Part one, devoted

DEVOTION

PSALMS

PART ONE, DEVOTED

Ps 86

86:1 A prayer of David.

Hear, O LORD, and answer me, for I am poor and needy. 2 Guard my life, for I am devoted to you. You are my God; save your servant who trusts in you. 3 Have mercy on me, O Lord, for I call to you all day long. 4 Bring joy to your servant, for to you, O Lord, I lift up my soul.

5 You are forgiving and good, O Lord, abounding in love to all who call to you. 6 Hear my prayer, O LORD; listen to my cry for mercy. 7 In the day of my trouble I will call to you, for you will answer me.

8 Among the gods there is none like you, O Lord; no deeds can compare with yours. 9 All the nations you have made will come and worship before you, O Lord; they will bring glory to your name. 10 For you are great and do marvelous deeds; you alone are God.

11 Teach me your way, O LORD, and I will walk in your truth; give me an undivided heart, that I may fear your name. 12 I will praise you, O Lord my God, with all my heart; I will glorify your name forever. 13 For great is your love toward me; you have delivered me from the depths of the grave.  

14 The arrogant are attacking me, O God; a band of ruthless men seeks my life — men without regard for you. 15 But you, O Lord, are a compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness. 16 Turn to me and have mercy on me; grant your strength to your servant and save the son of your maidservant.   17 Give me a sign of your goodness, that my enemies may see it and be put to shame, for you, O LORD, have helped me and comforted me.

NIV

This is not that long of a psalm but it is packed full of so much to deal with, we might just have to stay here awhile. We don’t think we can say that David was actually poor and needy in the material sense, so it matters not what our position in life is. The fact remains no matter how much wealth we might have amassed for ourselves, we are still poor and needy. God made sure one of the churches understood that in his revelation to John.

Rev 3:17

17 You say, 'I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.' But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked.

NIV

Because we are poor and needy we need the Lord to guard or lives as well, but not just because, no it is because we are devoted to him. That is a mouthful. To be devoted to God. The Hebrew reads for holy I which many of the translations use this devoted to God. Either way the implication is that we cannot be devoted but to one thing at a time. In this case it is God. We know that verse about not being able to serve masters.

Luke 16:13

13 "No servant can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money." 

NIV

We can only be devoted to one not both. Can we truly say what David said about being devoted to God? Are we distracted from pure devotion? Can we ask him to save us, his servant who trusts in him? Surely we need to be devoted to our spouse. Certainly that is a command of God. But then, if we obeyed him, we're devoted to each other, then it would mean we are devoted to him. In fact, obeying all his commands would be considered being devoted to him. It would also mean we trust him completely for every aspect of our life. So then we can ask him to have mercy on us, to save us, to sustain us, to embrace us, and watch over us, to be our God as we are his people. We call on him all day long. Do we? Are there moments we forget about calling on him? Are there times we think, “We have this”, times we do not call on him because we can do it all by ourselves, with our own strength, know how, knowledge or abilities. But it is God who has led us to this point in our lives, giving us our abilities, our strength. All we are, all we have and all we do is because of the blessings of God in our life. This is the joy of our life, to know the Lord God is directing us, leading us on his path of righteousness. We will lift up our soul to him.

Rest assured

DEVOTION

PSALMS

REST ASSURED

Ps 85

85:1 For the director of music. Of the Sons of Korah. A psalm.

You showed favor to your land, O LORD; you restored the fortunes of Jacob. 2 You forgave the iniquity of your people and covered all their sins. Selah

 3 You set aside all your wrath and turned from your fierce anger. 4 Restore us again, O God our Savior, and put away your displeasure toward us. 5 Will you be angry with us forever? Will you prolong your anger through all generations? 6 Will you not revive us again, that your people may rejoice in you? 7 Show us your unfailing love, O LORD, and grant us your salvation.

8 I will listen to what God the LORD will say; he promises peace to his people, his saints — but let them not return to folly. 9 Surely his salvation is near those who fear him, that his glory may dwell in our land.

10 Love and faithfulness meet together; righteousness and peace kiss each other. 11 Faithfulness springs forth from the earth, and righteousness looks down from heaven. 12 The LORD will indeed give what is good, and our land will yield its harvest. 13 Righteousness goes before him and prepares the way for his steps.

