Read this first: https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm+56&version=NIV

⁵ All day long they twist my words;
    all their schemes are for my ruin.
⁶ They conspire, they lurk,
    they watch my steps,
    hoping to take my life.
⁷ Because of their wickedness do not^[c] let them escape;
    in your anger, God, bring the nations down.

This is one of those psalms I like too much. It’s great for a pity party. Everyone’s after me- I’m the victim so in our society that makes us a hero. That’s not the way it works. Victims can be heros. Heros can be victims, but they don’t have to be. Heroes rise above and don’t glory in the fact that there are victims or that they are a victim. They simply fight for what’s right.

In God, whose word I praise,
    in the Lord, whose word I praise—
¹¹ in God I trust and am not afraid.
    What can man do to me?

Now this is a healthier perspective. I think much of Christiandom tries to hide the first passage, but it’s real. We think this way- it’s good to wrestle with God to be comfortable saying and thinking the wrong things and not being concerned about getting called out about it. We’re all there at times. Then we want to progress forward. That seems right. Keep wrestling with God where ever you’re at. Be self righteous with God, bring Him your anger, bring him your concerns, your worry, your sin, He can take it. Your friends often can’t. Stick with Him and He will see you through! Trust and be not afraid- what can man do to you? You have God on your side!

Read this first: https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm+55&version=NIV

This sounds less like a prayer and more like an actual conversation:

If an enemy were insulting me,
    I could endure it;
if a foe were rising against me,
    I could hide.
¹³ But it is you, a man like myself,
    my companion, my close friend,
¹⁴ with whom I once enjoyed sweet fellowship
    at the house of God,
as we walked about
    among the worshipers.

My companion attacks his friends;
    he violates his covenant.
²¹ His talk is smooth as butter,
    yet war is in his heart;
his words are more soothing than oil,
    yet they are drawn swords.

What happens when your enemy is a Christian or someone close to you? A family member perhaps?

Well it’s tough. I suppose most of our enemies are close relations or they wouldn’t have the power to become enemies. They would just be a nuisance long ago.

Unfortunately but likely predictably- I’ve had conflicts with Pastors, Principals, and co-workers, certainly amongst my family as well. Sometimes over substance. Often over nothing. What do you do about it? Be as direct as possible if it’s something that matters. Forgive, pray, and move on if it’s not. If you can pray for your enemy that helps. If you can pray with the person you have conflict with- that changes everything. It’s helpful to know this issue is common in looking at this passage and a tale as old as time.

Then the psalmist says to his companion:

Cast your cares on the Lord
    and he will sustain you;
he will never let
    the righteous be shaken.

Often times the reason the conflict or the acting out exists is because of anxiety or depression or something else in our enemy. I was talking with a good pastor friend Bill Herring about how to handle someone I’m counseling and trying to help who knows what to do to better themselves but will not do it. After months of repeated patterns of saying they would do something to help themself and not doing it I was frustrated. He responded by saying- sounds like they’re depressed. I had to immediately check myself and agree. There’s always a battle we don’t know about. I don’t think I can tell my friend that they’re depressed in a way that they would hear me. I’m still frustrated but I realize it may not be all my friends fault they are acting the way they are. There are bigger things than my issue. And if we’re counseling someone else- their issues shouldn’t become our own anyway.

That’s a tough thing to learn.

Pray for your frenemies. Pray that they might change to just friends- those friends are the strongest those that you have walked through conflict with. But also know it’s ok to walk away. Brant Hansen tweeted this this morning:

“If I forgive someone does that mean I have to stay in relationship with them?”

No.

But if you don’t forgive them you will stay in relationship with them- it will just be toxic.

Forgiveness is freedom.

Read this first: https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm+54&version=NIV

This starts with David sounding all whiney:

 ruthless people are trying to kill me—
    people without regard for God.

