 1:9--saved us and called us to a holy life
• Titus 1:8--upright, holy and disciplined
• 2 Pet. 3:11--holy and godly lives
• Rom. 6:9--righteousness leading to holiness
• 2 Cor. 7:1--perfecting holiness out of reverence
• Eph. 4:24--God in true righteousness and holiness

 Let's think of that vision of Isaiah's as we consider God's holiness. Isaiah said, "I saw the Lord  seated on a high and lofty throne, and His robe filled the temple." (Isa. 6:1)(HCSB) God is high  and lifted up. He is holy and pure and true; before Him we are like nothing. Isaiah realized that  when He said in Isa. 6:5--"Woe is me, for I am ruined, because I am a man of unclean lips and  live among a people of unclean lips, and because my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of  Hosts." God is holy and His thoughts and ways are much higher than ours. "For as heaven is  higher than earth, so My ways are higher than your ways, and My thoughts than your thoughts."  (Isa. 55:9)(HCSB) 

 When we come to the place in our walk with God that we truly understand in our limited  capacity(with just a glimpse of His true perfection) how holy He really is, we should have a  response similar to Isaiah's. We should get an increased and better perception of how utterly  lowly and unrighteous we are in comparison to His perfect holiness. And then we should want to  live a life that reflects those higher qualities of our Lord. We need to be careful to watch what  we see and hear and say. We should live to a higher standard, shunning the wicked things that  this world promotes, craves and seeks. We can only do that through the power of the Holy Spirit  living in and through us. Remember that we are wearing His name, so let's strive with all we  have to be holy, for ... HE IS HOLY!

 Singing His Praises,
 Joey C.

The All-Knowing, Ever-Present God

Ps. 139:1---Lord, You have searched me and known me.
Ps. 139:7---Where can I go to escape Your Spirit? Where can I flee from Your presence? (HCSB)


 Omnipotent----Omnipresent----Omniscient
 Three strange-looking words that describe our Almighty God. Webster's Dictionary defines these  words like this:

 Omnipotent: having unlimited or absolute power or authority
 Omnipresent: being present or in existence everywhere at once
 Omniscient: knowing everything

 It's hard for us with our limited understanding to comprehend the total implications of what  these words tell us of the character and attributes of God. I mean just think about it. God has  unlimited power and authority; He is present everywhere at the same time, and He knows  everything there is to know. It's hard to fathom! How can someone know everything and be  everywhere at once? I don't know, but God does---it's easy for Him---it's just the way He is.

 In my Holman Christian Standard Bible the heading under Psalm 139 reads "The All-Knowing,  Ever-Present God." So the psalm is mainly speaking of God's omniscience and His omnipresence,  but it also implies and testifies to His omnipotence. Let's face it-- if God is all-knowing and ever-  present, then He has got to be a supreme being of the utmost power.

 Let's see what Psalm 139 teaches us regarding God's omniscience and omnipresence:
 vs.1: God knows us and searches our hearts.
 vs. 2: He knows what we do and when we do it. He knows what we're thinking.
 vs. 3: He knows where we go. He is aware of all our ways.
 vs. 4: He knows what we want to say before we say it.
 vs. 5: He encircles us and places His hand on us.
 vs. 7-12: We can't hide from His Spirit or His presence.
 vs. 13-16a: He created us and knew us before birth.
 vs. 16b: He planned all our days before our life began.
 vs. 17-18: His thoughts are great and vast. 


 Wow! God knew us and had our life planned out before we were even born. (v.16) He formed us  and knit us together in our mother's womb. (v.13) That sort of takes the whole idea that the Pro-  Choice movement likes to push on us, (that the fetus is just a lifeless clump of cells), and blows  it right out of the water. God created us and He knows us. He sees what we do and where we go.  (v.2-3) He even knows what we say and think! (v.2 & 4) It kind of reminds me of the old Christmas  song by Gillespie and Coots, "Santa Claus is Comin' To Town". If you recall, the lyrics in the song  say--"He sees you when you're sleeping--He knows when you're awake--He knows if you've been  bad or good so be good for goodness sake." ---The difference here being that we know God is  areal person. He does see us. Even when we try to distance ourselves from God and hide in the  darkness, He is there and He sees. (v.11-12, 16) We can't hide from God. Wherever we run to in  our attempt to flee, God is there waiting for us.