NIV

This song holds the most wonderful truth within. However, before we explore it, we rejoice in the fact God has shown favor to his land, that he restored the fortunes of Jacob. The reason is we can take that same claim. He has restored us. He has shown favor on us and where we were once without fortune, we now have Christ, the greatest fortune any person could embrace. God has forgiven our iniquity and covered our sin, through Christ. Although God can and does have a wrath which no man should have to endure, and a fierce anger toward sin, he has restored us, he has put aside his displeasure with our sin, because we are in Christ. His anger will not be, has not been, forever, he made a way. He is asked if he would revive them again, and he did. This is our plea at times when we fail, when we lose sight of our great fortune. We seek forgiveness for our iniquity and he forgives and restores because we are in Christ. He already has shown us his unfailing love and has granted us salvation. Now, the rubber meets the road right here. We will listen to what God the LORD will say; he promises peace to his people his saints, as long as we do not return to folly. This is the Shalom peace spoken of here which carries the meaning of completeness, soundness, welfare peace. This is especially referred to those in a covenant relationship with God. That is us. We are his people, his saints and we will not return to our folly either. It is interesting that Hebrew word translated folly means confidence, as well as stupidity. Returning to folly then would mean once again having confidence in ourselves rather than God and that would be stupid. This could be meant regarding for salvation, but also in light of shalom, it could mean about feeling complete in ourselves, that we provide all we need, our efforts, our abilities are what cause us our welfare. That would be folly, for the LORD God surely provides our every need. Yes, we work, we are supposed to toil the ground, so to speak, all the days of our lives for our sustenance. That is the curse Adam brought upon us. However, Jesus also set us free. Yet we are not to sit in our behinds either. We must work. The psalmist says God’s salvation is near, and it was and he came, and now that salvation is ours as well, we have Jesus to thank for that. Next, this beauty revealed to us. Love and faithfulness meet together; righteousness and peace kiss each other. Love and faithfulness are on one side while righteousness and peace are on the other side. Truth requires righteousness and love or mercy, as the Hebrew word means, calls for peace. They meet along the way, one investigating sin, while the other pleads for reconciliation. Where do they meet? In Jesus. We have it all in Christ, we have his righteousness, his love or mercy. We are found with sin, however his truth, his peace, has reconciled himself to us. What peace that brings to our heart. What contentment to know we are pleasant in the eyes of God. What relief to know we have been reconciled to God through Jesus. We are at peace with him, Jesus promised he would give us his peace, not as the world gives peace, but his peace. We have shalom with God, he has our welfare, and we can be at peace within our heart. We can rest assured.

We are blessed

DEVOTION

PSALMS

WE ARE BLESSED

Ps 84

84:1 For the director of music. According to gittith.  Of the Sons of Korah. A psalm.

How lovely is your dwelling place, O LORD Almighty! 2 My soul yearns, even faints, for the courts of the LORD; my heart and my flesh cry out for the living God. 3 Even the sparrow has found a home, and the swallow a nest for herself, where she may have her young — a place near your altar, O LORD Almighty, my King and my God. 4 Blessed are those who dwell in your house; they are ever praising you. Selah 

5 Blessed are those whose strength is in you, who have set their hearts on pilgrimage. 6 As they pass through the Valley of Baca, they make it a place of springs; the autumn rains also cover it with pools.   7 They go from strength to strength, till each appears before God in Zion. 8 Hear my prayer, O LORD God Almighty; listen to me, O God of Jacob. Selah

9 Look upon our shield, O God; look with favor on your anointed one. 10 Better is one day in your courts than a thousand elsewhere; I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of the wicked. 11 For the LORD God is a sun and shield; the LORD bestows favor and honor; no good thing does he withhold from those whose walk is blameless.

