2 Samuel 4,5; 1 Corinthians 15; Ezekiel 13; Psalm 52-54

Kingdom focus. It is knowing there is something greater than what I can see. It is recognizing God’s sovereignty. It is trusting in him.

The wicked will slay an innocent man in his bed (vulnerable, unprepared, unsuspecting, defenseless). But David trusts who will save him.

⁹ But David said to Recab and Baanah, “The Lord, who saves me from all my enemies, is my witness. ¹⁰ Someone once told me, ‘Saul is dead,’ thinking he was bringing me good news. But I seized him and killed him at Ziklag. That’s the reward I gave him for his news! ¹¹ How much more should I reward evil men who have killed an innocent man in his own house and on his own bed? Shouldn’t I hold you responsible for his blood and rid the earth of you?” (2 Samuel 4:9-11, NLT)

Kingdom focus seeks guidance from the Lord.

¹⁹ So David asked the Lord, “Should I go out to fight the Philistines? Will you hand them over to me?”

The Lord replied to David, “Yes, go ahead. I will certainly hand them over to you.”

²⁰ So David went to Baal-perazim and defeated the Philistines there. “The Lord did it!” David exclaimed. “He burst through my enemies like a raging flood!” So he named that place Baal-perazim (which means “the Lord who bursts through”). (2 Samuel 5:19-20, NLT)

Kingdom focus, knowing something greater exists beyond what I can see.

⁵⁰ What I am saying, dear brothers and sisters, is that our physical bodies cannot inherit the Kingdom of God. These dying bodies cannot inherit what will last forever. (1 Corinthian 15:50, NLT)

Kingdom focus can face the truth. It doesn’t whitewash or deceive. Kingdom focus is knowing God’s sovereignty.

¹³ “Therefore, this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I will sweep away your whitewashed wall with a storm of indignation, with a great flood of anger, and with hailstones of fury. ¹⁴ I will break down your wall right to its foundation, and when it falls, it will crush you. Then you will know that I am the Lord. (Ezekiel 13:13-14, NLT)

Kingdom focus, trusting God, his love, his faithfulness, his strength, his good name.

⁶ The righteous will see it and be amazed.
    They will laugh and say,
⁷ “Look what happens to mighty warriors
    who do not trust in God.
They trust their wealth instead
    and grow more and more bold in their wickedness.”

⁸ But I am like an olive tree, thriving in the house of God.
    I will always trust in God’s unfailing love.
⁹ I will praise you forever, O God,
    for what you have done.
I will trust in your good name
    in the presence of your faithful people. (Psalm 52:6-9, NLT)

Lord, you remind me where to put my focus. I will praise your name, O Lord, for it is good (Psalm 54:6b, NLT)

Courtney (66books365)

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Psalm 143-145, John 18:1-18

Lord, hear my prayer, listen to my cry for mercy; in your faithfulness and righteousness come to my relief.

Let the morning bring me word of your unfailing love,  for I have put my trust in you.
Show me the way I should go,  for to you I entrust my life.

For your name’s sake, Lord, preserve my life; in your righteousness, bring me out of trouble.

Psalm 143:1, 8, 11 NIV 

Praise be to the Lord my Rock, who trains my hands for war, my fingers for battle. He is my loving God and my fortress, my stronghold and my deliverer, my shield, in whom I take refuge, who subdues peoples under me. Lord, what are human beings that you care for them, mere mortals that you think of them? They are like a breath; their days are like a fleeting shadow.

Psalm 144:1-4 NIV 

The Lord is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth. He fulfills the desire of those who fear him; he hears their cry and saves them. Psalm 145:18-19 NIV 

…“It’s better that one man should die for the people.”

John 18:14 NLT

I read these psalms as prayers yesterday as I waited for my friend to go through his chemo and radiation treatments. I prayed that God would save him from fatality, rescue him from the power of unchecked cell divisions. God heard, not because of our righteousness, but because God is faithful and righteous.

My friend remains hopeful because he trusts in the Lord’s unfailing love.  The Rock gives him strength to do battle. Whether he is victorious over disease or brought into the mighty presence of  God in heaven, he will sing a new song of praise to the One who died for all the people, Jesus.

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Deuteronomy 22; Psalm 110-111; Isaiah 49; Revelation 19

“Then you will know that I am the Lord; those who hope in me will not be disappointed.” (Isaiah 49:23, NIV)

Hope is a hard word for me. To guard against disappointment and pain, I avoid uncertainties like trust and hope. The phrase, “Don’t get your hopes up” has been a life motto for me, because, if my hopes aren’t up, then how can I be let down?

Lately, though, God has been teaching me to believe Him…to take Him at His word, and even to ask Him for things in confident expectancy. For several months, seemingly every scripture I’ve studied, every book I’ve read, every encouragement I’ve received from friends, have all pointed to the fact that God is trustworthy, and that my faith pleases Him. (Hebrews 11:6) God doesn’t just want me to believe in Him for salvation. He wants me to believe Him, period. Rely on Him. Hope in Him.

He wants me to get my hopes up.

This verse from Isaiah reminds me of Paul’s encouragement to the believers in Rome: “And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit whom He has given us.” (Romans 5:5) In other words, in Christ, where is the disappointment? There is no risk of being let down. Because of His unfailing love, I can get my hopes up.

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This post originally published on June 17, 2010.

Numbers 8; Psalm 44; Song of Solomon 6; Hebrews 6

Psalm 44 – condensed

¹ We have heard with our ears, O God;
our fathers have told us
what you did in their days,
in days long ago.

² With your hand you drove out the nations
and planted our fathers;
you crushed the peoples
and made our fathers flourish.

³ It was not by their sword that they won the land,
nor did their arm bring them victory;
it was your right hand, your arm,
and the light of your face, for you loved them.

⁵ Through you we push back our enemies;
through your name we trample our foes.

⁷ you give us victory over our enemies,
you put our adversaries to shame.

⁸ In God we make our boast all day long,
and we will praise your name forever.
Selah

⁹ But now you have rejected and humbled us;
you no longer go out with our armies.

¹⁰ You made us retreat before the enemy,
and our adversaries have plundered us.

¹¹ You gave us up to be devoured like sheep
and have scattered us among the nations.

…..

²³ Awake, O Lord! Why do you sleep?
Rouse yourself! Do not reject us forever.

²⁴ Why do you hide your face
and forget our misery and oppression?

²⁵ We are brought down to the dust;
our bodies cling to the ground.

²⁶ Rise up and help us;
redeem us because of your unfailing love.

When I read Psalm 44 I see a similar pattern to many of the Psalms. Basically, the author is first saying how God through history has been on the side of His people and he has done mighty things. BUT NOW, it seems like God has fallen asleep and forgotten His people. Nothing is going right. Certainly God must be asleep or just not paying attention. The Psalmist says “Rise up and help us”.   WAKE UP!!! CAN’T YOU SEE THINGS ARE FALLING APART HERE? RISE UP!

Then the Psalm ends with ” redeem us because of your unfailing love”.

It is very tempting to think that when things are going wrong God must surely be asleep at the wheel. While in my mind I may know better than to think that, in my heart it surely feels that way. So sometimes when I pray I might start out with what I know in my head, what my ears have heard, but once I get going what is in my heart starts to come out. Before I know it I’m telling God “wake up!!! can’t you see what’s happening?? why don’t you fix this???”

In these times, Lord, let me rest in your “unfailing love”. Let me feel that love deep down in my heart. Unfailing. Love.

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