Daily Devotional Podcasts

536_Bless the Lord, O my soul Psalm 103 Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless his holy name! 2 Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits, 3 who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases, 4 who redeems your life from the pit, who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy, 5 who satisfies you with good so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's. 6 The Lord works righteousness and justice for all who are oppressed. 7 He made known his ways to Moses, his acts to the people of Israel. 8 The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. 9 He will not always chide, nor will he keep his anger forever. 10 He does not deal with us according to our sins, nor repay us according to our iniquities. 11 For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him; 12 as far as the east is from the west, so far does he remove our transgressions from us. 13 As a father shows compassion to his children, so the Lord shows compassion to those who fear him. 14 For he knows our frame; he remembers that we are dust. 15 As for man, his days are like grass; he flourishes like a flower of the field; 16 for the wind passes over it, and it is gone, and its place knows it no more. 17 But the steadfast love of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear him, and his righteousness to children's children, 18 to those who keep his covenant and remember to do his commandments. 19 The Lord has established his throne in the heavens, and his kingdom rules over all. 20 Bless the Lord, O you his angels, you mighty ones who do his word, obeying the voice of his word! 21 Bless the Lord, all his hosts, his ministers, who do his will! 22 Bless the Lord, all his works, in all places of his dominion. Bless the Lord, O my soul! A certain woman was going through a very difficult season of her life. She had lost her job, her health had weakened, and her family relationships were strained. One morning, as usual, she sat down with the scriptures. Instead of reading, however, she began to write down every blessing she could remember - help received, forgiveness of sins, answers to prayer, strengthening during times of weakness. As she named her blessings, one by one, her face became joyful. Her despair had transformed into gratitude. She realized how much reason she had to bless the Lord, right in the midst of her troubles. That story captures the heart of Psalm 103. This is not just a song of David but an intentional act of praise. David reminds himself how much the Lord is worthy of praise and trust. He does this deliberately and painstakingly, not in an emotional outburst. Mind, body, emotions, are all called to

535_The weakness of man and the strength of God Psalm 102:1-7 Hear my prayer, O Lord; let my cry come to you! 2 Do not hide your face from me in the day of my distress! Incline your ear to me; answer me speedily in the day when I call! 3 For my days pass away like smoke, and my bones burn like a furnace. 4 My heart is struck down like grass and has withered; I forget to eat my bread. 5 Because of my loud groaning my bones cling to my flesh. 6 I am like a desert owl of the wilderness, like an owl of the waste places; 7 I lie awake; I am like a lonely sparrow on the housetop. Vs. 25-28 Of old you laid the foundation of the earth, and the heavens are the work of your hands. 26 They will perish, but you will remain; they will all wear out like a garment. You will change them like a robe, and they will pass away, 27 but you are the same, and your years have no end. 28 The children of your servants shall dwell secure; their offspring shall be established before you. Some years ago, a pastor recounted visiting a dear member of his congregation in the hospital. She had been battling cancer for a long time. Her body had grown frail, her strength nearly gone. Yet, as he sat beside her, instead of words of despair, she smiled faintly and whispered, “Pastor, I am weak, but He is strong. I cannot even lift my hands, but I know the Lord is carrying me.” Those words stayed with him far longer than the details of her illness. They were a testimony that even in our most fragile moments, God upholds His children. Psalm 102 is a testimony much like this. It poured from the heart of someone who had come to the end of himself. The superscription describes it as “A prayer of the afflicted, when he is overwhelmed and pours out his complaint before the LORD.” Far from having life figured out, the psalmist felt abandoned, attacked, and forgotten. But then he discovered once again that the eternal God is strong when man is weak, and he sustains His people. The opening is a plea of desperation: “Hear my prayer, O Lord; let my cry come to you!” (v.1). The psalmist cries out, asking God not to turn away from him in his day of distress. For he has nowhere else to turn. He paints a vivid picture of his suffering in verses 3 to 7. His days vanish like smoke, his bones burn like fire, his heart withers like grass, and he forgets to eat his bread. He feels like a lone sparrow on a housetop. Sparrows are small and insignificant, but they usually live in flocks. A solitary sparrow perched on a rooftop is the picture of vulnerability and sadness. Such moments occur when we feel disconnected, unseen, in the rush of life. In verse 8 he laments: “All the day my enemies taunt me; those who deride me

534_Integrity within my house Psalm 101 I will sing of steadfast love and justice; to you, O Lord, I will make music. 2 I will ponder the way that is blameless. Oh when will you come to me? I will walk with integrity of heart within my house; 3 I will not set before my eyes anything that is worthless. I hate the work of those who fall away; it shall not cling to me. 4 A perverse heart shall be far from me; I will know nothing of evil. 5 Whoever slanders his neighbor secretly I will destroy. Whoever has a haughty look and an arrogant heart I will not endure. 6 I will look with favor on the faithful in the land, that they may dwell with me; he who walks in the way that is blameless shall minister to me. 7 No one who practices deceit shall dwell in my house; no one who utters lies shall continue before my eyes. 8 Morning by morning I will destroy all the wicked in the land, cutting off all the evildoers from the city of the Lord. A woman was preparing her home for an important guest. She dusted, swept, rearranged, and scrubbed every corner. The guest was someone she deeply respected. Having him step in to the house and find clutter or dirt, or smell yesterday’s stale food, would not reflect the value she put on having him home. The urgency she felt about cleaning her home wasn’t because she was being perfectionistic. Rather, she wanted her home to show how much worth she placed on her guest. This resembles the picture described in Psalm 101. David, newly ascended to the throne, was determined to set up, not just his palace, but his entire kingdom, with single-minded devotion to the Lord. He was not bothered about external adornment, unlike Solomon. He focused on inward integrity. Like the woman who wanted her house to reveal her heart towards her guest, David wanted his reign, his house, to mirror his love for God. Many commentators believe that David composed this psalm shortly after taking the throne of Israel. During the troubled reign of Saul, he saw firsthand the devastation resulting from a heart that had gone astray from the living God. Saul’s insecurity, pride, rashness, and disobedience left the nation wounded and disordered. He had years of opportunity to repent and seek God’s mercy, but he did not. Once David ascended the throne, he resolved not to repeat Saul’s mistakes but to set things right before the Lord. He therefore opens with worship: “I will sing of steadfast love and justice; to you, O Lord, I will make music.” His first thought as a king was not about policy, power, or popularity, but about praising the Lord. David knew that without God’s presence and guidance, his reign would be as fragile as Saul’s. He wanted to organize his kingdom around the will of God - a character that is marked by unfailing love and impartial justice. All his plans flowed from this vision of God. David recognizes that his first