Read this first: https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm+33&version=NIV
There’s a lot here about singing and praising God- but two verses stand out I’ll start with the first verse 11:
The plans of the Lord stand firm forever, the purposes of his heart through all generations.
Praise God! That’s worthy of singing, dancing, and praising. Too often I’ve made plans and just assumed they’d happen. Now I have very few plans beyond the current week. It’s getting weary but it’s a reminder that it’s not my plans that are most important. God’s plans are. And at least currently I’ve seen spiritual renewal come from this. I’m curious as to how long it will last. Will church attendance go up, will it be moved online, or will something else come from this?
Then verses 16 and 17 go together and intrigue me:
No king is saved by the size of his army;
no warrior escapes by his great strength.
17 A horse is a vain hope for deliverance;
despite all its great strength it cannot save.
The US military spends 732 Billion dollars a year. The United States spends more on national defense than China, India, Russia, Saudi Arabia, France, Germany, United Kingdom, Japan, South Korea, and Brazil – combined. And some say it needs more money! That’s ridiculous. I’ve always been conservative but not republican for this very fact. It makes no sense- we spend 68 billion on education and wonder why things aren’t going so well. Priorities are messed up and we should tax churches because they don’t help their communities. I’m sorry if we tax churches- there’s no money to tax because they’re truly non-profit. Secondly why don’t we feed the hungry more? Well the government prevents us in Oregon from feeding the hungry because we have to pay to be inspected by a health inspector in order to feed the homeless. Even if I have pizza delivered to the church- I can’t give it out to people legally without a permit and an inspection. Not making this stuff up. It’s silly.
Anyway, probably not the best thing to write about before memorial day weekend- I love my vets. I love America I just think our money could be better served in so many other ways besides another air craft carrier. Canada seems to get along fine without one. I realize that may be a shallow way of looking at this chapter but I do think there’s something spiritual about looking at your wallet and seeing where your spending goes. Is it all towards yourself or your family? Then maybe things need to change. I do the same with America’s wallet.
But more importantly where is your trust? What do you put your hope and praise songs in? Sports? TV? I’m realizing how much stock I’ve put in the Blazers this year and they haven’t exactly loved me back. I’ve probably spent too much there. I’ve put too much in the literal stock market. I’ve put too much in things that don’t make an eternal difference.
There are things that are of greater importance. Put your stock, your praises behind those things!
Marking It Up 