 When I was a teenager I wrote a song based on Psalm 139. It was entitled "You Will See". The  main idea of the lyrics was that no matter what we do or where we go, God sees. And He  cares. He's not an omnipotent God who's just watching and waiting for us to mess up so He can  zap us with a lightning bolt like the Zeus of Greek mythology. Oh, He is a just God, and the evil  will reap what they sow. (Prov. 22:8, Gal. 6:7) But He watches over us with love as a loving  father leading His children. He wants us to follow Him so that He can take care of us and keep us  from harm.

 I'd like to end this blog entry with the prayer which closes Psalm 139. I hope that you'll pray this  prayer as you read the words:


 Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my concerns. See if there is any  offensive way in me; lead me in the everlasting way. (Ps. 139:23-24)(HCSB)

A Godly Person Described

Lord, who can dwell in Your tent? Who can live on Your holy mountain? 
(Ps. 15:1)(HCSB)

This short psalm goes on to answer these two questions by briefly describing a godly person through how they live their life. By what they do and by what they don't do. I strive each and every day to be a godly man and to live my life accordingly. Sometimes I fall short of the mark, but through the power of the Holy Spirit I'm endeavoring to become more like Jesus.

Psalm 4:3 states that the Lord has set apart the godly for Himself. He has set us apart so that we will live differently than the ungodly world around  us, seeking to honor God by pursuing godliness in all we do.

 What kind of life should we live?
 2 Peter 3:11--You ought to live holy and godly lives as you look forward to the day of God and  speed its coming. (NIV)
 Is godliness worth it?1 Timothy 4:8--For physical training is of some value, but godliness has  value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come. (NIV)
 Do I have anything to gain?I Timothy 6:6--But godliness with contentment is great gain. (NIV)

 What should I pursue in my life?1 Timothy 6:11--But you, man of God, flee from all this, and  pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance and gentleness. (NIV)

 Let's take a look back at Psalm 15 to see some practical examples of how we can pursue  godliness. According to verses 2-5, the godly person is one who:

• v.2>lives honestly, practices righteousness and acknowledges the truth in his heart
• v.3>does not slander with his tongue, who does not harm his friend or discredit his neighbor
• v.4>who despises the one rejected by the Lord, but honors those who fear the Lord, who keeps his word whatever the cost
• v.5>who does not lend his money at interest or take a bribe against the innocent

 Verse 5 then closes the Psalm with a promise to us: If we do all these things, we will never be  moved! 
 So let's take this picture of a godly person that King David has painted for us here in Psalm 15 and  put it to good use as a guideline for godly living in our pursuit of godliness!

     Singing His Praises!
     Joey C.

How Can We Know if God is Pleased with our Worship?

 
When you come to appear before me, who has asked this of you, this trampling of my courts? Stop bringing  meaningless offerings! Your incense is detestable to me. New Moons, Sabbaths and convocations--I cannot  bear your evil assemblies. Your New Moon festivals and your appointed feasts my soul hates. They have  become a burden to me; I am weary of bearing them. (Isaiah 1:12-14)(NIV)

 Do we want our worship to be pleasing to God? If so, then we need to ask ourselves every so often a few  questions. Is our worship about us, about what we want, about what we can get out of it or about what we  are giving? Or is it truly about God, about what He wants, about what He has done for us and about giving  Him the praise that He's worthy of?

 The article below is taken from the NIV Quest Study Bible and I hope it will give you some new insight  into  what worship should and shouldn't be:

 The temple in Isaiah's day had ample space around the altar of burnt offering for one to observe another's  spirituality. Even the presiding priests might be impressed by the sacrifice of a large, costly animal.

 Prophets such as Isaiah were aghast at such showy displays of worship. At times, God swiftly punished  prideful, self-centered worship. For example, when King Uzziah tried to offer incense in the temple and lost  his temper when priests tried to stop him (Israel was not to have priest-kings like its idolatrous neighbors),  God afflicted him with leprosy.

 True worship isn't showy. It does not call attention to or glorify the worshiper; it honors only God. It is not a  mindless formality, either. It is an affair of the heart, characterized by the conviction of the Holy Spirit (Jn.  14:6), fervent prayer (Jms. 5:16) and open-hearted reading of God's Word (2 Tim. 3:16-17). God shows he is  pleased with such worship by being present with us.

