March 20
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O GOD OF OUR SALVATION
Praise is due to you, O God, in Zion, and to you shall vows be performed.
2 O you who hear prayer, to you shall all flesh come.
3 When iniquities prevail against me, you atone for our transgressions.
4 Blessed is the one you choose and bring near, to dwell in your courts!
We shall be satisfied with the goodness of your house, the holiness of your temple!
5 By awesome deeds you answer us with righteousness, O God of our salvation,
The hope of all the ends of the earth and of the farthest seas;
6The one who by his strength established the mountains, being girded with might;
7 Who stills the roaring of the seas, the roaring of their waves,
The tumult of the peoples,8O that those who dwell at the ends of the earth
Are in awe at your signs. You make the going out of the morning
And the evening to shout for joy. 9 You visit the earth and water it;
You greatly enrich it; the river of God is full of water; you provide their grain,
For so you have prepared it. 10 You water its furrows abundantly, settling its ridges,
– Psalm 65:1-10
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This psalm praises the Lord, who is the God of our salvation. I love how David worships the Lord by focusing on all the Lord faithfully does to his people. He magnifies at how the Lord blesses all those who are in awe of all the wonderful things that the Lord has provided for his people: He gave them a temple where they could dwell in his goodness and God’s people is forever grateful for all the things that God provides for them such as the wonders of nature and how he controls all things he made.
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ADORATION: Praise the Lord of our salvation.
CONFESSION: Forgive me each time I fail to count my blessings and how wonderful you are to your people.
THANKSGIVING: Thank you for all the provisions you give all your chosen people.
SUPPLICATION: May all people recognize the greatest designer of our world and our lives.
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REFLECTION
• Why is it necessary for believers to give thanks and praise to the God of our salvation?
Tag Archives: ILMA’s Vlog
WHAT IS THE MEASURE OF MY DAYS? ILMA’S VLOG
March 18
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WHAT IS THE MEASURE OF MY DAYS?
I said, “I will guard my ways, that I may not sin with my tongue;
I will guard my mouth with a muzzle, so long as the wicked are in my presence.”
2 I was mute and silent; I held my peace to no avail, and my distress grew worse.
3 My heart became hot within me. As I mused, the fire burned;
Then I spoke with my tongue: 4 “O LORD, make me know my end
And what is the measure of my days; let me know how fleeting I am!
5 Behold, you have made my days a few handbreadths,
And my lifetime is as nothing before you. Surely, all mankind stands as a mere breath!
6 Surely a man goes about as a shadow! Surely for nothing they are in turmoil;
Man heaps up wealth and does not know who will gather!
7 “And now, O Lord, for what do I wait? My hope is in you.
8 Deliver me from all my transgressions. Do not make me the scorn of the fool!
9 I am mute; I do not open my mouth, for it is you who have done it.
10 Remove your stroke from me; I am spent by the hostility of your hand.
11 When you discipline a man with rebukes for sin,
You consume like a moth what is dear to him; surely all mankind is a mere breath!
-Psalm 39:1-11
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The ESV study bible notes describes this psalm as something that allows those who are suffering to express their confusion to God. David acknowledges the importance of keeping himself out of sin. As he confesses to God his view of man without God’s presence, we see how he realizes how fleeting this life we live on earth is. He asks God to discipline him and rebuke his sins for we are all nothing without our creator.
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ADORATION: Praise the God who created all things and knows everything about us.
CONFESSION: Forgive me Lord, when I take for granted the life you gave me.
THANKSGIVING: Thank you for disciplining me so I can live the new life in Christ that you gave me.
SUPPLICATION: May all Christians recognize the fleeting moments we have in this life.
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REFLECTION
• Why do we need to be reminded that life is like a mist, it is here now and gone the next moment? What would this do to how we view life?
MY SOUL LONGS FOR THE COURTS OF THE LORD ILMA’S VLOG
March 15
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MY SOUL LONGS FOR THE COURTS OF THE LORD
How lovely is your dwelling place, O LORD of hosts!
