Psalms – Borehamwood Baptist

This week, the third Monday of January often referred to as “Blue Monday”, our motivational verse for the week is taken from 1 Chronicles chapter 16:11. (If you’re feeling blue we hope this one will cheer you up!)

The basic message of Chronicles is about God himself who is a just God, but who never abandons his people. That’s a pretty motivational thought for a Monday morning!

There are two books of Chronicles, 1 Chronicles and 2 Chronicles, which are generally grouped with the books of Ezra and Nehemiah to form a broad historical reflection from the time of Adam through to the restoration of Judah.

In 1 Chronicles Chapter 16 (where we have picked up our verse for the week) we see a huge celebration take place. The Ark, a symbol of strength to the people of Israel that had been lost to battle for many years, was being returned to a central position in the temple. Emblematic of God’s presence at the centre of their lives.

The restoration of the Ark was accompanied by a day of burnt offerings and feasting. However, at the same time, David appointed a team of Levites to minister to the people in music, praise and prayer on an ongoing basis before the Ark.

This was not to be a lavish one day celebration for the people of Israel but the beginning of an ongoing and enduring practice of praise and worship.

Additionally, some of the Levites were appointed to reflect on God’s greatness and mercy. A part of our Christian faith that can be neglected in the busyness of every day life.

The steps for this commemoration were as follows:

To record and keep a journal of the great things God has done
Praise God at the time you receive his goodness
Make time for meditation on the good things God has done
Talk of His mercy often to others
Use everything around you to remind you of God’s greatness.

Our verse (vs 11)

“Seek the LORD and His strength;
Seek His face always!”

Is taken from a portion of chapter 16 that details the Psalm that David wrote to mark the feast day. In the Psalm David lists at least eight different ways that we can praise God either:

Directly to God

To others

Recollecting to ourselves God’s great works.

In verse 11 we are told to “seek God’s face, always”, in verse 12 to “remember his marvellous works”

This chapter from 1 Chronicles documents a time of great celebration and a time for refocusing on the greatness of God, a perfect message for the week of the year when most people ditch their New Year resolutions and begin, perhaps, to feel disappointed with themselves.

Let’s try this week to use everything around us to remind us of God’s greatness and seek his face always.

Read the whole passage for this week’s verse

Want a weekly boost? follow us on Facebook for more

Starting Our Week Right!

On our Facebook page we try to start our week with a motivational verse.

We are a small but engaged community of Christians on Facebook so while our impact is, perhaps, tiny it is hoped that a powerful verse to start our week will be uplifting to those that need it, and will strengthen our work in Christ.

Here, we thought it might be interesting to consider our motivational verse in more detail – what does it mean in the context of its broader position within the word of God?

This week our verse was taken from Psalm 118:14

The Lord is my strength and defence; he has become my salvation.

(Some versions also say the Lord is my strength and my song; he has become my salvation)

Of course if you wake up facing the prospect of a horrible conversation at work, or a grizzly commute this can certainly bolster you as you approach the day, but we did some digging to find out a bit more about what it means in the context of living a life in Christ.

Psalm 118 is 29 verses long and is a part of a group of five Psalms starting at Psalm 113 that are known as the “Egyptian Haifa” which concentrate on how to live for, and make a difference for, God in our lives.

In a study guide by John Karmelich of Psalm 118 he suggests that this group of Psalms are extremely important in teaching us how to get our focus on God so that we can make a difference for him, but that they are late on in the book of Psalms because we first have to learn about the desire to worship God.

This Psalm focuses in its 29 verses on all the struggles we can face when we live our lives for God, reminding the reader how we depend on God to become victorious in the first place. It encourages the reader to remember their true purpose and calling for God and to live their life with meaning.

In our verse (verse 14) The psalmist is praising God and acknowledging that all of their victories in life thus far are through the guidance and strength of God in their life (The Lord is my strength and defence). And that all through those struggles God has provided salvation.

It goes to show us that even in the times that the Psalmists were writing these verses, that serve us so well even now, the struggles they faced were genuine. That living a life of purpose for God was at times challenging. This verse reminds us not just that God is with us through the minutiae of our day-to-day life but, if we put our faith and trust in him, he will lead us to victory through him in living a life of meaning and purpose.

Seeking God’s Face on Blue Monday

Digging in to Psalm 118:14

Starting Our Week Right!

This week our verse was taken from Psalm 118:14