Ask God

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Psalm 72:1
A Psalm of Solomon.
“Give the king Your judgments, O God, And Your righteousness to the king’s Son.”

When Solomon first stepped onto the throne of his father, David, he was overwhelmed by the task before him. He realized he was weak and inexperienced, and the responsibility of ruling the nation was too much for him to handle. He knew that the Lord was his only hope, and cried out to God for wisdom. This psalm is a poetic expression of an event recorded in 1Kings 3. There, we find Solomon encountering God in his dreams. Faced with the overwhelming task of leadership, God allows Solomon to request anything he wants. Solomon’s reply is essentially the same as is recorded here. He asks for wisdom to know how to lead the nation.

Few of us are kings or even politicians, but all of us have responsibilities that are too much for us to handle, and all of us face seasons in life when we do not know what to do. James explains what we should do when we face those trying times,

James 1:5 “If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him.”

Whatever you might be facing, it is comforting to know that we can seek wisdom from God and He will supply it. Solomon found that God gave him much more than he could have ever imagined. Sadly, as time went on, the king became self-reliant and drifted from the Lord, who had been so gracious to him.

Pastor Jim

Questions for Psalm 72

  1. Verse 1 the Psalmist prays for the king and the king’s son. We need to remember to pray for the leaders of our country. Take some time to pray for the leadership of the nation.
  2. We often fight what God is telling us to do in our life. The psalmist says in verse 8 that one day everyone will know God. Is there anything you need to lay at the feet of Jesus?
  3. We often forget that God delivers us from trials. In verse 12 what does the “needy” need to do to get out of trial?

You Must Be This Tall

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pjimgallagher's avatarJim Gallagher

Psalm 71:19

“Also Your righteousness, O God, is very high, You who have done great things; O God, who is like You?”

We have four boys who are separated by only five years. When they were little, we, like so many others families, spent a lot of our time visiting amusement parks. As the older ones grew, they were attracted to the bigger rides, and their younger brother wanted to do whatever they did. The problem was, many of the rides had a standard. If you were not a certain height, you could not ride. At times, this created quite a controversy. We tried everything to make him just a little taller, we spiked his hair, we bought shoes called “Heelies”, that had a wheel in the back, and provided a couple extra inches to his height. However, time and time again, when we reached the entrance, he was excluded. He…

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Valley Of Decision 

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pjimgallagher's avatarJim Gallagher

1 Kings 18:21

“And Elijah came to all the people, and said, ‘How long will you falter between two opinions? If the Lord is God, follow Him; but if Baal, follow him.’ But the people answered him not a word.”

For thousands of years, men have stood in the valley of decision, unwillingly to make a complete commitment to the Lord. Fear, guilt, weakness, sin, and the influence of others, hold us back from surrendering to the Lord. The words of Elijah are as needful today as ever. He calls us to carefully consider the Lord, and make a decision to commit our lives to Him.

In every age, men are persuaded to become like the culture in which they live. The moral code of culture pulls us to reject the high standard of holiness, found in the pages of God’s Word, and to accept immorality as the norm. At the…

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Learning From Widows

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pjimgallagher's avatarJim Gallagher

1 Kings 17:13-14

“And Elijah said to her, ‘Do not fear; go and do as you have said, but make me a small cake from it first, and bring it to me; and afterward make some for yourself and your son. For thus says the Lord God of Israel: “The bin of flour shall not be used up, nor shall the jar of oil run dry, until the day the Lord sends rain on the earth.”’ ”

Sometimes, God chooses the most unlikely candidate as His teaching vessel. Here, and again in New Testament, we find poor widows, with almost no resources, being used to illustrate the principle of giving.

While at the Temple, Jesus pointed out a poor woman who put two small coins in the offering.  He declared, she had given more than anyone else, because she gave all she had. We learn, in God’s economy gifts are measured, not…

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Magnify 

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Psalm 70:4
“Let all those who seek You rejoice and be glad in You; and let those who love Your salvation say continually, ‘Let God be magnified!’”

We can never be sure what the day in front of us holds. We can each testify of times in life, where our days were suddenly interrupted with something good or something bad. A phone call, text, email, or visit to the doctor, can suddenly change the course of our day and even our lives. David exhorts us that regardless of what life throws our way, we should always respond by magnifying the Lord.

The word magnify has two related, yet almost opposite, meanings. In certain cases, it can mean to take something that is too small to see and enlarge it. Scientists use highly advanced microscopes to look at things hidden from the naked eye. However, the word magnify can also mean to take things that are too far away to see and bring them closer. Years ago, my wife and I were walking around an outdoor mall in Southern California where a large telescope had been set up in the courtyard. For a few dollars, we were able to use it to look at the moons of Jupiter. What was impossible to see, suddenly came to light. Magnifying God is like using a highly sophisticated telescope to bring the person and work of God into view in our daily circumstances.

