Psalm 34

Seek, God Sees and a No-Brainer

Psalm 7, 27, 31, 34, 52

This week we are choosing past devotions to repost, but I had a hard time choosing just one – so here are 3 for you! SeekGrowLove today!

ON PSALM 27 –

(from 2021) You may have noticed that the SeekGrowLove blog features a key verse: “You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart” from Jeremiah 29:13. The LORD confirms that our seeking is worth it, because ultimately, we will find Him. However, there is an important requirement; we need to seek with all our heart. What does this phrase “with all our heart” really look like? How can we seek “with all our heart”? Perhaps “with all our heart” seeking is completely and sincerely devoted. Maybe determined and enthusiastic. This type of seeking is relentless, full of passion for what is right. It can’t be stopped. Psalm 27:4 states, “The one thing I ask from the Lord, this only do I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze on the beauty of the Lord and to seek him in his temple.” Verse 8 continues, “My heart says of you, ‘Seek His face!’ Your face, Lord, I will seek.’” You can hear the determination in that statement. The writer wants to be in the presence of the LORD. They are completely and sincerely devoted. Enthusiastic for the presence of the LORD. They are pursuing him ‘with all their heart.’

This is what the LORD desires for us. “The Lord looks down from heaven on all mankind to see if there are any who understand, any who seek God.” (Psalm 14:2) He wants us to seek him wholeheartedly. Passionately. Relentlessly. In life, we can be distracted with many pursuits, desires, and distractions. However, we can choose to refocus on the one who matters. We can choose to seek “with all our heart.” The benefits of this type of “with all our heart” seeking is great. Matthew 6:33 says, “Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness.” This desire to be close to God will be rewarded. We are rewarded today with our close loving relationship with God and later when we see Him face to face. So, if you start to feel discouraged or distracted, remember who our seeking will lead to: “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” (Revelation 21:3,4)

-Rebecca Dauksas (originally posted February 25, 2021 for SeekGrowLove)

ON PSALM 34 –

In yesterday’s lesson, I neglected to point out a story from 1 Samuel 21 that is relevant to today’s reading. When David ran away from Saul, he escaped to Gath (enemy territory) so Saul wouldn’t keep chasing him. The king’s servants pointed out that David was the man about which they sang, “Saul has slain his thousands, and David his tens of thousands.”

David took these words to heart and was very much afraid, so he pretended he was insane – scratching on the doors, and letting his saliva run down his beard. When the king saw this, he thought David was crazy, and sent him away.

David wrote Psalm 34 after this experience. Here are some verses that stand out to me.

V 3, “Glorify the Lord with me; let us exalt his name together.”

V 4, “I sought the Lord, and he answered me; he delivered me from all my fears.”

V 6, “This poor man called, and the Lord heard him; he saved him out of all his troubles.”

V 7, “The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear him, and he delivers them.”

V 8, “Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in him.”

V 12-14, “Whoever of you loves life and desires to see many good days, keep your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking lies. Turn from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it.”

V 15, “The eyes of the Lord are on the righteous and his ears are attentive to their cry;”

V 19, “A righteous man may have many troubles, but the Lord delivers him from them all’

We need to be quick to praise God for whatever he does for us, just like David did. It’s easy to cry out to God when times are tough, but sometimes it’s harder to remember to praise Him and let others know what He has done for us. This is important too.

What I really like about this chapter are the multiple times that David points out that we will experience difficult times, but God sees us through those times. I like the image conveyed by verse 7. When I’m going through a hard time, it’s comforting to imagine God sending an angel to protect me. This doesn’t mean I won’t have difficulties, but God sees me through. God is attentive to the righteous.

In verse 8, I picture David saying, “I’ve been through some hard times, but I’ve remained faithful to God, and God has pulled me through. I want to encourage you to develop a close relationship with the Lord. Once you experience that relationship and experience His helping you through those difficulties, then you too can understand how good God is.”

I have to echo David’s words, because I’ve been there. So I encourage you too, “Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in him.”

–Steve Mattison (originally posted April 14, 2020 for SeekGrowLove)

ON PSALM 52 –

For the Christian it is considered a “no brainer” that our trust is supposed to be found in God. But so often the stresses and worries of the world come against us, and we may forget that we serve a mighty God who cares deeply for us.