A Prayer for Love of God

Lord, give us hearts never to forget your love; but to remain there whatever we do, whether we sleep or wake, live or die, or rise again to the life that is to come. For your love is eternal life and everlasting rest; for this is life eternal to know you and your infinite goodness. O let its flame never be quenched in our hearts; let it grow and brighten, till our whole souls are glowing and shining with its light and warmth.

--Johann Arndt

Praise to a Compassionate God

Hallelujah! My soul, praise the Lord. I will praise the Lord all my life;

 I will sing to the Lord as long as I live. (Psalm 146:1-2)(HCSB) 
Compassionate. Could that word be used to accurately describe you or the way you act towards others? What does it really mean anyway? My  dictionary defines "compassionate" as: having or displaying compassion. So, what's compassion?  "Compassion" is defined as: sympathetic concern for the suffering of another, together with the  inclination to give aid or support or to show mercy. I'm not sure that I could truthfully say that  I'm always very compassionate. In fact, I'll just be honest and admit that I know I'm not as  compassionate as I should be most of the time. But I do know one person who is: God. And He is  actually three Persons in One: The Father, The Son and The Holy Spirit---all of whom are loving  and compassionate. 

You know, Psalm 146 gives us some examples of God's compassion, but the Bible records evidence of His great compassion towards us throughout the Old and New Testament. We can see it demonstrated time and again in Jesus' ministry in the gospel accounts. He was constantly reaching out to those around Him with compassion, touching and healing those who were shunned and outcasts, loving children who were considered bothersome by others, showing true concern for "sinners" who were ridiculed by the religious elite, cleansing lepers who were defiled in the eyes of society, caring for the poor and the hungry who many simply ignored. Even in the midst of some of the greatest miracles recorded in the Bible, it's clear that Jesus' compassionate heart is what compelled Him to do the impossible. In Matt. 9:35-36 we read, "Then Jesus went to all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the kingdom, and healing every disease and every sickness. When He saw the crowds, He felt compassion for them, because they were weary and worn out, like a sheep without a shepherd." (HCSB) So it's clear that Jesus ministered to the needy out of love and with great compassion. Let's take a quick look back at Psalm 146:6-9 and see some of the ways that our Lord is merciful and compassionate. 

• vs.6--He remains faithful
• vs.7--He executes justice for the exploited, He gives food to the hungry, He frees prisoners
• vs.8--He opens the eyes of the blind, He raises up those who are oppressed, He loves the righteous
• vs.9--He protects foreigners, He helps orphans and widows, He frustrates the ways of the wicked

Here are some other scriptures to note which proclaim God's great compassion: Ex. 22:27, 33:19, Dt. 4:31, 32:36, Neh. 9:17,19, Ps. 51:1, 103:8, 145:8, Joel 2:13, Jonah 4:2, Rm. 9:15, James 5:11 And one of my favorites, revealing God as our loving, Heavenly Father, is Psalm 103:13--"As a father has compassion on his children, so the Lord has compassion on those who fear Him." (HCSB) 
With a merciful God like ours, who is "gracious and compassionate, slow to anger, rich in faithful love" (Joel 2:13), it's easy to echo the psalmist and say: I will praise the Lord all my life; I will sing to the Lord as long as I live. (Psalm 146:2)(HCSB) 

Longing for God

As a deer longs for streams of water, so I long for You, God. I thirst for God, the living God. When can I come and appear before God? (Ps. 42:1-2)(HCSB)

Have you ever been thirsty? I mean really thirsty, like you feel as if you  might keel over at any moment if you don't get a nice, long, cool drink of water? I've never been  marooned in a remote desert without water or come even remotely close to dying of thirst, but  there have been some times when I felt like that was the case. When I was just a wee lad (that's  when I was a young boy), I loved playing baseball. I remember many times playing ball in the  heat of summer with the sun beating down, how I would finish up an extremely long afternoon of  practice (say maybe all of a couple of hours), and then hurry to the water cooler for a big drink.  Man, water never tasted so good! It's funny how I would normally shun water for some Kool-Aid  or a Dr. Pepper, but when I was really thirsty nothing could hit the spot like water. Well, okay,  maybe Gatorade did. But the point is, when we're really thirsty, we've got to have a drink. And  we will go searching for that refreshing liquid in order to satisfy our thirst.