12 O LORD Almighty, blessed is the man who trusts in you.

NIV

We could spent days on each one of the stanzas of this song. What a powerful song of praise to our God. His dwelling place is lovely. To just consider for a moment, like the rest of our life on this planet, how great, how magnificent it is going to be standing in new creation, the new city of God he will bring down out of heaven to earth and where we will spend all of eternity in his presence, even walking and talking with Jesus. Our soul yearns, even faints for his courts, his temple, and his holy presence. True, it seems we get a little carried away with this life, wanting to accomplish something, even for his kingdom. We have all these things we want to do, or have before we die. The older we get the closer death closes in on us and we might get a little tense about not having done all we wanted. We might even think the best part of our life, our younger years, when we were full of energy and had far fewer aches and pains is over and now we see nothing but an aging face in the mirror. But the best ever part of our life is getting closer, the part when we step into eternity into the court of our God. We have found a home, just as the sparrow and the swallow. We have found a nest for ourselves and it is in the everlasting arms of our Lord. But we are not so much like a sparrow or swallow as we are far more like an eagle. As Isaiah put it,

Isa 40:31

31 but those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.

NIV

Ah yes, this body may be older then what it once was, but we are still soaring on wings like eagles, for our hope is in the Lord. We are renewed daily as we feast on his words, as we fill our hearts with joy, hope and love, as a result of our faith, our desire to see his royal court. He is our strength, we will not grow weary, nor rest from our work. We will not sit back and just wait for death, we will continue to run the race, staying on the course set before us, we are yet far from the finish line. We will not stop by any tent of the wicked, but run past them, not wanting their favor, but the favor of our Lord. We will run the race, as long as there is day, and our Lord is the sun and our shield. He shines his blessings upon us and shields us from any attack from the tents of the wicked. He bestows honor and favor upon us, he lifts us up and gives us those wings of eagles to soar upon. The eagles nest is high upon the mountains and we will one day nest on the mountain of God, but until then we are soaring, we are flying high, being honored by God. Because we are in Christ we are blameless, God declared it so. Therefor he withholds no good thing from us. But we need to be looking for those good things that he does not withhold. If we are distracted by the things we think are good, we might miss what he thinks is good. Our eyes have not grown dim and so we can see all the good things he has not withheld from us, we are blessed beyond measure. He has opened the floodgates of heaven and poured out so much we do not have room enough to contain.

Mal 3:10-12

10 Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this," says the LORD Almighty, "and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for it. 11 I will prevent pests from devouring your crops, and the vines in your fields will not cast their fruit," says the LORD Almighty. 12 "Then all the nations will call you blessed, for yours will be a delightful land," says the LORD Almighty.

NIV

Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord. We trust him, therefor we are blessed.

One God over the Nations

DEVOTION

PSALMS

ONE GOD OVER THE NATIONS

Ps 83

83:1 A song. A psalm of Asaph.

O God, do not keep silent; be not quiet, O God, be not still. 2 See how your enemies are astir, how your foes rear their heads. 3 With cunning they conspire against your people; they plot against those you cherish. 4 "Come," they say, "let us destroy them as a nation, that the name of Israel be remembered no more." 5 With one mind they plot together; they form an alliance against you —  6 the tents of Edom and the Ishmaelites, of Moab and the Hagrites, 7 Gebal, Ammon and Amalek, Philistia, with the people of Tyre. 8 Even Assyria has joined them to lend strength to the descendants of Lot. Selah 

9 Do to them as you did to Midian, as you did to Sisera and Jabin at the river Kishon, 10 who perished at Endor and became like refuse on the ground. 11 Make their nobles like Oreb and Zeeb, all their princes like Zebah and Zalmunna, 12 who said, "Let us take possession of the pasturelands of God." 13 Make them like tumbleweed, O my God, like chaff before the wind. 14 As fire consumes the forest or a flame sets the mountains ablaze, 15 so pursue them with your tempest and terrify them with your storm. 16 Cover their faces with shame so that men will seek your name, O LORD.

17 May they ever be ashamed and dismayed; may they perish in disgrace. 18 Let them know that you, whose name is the LORD — that you alone are the Most High over all the earth.