It is quite common for us to question God when our life is interrupted with unsettling circumstances. It is during those times that it is all the more important to fix our eyes upon the Lord, and begin to magnify Him. As we look heavenward with hearts of worship, we will be reminded of His mercy, grace, power, love and presence. If you are in the midst of a particularly trying time, perhaps it would do you good to take your eyes of the circumstances, and begin to magnify the Lord.

Pastor Jim

Questions for Psalm 70

  1. David is pleading with God to come quickly. Have you had those moments when you’re empty and broken? By all means cry out like David did “O Lord, do not delay!”
  2. In the midst of his turmoil and panic David remembers to do something in verse 4. Can you spot it? Sometimes we treat God like a vending machine and forget to thank Him for what he has done and to worship Him for who he is. Even when we become afraid and terrified– forget not His benefits.

Enemies

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pjimgallagher's avatarJim Gallagher

Psalm 69:1-2

“Save me, O God! For the waters have come up to my neck. I sink in deep mire, Where there is no standing; I have come into deep waters, Where the floods overflow me.”

This Psalm is fulfilled in at least three ways. First, it expresses an actual time in the life of David. His enemies have mounted up against him with such great force that he feels like one who is drowning in a mighty flood. The enemies he faces are those who have sided with Saul, to seek his life; those who were against him because he had chosen to follow God, and finally, and perhaps his greatest enemy, is his own sin. In the midst of the battle for his own life, sin had mounted up like an army, seeking to destroy him. David’s victory over these enemies is found as He seeks the…

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Walking Through The Land 

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pjimgallagher's avatarJim Gallagher

1 Kings 16:32

“Then he set up an altar for Baal in the temple of Baal, which he had built in Samaria.”

If a traveler from a distant land were to arrive in Israel during the reign of Ahab, there would be little to convince him that these were a people chosen by God. If he entered from the north, the first thing to catch his eye would have been a massive altar built on a high hill in the area of Dan. This altar was erected to give worship to a massive golden cow the people revered as heir god. If he came from the south, he would see a similar site erected in Bethel. If he made his way into the heart of the nation, to the newly built city of Samaria, he would find that the focal point of the city was an altar built to Baal…

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It’s Time 

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pjimgallagher's avatarJim Gallagher

1 Kings 15:12-13

“And he banished the perverted persons from the land, and removed all the idols that his fathers had made. Also he removed Maachah his grandmother from being queen mother, because she had made an obscene image of Asherah. And Asa cut down her obscene image and burned it by the Brook Kidron.”

We recently had a friend visiting who we had not seen in a number of years. One of his first comments was how much our children had grown. When he last saw them, they were pre-teens, now they are young men. He was shocked at how they had changed, in what seemed to be such a brief period of time. For us, the changes do not seem quite as drastic, because we are watching what happens from day to day. It is only when we bring up a photo or video that we see how…

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The Spoils

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pjimgallagher's avatarJim Gallagher

Psalm 68:12b“…and she who remains at home divides the spoil.”

The physical battles Israel faced illustrates the spiritual battles the Christian faces.

Paul wrote to the Ephesians, “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places” (Ephesians 6:12).

He also reminded the Corinthians that, “The weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds” (2 Corinthians 10:4).

Our battle is not for land to be occupied, but for souls to be won. Our weapons are not the sword, spear, or slingshot; they are prayer, the Gospel message, and a righteous life. David, who knew battle, as well as any man, gives insight into a spiritual principle of warfare. He reminds us that, “she who remains at home divides the spoil.

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Salvation Among The Nations

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Psalms 67:2
“That Your way may be known on earth, Your salvation among all nations.”

Psalm 67 was written by an unknown author. We cannot know for sure who wrote it or what circumstances influenced its content. The one thing we know for sure is that it was penned by a person with a desire for others to come to the Lord. He pleads with God for mercy in his own life, in order that the world around him may come to a saving knowledge of God. The Psalmist is not alone in this. Paul declared

“Brethren, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for Israel is that they may be saved” (Romans 10:1).

As a result of this desire, Paul risked his life to bring the gospel message to his countrymen. At the conclusion of his third missionary journey, Paul made his way to Jerusalem with one goal in mind, he wanted to tell others about Christ. He received continual warnings regarding the danger he would face and the beating and imprisonment that lay ahead. Regardless of these threats, Paul pressed forward because his desire was for others to come to Christ.

The pattern of Paul has been followed by saints down through the centuries. Men, like Saint Patrick, who in the 6th century brought the gospel to the unreached pagans of Scotland and his contemporary, Saint Augustine, who brought the gospel to England. Saint Boniface, who in the 8th century brought the gospel to Germany,  Hudson Taylor, whose efforts brought the Gospel deep into China, in the 19th century. CT Studd gave up a life of wealth and comfort to bring the Gospel into Africa. Or the countless unnamed Methodist circuit preachers who took the Gospel to the settlers in the United States.

What the world needs today are men and women with a desire to see others come to Christ, regardless the personal cost.

Psalms 67:2 “That Your way may be known on earth, Your salvation among all nations.”

Pastor Jim