 You know, God wants us to thirst for Him like that. He wants us to have a continuing longing in  our soul that only He will satisfy as a cool drink quenches our dry, parched throats. Usually when  I read Psalm 42:1-2 I think of the popular worship song, "As the Deer", by Martin Nystrom. Let's  look at the opening lyrics to the song which is inspired by the scripture verses above:

As the deer panteth for the water
so my soul longeth after Thee
You alone are my heart's desire
and I long to worship Thee

 You alone are my heart's desire....Is your heart desiring God alone? Is your soul longing for the  Lord, yearning to spend more time in His Word? Are you thirsting for a deeper walk with God and  a more meaningful worship experience with Him? If you are, Jesus wants to quench that thirst  for you. Look at these scriptures that point us at God's desire to satisfy our thirst:

 Isa. 55:11--Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters...(NIV) 
 Jn. 4:14--(Jesus speaking) But whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the  water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life. (NIV) 
 Jn. 7:37-38--(Jesus speaking) If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. Whoever  believes in me, as the scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him.  (NIV)

 So we know that God doesn't want us to remain thirsty, but He wants to satisfy our thirst. In  fact, He says He will give us "living water" (Jn. 4:10). We need to continually thirst for the living  God as the psalmist proclaims in Ps. 42:1-2 in the sense that we have an ongoing, ever-growing  yearning and desire for fellowship with Him. And as the deer longs for a cool drink of water,  we're always to be in search of those refreshing times of prayer, the study of His Word, and  those moments in worship of the One who sits on the throne and gives us living water whereby  we'll never thirst again. (Jn. 4:14 & Rev. 7:15-17)

 Singing His Praises,
 Joey C.

The Lord Reigns

The Lord reigns, he is robed in majesty; the Lord is robed in majesty and is armed with strength. (Ps. 93:1)(NIV) 


Our God reigns. He is the Sovereign Lord of all! And yet, if we're not careful, we can lose sight of that truth when we see the state of the world we live in. When we see the acts of terrorism, the natural disasters, the  economy crisis, the poor and ungodly decisions of our leadership in Washington, the senseless  violence, the attack on our religious liberties, the way our culture continues to paint what's  good and true in an ugly hue so that what's evil and sinful is seen as the "norm", then we have a  tendency to forget that God is still on the throne. But He is! In fact, He's not worried one bit  about all those things because He's still got everything well under control. The Word assures us  that our Lord reigns and even tells us how and to what extent He reigns. Here's some scriptures  from the NIV translation which use the word "reign":

• Ex. 15:18-The Lord will reign
• Isa. 9:7-He will reign on David's throne
• Isa. 24:23-For the Lord Almighty will reign
• Jer. 23:5-6-A king who will reign wisely
• Lk. 1:33-He will reign over the house of Jacob
• Rev. 11:15-He will reign for ever and ever
• Rev. 22:5-And they will reign for ever and ever

 Here's a few passages that use the word "reigns":

• Ps. 9:7-The Lord reigns forever
• Ps. 47:8-God reigns over the nations
• Ps. 96:10-Say among the nations, "The Lord reigns"
• Ps. 97:1-The Lord reigns, let the earth be glad
• Ps. 99:1-The Lord reigns, let the nations tremble
• Ps. 146:10-The Lord reigns forever
• Isa. 52:7-"Your God reigns!"
• Rev. 19:6-For our Lord God Almighty reigns

 There's no doubt in my mind that the Lord still reigns! The only real question is --"Does He reign  over your heart?" Oh, He still reigns over all the universe, and He's still Lord of all, and He's still  in control. But is He in control of your life? Have you given it over to Him? You see, although God  is all-powerful and all-mighty and has the authority and power to speak the cosmos into  existence, He's not going to force you to relinquish the throne of your heart to Him. He cares  about you and loves you enough that He gave you the freedom to choose to receive Him or not.  Only you can choose to give Jesus His rightful place on the throne of your heart. Only you can  decide whether or not you will allow God to reign in your life as Savior and Lord. And we know,  sadly, that many will not accept Jesus as their personal Lord, (I pray that you're not one of  them) but everyone will one day acknowledge and proclaim the inevitable truth of who He  is. Therefore God exalted Him to the highest place and gave Him the name that is above every  name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the  earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.  (Philippians 2:9-11)(NIV)(also see Romans 14:11 and Isaiah 45:23) For many, it will unfortunately  be too late at that point, because they failed to take self off the throne and give it to God while  they were alive on earth.(please contact me via email if you would like info. on how to put  Jesus on the throne)