NIV

Well, it seems this is really uplifting. It is a history lesson of the time when it looks like Israel is about to be taken once again into captivity or overrun by all its enemies. Asaph is reminding God they are in trouble and for him to come to their aid and smash all their enemies, that he is the LORD and that he alone is the Most High over all the earth which includes all their enemies. He can do whatever he wants with anyone, anytime, anywhere. Life does not have to be just life when the LORD Most High is near. Israel does not have to be subject to the normal everyday life of a nation in the time when war and conquest were the natural course of life. However, they were subject to that kind of life because they were forever turning their back on the Lord. They were always intermingling with foreign ideas and their gods. This again is our lesson as well. We do not have to be subject to the laws of nature of this corrupt society we live in. The reason is that we refuse to intermingle with their ideas, their philosophies, and their way of life. We know that we cannot serve two masters, as the Israelites tried to. We know there is only one way to live and that is to trust the LORD God Almighty completely for every aspect of our life. We have to believe he is always near, for we sense the Spirit within us. He guides our steps, he directs our path, we are the sheep of his pasture and our shepherd leads us to green pastures, he makes us to lay down near still waters and he restores of soul. He cares for us, but we have to listen only to the voice of our Shepherd. The troubles Israel always experienced was due to their not listening only to his voice, but they listen to the voices about false gods. We cannot afford to listen to those false gods, those silver tongues messengers from the darkness. May they ever be ashamed and dismayed and they will perish because they serve another then the Lord God Almighty. That is not what we want, not does God. It is the Christian way to pray for them, that they might know God Almighty and his truth. We should want them to turn from their wicked ways and find God. Some may, if they hear the truth. How will they hear the truth unless someone tells them? How will someone tell them unless they are sent? Haven’t we been sent in to all the world? So it is up to us to speak up, to stand up, to say he is the LORD God Almighty and serve him alone. We cannot just enjoy our salvation and stay cooped up in our safety, engaged in community of the saints only. We are his ambassadors, his representatives to this world. We cannot serve this world, but we must respond to his call. The enemy is about, but we have been admonished to pray for them, to speak up for God. Silence with not get it. Let his anthem be song among the nations. We may not live as one nation under God anymore, but he is surely one God over the nations.

In or Out

DEVOTION

PSALMS

IN OR OUT

Ps 82

82:1 A psalm of Asaph.

God presides in the great assembly; he gives judgment among the "gods": 2 "How long will you defend the unjust and show partiality to the wicked?  Selah  3 Defend the cause of the weak and fatherless; maintain the rights of the poor and oppressed. 4 Rescue the weak and needy; deliver them from the hand of the wicked. 5 "They know nothing, they understand nothing. They walk about in darkness; all the foundations of the earth are shaken. 6 "I said, 'You are "gods"; you are all sons of the Most High.' 7 But you will die like mere men; you will fall like every other ruler." 8 Rise up, O God, judge the earth, for all the nations are your inheritance.

NIV

The implication here in the first line is that the “gods” cannot judge anything because they are but graven images, or from the imagination of man. Although the Hebrew word there for “gods” is ‘elohiym and has been used for God, within the context it is used as gods. It could also be used as for angels, rulers, judges, a god or goddess, god like one. In either application, except of course when it is used of the Lord God, it means someone less then him. He is the only one qualified to judge anyone, which includes us. Then the psalmist asks the question of the ages. How long will the wicked be shown partiality? Are they really? Does God defend the unjust? Sometimes it seems like that is the case. The ungodly advance in the world both in money and power. The unjust rise to power, because of their popularity with the people of the world. Maybe some of the people are just naïve, or are unjust themselves. But it seems the wicked increase in ways that would look as if God is showing them partiality. Then he asks or petitions God to defend the cause of the weak and fatherless, to maintain the rights of the poor and oppressed. Is that us? If we are not the wicked, the unjust then we most likely are the poor and oppressed. But God has already delivered us from the hand of the wicked. We are no subject to them, we do not have the live as they do. We do not have to ascribe to their thinking, their lifestyle for we are rescued. When it gets right down to it, the wicked, the unjust know nothing, they understand nothing. They walk around in the darkness. They claim how great they are, that they are “gods”, at least in their own minds. They boast of their greatness, they are proud and arrogant. Although they are little “gods” they are still actually sons of the God Most High, as all people of the earth. The just and the unjust alike are all from the line of Adam, a creation of God. But the different between the just and the unjust is salvation, being reborn into the kingdom of God spiritually. The unjust, no matter how great they name is in the earth, no matter how much power, fame and fortune that have amassed for themselves, they will die like mere men, they will fall like all those unjust before them. Yes, oh Lord, judge the earth. Judge the hearts of men. When you judge our heart you will find yourself, for your Spirit dwells within us, being our guarantee.

Eph 1:13-14

13 And you also were included in Christ when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation. Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, 14 who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God's possession — to the praise of his glory.

