The LORD God is our refuge. He alone is our ever-present help in our time of need. And when is that time? When is the time that we most need God? Is it when we're single? When we get married? When we have children? When we lose our jobs? When people speak well of us? When people speak ill of us? When?

Our "time of need" is all the time. Every living thing's time of needing the Almighty begins from the time life begins. Unfortunately, not all of us know that, or, are mindful of it as often as we ought to be.

We need the LORD our God when we rejoice and when we mourn; for without Christ our God, we don't know how to do anything without sinning. Without Christ, our rejoicing is in ourselves and we do a "Yay me!" dance in our souls and with our mouths. We joy in proclaiming our own goodness and jubilantly share our successes as if we could ever do, or give anything good to anyone without the only One who IS good—GOD Almighty.

Therefore, the only One in whom we know we can wholeheartedly entrust our hearts to, is the LORD, and not another sinner like us. Too often we think our parents, our best friend, our spouse, or even a counselor is the one person that we should and do bear our entire souls to. This is not only a foolish practice, but also sinful one. It is a practice of idolatry. For in this very act of giving all of oneself to anyone except the LORD God, is to break the Greatest Commandment: To love the Lord our God with all our heart and with all our soul and with all our mind and with all our strength.

No human being, saved or unsaved is qualified to bear everything you have to offer. They will either misjudge and hate you for what you've shared, or they will misjudge and hate those whom you've wrongly spoken ill of. Don't tempt others to sin. Bear your entire souls to the LORD alone, and prayerfully consider what you ought to share with others in accordance with Ephesians 4:29.

Our gracious and compassionate Father's timing is always perfect. It just so happens that today's Psalm (61:1-3) is exactly what my heart needed to hear and my soul needed to be reminded of.

No matter the battles, heartaches, and losses that come my way, I know because the LORD my God is my refuge; the Rock that is higher than I, all is always well with my soul.

Though I can never do anything to be worthy of God's holy and perfect love, I am always loved by the Father because of worthiness of Jesus Christ the Son. Therefore, whenever my heart is faint due to external circumstances, my soul delights in magnifying the LORD for giving me all the good I don't deserve (grace) and withholding the evil that I do deserve (mercy). When I remember this truth and speak it to my soul, it is difficult for me to plunge into the depths of self-pity. Rather, my heart rises to echo the last verse of today's Psalm (v.8), "So will I ever sing praises to your name [O God], as I perform my vows day after day."

There is no heartache, no suffering, no loss in this life that is greater than God's gracious gift of eternal life—found only in Jesus Christ the Lord.

"How deep the Father’s love for us,
How vast beyond all measure,
That He should give His only Son
To make a wretch His treasure.
How great the pain of searing loss -
The Father turns His face away,
As wounds which mar the Chosen One
Bring many sons to glory." ~Stuart Townend

Evil will always do what evil does—deceive, destroy, devour. But thanks be to God that He is good, and therefore, always does what is good—deliver us from darkness, and into the marvelous light of Jesus Christ where truth, justice, and mercy reign.

Though a tumult of wickedness may surround us. Though we have distress within and war without; those of us who repent of our sins and trust wholly in the name of Jesus Christ, the only and holy Son of God, alone, are free to find refuge and peace in Him. For in this world, Christ promised that we will have trouble, yet, we are of good courage because we do not fear all that is frightening, but rather, we fear the Almighty alone, and therefore, we are safe and have the peace of God that transcends all understanding (Jn 16:33, 1 Pet 3:6, Php 4:4-7).

We are wild olive shoots, whom God has had mercy on, so that we may be nourished and strengthened from the Root of Jesse who was cut open, that we might be grafted in Him, and receive grace upon grace (Rom 11:17-18, 15:12-13; Jn 1:14-16). Therefore, let us trust in the steadfast love of LORD our God forever and ever, no matter the trials, no matter the heartaches; for He has already given us all that is good, and He will continue to give us reason to rejoice in Him forever and ever.

Today's Psalm is a beautiful expression and demonstration of what true repentance looks like—an honest look at self, in the sight of the only living, holy, and awesome God.

In Psalm 51, King David pours out his heart to God Almighty; taking full responsibility for his sins against the Lord, Bathsheba, and her now deceased husband, Uriah. He makes no excuses. And he asks for nothing but God's forgiveness, knowing he is powerless to redeem himself.

