Category: Scripture

From the Holy Bible

Praising God with a Psalm

On By vickleaIn praise, Scripture, Song1 Comment

Sometimes, I just need to get away from my own thoughts and the doubts that attack my mind, so I delve into the Psalms and choose one to pray or to use as my worship for the day. Today, my Psalm was Psalm 93.

God always reigns, through my doubts and fears and whatever the circumstances are. Saying these verses out loud helps me to remember that God is on the throne and His rule over the world is firm and secure. I can rest in His strength and not have to be concerned about my own weaknesses.

God has been part of all of eternity, so no matter how stressed I am for the time crunch I am facing, I can trust that He is in control of not just the circumstances but my time and how I resolve those circumstances. God knows and understands that I am finite while He is eternal.

I am not a big ocean loving person as far as getting into the salt water is concerned. But I do love to hear the ocean waves as they hit the shore, sometimes with a murmur and sometimes with a roar. The waves remind me of God’s power and how He speaks to me. He speaks to me quietly, but I am always aware of how mighty and powerful He is. He just restrains His powerful voice around me, but He lets me know that He can be mighty on my behalf when I need Him to show those characteristics. He is always mighty and always worthy of praise, much like the ocean and its unfathomable depths cannot be understood but they can be admired as a wonder of God’s creation.

This Psalm ends with a reminder that God’s statutes (His laws and ordinances) always stand firm. He is always holy and His holiness is part of His dwelling place. That makes for some deep thinking because we are God’s temple, we are the dwelling place for His Holy Spirit, so within us remains the holiness of God. That makes me think and be in awe of how much God loves me, oftentimes in spite of me.

The Lord Almighty Reigns-Sovereign Grace Music

Verb Tenses

On By vickleaIn promises, Scripture, Song2 Comments

As a Spanish teacher for over almost four decades, verb tenses have always interested me. I notice verb tenses as most people note adjectives and adverbs. I want to know when something happened or if it’s a progressive, ongoing thing. Look at the tenses in this scripture verse today.

The verse starts with God shows His love for us. Some translations say demonstrates, but no matter which version you read, this verb is in the present tense. This is an ongoing action…it happens constantly. We are sinners saved by grace, but we are still sinners. And God’s love keeps showing up for us, helping us to clean up our act and to be more like His Son.

The next verb says that Christ died for us. That is a completed action. Christ died once for all and he said “It is finished.” The sacrifice that God the Father sent Him to earth to complete is done, one time, on the cross. We are still sinners, but He died so that we can leave that sinful life behind and be washed clean in His blood. He died once but He loves forever. Tenses are interesting, but they are also important.

I don’t know about you, but I don’t like being around people who need to take a shower or bath. The smell often makes me try to hold my breath or I gag. I have come across homeless people who smell like this and it is not a pleasant odor. Now, consider that we were all unclean, wallowing in our sins, but God loved us right then, no more or no less than after we accepted His Son as our Savior. God loves the sinner even in the midst of our pig sty of sin and guilt and shame. Then, when we accept the sacrifice He made for us, He is the One who cleans us up with the precious blood of His Son and makes us righteous before Him. We didn’t have to get clean first and then come to the Lord. In fact, we cannot do anything to clean ourselves of our sin. That takes the blood of the Lamb, and that is the free gift of a loving Father.

Washed in the Blood-Faith&Grace

Prayer from the YouVersion App, Daily Refresh, 8-07-25

Tired of Doing Good?

On By vickleaIn Admonition, prayer, Scripture4 Comments

It is very easy for me to get up and right away declare that I am tired. Sometimes, it’s because I didn’t sleep long enough, and other times it is because I didn’t sleep well enough. But that is not the tired I am talking about today. Today I want to address the walking away from those who have needs that we can do something about because we are just too self-centered to want to step out of our comfort zone and lend a hand. God’s word tells us not to get “weary in doing good.” For me, I find myself weary of helping others when I don’t feel appreciated. But that is not what the verse says. It doesn’t say to stop doing good if you don’t feel appreciated and no one thanks you. I remember the ten lepers whom Jesus healed and only one came back to thank Him. What if the Lord had said, “That’s it! I’m done. I did all of this and one…only one thanked me. It’s just not worth it!” But He didn’t. Jesus continued to reach out and touch and change lives all the way until the end of His ministry. In fact, even on the cross, He reached out to the thieves on either side of Him. Always selfless and ready to sacrifice. He is our model for doing good and how long we should keep doing it. We may never see people change or show gratitude towards us or to the Lord, but we have to keep doing because the harvest is coming one day, even if we don’t see it.

A prayer from the YouVersion today. I hope you will join me in saying this prayer wholeheartedly, mean it and look forward to ways to be like Jesus so that others see Him in you.

Seeing and Being Seen

On By vickleaIn Admonition, Scripture4 Comments

Life today is a busy rush from one place or thing to another. We keep our eyes on the goal of finishing our errands or appointments and then getting back home again. But do we look around at other people? Do we even notice them, speak to them or acknowledge them?

God takes note of wherever we are and whatever we are doing. He truly sees us. Can we do any less for others?

Even in restaurants, people who are sitting at a table together are not engaging in conversation. Instead, you will generally see them on devices, checking emails, texting, going on social media or even playing a game. Meanwhile the family is distancing themselves from each other even while they are “spending time together.”

I, for one, am very glad that God doesn’t get on a device and leave me to tap my foot in dismay or harrumph loudly, hoping that I will be noticed. God always sees and always notices us, so that’s our cue to do likewise to others. The world would be a lot better off if we would put our phones down, especially in public places and just look around and notice those occupying the same space that we are. The lady who looks overwhelmed and sad, the child who is bored and perhaps crying, the elderly man who looks bewildered and perhaps somewhat lost. Do you see them? God does, and He wants us to see, too.