 I'm so glad that I know that my God reigns and will reign for ever and ever! (Rev. 11:15)He's the  Sovereign God who made the heavens and the earth (Jer. 32:17), the One Who was and is and is  to come.(Rev. 1:8) And we also have the promise that if we believe in Him and follow after Him,  enduring to the end, that we will reign with Him! (2 Tim. 2:12) Isn't that amazing to think about!  Praise His name--OUR GOD REIGNS! 

2 Ways: The Path of Sin or The Path of Praise

(Psalm 1:1-2)(HCSB) Happy is the man who does not follow the advice of the wicked, or take the path of sinners, or join a group of mockers! Instead, his delight is in the Lord's instruction, and he meditates on it day and night.

 I love reading the Psalms. And each time I start over at Psalm 1, I'm intrigued by the two ways or  paths that the psalmist contrasts. We have the way of the wicked, or the path of sin, and  the way of the righteous, or the path of praise. When we look at the metaphors used to describe  the righteous and the wicked, it always humbles me to realize that I'm counted with the  righteous, not because of anything I've done or anything I am apart from Christ, but only  because of what Christ has done for me and is doing through me. It also inspires me to continue  striving to live the righteous life that God has called me to, realizing that it's only by God's grace  and mercy that I'm not following the way of the wicked today.

 As we can see in verses 1-3, when we forsake the way of the wicked and the path of sin, and  instead turn to the Lord and the path of praise, praising Him by delighting in His Word and  reading it, studying it, meditating on it day and night; God in turn blesses us tremendously. Look  at how verse 3 describes the blessings of the righteous person: He is like a tree planted beside  streams of water that bears its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither. Whatever he  does prospers. (HCSB)
 I love it! God plants us beside streams of water to sustain us so that we won't wither, we bear  fruit when it's time, and everything we do prospers! Wow! The same can't be said for the wicked  however, as we see in the verses to follow:

  (v.4) the wicked are like chaff that's blown away with the wind
  (v.5) the wicked will not survive the judgment 
          sinners will not be in the community of the righteous
  (v.6) the way of the wicked leads to ruin

 I'm glad that the Lord watches over the way of the righteous! (v.6) And I'm happy to realize that  I'm that "happy man" referred to in verse 1 because of what Jesus did for me on the cross. He  made atonement for my sins (and yours) once and for all, so that I don't have to continue  following theway of the wicked. Instead, I can choose to delight in the Lord's instruction and  follow the path of praise! 

How Do We Worship in Spirit and in Truth?

Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth. (John 4:23-24)(NLT)

When we read these words of Jesus which were spoken to the Samaritan woman at the well and recorded for us, the question naturally arises..."So, how do we worship in spirit and in truth?" Take a look at how this question is answered in the Quest Study Bible published by Zondervan.

[Genuine worship involves both fact and faith. Truth means we are to worship the right God---the God revealed in the Bible through Jesus Christ. Spirit means that true worship demands more than just outward motions. It is an inner submission of oneself to God (Romans 12:1).]

So to worship in spirit and in truth, we need to worship from the heart, with all that we are. Jesus called this the first and greatest commandment: Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. (Deut. 6:5)(NLT)

And we need to know and acknowledge Who we are worshiping. We can't know God without a relationship with Jesus Christ, who is the Truth. Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." (John 14:6)(NLT)

A Prayer To Live For God

Govern everything by your wisdom. O Lord, so that my soul may always be serving you in the way you will and not as I choose. Let me die to myself so that I may serve you; let me live to you who are life itself. Amen.

-Saint Teresa of Avila (1515-1582)

Enter His Gates with What?