King David was a mighty warrior. He was a man of valor. He was also very arrogant, an adulterer, plotter of evil, a murderer, a lackadaisical father. Essentially, he was a wretched sinner like the rest of us. But then why did God give him one of the greatest compliments by calling him a man after God's own heart? The heart of the Almighty does not murder, is not arrogant, lackadaisical in regards to His children, etc.? Why would God refer to King David as someone who chases hard after the LORD? My guess is because King David had a broken and contrite heart. Every time David was confronted with his sin, rather than make excuses or try to help others understand why he sinned, how he really didn't mean to do that, but what he really meant to say or do was...and so on; David humbly received rebuke. And David repented.

Whether in hardships or pleasantries, David delighted in praising the name of the LORD. May David's prayer in this Psalm, also be ours: That God would open our mouths to praise Him and that He would help us to walk in, and bear the fruit of repentance. For it is only a heart that is broken and contrite before the Lord, that He will never despise, but rather, He will always receive (Rom 10:13).

Peace is not the absence of conflict with people. Peace is the absence of conflict with God.

Leviticus 7:11-15 says, "And this is the law of the sacrifice of peace offerings that one may offer to the LORD. If he offers it for a thanksgiving, then he shall offer with the thanksgiving sacrifice unleavened loaves mixed with oil, unleavened wafers smeared with oil, and loaves of fine flour well mixed with oil. With the sacrifice of his peace offerings for thanksgiving he shall bring his offering with loaves of leavened bread. And from it he shall offer one loaf from each offering, as a gift to the LORD. It shall belong to the priest who throws the blood of the peace offerings. And the flesh of the sacrifice of his peace offerings for thanksgiving shall be eaten on the day of his offering. He shall not leave any of it until the morning." (ESV)

Those of us who have been granted the gift of repentance that leads to saving faith in Jesus Christ, had the only acceptable peace offering made on our behalf, when the Son of God suffered and died for our sins. Because Jesus alone is God, He alone can completely satisfy the wrath of God that is due every sinner...which is every single human being that has lived, is living, and will live. Through Christ, we who repent of our sins and trust wholly in Jesus' name, now have what we could never attain for ourselves—peace with God.

What a glorious joy it is to know that while we were enemies of God, living for ourselves, hating Him, and hating others; Christ died for us. Therefore, let all who call on the name of the LORD, rejoice in His holy name! Let us lift up our hearts and our voices to proclaim the excellencies of Christ Jesus our Lord! And let us demonstrate our utter gratitude and love to God the Father for giving us His Son, by offering Him a sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving for continuously humbling us, so that we will never forget our depravity without Christ.

Depending on your relationship with God, today's Psalm will either be the aroma of life, or the stench of death to you (2 Cor 2:14-16). You will either read Psalm 49 and have your soul refreshed, comforted, and filled with joy and hope; or you will read this Psalm and it will expose your pride and illusions of self-sufficiency, which will cause your soul to become embittered, angry, and insulted.

For those of us who repent of our sins and trust in Jesus for this life and the next, this Psalm is another beautiful and comforting reminder of God's love and faithfulness to us because of His Son.

Because I believe Jesus Christ is the Son of God who willingly disrobed Himself of His glory in Heaven where He was perfectly worshiped, honored, and obeyed; came to earth in sackcloth and ashes (skin and bones); to pay the high cost of the ransom for my soul drenched in sin, by suffering the punishment I justly deserve from God Almighty, and dying the second death (spiritual) that my sins earned me, yet because He alone is God, had the power to raise Himself from the dead, so that I would only die the first death (bodily), and in Him, would never die the second death, but have been freed to live the resurrected life now and forevermore, this Psalm is nothing but salve for my soul and a joy to my innermost being!

I pray it is the same for all who read this.

Rarely do we hear anyone saying that they rejoice because of God's judgments. Rarely do we hear anyone saying they enjoy and rejoice because of any kind of judgment...from anyone. It's not exactly the popular thing to rejoice and be glad about. Strangely enough, everyone wants justice for themselves or their loved ones, but they do not want others to get justice when they themselves are the perpetrator. This hypocrisy evinces the depravity of our hearts and minds without Christ.

But thanks be to God our Father for giving us His Son. Thanks be to God for choosing to free us from this depraved and hypocritical state, so that we might delight in God's just judgments and rejoice when anyone receives justice; even when we are in the wrong. Thanks be to God for the freedom and strength to repent—to humble ourselves before the LORD Almighty and receive His loving discipline, or His merciful reprieve from our enemies.

Today's Psalm exhorts us to rejoice in the name of the LORD, and His righteous judgments. Therefore, let all who love the LORD our God, let all who rejoice in truth and holiness, rejoice because our God has said "vengeance is mine", and all will be made known and right when He ushers us Home to glory.

As you can see, I'm a bit late on posting my #PsalmSunday this week. But the saying, "Better late than never" is true...and especially in this case. It's always better to encourage one another's hearts to sing praises to our Lord Jesus, the King of kings and the Lord of lords; late, rather than never.

