Psalms 34:18 NIV — from bible.com
The LORD is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.
.
Psalms 34:8 NIV — from bible.com
Taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed is the one who takes refuge in him.
Psalms 34:18 NIV — from bible.com
The LORD is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.
.
Psalms 34:8 NIV — from bible.com
Taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed is the one who takes refuge in him.
When I kept silent, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long. For day and night your hand was heavy on me; my strength was sapped as in the heat of summer. Then I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my iniquity. I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the LORD.” And you forgave the guilt of my sin.
From DSC:
I’m very grateful for the LORD’s grace, forgiveness, love/friendship, faithfulness, mercy, wisdom, guidance, and patience. Thank you LORD! And thank you for being *active* in my life. As you know, I need that.
It’s taken me years…no…decades to better understand and connect my mind and my heart with some of these things. For example, I used to see the LORD as a toe-tapping heavenly Being…looking down scornfully at me from above and saying, “Get your *(&^ together Daniel!” For years, I didn’t see Him as being on my team.
As my spiritual journey continued — and after many years, trials, and failures had passed — I came to see that He actually WAS on my team. I had had an incorrect view of Him.
Over time, his toe stopped tapping in my mind. I discovered that He did want what was best for me. At times, my trust levels weren’t what I thought they were. By demonstrating His faithfulness, my trust levels have risen. Thanks again LORD.
I realize that I still have a long ways to go yet.
Deuteronomy 7:9 — from biblegateway.com
Know therefore that the Lord your God is God; he is the faithful God, keeping his covenant of love to a thousand generations of those who love him and keep his commandments.
Leviticus 19:35-36 NIV — from bible.com
Do not use dishonest standards when measuring length, weight or quantity. Use honest scales and honest weights, an honest ephah and an honest hin. I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt.
Joshua 1:9 — from biblegateway.com
9 Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.”
From DSC:
For me, “being with you” isn’t enough — at least in the sense of how I’ve historically thought about that phrase. As the years went by, I needed the LORD to be ACTIVELY with me. Taking action, not just watching. Participating, not just observing.
The older I’ve gotten, the more I realize that the LORD is very active in my/our lives. In fact, I think that if we knew the extent of His activities, our minds would likely be blown.
That doesn’t address all of the “but why?” questions I and others have. But I appreciate the LORD being active. I need Him to be active. And I think that He expects me to be active in return — to make use of the talents/gifts that He gave to me. These days, I’m trying to figure out what that next chapter looks like for my family and me.
10 This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.
7 The law of the Lord is perfect,
refreshing the soul.
The statutes of the Lord are trustworthy,
making wise the simple.
8 The precepts of the Lord are right,
giving joy to the heart.
The commands of the Lord are radiant,
giving light to the eyes.
9 The fear of the Lord is pure,
enduring forever.
The decrees of the Lord are firm,
and all of them are righteous.
10 They are more precious than gold,
than much pure gold;
they are sweeter than honey,
than honey from the honeycomb.
11 By them your servant is warned;
in keeping them there is great reward.
12 But who can discern their own errors?
Forgive my hidden faults.
13 Keep your servant also from willful sins;
may they not rule over me.
Then I will be blameless,
innocent of great transgression.
14 May these words of my mouth and this meditation of my heart
be pleasing in your sight,
Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer.
Psalm 19:1-4
For the director of music. A psalm of David.
1 The heavens declare the glory of God;
the skies proclaim the work of his hands.
2 Day after day they pour forth speech;
night after night they reveal knowledge.
3 They have no speech, they use no words;
no sound is heard from them.
4 Yet their voice[b] goes out into all the earth,
their words to the ends of the world.
In the heavens God has pitched a tent for the sun.
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A detail image of the larger composite. DECaPS2/DOE/FNAL/DECam/CTIO/NOIRLab/NSF/AURA Image processing: M. Zamani & D. de Martin (NSF’s NOIRLab)
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An excerpt from Nicky Gumbel’s Classic Bible Study
Francis Collins, Director of the National Institutes for Health in the USA, a leader in the scientific response to COVID-19 and recipient of the 2020 Templeton Prize, led, in his former role as director of the Human Genome Project, a team of over 2000 scientists who collaborated to determine the three billion letters in the human genome – our own DNA instruction book. He said, ‘I cannot see how nature could have created itself. Only a supernatural force that is outside of space and time could have done that.’
Psalms 16:1-2 — from bible.com
Keep me safe, my God, for in you I take refuge. I say to the LORD, “You are my Lord; apart from you I have no good thing.”
Why, LORD, do you stand far off? Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble?
From DSC:
I get this piece of scripture…big time.
In the early fall of my senior year in college, I wanted to be sure that the LORD wasn’t a hoax. I didn’t want to commit the rest of my life to Him if He wasn’t real. From that point on, until a Maundy Thursday service at the Alice Millar Chapel on NU’s campus the next spring, I felt that the LORD was 10,000 miles away from me. I couldn’t hear Him or sense Him. I won’t go into details, but it turned out that the LORD was definitely at work. He was changing my identity (though it felt more like a ripping away of my identity) from an athlete to one of His adopted children. I’m glad He was at work, but I wouldn’t want to relive that year ever again.
1 Peter 3:8 NIV — from my.bible.com
Finally, all of you, be like-minded, be sympathetic, love one another, be compassionate and humble.
From DSC:
One of my favorite memories as a kid was going to see a local performance of Charles Dickens’ “The Christmas Carol.” I loved seeing the transformation of Ebenezer Scrooge. And one of the events that changed Ebenezer was seeing his own name on the gravestone.
There’s been something about this verse that has clung to my heart and my mind. As dealing with time can already put heat in my kitchen, I have to handle this verse with some care.