Here in Psalm 52 we are shown a great contrast between David here and his enemy. David wrote this Psalm during the time when he was constantly on the run from Saul, who was chasing him down to kill him, out of jealousy. David lost many years of his life running from Saul but he never lost his trust in God. At this time David had amassed a group of strong men who were ready to fight for him, but Saul, having the armies of Israel behind him, had the greater strength. David had support from people who gave him food and supplies as he ran from place to place, but Saul had all the riches of Israel behind him. But the important thing is that David had God with him, and God had promised him the throne of Israel that Saul currently sat on.

David was able to stay strong in his faith because he had seen God help him against overwhelming odds again and again, the most notable time was when he took on the nine foot tall giant, Goliath all on his own. There were actually two times during David’s years of running, that we are told about, where David had the chance to rely on his own strength to defeat Saul. Once was when Saul went to relieve himself in a cave, not knowing that David was hiding in the cave. The other time, the Bible says that God caused the entire army that was with Saul to go into a deep sleep and David was able to sneak right up next to Saul. Both times the man who was with David encouraged him to kill Saul and take the throne. But each time David refused, saying that he would not harm the Lord’s anointed. It would have been so easy for David to trust in his own strength in that moment, and no longer have to keep running for his life, but just like when David faced Goliath, David put his trust in God and not in himself. And because David did trust God, he never had to draw his sword against Saul or anyone in his family. In one single battle, Saul and all of his sons were taken out by the Philistines. God provided David the throne without David having to shed blood. David’s faith in what probably seemed like the hopeless situation of being relentlessly chased down by King Saul, paid off in the end. Years later after David had become king, he penned another Psalm, in which he said, “Some trust in chariots and some in horses but we trust in the name of the Lord our God.” I hope and pray each day to have the kind of faith and trust in God like David had, and I hope you do as well.

-Jonny Smith (originally posted February 22, 2023 for SeekGrowLove)

Reflection Questions

Is there a time you have trusted in God through a tough situation? What was the result? Who have you seen trust God through a tough situation and emerge with an even stronger faith in God?
What do you sometimes put your trust in instead? How does that work? Why?
What has God shown about Himself in your reading today?

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The Illusion of Control

*Old Testament: Job 7 & 8

*Poetry: Psalm 34

*New Testament: John 14

It is not unusual for me to carry around a Ziploc bag full of fruits and vegetables as I meander across the cafeteria crunching through school lunch. A few years ago, I made changes for the sake of my health, improving my diet and exercising regularly. I dropped some weight, I felt better, and I was healthier in my late 30s than in the whole of my 20s. I had finally mastered my body once and for all; however, this control was an illusion.

Early this summer I experienced significant changes to my health. My heart was beating out of control. I went from marathon running to huffing and puffing up the short flight of stairs at my house. I was sweaty, panicked, and dropping pounds no matter what I ate. I was heading, as I now know, full-throttle into a thyroid storm and quickly losing the gains that I had worked so hard to maintain. It was then I was given this sobering reminder: I’m not in control; not even a little bit.

Throughout the course of this week, my goal is to focus on trusting God’s plan. The rain equally falls on the just and the unjust, but we often fix our gaze on our wet shoes in the puddles and mud. This is where we find Job in Chapter 7. He ponders the calamities that befall him, and even torment him in his sleep. He is looking for a reason that God has placed him in this circumstance and even “targeted” him (v.20), removing his wealth, health, and happiness. In what looks like an ironic spin of Psalm 8, Job asks “What is mankind, that you make so much of them? That you give them so much attention?” It is a fair question. Why would God place so much attention on my life, seemingly ruining it, especially when I have put in so much time, effort, and energy into making something good?

We find our focus in the lens of eternity. When we surrender our lives to Christ, our possessions, our status, our health, and the whole of our lives are assets of the Gospel message. There is profound peace in the perfect plan of our Heavenly Father, but it requires us to relax the white knuckle grip we have over the course of our life. We must surrender in faith, fully trusting that our storm, our season, our suffering is for the glory of God. Psalm 34 states when we seek the Lord, our fears are quelled (v. 4) and in His time, he will deliver us (v. 6, 17, 19, & 22). While it is hard not to let our hearts be troubled (John 14:1), God is still good in our struggle, and for many of us, more present to taste and see it, when we are broken, poor, ill, hungry, or in peril.