So what happened that this week's #PsalmSunday is so late? Life. That's what happened.

Most days it's very difficult for me to simply get of out of bed, let alone live "normal" daily life. And lately, there's been quite a bit happening around here, good things in God's sight, that's left my frail body quite exhausted. Again, a good thing in God's sight, so no complaints here—just thanksgiving to our awesome God and Savior who allows me to participate in His holy and magnificent work of being able to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ (2 Cor 4:6).

This week's psalm, Psalm 47 is a joyous reminder and praise of our mighty Father's goodness and kindness to those whom He foreknew and therefore predestined, to be called sons and daughters of the Most High; to conform us into the glorious image of His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. What an awesome privilege and joy it is to be adopted into the holy Family of God Almighty! What peace we have, that nothing in this world can ever touch or take away (Jn 16:33). What a refreshment and comfort to our souls to know that the LORD reigns!

So let us clap our hands, and sing songs of praises and thanksgiving to our wonderful, compassionate, good, sovereign, and loving God whom we trust withholds no good thing from us, because He's already given us His Son.

Let us exult in the name of the LORD together!

#PsalmSunday: When the LORD God Almighty walled up the waves of the Red Sea to provide the Israelites safe passage, He never says that He also kept the Israelites from experiencing the sound of the rushing waters, and the power of the mighty winds that He used to restrain the sea (Ex 14:21-31). I imagine it might've been like the eye of a hurricane—the safest place to be in a hurricane, yet, not without the frightful sound, and hint of the great power of the winds and waters that swirl about.

If the Israelites feared the winds and the waves more than they feared God, they would've never crossed over to the other side to safety. Just as the Israelites' fear of the LORD prevailed, we too, must trust the LORD's steadfast love and faithfulness regardless of the torrential times we live in; within our homes, communities, or anywhere in this world. Our fear and love for the LORD must prevail because the Father has lovingly walled us up, that is, hid us in His Son, our Strong Tower, and therefore, we ARE safe (Prov 18:10).

Today's Psalm, Psalm 46:1-3 reminds us that only through repentance and faith in Jesus Christ, can anyone hope to be kept safe and secure in this life and the next. No one is saved by their own ingenuity, nor by the power or provisions of man.

Therefore, whether in times of pleasantries or poverty, we trust the LORD to provide us, or withhold from us, exactly what we need to conform us all the more into the image of the Father's magnificent Son, Jesus Christ our Lord (Rom 8:28-29).

The whole duty of man is to practice the fear of the LORD and to keep His commandments (Ps 111:10; Ecc 12:13-14). Let us gladly and urgently seek to fulfill this joyous duty every day the Lord grants to us.

I've been posting #PsalmSunday on my Facebook Ministry Page since 2015 to encourage and exhort believers to spend the Sabbath worshipping the goodness of God our Savior in spirit and in truth. Through the Psalms we learn how to pray in anguish and in great pleasures. We learn how to rightly praise and adore our holy and gracious Father God. We learn how to exalt the name of Jesus and exult in His holy name.

In January of 2016, I began sharing #PsalmSunday Scripture-pictures in chronological order rather than randomly sharing them as they came to mind. Today, I posted verse 6-7a from Psalm 45. Today, I also realized that I've never shared this encouragement with any of you, my readers. Therefore, I am publishing this #PsalmSunday to rectify that oversight for the past two years.

Please join me every Sunday for a new #PsalmSunday Scripture-picture with a short devotional I write every week so that we may think more deeply about all that our awesome Father God has done for us and given to us in His glorious and majestic Son.

Below is the #PsalmSunday Scripture-picture and devotional I posted today on my Facebook Ministry Page. May the LORD our God use it as a source of blessing, encouragement, and refreshment to your souls.

The "gospel" of this world, and our wicked flesh is, "Love is approval and celebration of all that makes you feel good about yourself." But the Gospel of God's grace is, "God is love; therefore, love is first of all holy, then peaceable, right, just, sacrificial, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere." Only in Jesus Christ, the only Son of the only living and true God, can anyone find true love, true life, and true contentment.

Only through humble confession of breaking God's holy Law, pleading for God's forgiveness, mercy, and grace found only through the perfect work of Jesus Christ, can anyone be saved from the holy, righteous, and just wrath of God.

May we who profess Christ as Lord, live as His peacemakers, His ambassadors, His slaves of righteousness, His light of hope and life, all the days of our short lives so that when we go Home, we will not be ashamed, but will hear, "Well done good and faithful servant. You have done a beautiful thing to Me. Enter into the joy of your Master." (Mt 25:23; Mk 14:6)