Shout triumphantly to the Lord, all the earth. Serve the Lord with gladness; come before Him with joyful songs. Acknowledge that the Lord is God. He made us, and we are His--His people, the sheep of His pasture. Enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise. Give thanks to Him and praise His name. For the Lord is good, and His love is eternal; His faithfulness endures through all generations. (Psalm 100)(HCSB)

Have you ever felt that your worship seemed to be blocked somehow? Like you were trying to praise God but there was some kind of barrier up? I know that there have been times when I couldn't seem to sense the Lord's presence as much as at other worship moments. I was reading through Psalm 1oo the other day and it hit me that much of the time we may be struggling with our worship because we're trying to "enter His courts with praise" when we haven't even passed through "His gates" yet.


What do I mean? Look at what verse 4 says again-- Enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise. Many times we may fall short in our worship because we aren't entering in with thanksgiving, with a thankful heart. We're sincerely trying to worship Him and praise Him in His courts, but we can't because we've been held back at the gates due to our lack of thankfulness and thanksgiving! I decided to title this entry "Enter His Gates With What?" because so many times we act like we've never seen that word before. It's as if we say, "Thanksgiving? Isn't that just the holiday on a Thursday in late November? What in the world could the psalmist be talking about?" We have so much to be thankful for, but it seems that our culture has raised us up in such a way that we're never satisfied. We're all looking out for number one, and we don't have time to acknowledge what God has done for us. We need to stop and realize how blessed we are, and take the time to express our thanks to our loving God. Let's take a quick glance at a few scriptures in the (HCSB) translation that speak of thanks and thanksgiving.

• giving thanks always for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ (Eph. 5:20)
• Give thanks to the Lord (1 Chron. 16:8, 34)
• Give thanks to the Lord for He is good. (Psalm 136:1)
• But thanks be to God, who gives us victory through our Lord Jesus Christ! (1 Cor. 15:57)
• Give thanks in everything, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus. (1 Thess. 5:18)
• Let us enter His presence with thanksgiving (Psalm 95:2)
• I will offer You a sacrifice of thanksgiving (Psalm 116:17)
• through prayer and petition with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God (Philippians 4:6)

It's clear that God means for His people to be thankful and to live our lives with thankful hearts. So I want to encourage all of you to clothe yourself with thankfulness and thanksgiving when coming to church or when attending some worship event. Think about the great things that your loving Father God has done for you in your life---like your salvation, forgiveness through the blood of Jesus, adopting you into His royal family, making you heirs with Christ, giving you eternal life, sending the Holy Spirit to guide you and comfort you---and then you can pass through His gates and truly enter into His courts and praise Him! 

Joey C.

A Prayer for Holy Living

Help me, Lord, to remember that religion is not to be confined to the church or the closet nor exercised only in prayer and meditation, but that everywhere I am in your presence. So may my every word and action have a moral content. Amen.

--Susanna Wesley (1669-1742)

Praise God for His Word---Read it---then Do what it says!

Your word, O Lord, is eternal; it stands firm in the heavens. (Psalm 119:89)(NIV)

Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path. (Psalm 119:105)(NIV)

The Word of God, the Bible is eternal. It was there in the beginning (Jn. 1:1), and it will stand forever (1 Pet. 1:25). As a nation, we are blessed beyond measure, like never before in the history of man, to have such complete access to the Word of God. We have many different translations to make it easier to read and understand. We have countless types of study Bibles, recordings of the Bible, electronic Bibles, on-line Bibles, and endless commentaries and study materials to help us in our learning. We have stores all over town that sell the Bible, and most of us have two or more copies in our homes. But how often do we pick it up? Once a week, on the way to church? Once a month? Once a year? Does it have a thick layer of dust on it? Can you even recall where it is?

I fear that in many ways we have become like the divided nation of Israel back in the days of Josiah, King of Judah. Hilkiah the high priest discovered the Book of the Law in the Lord's temple. (2 Kings 22:8)He apparently found it, meaning it had been lost for some time! Because of their sin, and the sin of the evil kings that had preceded Josiah (King Manasseh and King Amon), they had strayed away from God for many years, and even the high priest didn't know God's Word! He had apparently never seen it before. To his credit, when King Josiah found out, he repented and made many reforms, beginning to turn the nation back to the Lord. O how I pray that our president would come to the realization that we are in the place we are in as a nation because of our neglect of God's Word! What if Obama turned whole-heartedly to the Lord, and instead of putting God's Word down and turning his back on the Christian heritage of our nation, he would lead us to exalt the Bible and put it back to the rightful place of respect and honor that it deserves? Wouldn't the USA be a better place?