2 My soul longs, yes, faints for the courts of the LORD;
My heart and flesh sing for joy to the living God.3 Even the sparrow finds a home,
And the swallow a nest for herself, where she may lay her young,
At your altars, O LORD of hosts, my King and my God.
4 Blessed are those who dwell in your house, ever singing your praise!
5 Blessed are those whose strength is in you, in whose heart are the highways to Zion.
6 As they go through the Valley of Baca they make it a place of springs;
The early rain also covers it with pools. 7 They go from strength to strength;
Each one appears before God in Zion.8 O LORD God of hosts, hear my prayer;
Give ear, O God of Jacob! 9 Behold our shield, O God; look on the face of your anointed!
10 For a day in your courts is better than a thousand elsewhere.
I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God
Than dwell in the tents of wickedness.11 For the LORD God is a sun and shield;
The LORD bestows favor and honor. No good thing does he withhold
From those who walk uprightly.12 O LORD of hosts,
Blessed is the one who trusts in you! – Psalm 84:1-12
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Easton’s bible dictionary defines “court” as the enclosure of the tabernacle of the temple of a prison or of a private house and of a king’s palace. This psalm is written by the sons of Korah namely Assir and Elkanah and Abiasaph, (Exodus 6:24). The psalm speaks of their longing to be in the courts of the Lord, where his altar is. They bless those who dwell in his house, ever singing praises to him. It is a pilgrimage song which celebrates how special it is to worship in the Lord’s temple.
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ADORATION: Bless the Lord and all those who trust in him.
CONFESSION: Forgive me Lord when I do not totally trust in you with all my soul and mind.
THANKSGIVING: Thank you for giving us a place to worship you in your house.
SUPPLICATION: May all believers remember to keep holy the Lord’s temple.
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REFLECTION
• In the present day, where is the temple of the Lord?
WHO CAN STAND BEFORE YOU ILMA’S VLOG
March 14
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WHO CAN STAND BEFORE YOU?
In Judah God is known; his name is great in Israel.
2 His abode has been established in Salem, his dwelling place in Zion.
3 There he broke the flashing arrows, the shield, the sword, and the weapons of war.
4 Glorious are you, more majestic than the mountains full of prey.
5 The stouthearted were stripped of their spoil; they sank into sleep;
All the men of war were unable to use their hands.
6 At your rebuke, O God of Jacob, both rider and horse lay stunned.
7 But you, you are to be feared! Who can stand before you
When once your anger is roused?8 From the heavens you uttered judgment;
The earth feared and was still, 9 when God arose to establish judgment,
To save all the humble of the earth. 10 Surely the wrath of man shall praise you;
The remnant of wrath you will put on like a belt.
11 Make your vows to the LORD your God and perform them; let all around him bring gifts
To him who is to be feared,12 who cuts off the spirit of princes,
Who is to be feared by the kings of the earth. – Psalm 76:1-12
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This psalm addresses the Israelite’s acknowledgement of God’s power and how he has made his dwelling place in Zion or Salem, (it is an old name for Jerusalem stated in Gen 14:18). Verse 3-9 celebrates how God has fought for his people and protected them from the invaders. God showed his power and strength and protection to the remnant of his people. The psalm invites all believers to constantly fear the Lord as no one else is powerful before him. He is the Almighty. Let us all glorify him and make ourselves holy as he is holy.
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ADORATION: Praise you Lord, you are all powerful and mighty.
CONFESSION: Forgive those who forget to glorify your majesty and omnipotence.
THANKSGIVING: Thank you for thinking of your people even though we are unworthy.
SUPPLICATION: May all believers worship the only one true, majestic and powerful God.
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REFLECTION
• What should be our stance or posture when we stand before the Lord?
• What is the kind of worship that God wants us to give him?
HOW PRECIOUS IS YOUR STEADFAST LOVE! ILMA’S VLOG
March 11
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HOW PRECIOUS IS YOUR STEADFAST LOVE!
