January 19 – He Hears Us

“I waited patiently for the Lord; he inclined to me and heard my cry. … He put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God. Many will see and fear, and put their trust in the Lord.” Psalm 40:1, 3 (ESV)

A promise that has eternal truth and never fades is found in our verses for today. About three weeks ago we began with a new page on our calendar. Often by this time the new year has lost its “glow” and we can take some time to think of what we have experienced so far and in our past. Because of that we can look forward to what is ahead of us.  Yes, our experience of God’s love and faithfulness in the past is what encourages us so much to trust Him for the days ahead. We know that He is the one that lifts us up and sets our feet on a solid foundation (v.2). God has been and continues to faithfully keep his promises in the past and we can trust Him to continue doing that. It is important however, that we recognize the necessary times of waiting for Him to respond to our cries as the psalmist says. He’ll keep on hearing our prayers and meeting our needs and giving us a new song to sing. This includes his promise that our testimony will draw others to put their trust in God.

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January 12 – Power From God To Do Good Things


“By the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace toward me was not in vain. On the contrary, I worked harder than any of them, though it was not I, but the grace of God that is with me. 1 Corinthians 15:10 (ESV)

Grace is not only God’s unmerited favor to do good for us when we don’t deserve it. It is also enabling power, an actual power from God that acts and makes good things happen in us and for us. God’s grace is God acting in us to make us work hard, to make us keep our commitments and resolutions (if they are appropriate). Apostle Paul says he worked hard: “By the grace of God…I worked harder than any of them.” Paul says, “Work out your own salvation,” and adds, “for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure” (Philippians 2:12–13). Grace is power from God to do good things in us and for us. This grace is promised to us. It was applied in our past and it will be applied in our future. If you have ever watched water go over a water fall and wondered why it seems endless – think Niagara Falls – that is what grace is like. It’s ever flowing over the waterfall of the present, from an inexhaustible river of grace from the future, into the ever-increasing reservoir of grace in the past.

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January 8 – A Sure Thing


“Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and not be afraid: For the LORD JEHOVAH is my strength and my song; He also is become my salvation..” Isaiah 12:2 (KJV)

Looking for a good reason to trust a sure thing? So much has be uncertain in the past. Maybe our lives have been turned upside down because of the turmoil that rolled over us and flattened us. There is one who we can trust and cling to the promises He has given to us. Yes, there is. We can trust without fear because our strength comes to us from our LORD JEHOVAH. This means the LORD our God is our strength where we have none. And it is true we have no strength of our own that will carry us through the year ahead so if we do not trust in the strength we have from God, we have no strength at all. We will end up on a heap of depression and despondency. We will be lost in the woods and sinking in the sea. Who will save us? The LORD JEHOVAH will. If we step out in faith, and put our trust in His word and guidance, we will not fear but we will stand up on a high place singing our song of salvation and praise to the LORD OUR LORD. It’s a sure thing.

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November 30 – Correct Magnification

“I will praise the name of God with a song; I will magnify him with thanksgiving.” Psalm 69:30 (ESV)


If looking to magnify something, how do we go about doing it? We have two options. Use a telescope which brings a really big things visually closer so we can see more detail clearly. The fuzzy dot in the sky called Saturn can be seen with its distinct rings. The other option is using a microscope which makes very small things⸺even those that cannot be seen with our eye, appear much larger than they are. A minute particle is made large enough for us to see detail clearly. In our verse today, David declares that he will “magnify God” with his thanksgiving. He does not mean that he will make a small God look bigger than he is. He does mean that he will make a big God begin to look as big as he really is. So, perhaps we are called not to be microscopes but to be telescopes. We magnify God and in doing that we bring him closer and more visible. John Piper says this; “The whole duty of the Christian can be summed up in this: feel, think, and act in a way that will make God look as great as he really is.”

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Thanks to DesiringGod by John Piper https://www.desiringgod.org/articles/how-to-magnify-god