Yet it’s true. I can’t say I’ve been in that position where people want to kill me. I was just thinking of what’s the closest thing to the current situation I’ve been in. I normally go out a lot and a long while back U2 was coming to town and I got tickets for my friends and I to go. Both of my friends were leaving town soon after so I thought it was a good last hurrah. Then Bono went mountain biking in central park, fell off the bike, broke his back and was out for like a year. The tour was off and by the time it came back to town my friends had moved. That doesn’t compare to COVID. Nor does it compare with anything David went through. Privilege though a controversial term pretty well describes my life.

And yet David still also says this:

I will sacrifice a freewill offering to you;
    I will praise your name, Lord, for it is good.
⁷ You have delivered me from all my troubles,
    and my eyes have looked in triumph on my foes.

Even though people are trying to kill me- I will praise God. I will give honor due to him. I don’t know that if I were in his shoes I could say the same thing. There are people who have told me point blank I won’t come to church if you make me wear a mask. The response from the church has been so not wearing a mask is more important to you than worshipping God? In Egypt- metal detectors are used before going into church bags are checked. We have it very easy in America and yet we want to resist- you can’t tell me what to do. We’re weak is what I’m saying and we have no idea what persecution is like. I’m still offended by TSA taking my nutella 3 years ago when boarding a plane. Apparently it’s not a solid! I’m so soft. So to deal with real persecution would be hard. I know that it would test my faith and everything about me. Yet David still says- you’ve delivered me. I will give you glory.

May the Spirit give us the strength to do the same!

Read this first: https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm+53&version=NIV

I spend too much time online. You know this as I’m now on around my 50th or so blog post since spring. I see terrible things people have written. One used this verse:

The fool says in his heart,
    “There is no God.”
They are corrupt, and their ways are vile;
    there is no one who does good.

They used it as justification to call non- believers fools. I said how would that help convert them to Christianity? He responded by saying we were to speak the truth. I clapped back- with a speak the truth in love- fool!

It wasn’t my best moment.

We often use this verse by itself. I guess we can blame Paul in the new testament for that but my understanding is that when a jewish person quotes an old testament passage they aren’t just quioting that part the implication is all the rest as the people at that time knew the whole thing. Why would context be important?

Because this is what comes next:

God looks down from heaven
    on all mankind
to see if there are any who understand,
    any who seek God.
³ Everyone has turned away, all have become corrupt;
    there is no one who does good,
    not even one.

We’re all fools.

Why do I believe while many do not? The grace of God. Try as might to run away- God keeps calling me back. I’m just as sinful as a non-believer if not more so. I have the truth and know exactly what’s right yet don’t do it. So have a heart for fools. You’re one of them!

Read this first: https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm%2052&version=NIV

Why do you boast of evil, you mighty hero?
    Why do you boast all day long,
    you who are a disgrace in the eyes of God?

You love evil rather than good,
    falsehood rather than speaking the truth.

Psalm 52 causes introspection- what evil do you call good? What do you let slide that God’s word is clear on? The most obvious to me is Jesus clear words that sex is between a man and woman in marriage alone. That comes across as archaic and wrong and difficult for me to even type and yet it’s the best form of sexuality for raising children. We’ve gone against this so many times in our society it comes across as bigotted and wrong.

On the other hand if all of your beliefs match the culture you don’t have beliefs- you believe less in God and more in the culture. There are other issues that we believe in that our counter cultural like- don’t sue other Christians. When someone takes your cloak give them your shirt too. That strikes me as wrong as well. Better to be poor than rich- better to give than to receive. Less truly is more. Give rather than hoard. This goes against the idea of capitalism something I continue to struggle with. We live in a throw away society. I came close to spending another $2000 on a phone during quarantine because there was lint in the phone. A toothpick solved the problem. $2000 or 2 cents. We’re a wasteful society.

What are those things the spirit is calling you out on where you’ve called it good and God calls it bad? Is it a tv show or a podcast? I’ve been there. Is it a relationship or how you cope? Is it hoarding? Been there through all of it. Do you continue to struggle with? Yep I’m there too. Start by saying it’s wrong and confess to God. Get accountability. Get help. Don’t call your wrong or anyone else’s wrong good. Speak the truth to yourself, but do it with love. There is forgiveness there is hope and there is someone who can change you.