Transgression speaks to the wicked deep in his heart; there is no fear of God
Before his eyes.2 For he flatters himself in his own eyes
That his iniquity cannot be found out and hated.
3 The words of his mouth are trouble and deceit;
He has ceased to act wisely and do good.4 He plots trouble while on his bed;
He sets himself in a way that is not good; he does not reject evil.
5 Your steadfast love, O LORD, extends to the heavens,
Your faithfulness to the clouds.6 Your righteousness is like the mountains of God;
Your judgments are like the great deep; man and beast you save, O LORD.
7 How precious is your steadfast love, O God!
The children of mankind take refuge in the shadow of your wings.
8 They feast on the abundance of your house,
And you give them drink from the river of your delights.
9 For with you is the fountain of life; in your light do we see light.
10 Oh, continue your steadfast love to those who know you,
And your righteousness to the upright of heart!
11 Let not the foot of arrogance come upon me,
Nor the hand of the wicked drive me away.12 There the evildoers lie fallen;
They are thrust down, unable to rise. – Psalm 36: 1-12
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Transgression refers to presumptuous sin. To transgress is to choose to intentionally disobey; transgression is willful trespassing. Iniquity is more deeply rooted. Iniquity refers to a premeditated choice; to commit iniquity is to continue without repentance. When we confess and repent our sins, we are recipients of God’s steadfast love, which is so precious. We can only be able to walk in the light with such kind of unconditional love.
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ADORATION: Praise be to a God whose love is steadfast and endures forever!
CONFESSION: Forgive us all our transgressions and iniquities, my Lord and my God.
THANKSGIVING: Thank you for your faithful and unconditional love.
SUPPLICATION: May all men seek God so that they can continually live in the light.
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REFLECTION
• How is focusing on God’s steadfast love a weapon from wickedness?
HE WILL TREAD DOWN OUR FOES ILMA’S VLOG
March 12
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HE WILL TREAD DOWN OUR FOES
O God, you have rejected us, broken our defenses; you have been angry; oh, restore us.
2 You have made the land to quake; you have torn it open;
Repair its breaches, for it totters.3 You have made your people see hard things;
You have given us wine to drink that made us stagger.
4 You have set up a banner for those who fear you,
That they may flee to it from the bow. 5 That your beloved ones may be delivered,
Give salvation by your right hand and answer us!6 God has spoken in his holiness:
“With exultation I will divide up Shechem and portion out the Vale of Succoth.
7 Gilead is mine; Manasseh is mine; Ephraim is my helmet; Judah is my scepter.
8 Moab is my washbasin; upon Edom I cast my shoe; over Philistia I shout in triumph.”
9 Who will bring me to the fortified city? Who will lead me to Edom?
10 Have you not rejected us, O God? You do not go forth, O God, with our armies.
11 Oh, grant us help against the foe, for vain is the salvation of man!
12 With God we shall do valiantly; it is he who will tread down our foes- Psalm 60:1-12
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Matthew Henry’s commentary says that this psalm is David’s jewel, and it is to be taught and passed down. The Levites must teach it to the people, and by it teach them both to trust in God and to triumph in him; we must, in it, teach ourselves and one another. In a day of public rejoicing we have need to be taught to direct our joy to God and to terminate it in him, to give none of that praise to the instruments of our deliverance which is due to him only, and to encourage our hopes with our joys.
We clearly see how much David relied on God especially in treading down his foes. He alludes all of his victories only to the one who deserves it, to his loving God.
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ADORATION: Blessed be the Lord who grants all the victories over all our enemies.
CONFESSION: Forgive me when I fail to praise you for treading over my enemies.
THANKSGIVING: Thank you for your Spirit that shows us that you are our source.
SUPPLICATION: May we never forget that without God, we are nothing.
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REFLECTION
• Why is it important to bring praise to God each time we triumph over the enemy?
