Saturday, July 18, 2015

Saturday, July 18th: Psalms 20-22, Acts 13:26-52 ~ Tammy

Today's passage from the Bible In a Year Reading Plan is Psalms 20-22; Acts 13:26-52

Psalm 20:4 May he give you the desire of your heart

I heard an interesting interpretation of this verse and I think it is a good one.  Of course, we love it when God grants us the desires of our heart, but it's possible this verse means more than that.  Perhaps it is a prayer for God to plant within our hearts God's desires for our lives so that His desires become our desires.

Psalm 20:7 Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God.

An excellent reminder that our success does not depend on our own efforts and accomplishments but on God.  

In Acts we see that Paul does not waste his time on hardened hearts.  But even though he made the Gentiles the focus of his evangelistic efforts, he still prayed earnestly for the salvation of Israel.  A reminder for us to do the same.


Tomorrow's Bible In a Year Passage passage: Psalms 23-25; Acts 14

3 comments:

Nathan said...

I too, highlighted that same verse in Psalm 20, and it reminded me to also not place my trust in worldly possessions.

The verses in Acts 13 that caught my attention the most are,
42 As Paul and Barnabas were leaving the synagogue, the people invited them to speak further about these things on the next Sabbath. 43 When the congregation was dismissed, many of the Jews and devout converts to Judaism followed Paul and Barnabas, who talked with them and urged them to continue in the grace of God.

I could clearly see this playing out in one our modern day churches, where if our pastor gives a strong sermon in a series, that hits home with the congregation, we then look forward to the following Sunday's sermon to hear more. We also tend to stick around longer in church to visit with others, and this creates more unity amongst believers.

Conrad said...

"All the ends of the earth shall remember and turn to the LORD, and all the families of the nations shall worship before you." Psalm 22:27

God's intention was to have salvation available to all nations for those who believe. This is evident in our NT reading as Paul and Barnabas are speaking to the Gentiles who are receptive to what they are saying.

I need to remember to speak boldly and accurately to the "Gentiles" today, just as Paul and Barnabas did.

Pamela said...

I like your thoughts on God planting His desires in us and for those prayers to be the ones we seek to be fulfilled.

This verse stood out:

8 They are brought to their knees and fall,
but we rise up and stand firm.

One day each of us will be judged by God. Sinners will be brought to their knees and fall but the redeemed will be raised up and stand firm in knowing that even though it was undeserved and no matter what our background and where we came from...our sin has been paid for.