When things seem out of control, we have to realize they were never in our hands. Thinking we have the power to redeem or fix our struggle alone means we are intoxicated with our own glory, one that will ultimately fail. Conversely, if we hand our lives over to Christ, declaring our lives are forfeit for His glory in faith, God will use us in a way that will infinitely diminish what we can accomplish by ourselves. Thank God, I am not in control, and His perfect will can redeem us all.

“I will extol the Lord at all times; his praise will always be on my lips. I will glory in the Lord; let the afflicted hear and rejoice.” – Psalm 34:1-2

-Aaron Winner

Reflection Questions

What do you think and feel when you hear you are not in control?
What evidence do you have to prove you are, or are not, in control?
How can you bring glory to God, even if your feet are in (or have been in) a muddy puddle?

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Bought with the Blood of the Lamb

Old Testament Reading: Exodus 11 & 12

Psalms Reading: Psalm 34

New Testament Reading: Romans 4

We have been bought with the blood of the Lamb. What a glorious thing! Praise God!

The next day he saw Jesus coming to him and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! (John 1:29 NASB 1995)

As you probably noticed, all of today’s readings tie together beautifully to point to God’s plan of redemption for mankind. We get a glimpse of this plan in Exodus 12 when the Israelites are spared from the angel of death by painting the blood of the passover lamb on their doorposts.

12 On that night I will pass through the land of Egypt and strike down every firstborn son and firstborn male animal in the land of Egypt. I will execute judgment against all the gods of Egypt, for I am the Lord! 13 But the blood on your doorposts will serve as a sign, marking the houses where you are staying. When I see the blood, I will pass over you. This plague of death will not touch you when I strike the land of Egypt. (NLT)

In Exodus 12, the specificity of the condition of the lamb—that no bone shall be broken—is significant.

43 Then the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, “These are the instructions for the festival of Passover. No outsiders are allowed to eat the Passover meal. 44 But any slave who has been purchased may eat it if he has been circumcised. 45 Temporary residents and hired servants may not eat it. 46 Each Passover lamb must be eaten in one house. Do not carry any of its meat outside, and do not break any of its bones. 47 The whole community of Israel must celebrate this Passover festival. (NASB 1995)

Psalm 34 also mentions how the righteous will be redeemed and we see another reference to no bones being broken.

19 Many are the afflictions of the righteous,

But the Lord delivers him out of them all.

20 He keeps all his bones,

Not one of them is broken.

21 Evil shall slay the wicked,

And those who hate the righteous will be condemned.

22 The Lord redeems the soul of His servants,

And none of those who take refuge in Him will be condemned. (NASB 1995)

Just like no bone was broken on the Passover Lamb, so too the scriptures tell us that no bones were broken on Jesus at the time of his crucifixion and death.

John 19

33 but coming to Jesus, when they saw that He was already dead, they did not break His legs. 34 But one of the soldiers pierced His side with a spear, and immediately blood and water came out. (NASB 1995)

Romans 4 reminds us that we can be credited as righteous through our faith in Christ Jesus and that is the only way.

6 David says the same thing when he speaks of the blessedness of the one to whom God credits righteousness apart from works:

7 “Blessed are those

whose transgressions are forgiven,

whose sins are covered.

8 Blessed is the one

whose sin the Lord will never count against them.” (NIV)

Jesus Christ paid the ultimate price for us and for that I am forever grateful!

23 The words “it was credited to him” were written not for him alone, 24 but also for us, to whom God will credit righteousness—for us who believe in him who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead. 25 He was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification. (NIV)

I was recently listening to a podcast that reminded me what a literary genius God is. Who else could seamlessly tie together this amazing story written over a course of some 1500 years? What other book has done the same thing? I had never thought about it that way and it gave me an even deeper appreciation of our amazing Heavenly Father and His word. To think, we get to be part of this amazing story if we so choose. The choice is ours. His story is ultimately a love letter to us. What could be more beautiful than that?

Reflection Questions:

Will we return the love that God has so generously bestowed upon us? He poured out His heart in His love letter to us. Will we stay the course and remain faithful?
What do you learn about God in His love letter to you today? What does He want you to know about Him?

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In Difficult Times

Psalm 34 4 NIV