NIV

We, unlike the unjust, have this guarantee, we will not be judged for our sin, for Jesus took all our sin. We are forgiven and freed from any judgement of sin. We will not be misled or deceived by those who say God will judge us for all our deeds, the good and the bad. That is just poor theology, the deed we will be judge by is the deed of accepting Jesus or not. The just have accepted and will be saved, the unjust have not and they will be condemned. That is the judgement of God, all will be judged. In or out.  The nations will be judged.

Let the music begin

DEVOTION

PSALMS

LET THE MUSIC BEGIN

Ps 81

81:1 For the director of music. According to gittith.  Of Asaph.

Sing for joy to God our strength; shout aloud to the God of Jacob! 2 Begin the music, strike the tambourine, play the melodious harp and lyre. 3 Sound the ram's horn at the New Moon, and when the moon is full, on the day of our Feast; 4 this is a decree for Israel, an ordinance of the God of Jacob. 5 He established it as a statute for Joseph when he went out against Egypt, where we heard a language we did not understand.   6 He says, "I removed the burden from their shoulders; their hands were set free from the basket. 7 In your distress you called and I rescued you, I answered you out of a thundercloud; I tested you at the waters of Meribah. Selah 

8 "Hear, O my people, and I will warn you — if you would but listen to me, O Israel! 9 You shall have no foreign god among you; you shall not bow down to an alien god. 10 I am the LORD your God, who brought you up out of Egypt. Open wide your mouth and I will fill it. 11 "But my people would not listen to me; Israel would not submit to me. 12 So I gave them over to their stubborn hearts to follow their own devices.

13 "If my people would but listen to me, if Israel would follow my ways, 14 how quickly would I subdue their enemies and turn my hand against their foes! 15 Those who hate the LORD would cringe before him, and their punishment would last forever. 16 But you would be fed with the finest of wheat; with honey from the rock I would satisfy you."

NIV

Again we can see this strictly from a historical view of the condition of Israel and how they had the hand of God in their lives and he would fulfill their every need, if only they would not look to other gods. But we know they did, and he was not happy with them. He reminded them of their exodus at his hand, but they would not submit to him so he gave them over to their stubborn hearts to follow their own devices. What about us? Can we see anything in this song that resembles anything in our lives? Oh yes, we do sing for joy to God our strength. We do shout aloud to the God of Jacob. Well at least we sort of do that. Then again it might depend on which church we are in. Some might get a little more excited about worship with music then others. Then again how many of us are actually singing with joy or really shouting aloud? Although we were not Israel in Egypt, we were nevertheless under a burden placed upon us by the prince of this world. We were captives to sin, and we needed an exodus moment, a way out, we needed to hear a voice we had not heard or understand before. We needed the voice of God calling us out of the bondage of sin into a place he has prepared for us, a land flowing with milk and honey. This is the life of a believer, this is our life, if we would but follow our Lord where he leads us. This is our life if we do not bow down to other gods. We know all about those other gods, the world is full of gods we could bow to. But not doing that there is far more to gain. If we but open our mouth, he will fill it. That could imply supplying all our needs, or it could imply he will gives us the words to praise him. Within the context it has to mean that he will give us all we need, as because the Israelites would not submit to him, having stubborn hearts, he gave them over to their own devices. That is he stopped supplying their needs and they had to make their own living, struggle to make ends meet, work hard for their needs. Again if they would but listen to him, follow his ways, he would quickly subdue their enemies and he would feed them with the finest wheat; with honey from the rock he would satisfy them. This can be our story, we can be fed by God, and we can have that honey from the rock. That could imply Jesus. Nevertheless our lives could be so perfect, so well satisfied if we would just listen to God and not all those other voices; voices of those other gods screaming for our attention. How fulfilled we can live, just feeding from the words of his mouth, listening and following the way he has set before us. Being stubborn, wanting to do life our way, always wanting, always chasing after whatever it is we think we want, when all the time we only need Jesus; the honey from the rock. We are his people, we should live in the land flowing with milk and honey, blessed beyond measure, content within him, singing with joy in our hearts his praises. Making music with our whole life. Let the music begin.