We have got to start spending more time daily in God's Word. The more time we spend in it, studying it, meditating on it, the more real it becomes to us. As it becomes more real, then it begins to change our lives. As it begins to change our lives, then we begin to obey it and live it out, and it will in turn impact the world around us for the building of God's kingdom.

Look at some scriptures that speak of and confirm the greatness of God's Word: 

• Jn.1:1--In the beginning was the Word
• Jn.1:14--The Word became flesh and dwelt among us
• Heb. 4:12--The Word is living, active and sharper than any two-edged sword
• Matt. 4:4--Man doesn't live on bread alone, but on every Word of God
• Deut. 8:3--Man doesn't live on bread alone, but on every Word of God
• Isa. 55:11--When it goes forth, it doesn't return void
• 2 Sam. 22:31--The Word of God is flawless
• Prov. 30:5--The Word of God is flawless
• Prov. 18:30--The Word is pure
• 1 Pet. 1:25--It stands forever
• Luke 21:33--Jesus said His words will never pass away
• Matt. 24:35--Jesus' words will never pass away
• Eph. 6:17--The Word of God is the Sword of the Spirit
• Philip. 2:16--They are words of life
• Col. 3 :16--We are to let the word of Christ dwell in us
• Isa. 40:8--The Word of God remains forever
• Jn. 6:68--Words of eternal life
• Jn. 17:17--God's Word is truth
• 2 Tim. 2:15--word of truth
• Ps. 119:9--Live according to the word
• Ps. 119:11--Treasure His Word in your heart
• Ps. 119:89--Your Word is eternal
• Ps. 119:105--The word is a lamp to our feet and a light to our path
• Ps. 119:129--Your decrees are wonderful, therefore I obey them
• Ps. 119;130--The revelation of Your words brings light and gives understanding to the inexperienced
• Ps. 119:140--Your Word is completely pure
• Ps. 119:160--The entirety of Your Word is truth
• Rev. 19:13--His name is called the Word of God

We need to praise God for the Word. We need to start living our lives as if we really believe that the Bible is the Word of God and like we believe what it says. One of the best ways for us to praise God is to follow the instructions in His Word. To be DOERS---not merely HEARERS. (James 1:22) I mean we can read the Bible, and say that we believe it all day long, but until we start living out what the Bible teaches us, putting it into practice, it's not gonna do us or anybody else a whole lot of good!

We read in 1 Sam. 15:22 that "obedience is better than sacrifice". King Saul decided He would rather worship God his own way than to obey God's commands. Because of that disobedience, God took away Saul's kingship and gave the kingdom to a man after His own heart--- a shepherd boy named David.

So to sum it up: PRAISE--READ--DO. Praise God for His Word--Read His Word--Do His Word. God's Word, the Bible, is real, flawless and forever. We need to understand how precious it is to have such great access to the Word, and try our best not to waste the opportunity we have to study it. We need to understand that it is truth and life and that we should read it every chance we get. But it doesn't need to stop there. We need to be a people, a church, a nation that does what God's Word says!

Joey C.

It's Good To Praise the Lord

It is good to praise the Lord and make music to your name, O Most High, to proclaim your love in the morning and your faithfulness at night, to the music of the ten-stringed lyre and the melody of the harp. (Psalm 92:1-3)(NIV) 

I like to put Bible verses on the dry-erase board in the choir room at The Ridge in order to help keep our singers focused on praising the Lord. Psalm 33:1-3 is a good passage which goes hand in hand with the one above, reminding us that it is good to praise our God. Let's look at how Ps. 33:1-3 reads in both the NIV and The Message.

NIV--Sing joyfully to the Lord, you righteous; it is fitting for the upright to praise him. Praise the Lord with the harp; make music to him on the ten-stringed lyre. Sing to him a new song; play skillfully, and shout for joy. 

The Message--Good people, cheer God! Right-living people sound best when praising. Use guitars to reinforce your Hallelujahs! Play his praise on a grand piano! Invent your own new song to him; give him a trumpet fanfare.

