Daily Meditations

Psalm 37:21 To give and not to count the cost In a money-oriented culture like our own it is easy to get caught up in the greed and covetousness of the world. Everything is measured by it’s financial worth. Where we live. What car we drive. Where we go on holiday. What clothes we wear. How much money we have saved. Who our friends are. How big our pension is. What possessions we own. For those who have nothing else to put their hope in of course all of these things matter. If your only expectations and hopes are earth-bound and there is nothing for you beyond this life then what you can accumulate here is vitally important. If your only ambition is to out-do others or to enjoy as many comforts while you have time and money to do so, who can blame you for grabbing them gratefully? This verse of David’s was written long before Credit Cards were invented but it seems that things were no different in his day. People borrowed then and they borrow now with no intention or hope of being able ...

Psalm 37:20 The wicked will perish Isaiah 40:6-8 takes this verse one step further. Isaiah cries out to the Lord for a word to bring to the people and this is that word; “ All people are like grass, and all their faithfulness is like the flowers of the field. The grass withers and the flowers fail, because the breath of the Lord blows on them. Surely the people are grass. The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of our God endures forever.”  We are all finite creatures; our mortality haunts us all through our time on this planet as loved ones and family slowly slip off the conveyor belt of life. Sure enough, as the years go by, we all began to feel our own mortality, for the bodies we inhabit begin to show signs of decay. This all sound a bit morbid doesn’t it? Well it should not, for we who know the Lord have been promised new bodies, we are already new creations through Jesus Christ. Not so the wicked. The wicked will be consumed, they will go up in smoke. This is not...

Psalm 37:19 Provision for God's children This verse of Psalm 37 seems to take most of us to a different world. If we live in a civilised, organised, well-funded and protected country like Great Britain then disasters and famines are far from our daily experience. We link such calamities with third world peoples who live on the edge and whose existence is far more precarious than our own. Did disasters and famines affect David? Yes, they did, Israel experiences plagues and droughts and threats from enemies in his lifetime; these were all events that were, to some extent, out of the King’s control. Covid 19 has been a disaster from some and very frightening for many, we should not be complacent and think that these issues will never affect us. In fact, the Bible promises that earthquakes and famines and plagues will come upon the world in the last days and at those times men and women will read these verses and find hope and comfort. Meanwhile, perhaps we should not be so complacent ...

Psalm 37:18 The Blameless Party I wish I could say that I was in the Blameless Party, don’t you? What prestige and honour go with such a membership. Why? Because those who have attained this pinnacle of achievement spend all of their days under the Lord’s care. Every day, every hour, every minute he watches out for them. This is better than even royalty can ever hope for, to dwell in the Lord’s presence 24/7 must be amazing! Sadly, only the blameless can boast of such privileges and you and I would hold up our hands and admit that we fall far short of that description. Shameless more like!  I can hear you saying, “Hang on a moment but surely we do belong in God’s household, surely we do have His divine protection at all times?” Yes, of course we do, and it is not something we have attained, our membership is based solely on what Jesus Christ has done. The invitation to join came from Him but it is only available to those who are humble enough to acknowledge their sin and their depe...

Psalm 37:17 The Lord upholds the righteous This verse continues from verse 16. Having taken sides and nailed our allegiance to the mast we must face the consequences of our choice. The wicked choose this world, they choose fame, material success, wealth, promotion and self-advancement. They live only for this life and for their status in this world. Their education, their philosophy, their daily routines and their aspirations are all based on the values of the world. God is not in their thinking; they curse His name and mock those who believe in Him. They spurn His commandments and live without morals, they worship other gods made from earthly materials or created by their imaginations. These people have power in the world but the Lord God says that their power will be broken. The more powerful they become, the closer they are to destruction and to humiliation.  The righteous have chosen a different way. For us all values begin with a God of wonders who created us, loves us and pro...

Psalm 37:16 Fools gold This verse is all about value and worth.  Let’s imagine that you are walking down a High Street with a view to buying a ring for a loved one. You come to a large Jewellers, its windows gleaming with attractive bargains. There are rows and rows of every type of ring imaginable and the prices are much less than you imagined! You begin to look closely at the display cabinets and provocatively presented goods and slowly it dawns on you that this shop only sells cheap and nasty. There is nothing here that you would purchase for the one you hold dear. Around the corner, almost hidden, is a small shop with very little on display. But as you enter you realise that you are in the presence of quality and that your budget is going to be stretched for this place offers the “real thing.” Satan’s attractions are bountiful and abundant but they do not last. You may journey through this life buying into his stock and you may accumulate quite a hoard. Everyone will notic...

Psalm 37:15 They don't stand a chance It would be foolish to think that the conflicts described in these verses are all one way. In truth, the wicked do not stand a chance! They are in the pay of their master who does not give a stuff about them. He will not protect them permanently and when their time has come he will cast them away like crumbs from the table. His only interest in them is to further his own purposes. Please do not feel sorry for such people willingly go along with the devil’s schemes in order to promote their own little hierarchies. This is a game of mutual dependence although, of course, it is no game; lives are broken, people get hurt and the development of Satan’s kingdom depends on his willing volunteers, be they people or demons.  In the light of the above we need to know that justice will reign, that good will come, that God’s will, will be done. Sadly, for the wicked,  “Their swords will pierce their own hearts and their bows will be broken.”  Eve...