• How can “forgetting the source of our victory” easily trip us up with “pride”?
JOY COMES IN THE MORNING ILMA’S VLOG
March 10
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JOY COMES IN THE MORNING
I will extol you, O LORD, for you have drawn me up
And have not let my foes rejoice over me.2 O LORD my God, I cried to you for help,
And you have healed me.3 O LORD, you have brought up my soul from Sheol;
You restored me to life from among those who go down to the pit.
4 Sing praises to the LORD, O you his saints, and give thanks to his holy name.
5 For his anger is but for a moment, and his favor is for a lifetime.
Weeping may tarry for the night, but joy comes with the morning.
6 As for me, I said in my prosperity, “I shall never be moved.”
7 By your favor, O LORD, you made my mountain stand strong; you hid your face;
I was dismayed.8 To you, O LORD, I cry, and to the Lord I plead for mercy:
9 “What profit is there in my death, if I go down to the pit?
Will the dust praise you? Will it tell of your faithfulness?
10 Hear, O LORD, and be merciful to me! O LORD, be my helper!”
11 You have turned for me my mourning into dancing; you have loosed my sackcloth
And clothed me with gladness,12 that my glory may sing your praise and not be silent.
O LORD my God, I will give thanks to you forever! -Psalm 30: 1-12
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According to the ESV study bible, this psalm was written by David for the temple’s dedication which took place after his death. It was King Solomon, his son who finished the building of the temple. It praises the faithful God who always brings joy in the morning. In Lamentations 3:22-23 it says that God’s mercy never ends and they are fresh and new each morning. No matter what we are going through, joy always comes after. No matter how bleak circumstances are, God generously gives us hope and joy especially when we are faithful to love him.
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ADORATION: I exult you Lord. You are worthy, you are Mighty, you are Lord and Savior.
CONFESSION: Forgive me whenever I resort to being discouraged and hopeless.
THANKSGIVING: Thank you for your mercy, always fresh each morning.
SUPPLICATION: May we all find joy in trials for it grows our faith and endurance.
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REFLECTION
• What do you do when you get discouraged with a challenging situation?
LEAD ME IN YOUR RIGHTEOUSNESS ILMA’S VLOG
March 8
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LEAD ME IN YOUR RIGHTEOUSNESS
Give ear to my words, O LORD; consider my groaning
2 Give attention to the sound of my cry, my King and my God, for to you do I pray.
3 O LORD, in the morning you hear my voice;
In the morning I prepare a sacrifice for you and watch.
4 For you are not a God who delights in wickedness; evil may not dwell with you.
5 The boastful shall not stand before your eyes; you hate all evildoers.
6 You destroy those who speak lies; the LORD abhors the bloodthirsty and deceitful man.
7 But I, through the abundance of your steadfast love, will enter your house.
I will bow down toward your holy temple in the fear of you.
8 Lead me, O LORD, in your righteousness because of my enemies
Make your way straight before me.9 For there is no truth in their mouth;
Their inmost self is destruction; their throat is an open grave;
They flatter with their tongue.10 Make them bear their guilt, O God;
Let them fall by their own counsels; because of the abundance of their transgressions Cast them out, for they have rebelled against you. – Psalm 5:1-10
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This psalm is an individual lament from David. It is the first psalm that prays for the downfall of one’s enemies. You may wonder how David can ask the Lord to bring downfall to his enemies. Only someone who is so deeply intimate with the Lord will have the honesty and courage to do so. His heart is right because he knows that the Lord hates evil. He knows well how God would react to transgressors and wicked people. He has the confidence that he is one with God’s heart. Do we have such confidence in our relationship with God?
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ADORATION: Blessings to the one who leads us to righteousness, the Lord Jesus Christ!
CONFESSION: Forgive me when I fail to see wickedness for what it is.
THANKSGIVING: Thank you for delivering me from evil each day, Lord.
SUPPLICATION: May we grow our intimacy with the Lord and confidently pray to him.
