Passage, Paragraph, and Prayer

If God is refuge and strength for us, and if he is help most readily found in distresses, as we considered in Psalm 46:1, then what should our attitude toward any potential trouble be? Psalm 46:2–3.

“Slavery” is almost a dirty word in our American culture. And it’s obvious why. Our history verifies the cruel way humans ever since the Fall tend to behave toward those over whom they have absolute control. So how is it that people in Bible times could be both followers of God and slaveowners?

Think of all the true stories and events that have had the deepest impact on your soul and strengthened your faith the most. How many of those stories and events are absent of heartache and tears? The Sons of Korah tell us why that is.

“Abram left, just as the Lord told him to,” Moses writes. Really? In this devotion, we consider how God’s grace in Christ covers over and washes away the sin that stains even the good that we do.

Everyone has a refuge to which they run in times of trouble and distress, a source of strength they hope to tap into when they are feeling timid, nervous, anxious, or weak. What is your refuge? What is your source of strength?

In this devotion we look at the why of God’s call of Abram, that is, the purpose God had in calling Abram and also the ultimate reason for calling him to know him and follow him, which is the same reason for calling each one of us.

Can you believe it? We have finally made it to the last verse of the last stanza of Psalm 119. And psalmist concludes his long psalm with a simple and beautiful prayer.

In this devotion we look at the what of God’s call of Abram, that is, the content of his call. It is, at its heart, similar to God’s call of us in Christ Jesus.

In Psalm 119:175, the psalmist prays that his soul would live. That prompts the question: What does it mean for our soul to be dead? And what is the solution when it is?

God willing, over the next few weeks we’ll consider the when, the what, and the why of God’s call of Abram. In this devotion we look at the when. At first glance, it seems that God called Abram while he was in Haran, but Stephen tells us differently in Acts 7.

What do you long for? The answer affects what you pursue and what you delight in. If salvation is your greatest longing, then God’s word will be your greatest delight.

When God called Abram to leave his relatives and his father’s house, and to follow where he would lead, Abram’s father Terah thought he could join the bandwagon. That led to Abram not really following God’s call until after his father died. But God was patient with Abram, and it wouldn't be the first time.

In a day and age when the false teaching of decision theology has infiltrated a large segment of visible Christianity, it might make us squirm to hear the psalmist say, “May your hand exist to help me, for I have chosen your precepts.” But there is a proper way to understand, and practice, his words.

In this devotion, we consider what the hometown of Terah and his family was like and why it is surprising that they left.

The character and nature of God’s word makes it necessary that it be put to music and sung.

In the last Genesis devotion, we began considering some scriptural ways to deal with infertility, and we focused on prayer. In this devotion we consider one either key piece of scriptural advice: Turn outward, not inward. 

What is a praise song? Psalm 119:171 helps to teach us that praise is a fruit of Christian teaching. We are better equipped to praise God the more we are taught God’s word.

In this devotion we begin to consider a couple scriptural ways to deal with infertility. The first and most important way is to pray, and to pray boldly and persistently. In fact, infertility is one of the best schools in which God teaches us how to pray.

In Psalm 119:170, the psalmist pleads with God to do him a favor. What does it mean to ask God to us a favor, and on what basis can and should we do so?

“Now Sarai was barren; she had no children” (Gen. 11:30). This is one sentence, but it packs a wallop for those who can relate to it. In this devotion, we consider what it was like to be infertile back in Abram’s day, and what it’s like now.

In Psalm 119:169, the psalmist describes the believer’s loud cry to the Lord, begging for understanding. It is the type of cry that cannot be faked. Do we desire understanding and instruction that much?

Moses tells us that Haran, the son of Terah and brother of Abram, was known as “the father of Milcah and the father of Yiscah,” as if this were something commonly said about him as a sort of claim to fame. Milcah would eventually become the grandmother-in-law of Isaac, Abram’s son. But who was Yiscah?

All your ways are known to God. Does that comfort you, or terrify you? The answer to that question depends on whether you know and treasure God’s precepts and testimonies.

Moses calls his sixth account “the account of Terah.” Yet Terah will only be mentioned four times in the fourteen chapters that make up this account, not to mention that the main human character of this account is clearly Abram or Abraham. So why is it the account of Terah?

The psalmist says his soul treasures God’s testimonies. What does that mean? This devotion is basically brought to you by the late fourth century preacher, John Chrysostom.