How can we minister to the needs of others if we are never cognizant that there is even a person near us, much less someone who could use a kind word or a prayer? I like to be seen when I go into a place. I want the person at the desk to acknowledge that they know that I have arrived. I want the others around me to smile pleasantly and perhaps ask how my day is going. If that is what I want, don’t others desire the same? Probably. We will never know if we don’t leave our comfort zone of a shield of protection behind a screen and step out to speak up. It’s okay to be uncomfortable talking to strangers. I didn’t say to whip out a Bible, a footstool to stand on and start expounding on the Roman road to salvation. What I am saying is to practice common, everyday courtesy and speak kindly to others, ask how their day is going. Give a genuine compliment to them. Show compassion and understanding in what you say and in your body language. You may be the only one who really sees this other person, in a world full of people who are totally unaware. Keep your eyes open and your heart and mouth ready. Who knows who God will put into your path who needs your kindness and compassion today, the ones who need to be seen?

Do You Hold the Door Open?

On By vickleaIn Admonition, Scripture, YouVersion App6 Comments

Holding the Door Open

In 2 Peter 3:9, Peter writes to encourage his friends…

“The Lord isn’t really being slow about his promise, as some people think. No, he is being patient for your sake. He does not want anyone to be destroyed, but wants everyone to repent.”

Peter is reminding them that the world in its present state won’t last forever. We look forward to the day when the new heavens and new earth will arrive and all evil, suffering, and death will pass away.

But our time holds a special characteristic: it’s a chance for people to repent and find salvation.

Jesus, in His kindness, is holding the door open—giving time for more people to turn away from destructive living and come to Him.

This is our golden opportunity to share the Good News of Jesus. Through His followers, He is actively extending His offer of new, eternal life to the world.

And those who respond to that invitation will find the peace of God’s presence. They’ll have access to joy that can’t be taken away by circumstances. They can develop a relationship with the living God, who loves them without reservation.

He wants EVERYONE—all of humanity—invited to the party. Invited to turn away from their old life of destruction. To come to Him and know Him, experiencing His life-changing love. To be with Him, and follow Him today and into eternal life.

What an amazing chance we have been given! And you get to participate! You can help spread the word, making God’s offer of life known:

Jesus came to offer redemption to all who would come. The Gospel of Jesus Christ is Good News for ALL PEOPLE, and the time to share it is now. Will you do it?

My Thoughts

Since I am elderly, I cannot do a lot for other people when I am out and about. They may start walking behind me towards the store, but most people get there before I do. And holding the door takes no effort at all since most doors are electronic. But think about the imagery of going ahead of someone and then going into a regular door and just shutting it once you are inside. That’s what a lot of Christians are doing to non-Christians. We don’t give them a chance to come into the kingdom because we just shut the door. I think sometimes my opinion about their lifestyle weighs too heavily, so I just assume that they don’t want to listen before I have even tried to share. Seriously, is there anyone to whom Jesus did not even offer a chance for eternal life? He gave everyone the opportunity to listen and believe, even though He knew the Pharisees and Sadducees probably wouldn’t hear the truth, He still presented it to them.

It is not up to us to decide who gets to hear. We should be telling everyone. Jesus’s gift of eternal life isn’t a secret that we hold close behind closed doors. The door is open to all who want to listen and come in. I want to be a door holder, not a door closer.

Obedience or Disobedience?

On By vickleaIn Admonition, Scripture, testimony1 Comment

Many years ago as I was busily raising small children, one of our pastors preached a message about obedience. He said that delayed obedience is disobedience and used the example of training children not to run into the street. If they decide to go ahead and run into traffic and then stop in the middle, the results could be catastrophic. The same is true when God tells us to do something and we are so busy doing our own thing that we put off doing His requirement.

How do we know what God is telling us to do? He speaks to us in His Word, if we just take time to listen and then to obey.

You know what else is disobedience? Partial obedience is the same as disobedience. I used to tell my children that they could have a snack and then they had to finish all of their homework BEFORE they could play. Well, they had their snack, but I found that frequently, the older ones would do part of the homework, tell me that they had finished (a lie) and head outside. After all, they told me later in their reasoning, the sun was only going to be up for so many hours but they could do their homework when it was dark. That sounded reasonable, but it was still disobedience as well as lying, and consequences followed. I always told them that if they had trouble obeying me who was right there with them, how would they learn to obey God whom they could not see? They understood well enough to change their habits and get all of the homework done before playtime. And I relented slightly after seeing their willingness to obey, so after a few weeks, I let them prioritize their homework into what would take the most time and do that after playtime. Compromise, but it worked for us after the lesson in obeying completely was learned.

We cannot say we are obeying God if we only do part of what He has told us to do. Remember the Bible lesson about the people Jesus said He never knew? They thought they were doing what He wanted them to do…but were they partially obeying or delaying in their obedience? God does not take disobedience lightly and neither should we. If we know what to do, then we need to do it. That is my Scripture verse today and my lesson for myself, too.

Is there something God has been prodding you to do and you have put it off? Just obey so you can move on with life and in right relationship with the Lord. I am not sure about this, but I don’t think that God will give you the next thing to do until you complete the first task that He has already given you. We grow with God, one step of obedience at a time, not standing at the crosswalk and debating with ourselves whether it’s a good idea to do what God says or not. If we are trying to talk God out of having us obey, that won’t work. Look at Balaam whose donkey spoke to him when he refused to obey the Lord as your example. God can use anything or anyone at any time to get your attention when you are in the process of disobeying. I think it’s a much better idea just to heed His call and obey in the first place so you can grow in the Lord the way you were meant to. Don’t be the one who runs into the traffic and then look up at God and ask how you got into that mess in the first place. Just listen, obey, repeat.