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REFLECTION
• Have you ever prayed confidently for God to bring justice to your enemies or those who oppose your faith?
THE REIGN OF THE LORD’S ANOINTED ILMA’S VLOG
March 7
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THE REIGN OF THE LORD’S ANOINTED
Why do the nations rage and the peoples plot in vain?
2 The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together,
Against the LORD and against his Anointed, saying, 3 “Let us burst their bonds apart
And cast away their cords from us.” 4 He who sits in the heavens laughs;
The Lord holds them in derision. 5 Then he will speak to them in his wrath,
And terrify them in his fury, saying,
6 “As for me, I have set my King on Zion, my holy hill.” 7 I will tell of the decree:
The LORD said to me, “You are my Son; today I have begotten you.
8 Ask of me, and I will make the nations your heritage,
And the ends of the earth your possession. 9 You shall break them with a rod of iron
And dash them in pieces like a potter’s vessel.” 10 Now therefore, O kings, be wise;
Be warned, O rulers of the earth. 11 Serve the LORD with fear, and rejoice with trembling.
12 Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and you perish in the way,
For his wrath is quickly kindled. Blessed are all who take refuge in him. – Psalm 2:1-12
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This psalm alludes to the promise of God to Abraham. He wanted the Messiah to come from the family of Abraham and David is from that lineage. According to ESV study bible footnote, “kiss the Son” (v12) denotes religious homage which the Davidic king (v2) deserves. The kings must understand that the ruler whom they reject is not just another human ruler but is God’s own appointed king for the whole world. David was the king where Jesus, the true king will come from.
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ADORATION: Praise the Son and the Father, who loves all of mankind. Blessings to them.
CONFESSION: Forgive me when I do not submit to authority and to your will, Lord.
THANKSGIVING: Thank you Jesus for coming down to our crazy sinful world to save us.
SUPPLICATION: May the Lord’s anointed rulers be honored and may all the world recognize that Jesus is the only true king for whom all things were made for.
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REFLECTION
• Why do you think David was anointed by God supernaturally even though he was just an ordinary shepherd boy? What was in him that God loves?
MY SOUL THIRSTS FOR YOU ILMA’S VLOG
March 5
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MY SOUL THIRSTS FOR YOU
O God, you are my God; earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you
My flesh faints for you, as in a dry and weary land where there is no water.
2 So I have looked upon you in the sanctuary, beholding your power and glory.
3 Because your steadfast love is better than life, my lips will praise you.
4 So I will bless you as long as I live; in your name I will lift up my hands.
5 My soul will be satisfied as with fat and rich food,
And my mouth will praise you with joyful lips,6 when I remember you upon my bed,
And meditate on you in the watches of the night; 7 for you have been my help,
And in the shadow of your wings I will sing for joy.
8 My soul clings to you; our right hand upholds me.
9 But those who seek to destroy my life shall go down into the depths of the earth;
10 They shall be given over to the power of the sword; they shall be a portion for jackals.
11 But the king shall rejoice in God; all who swear by him shall exult,
For the mouths of liars will be stopped. – Psalm 63:1-11
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This psalm that David wrote while he was in the wilderness of Judah is full of expectancy and passion for God. It sounds like a lover constantly wooing his beloved. He thirsts so much for the Lord as a dry land would for water (v1). He is looking forward to God’s steadfast love as it is better than life itself. He is waiting for that promise that God will deliver him for the mouth of liars and those who seek to destroy his life. Do we have this unwavering hope and passion for God like David had?
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ADORATION: Praise you Lord for your steadfast love that endures forever.
CONFESSION: Forgive me when I stop looking forward to your promises and get discouraged or let down by trials and sufferings.
THANKSGIVING: Thank you for making us in your image; that it is possible to truly love like you do.
SUPPLICATION: May love be always the reason why we do things and relate with others.
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REFLECTION
• How can we thirst for God like David does? What is the most crucial virtue we can have to be able to pursue God’s own heart?