It's good to praise the Lord! Why? Because He alone is worthy of all praise. And it's fitting for the upright to praise Him. I like the way that The Message puts it, "Right-living people sound best when praising." And it's not that we necessarily sound good, we might not have the best singing voice or even be able to sing in key (but God's not that concerned about those things); but we're at our best when we're assembled together, focusing on Jesus, worshiping together in unity. It's fitting for the righteous to praise Him, because when we're gathered in His name, He's right there in our midst. (Mt. 18:20)(KJV) It's good to praise the Lord because God inhabits the praises of His people. (Ps. 22:3)(KJV) 

So if God's presence is in our midst and He inhabits our praises, then we can rest assured that as we gather in His name and worship Him in spirit and truth---there He is. And where God is, there is love, joy, peace, mercy, power, truth, healing, salvation, deliverance, faithfulness, strength, forgiveness, life and hope. Wouldn't you like to be in the midst of some or all of these things right now? You can. Just send your praises up to God, and He will rain down His mercy, love and power over your life! I've always marvelled at how simply praising God can alleviate and/or disintegrate things like stress, depression and anxiety. Sometimes when I'm worried or stressed out about things I find that just singing a simple praise chorus or hymn will calm me down. As we focus our attention on God and His majesty, we get a better perspective on our problems and the worries of this world. As we praise Him, thinking on the eternal blessings He's poured out on us, His children, the cares of the world pale in comparison. That thought reminds me of the beloved hymn, "Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus", by Helen L. Lemmel. You'll recall the lyrics to the chorus of the song:

Turn your eyes upon Jesus 
Look full in His wonderful face
And the things of earth will grow strangely dim 
In the light of His glory and grace

When we turn our eyes on Jesus, giving Him our full attention, all that this world can offer pales in the brightness of His glory-- the true Light (Jn. 1:9), the Bright Morning Star (Rev. 22:16). Truly, it's fitting for the upright to praise Him and it is good to praise the Lord! 

Joey C.

Never Stop Praising God

Teach me your way, O Lord, and I will walk in your truth; give me an undivided heart, that I may fear your name. I will praise you, O Lord my God, with all my heart; I will glorify your name forever. (Psalm 86:11-12)(NIV)
It is not the dead who praise the Lord, nor any of those descending into the silence of death. But we will praise the Lord, both now and forever. Hallelujah! (Psalm 115:17-18)(HCSB)

We like to sing Tommy Walker's praise song "Never Gonna Stop" here at RABC because it reminds us that praise, for the believer, is eternal. It's not just for the here and now, but the worship, the praising we do now is like practice, a warm-up if you will, for when we get to heaven. Take a look at some of the lyrics of Walker's song:

So I'm never gonna stop, never gonna stop
lifting up my hands to You, lifting up my heart. 
When the last day comes and goes and time will be no more,
I'll be praising You. 
So I'll never let it end, just begin it all again,
thoughts of thankfulness and love I'm always gonna give.
A thousand years from now before Your throne of grace and pow'r 
I'll be praising You, praising You.

It's amazing to think that in a thousand years from now we'll still be praising our Father in heaven! And it's not just wishful thinking or a song that we sing; it's a fact that we can bank on if we have truly accepted Jesus as our personal Lord and Savior. Take a look at a few scriptures which assure us of our eternal life:

For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. (Jn. 3:16) (NIV)

I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life. (1 Jn. 5:13) (NIV)
After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. (1 Thess. 4:17)(NIV)

The term "eternal" is referring to not only a length of life, but also to a quality of life. Jesus came to earth not only to give us an unending life spiritually, but to give us what the Bible calls "abundant life." (Jn. 10:10)

As we follow after Jesus, worshiping and serving Him, we begin to experience the kind of life that God meant for us to have. We find the peace and purpose of life that only He can give us. As we praise Him on a daily basis, we're getting a little practice in for eternity where we'll be in His presence forever in praise and adoration of Him!

So as we worship the Lord, let's remember that He is the One we'll be worshiping through all eternity. Let's start to act like it by truly entering in to worship when we have the opportunity at church services realizing that our eternal praises belong to Him and to Him alone. (Psalm 111:10)

Singing His Praises,
Joey C.