Christian Meditation for A Bigger Life with Pastor Dave Cover

Psalm 9 has been a go-to psalm for me over the years because it reminds me of what I usually forget, and that’s to give thanks to Yahweh (Hebrew: “HE IS”). Giving thanks is when we recognize and give voice to our appreciation to God. Giving thanks to God is an act that wakes us a little bit more from the spell of self-sufficiency and autonomy, and reminds us of the real world we live in as created...

Psalm 8 is an amazing psalm in capturing the larger story of the Gospel. The God that created this incomprehensibly vast universe is also incomprehensibly mindful of you. When David looked up at the stars he saw the glory of God in his majesty and power, but also the glory of God in his love for him. This is a great psalm to spend time meditating through the bigger story and bigger glory God creat...

When Jesus started to announce the “Good News” of his coming Kingdom, the first word out of his mouth was “Blessed.” The particular word he used was loaded with complexity and meaning that it cannot be captured by that one English word “blessed.” It meant a deep security and happiness and joy and well-being and flourishing. And then he tells us what such a person lives like, and what his coming ki...

I always do better when I start my day vocalizing aloud in prayer my need for God’s help and vocalizing aloud in praise who he is and who he is for me. That’s exactly what David did in Psalm 5, and what we can do when we meditate on and pray and praise Psalm 5 back to God.. Let’s take time to do that together in this podcast episode. Psalm 5:0–12 ESV To the choirmaster: for the flutes. A Psalm of...

Sometimes when I pray I just focus on the first line in The Lord’s Prayer -- “My Father in Heaven.” The order of The Lord’s Prayer is part of Jesus’s main point about prayer -- we need to focus first on who God is to us. And Jesus taught much about the God of this universe wanting us to come to him as our Father. And because Jesus rose from the dead, we can trust what he says is true. So sometimes...

There are those times in your life when you really need God to answer your prayer. A crisis. An opportunity. A fork in the road. Something big is happening and only God can help! A crisis with a family member. A sudden health issue. Or finances. Or at work. There are a thousand things that can go “wrong” in the course of our lives. And it’s in those times we sense a stronger need to pray. Psalm 4...

1 Corinthians 15 is one of those quintessential Bigger Life chapters in the Bible. It’s where the apostle Paul reminds us of the core message of the gospel. It’s the bottom line Good News that our faith must be centered on if our faith is going to have any value whatsoever. And it centers on Jesus rising from the dead. If the gospel’s Good News centers on that, then so should our faith and the nar...

This is one of those psalms that David wrote in the context of fear, insecurity, and anxiety. Yours may not be as intense as David’s when he wrote this, but there are some phrases in this psalm that are calming and life-giving in any level of anxiety. This episode will discuss why and lead you in a time of prayer so you can take a deep breath and trust God instead of worry. Psalm 3 ESV A Psalm of...

This is a kind of expanded version of the Lord's Prayer, where each line provides a meditative heading in order to guide your prayers. The goal is not just trying to get through this as if it’s a ritual. The purpose is meditation and prayer. The Lord’s Prayer (Matthew 6:9-13; Luke 11:2-4) Jesus says… Matthew 6:6, 9-13 (ESV) 6 But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your...

Jesus intended to put words in our mouth by giving us the Lord's Prayer. Praying the Lord's Prayer — out loud or meditatively in our hearts — is a way that Jesus gives us to “tune” our hearts to be in harmony more and more with the God who created this entire universe. Because this prayer comes directly from Jesus (who is God), we know that these phrases are the kinds of prayers God wants us to pr...

We know that Psalm 41 was a prayer that Jesus meditated on and prayed often enough to quote from memory, because he does so In John 13:18. This prayer of David will help you pray the words Jesus himself often prayed, and specifically quoted before his death and resurrection as a sign to you that God delights in YOU. This episode will help you meditate on that, and lead you in a prayer to make it m...

In Acts 20, Paul is saying his final words to the elders at the church in Ephesus, where he had spent three years in real relationship and tearful ministry. These words have some of the most powerful descriptions of how Paul actually SEEING the glorified, risen Jesus so dramatically changed his life. I believe Paul’s experience with the risen Jesus was real, and he eventually was executed for refu...

