The resources God has given us to live a thriving life are His Word, Spirit, and People.
Read God’s Word:
Psalms 146-150
Act 2: God’s Covenant People
Scene 5: Kings and Prophets: God shapes a kingdom people
Background Information: Psalms 146-150
In Scripture, we see God at work in the cosmos, including our own small planet. We see God at work in raising up a unique people among the nations of the earth. Finally, we see God at work in the hearts of individuals. The Psalms lay this three-tiered vision before us so that we may see God’s great transcendence (he is above all) and his amazing imminence (he is near to us). We read of God rebuilding Jerusalem and gathering his prodigal, exiled people. We read of God healing the brokenhearted, because he is not just attentive to a “People,” but also to individual persons. Contemplate for a moment that God provides food for individual birds, he knows when each one falls (Matthew 10:29-31), and he also knows by name the 200 billion trillion stars in the observable universe. Do you think he is impressed by the strength or wisdom of man? He cares for us, but he is not impressed by us. We are not impressive, only God is. So we, along with angels, the celestial objects in space, and all of his earthly creation, must lift our hearts in praise to this amazing God. We are to continually sing to him a new song. A “new song” designated a song written to commemorate a new situation where God’s power and mercy were experienced. It doesn’t mean that we must continually write new music to celebrate the greatness of God. It does mean that we are to offer a fresh heart response to the ever-new, daily mercies of God. You can sing centuries-old hymns as a “new song” in your heart. Wake up your sleepy heart right now. Tell your own mind to rouse itself. We grow accustomed to the magnificent and become immune to the amazing. This must not be. Life, troubles, time, and just the normal flow of our days lull us to passive sleep. Worship rouses us to see what is real and true. Wake up– you can, and you must!
“Let everything that breathes praise the Lord.”
Psalms 150:6
Pray:
Praise God for…
Thank God for…
Confess your sins to God
Pray for opportunities for Gospel conversation. Pray for those in your life who do not know Jesus. Pray that they would turn to Christ and be born again.
Ask God for… (what else concerns you?)
Reflect:
Write down one passage of scripture that stood out to you today.
Write down why this passage stood out to you.
Engage Community:
Text or call someone now and tell them…
– What you are praying for.
– What stood out from God’s word today.