Depending on your relationship with God, today's Psalm will either be the aroma of life, or the stench of death to you (2 Cor 2:14-16). You will either read Psalm 49 and have your soul refreshed, comforted, and filled with joy and hope; or you will read this Psalm and it will expose your pride and illusions of self-sufficiency, which will cause your soul to become embittered, angry, and insulted.

For those of us who repent of our sins and trust in Jesus for this life and the next, this Psalm is another beautiful and comforting reminder of God's love and faithfulness to us because of His Son.

Because I believe Jesus Christ is the Son of God who willingly disrobed Himself of His glory in Heaven where He was perfectly worshiped, honored, and obeyed; came to earth in sackcloth and ashes (skin and bones); to pay the high cost of the ransom for my soul drenched in sin, by suffering the punishment I justly deserve from God Almighty, and dying the second death (spiritual) that my sins earned me, yet because He alone is God, had the power to raise Himself from the dead, so that I would only die the first death (bodily), and in Him, would never die the second death, but have been freed to live the resurrected life now and forevermore, this Psalm is nothing but salve for my soul and a joy to my innermost being!

I pray it is the same for all who read this.

Rarely do we hear anyone saying that they rejoice because of God's judgments. Rarely do we hear anyone saying they enjoy and rejoice because of any kind of judgment...from anyone. It's not exactly the popular thing to rejoice and be glad about. Strangely enough, everyone wants justice for themselves or their loved ones, but they do not want others to get justice when they themselves are the perpetrator. This hypocrisy evinces the depravity of our hearts and minds without Christ.

But thanks be to God our Father for giving us His Son. Thanks be to God for choosing to free us from this depraved and hypocritical state, so that we might delight in God's just judgments and rejoice when anyone receives justice; even when we are in the wrong. Thanks be to God for the freedom and strength to repent—to humble ourselves before the LORD Almighty and receive His loving discipline, or His merciful reprieve from our enemies.

Today's Psalm exhorts us to rejoice in the name of the LORD, and His righteous judgments. Therefore, let all who love the LORD our God, let all who rejoice in truth and holiness, rejoice because our God has said "vengeance is mine", and all will be made known and right when He ushers us Home to glory.

As you can see, I'm a bit late on posting my #PsalmSunday this week. But the saying, "Better late than never" is true...and especially in this case. It's always better to encourage one another's hearts to sing praises to our Lord Jesus, the King of kings and the Lord of lords; late, rather than never.

So what happened that this week's #PsalmSunday is so late? Life. That's what happened.

Most days it's very difficult for me to simply get of out of bed, let alone live "normal" daily life. And lately, there's been quite a bit happening around here, good things in God's sight, that's left my frail body quite exhausted. Again, a good thing in God's sight, so no complaints here—just thanksgiving to our awesome God and Savior who allows me to participate in His holy and magnificent work of being able to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ (2 Cor 4:6).

This week's psalm, Psalm 47 is a joyous reminder and praise of our mighty Father's goodness and kindness to those whom He foreknew and therefore predestined, to be called sons and daughters of the Most High; to conform us into the glorious image of His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. What an awesome privilege and joy it is to be adopted into the holy Family of God Almighty! What peace we have, that nothing in this world can ever touch or take away (Jn 16:33). What a refreshment and comfort to our souls to know that the LORD reigns!

So let us clap our hands, and sing songs of praises and thanksgiving to our wonderful, compassionate, good, sovereign, and loving God whom we trust withholds no good thing from us, because He's already given us His Son.

Let us exult in the name of the LORD together!

#PsalmSunday: When the LORD God Almighty walled up the waves of the Red Sea to provide the Israelites safe passage, He never says that He also kept the Israelites from experiencing the sound of the rushing waters, and the power of the mighty winds that He used to restrain the sea (Ex 14:21-31). I imagine it might've been like the eye of a hurricane—the safest place to be in a hurricane, yet, not without the frightful sound, and hint of the great power of the winds and waters that swirl about.

If the Israelites feared the winds and the waves more than they feared God, they would've never crossed over to the other side to safety. Just as the Israelites' fear of the LORD prevailed, we too, must trust the LORD's steadfast love and faithfulness regardless of the torrential times we live in; within our homes, communities, or anywhere in this world. Our fear and love for the LORD must prevail because the Father has lovingly walled us up, that is, hid us in His Son, our Strong Tower, and therefore, we ARE safe (Prov 18:10).

Today's Psalm, Psalm 46:1-3 reminds us that only through repentance and faith in Jesus Christ, can anyone hope to be kept safe and secure in this life and the next. No one is saved by their own ingenuity, nor by the power or provisions of man.

Therefore, whether in times of pleasantries or poverty, we trust the LORD to provide us, or withhold from us, exactly what we need to conform us all the more into the image of the Father's magnificent Son, Jesus Christ our Lord (Rom 8:28-29).

The whole duty of man is to practice the fear of the LORD and to keep His commandments (Ps 111:10; Ecc 12:13-14). Let us gladly and urgently seek to fulfill this joyous duty every day the Lord grants to us.