Shining upon us

DEVOTION

PSALMS

SHINING UPON US

Ps 80

80:1 For the director of music. To [the tune of] "The Lilies of the Covenant." Of Asaph. A psalm.

Hear us, O Shepherd of Israel, you who lead Joseph like a flock; you who sit enthroned between the cherubim, shine forth 2 before Ephraim, Benjamin and Manasseh. Awaken your might; come and save us.

3 Restore us, O God; make your face shine upon us, that we may be saved.

4 O LORD God Almighty, how long will your anger smolder against the prayers of your people? 5 You have fed them with the bread of tears; you have made them drink tears by the bowlful. 6 You have made us a source of contention to our neighbors, and our enemies mock us.

7 Restore us, O God Almighty; make your face shine upon us, that we may be saved.

8 You brought a vine out of Egypt; you drove out the nations and planted it. 9 You cleared the ground for it, and it took root and filled the land. 10 The mountains were covered with its shade, the mighty cedars with its branches. 11 It sent out its boughs to the Sea, its shoots as far as the River.   12 Why have you broken down its walls so that all who pass by pick its grapes? 13 Boars from the forest ravage it and the creatures of the field feed on it. 14 Return to us, O God Almighty! Look down from heaven and see! Watch over this vine, 15 the root your right hand has planted, the son you have raised up for yourself. 16 Your vine is cut down, it is burned with fire; at your rebuke your people perish. 17 Let your hand rest on the man at your right hand, the son of man you have raised up for yourself. 18 Then we will not turn away from you; revive us, and we will call on your name.

19 Restore us, O LORD God Almighty; make your face shine upon us, that we may be saved.

NIV

There are several truths that pop out at us right away, although all of this song is truth as it is the word of the Lord. The first is this song is a combination of lament and wisdom. Israel is in a bad place and this psalmist is prayer in song for God to restore them to their once before glory. They were in the land of milk and honey, the place God had planted them. But he also allow other nations to come along and pick them off the land, take them into captivity. The phrase or chorus of this song “Restore us, O God Almighty, make you face shine upon us, that we may be saved” Is repeated three times. This has to have great importance. However, first let us consider would we ever be in the position that Israel is in so we have to petition God to restore us? Certainly our life before salvation was a mess and we needed to be restored and saved. Even though we did not choose to serve the Lord, in fact were somewhat rebellious or refused to acknowledge him as God, we were still his creation in need of restoration and saving. But now, would we ever be trampled on by our enemy and taken captive away from the place God has placed us? Temptation or the tempter is in fact making every effort to ravage us, to break us down to crumble our walls, to destroy the temple of the Lord. At times we might get led down the wrong path, the wrong way of thinking about the world, and the things of the world. We might get entangled in wanting, or having envy or jealously toward those who have so much and care not about God. It is a scheme of the devil, he wants us to want what he has to offer, fame and fortune. We are always seeing the lifestyles of the rich and famous everywhere we turn. We cannot even sit in a doctor’s waiting room without watching “House hunter” or something like that with huge wonderful homes filled with the best of everything. He wants us to want. He wants us to lust after, he wants us to leave the land God has placed us in. But restore us, O LORD God Almighty, make your face shine upon us, that we may be saved. The enemy is after us, pursuing us, trying to grind down our defense. But we have the armor of God, we have the best defense in the land. No offensive play could beat the plan of our defensive coordinator. We stand firm, and not a single yard is gained, in fact with God we are able to run a great defense and sack their quarterback, Satan. Restore us O Lord God Almighty. Let not a single play go his way, but keep us in the palm of your hand, watch over us, restore us, save us from those temptations, those wants, those lusts, those desires, those moments our weakness sneaks in. Your face does shine upon us, we are lite up with your radiance, reflecting your glory to a sick and dying world. Thank you Lord for your salvation, thank you Lord for making your face shine upon us. Thank you Lord for planting us in your garden, your paradise. Thank you Lord for being a branch in your vine, Jesus.  He is the vine and we are the branches, apart from him we can do nothing. But in Christ, remaining in the vine, being established in or by the root, we will bear much fruit and will be able to share with all who are in need. Remaining in the vine, planted exactly where you have planted us, we will have all the fruit others will need. Thank you Lord, O God Almighty, for shining upon us. Where would we be if your face did not shine upon us? Thank you Lord for shining upon us.