Psalm 65
9 You take care of the earth and water it,
 making it rich and fertile. The river of God has plenty of water;
 it provides a bountiful harvest of grain,
 for you have ordered it so.

We don’t worship nature, but we certainly worship the God of Nature. This Psalm captures the poetic beauty of the natural world and the privilege of our capacity to appreciate it, if we take the time.

Look at a flower closely today and think about what you see.

Psalm 64

7 But God himself will shoot them with his arrows,
 suddenly striking them down.

Theologian Miroslav Wolf has said ‘a Christian can’t be a true pacifist unless he/she believes in a God of Vengeance.’ While I am not a pure pacifist, I understand Wolf’s thinking. With so much evil and injustice done by humans, there had better be proper justice parceled out by God in the scheme of things. God will have his way and do what is exactly right. We all need Jesus.

Pray for God to show you the freedom of confessing unrepentant sin.

Psalm 62

 5 Find rest, O my soul, in God alone; my hope comes from him.

The soul is central governing force of who we are. That’s a tough job. Much more difficult than any human job there is. Why is that?

Because our lives ultimately revolve around our soul. We are at the center of our existence. We are always “on” because we are, always.

The only way we can experience true peace is through the design of the designer of our soul. God is the source. Rest is available.

Pray for God to guide you to his peace.

Psalm 61

6 Increase the days of the king’s life, his years for many generations.

Leaders come and go. In America we will be electing a new president in a few months. He will be in office for four or eight years and then someone else will be president. So it goes. An important role, yet quite temporary.

Probably just as well. I can think of only one person I would like to see rule as long as he wants. And he does. King Jesus.

Pray for those who lead.

Psalm 60
11 Oh, please help us against our enemies,
for all human help is useless.

After watching the spectacle, the heartbreak, the triumph, the excitement, and the camaraderie of the Olympics these past weeks, what do you think? Will this be the time when our human wars and conflicts will be overcome by the Spirit of the Games? You know the answer.

The Olympics enthrall me, but only God is going to rescue and restore this world. He already has begun. Jesus brings in the victory. Now we invite others to join us as we follow our champion.

Pray for a new nation you noticed competing in the Olympics.

Psalm 59

14 My enemies come out at night,

      snarling like vicious dogs

      as they prowl the streets.

 15 They scavenge for food

      but go to sleep unsatisfied.

When you have trouble sleeping, is it because you are scheming how to do evil in someone else’s life? I don’t think you would be reading this if that were the case. So, is there anything else bothering you? Maybe your enemy is the worry that keeps you awake at night rather than the source of worry?

Give up at least one worry you have today.

Psalm 58

11 Then at last everyone will say,

“There truly is a reward for those who live for God;

surely there is a God who judges justly here on earth.”

In our culture we are used to getting things right away and exactly when we want them and how we want them. This is called, “instant gratification.” Domino’s Pizza grew an empire over this attitude. Their “30 minute guarantee.”

But what we think is most important in life often doesn’t fit that “I want to have everything go my way exactly” attitude. Even Domino’s figured this out. Their “You Got 30 minutes” trademark is no longer the same. Here is the fine print today.

Because safety is a priority “You Got 30 Minutes™” is not a guarantee but an estimate. You may get more.

As we grow in faith, we learn that when we go with God it is always on his schedule. He will surprise us with timeliness (from our view) once in a while, but being a friend of God means more often we do a lot of waiting.

What have you been waiting for lately?

Psalm 57
8 Wake up, my heart!
Wake up, O lyre and harp!
I will wake the dawn with my song.

You don’t have to be a morning person to realize that things look different at that time of day. Especially in the early morning, when the quiet makes it possible to focus better, and the first light hints at new possibilities.

Wake at dawn (if you dare) and sense what God is up to that early in the morning.

Psalm 56
11 I trust in God, so why should I be afraid?
What can mere mortals do to me?

Is there something someone could do to us to separate from God? Of course not. This is the theme of one of our most beloved texts of the Bible from Romans 8,

“Nothing can separate us from the love of God through Jesus Christ.”

Remember who is on your side the next time fear rises. The one you trust in will protect you.

What have you feared lately?