This is a prayer I’ve prayed from time to time for many years. It’s originally adapted from a “Warfare Prayer” I found in various books on spiritual warfare. I have found it to be a helpful and practical way to “submit to God and resist the devil,” as James says. Flag this episode as a prayer you can come back to from time to time yourself as you feel it’s needed. 1 Peter 5:6–9 NIV 6 Humble yourse...

Paul recounts his experience with the glorified risen Jesus. It was life changing for him. He never forgot Jesus’s powerfully imaginative words. That’s what makes this one of those passages in the Bible that is great for meditation and prayer. This podcast episode will guide in a meditation on Jesus’s eye-opening words and in a time of purposeful prayer through what is one of the most important pa...

The story of a miraculous healing of a paralyzed man by the apostles Peter and John in Acts 3 shows all the signs of someone’s memories. Unnecessary details in the narrative, like the time of day, the specific name of the gate where it happened, and the larger location by the large columns in the courtyard, are all signs that this narrative is actually told by someone’s memory (Peter and John). An...

We don’t always feel what is real. But our feelings are still real to us. They are how we feel. So God gives us Spirit-inspired prayers like Psalm 43 to help us express our darker feelings honestly to God and to ourselves. And as we do, prayers like Psalm 43 help us to come back to a place of joy and hope as we align what we feel more with what is real. Try it with this episode of A Bigger Life. P...

Sometimes the reality of who God is comforts us. Sometimes it sobers us. Both are absolutely essential for a life lived with God. We need to be reminded who God really is. Psalm 50 is one of those psalms. It appeals to our imagination in order to wake us to the reality of both the beauty and the burn of God’s shining presence over all his creation.. But first we read from the New Testament: 1 Pete...

I’m comforted by the fact that the Holy Spirit inspired prayers in the Bible that help me express my need for God to forgive me of my sin. Where can I turn in the Bible in times of personal guilt, especially after I’ve so willfully sinned? Psalm 51 is one of those prayers. For 3,000 years it has perhaps been the most read and prayed psalm of all God’s people. Which shows us that sin and our desire...

Sometimes Jesus uses poetic, imaginative language to illustrate his relationship with us, especially in the Gospel of John. These are great places in Scripture to use for prayer. In John 15 Jesus uses the highly imaginative language of a grape vine and branches and fruit. Imagine this as you think about your life. Only Jesus is the True Vine that gives Life. He’s the True Vine. There are lots of o...

Sometimes Jesus uses poetic, imaginative language to illustrate his relationship with us, especially in the Gospel of John. These are great places in Scripture to use for prayer. John 10 is particularly one of those places where Jesus gives us imaginative language to help us grasp his good and loving purpose for us as our “Good Shepherd.” This is a rich passage from which to pray that will help yo...

Every day I need to recenter my perspective by remembering my neediness for God, and remembering to put my trust in him. That sounds so basic, yet most problems in our life first stem from getting off center from basic truths. This is a short basic psalm to help you pray a short prayer to re-verticalize your perspective and recenter your life on the solid foundation of your need for God and who Go...

Prayer is also a form of meditation. For years, I have found Paul’s self-descriptive words in Galatians 2:20 to be a powerful prayer/meditation for me. It focuses on who I am in Christ, what my life story truly is now, and my basis for confidence in God’s love for me. This episode will help you make this powerful verse your own prayer and meditation. Galatians 2:20 NIV I have been crucified with C...

On a scale of 1-10, King David’s fear and anxiety was at an 11 in this psalm. The African theologian Athanasius (AD 296–373) once observed, “The other Scriptures speak to us, but the Psalms speak for us.” That’s what we’re doing in this podcast. Letting the Psalms speak for us as we draw near to God in prayer. Whatever it is right now that is stressing you on a scale of 1-10 (or even an 11), this...

King David had lots of reasons to be fearful and worried and anxious in his life. And I’m thankful for that, personally, because the Holy Spirit used those times to inspire him to write psalms that have been so helpful to me in my own worries and fears.  Psalm 56 is a particular psalm I come back to again and again because there are some specific phrases David prays that help me trust God with my...

There are times when people are spreading rumors about us. Maybe at work. In our extended families. Our church. Among our friends. And these times can be emotionally draining. We’re not sure how to begin to defend ourselves. We toss at night with worry and anxiety. But the first things we need to do in these times is to take all of it to God. That’s what David did 3,000 years ago when writing Psal...