Read this: https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm+51&version=NIV

This is the ultimate confession. No excuses just I was wrong God against you alone have I sinned. It’s the kind of thing you want to hear when your kid screws up. Which is exactly the relationship our God has with us. The psalmist asks God to change Him and make Him clean. It’s a dropping of the guard and proof of submission that rarely happens. Many have problems with the word submit- especially to God. It can only come from a place of trust.

But it goes even further pointing out that original sin- even from birth is a thing. Yes we can confess to one another similar things in a similar way, but some things only God can fix.

This passage has always stood out and the older I’ve gotten the more I’ve learned about it-

Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean;
    wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.

Hyssop was used here as some form of soap but the branches of hyssop were used to apply the blood on the doorframe during the passover to bring about God’s passing over the firstborn son. God’s firstborn son Jesus was given a drink from a hyssop branch on the day he died so that our sin might be passed over. Freedom and the gift of the promised land remains. And our Jesus cleans us whiter than snow through the power of baptism.

Open my lips and I will declare your praise. I don’t know about you but I’m having an off week. They happen some times. I feel like my lips are closed and I don’t want to praise. Partially because I have big decisions before me and also because I made some mistakes in regards to the budget and fundraising at my church in the past. Nothing huge, just made some funds restricted that I shouldn’t have because I said the wrong thing at our trivia night. It eats me up. And it’s hot. All of that adds to the self-loathing. It’s closed my mouth from praise. So I ask God help me to be forgiven of this. Help me to be clean. Give me the answers to these questions and make me better in the future.

Take time to do the same so that you too can be free to praise God!

Read this first: https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm+50&version=NIV

In our world we see blessings as comfort, riches, and a new car. This isn’t the way of the Bible. It’s the way of our culture- the sign of a blessed life looks something more like this:

Sacrifice thank offerings to God,
    fulfill your vows to the Most High,
¹⁵ and call on me in the day of trouble;
    I will deliver you, and you will honor me.

In fact in the early church they even saw sacrifices they made and suffering as blessings. When I was in Houston a couple summers ago to help rebuild after urricane Harvey – the people saw the flooding and the hurricane as a blessing because it meant people from across the country came to help and support them. I still don’t quite see things that way but it is probably a better way of looking at things then I can muster!

Yourriches are gifts you give to God and others. If your wealth is just for you and yours you’re missing out! Honor God with your offerings and with your gifts and with your life and your love! Everything we have is God’s. It’s all a loan from God.

And secondly the goal is deliverance from this. Heavenly treasures are greatly than earthly treasures anyway. And the goal is not deliverance for me but others as well. What better way to do that then blessing others with what we have in Christ’s name. See how you can do that today!

Read this first: https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm+49&version=NIV

People who have wealth but lack understanding
    are like the beasts that perish.

I’m fairly wealthy. I don’t talk about it much but as a grown adult with a decent job, money in the market, a car, a job, and a house. I’m more wealthy than half the world. Half the world lives off less than $5.50 a day. 80% of the world lives on less than $10 a day. You must have internet access to read this and some device that also likely puts you in the wealthy category.

So what do we do with that? Why is it that we have every fact at our fingertips and yet there’s still a large group of people who think the earth is flat? Because we have every fact on our devices we’ve decided they’re as disposable as the phones we replace every couple years and throw them all out for opinion. We have wealth, access, and power, but we lack understanding and wisdom. We’d rather watch people throw food at each other on tv than make food for the poor. How sad is our life?

What do you do with your power and your wealth? What do you do with the information at your finger tips? Do we just sit around and binge netflix and watch cats on roombas? Do we use it to fight strangers on the web? I’ve done all of that. Can you use it to sort through facts to find unknown truths? I’ve done that too, but it takes more work and I do it less often.

