“For you, O God, have tested us; you have tried us as silver is tried. You brought us into the net; you laid a crushing burden on our backs; you let men ride over our heads; we went through fire and through water; yet you have brought us out to a place of abundance.” Psalm […]
“The righteous flourish like the palm tree and grow like a cedar in Lebanon. They are planted in the house of the LORD; they flourish in the courts of our God. They still bear fruit in old age; they are ever full of sap and green, to declare that the LORD is upright; He is […]
“If you will seek God, and plead with the Almighty for mercy, if you are pure and upright, surely then he will rouse himself for you and restore your rightful habitation.” Job 8:5-6 “And his disciples asked him, ‘Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?’ Jesus answered, ‘It was […]
“What is my strength, that I should wait?… Is my strength the strength of stones, or is my flesh bronze?” Job 6:11-12 “I love you, O LORD, my strength.” Psalm 18:1 Hearing Job’s despair, reflecting on all he had lost – his property, his servants, his health, his children – I was drawn to this […]
“Be not like a horse or a mule, without understanding, which must be curbed with bit and bridle, or it will not stay near you. Many are the sorrows of the wicked, but steadfast love surrounds the one who trusts in the LORD.” Psalm 32:9-10 “But for me it is good to be near God; […]
“And now I am about to go the way of all the earth, and you know in your hearts and souls, all of you, that not one word has failed of all the good things that the LORD your God promised concerning you. All have come to pass for you; not one of them has […]
“Your words were found, and I ate them, and your words became to me a joy and the delight of my heart, for I am called by your name, O LORD, God of hosts… Why is my pain unceasing, my wound incurable, refusing to be healed? Will you be to me like a deceitful brook, […]
“This God – his way is perfect; the word of the LORD proves true; he is a shield for all those who take refuge in him. For who is God, but the LORD? And who is a rock, except our God?” Psalm 18:30-31 Recently I had a big struggle with faith. It just seemed like […]
“Prove me, O LORD, and try me; test my heart and my mind. For your steadfast love is before my eyes, and I walk in your faithfulness.” Psalm 26:2-3 The writer of this psalm, David, begins by speaking of his having walked in integrity and “trusted in the LORD without wavering.” Then he makes a […]
“I will rejoice and be glad in your steadfast love, because you have seen my affliction; you have known the distress of my soul, and you have not delivered me into the hand of the enemy; you have set my feet in a broad place.” Psalm 31:7-8 “For he has not despised or abhorred the […]
In Pleasant Places 