Should I use my wealth to help others? Absolutely but how do you use it in such a way that doesn’t encourage people to keep looking for hand outs? That’s the issue. And yet much of my wealth has been a hand out as well. I haven’t really earned it. All I have is gift. All any of us have is gift. I’m reminded of this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1fC6RP6tZ1Q

I don’t think the homeless were necessarily more generous than the wealthy- I think if you hand anyone free food they will be more generous with giving it to others as they didn’t think they’d have pizza in the first place. If we start with the idea that what we have is already more than enough- then our generosity changes. Let’s keep that in mind. All is gift- all can be given away. All can be given again.

May God bless your day!

Read this first:

Great is the Lord, and most worthy of praise,
    in the city of our God, his holy mountain.

I love my city. I have a friend, Sean, who coined the phrase “love your city” he told me it was his way of saying, “What would Jesus do?” At first I didn’t understand what he was saying. Then I realized he was saying ss Jesus told us to: love your neighbor. Love your city is the same idea.

What do I love about Portland? Why I am so glad I asked myself this non-rhetorical question.

I love Portland’s weirdness, the food, the creativity, the craftsman homes, the river, the Timbers and the timber army, the roses, the Blazers, the people, the fact that it’s mostly clean, the beer, the whiskey, the Juanita’s chips, the hipsters, the distinctive downtown area, the skyline, the mix of upper class and lower class, the classy mother’s bistro in the same block as Dantes dive bar, voodoo donuts, and a homeless shelter. That’s just one little part of downtown. The speakeasys, the hidden gems, the salt and straw, pok pok wings, the libraries, the running routes around the river and multiple bridges, the tall bikes, the unicycles, Mt Hood and Mt St Helens peaking through and the proximity to the gorge and the beach and the Lutheran Community I grew up with here.

How has God built up my city? He’s added greater food, given it a place on the national map because of a silly tv show, made sure as far as I know that no one has falled off the absurdly high marquam bridge with the unnecessary merge in the middle, kept us from harm and danger, didn’t let us get destroyed norm harm from earthquakes nor the mt st helens explosion, he’s kept us from killing anyone in the riots recently, kept our covid deaths minimal, and given us rain for crops, flowers, and trees, he made the gorge come back from fire and kept the fire issues to a minimum.

Obviously we are to love God first but loving your city, loving your neighborhood goes with it.

This Psalm talks all about God defending the city and building it up and yes we could see this as referring to the temple and to the future Zion of heaven, but God is building up your city with you as part of your sanctification so I can say that’s true.

How do you love your city? Yesterday I spent it going around to college grads to drop off gifts- I’ll do more of that today. Hopefully I will get to mow the lawn and brighten a couple kids days too. Maybe it’s your work that will help you love your city. Maybe it’s your blog. But love well!

Read this first: https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm+47&version=ESV

This is the simplest psalm we’ve had in a while. It’s a song of praise to God for all He’s done. I don’t know if I’ve done that much since covid hit. Occassionally I’ll get lost in a song but there’s something about praising God with a group that’s helpful for that. I feel like I need to do more than that. Like there has to be an application for all of my teaching. A where do we go from here moment.

Yet there are messages I do where sometimes I feel God just needs to tell us we’re loved.

Maybe there are messages and times where I need to just tell God He’s loved.

It’s a perception changer. David just went through the list of all the good things God has done for Him.

So I guess I’ll do the same and encourage you to do likewise.

God I thank you for being with me through this season. For giving us the internet, netflix, skit guys, and Bob the Tomato’s amazing insight into racism at this time. For spiritual disciplines like blogging that couldn’t have happened before. For continuing to provide me with a job and income when so many do not. For editing software and people who know what they’re doing.

You are awesome! You have made it so that though I’m physically alone- I know I’m not. My biggest fear through this has been my loved ones dieing alone. But you’ve given me the insight through my pastor that no one ever dies alone. I thank you for that.

You have given me and so many kids great faith. Help me to keep seeing that. I thank you for Jesus for forgiveness and hope beyond this life.

You bring change. You bring newness with every season. You bring joy. You bring love. All love I’ve experienced has been a reflection of your love. You’re with me in my sadness as well and know exactly how I feel. You walk with me through my fear, doubts, existential dread, and so much more.

Help me and all of us to praise you and be thankful for all your works which surrounds us and we take for granted so often!