NEWS, ARTICLES, DEVOTIONS AND MORE FROM BttB...

Read Psalm 102:12-28 Have you heard the phrase, "It's as sure as the world"? In fact, nothing is more unsure than the world. "Of old You laid the foundation of the earth, and the heavens are the work of Your hands. They will perish, but You will endure" (vv. 25,26). The "sure" world will perish. Jesus said, "Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away" ( Matt. 24:35 ). What is the surest thing in your life? On what are you building your life? You'

Read Psalm 118:1-9 "The Lord is on my side; I will not fear. What can man do to me?" (v. 6). This is a word of assurance. "If God is for us, who can be against us?" ( Rom. 8:31 ). The God of the universe is on our side--Father, Son and Holy Spirit. No matter who may be against us, He is on our side. It's also a word of confidence. "I will not fear." As I look at the past, I see that God has cared for me every step of the way. As I look at the present, I know He is with me. As

Read Psalm 119:33-40 Outlook determines outcome. What you are seeing helps to determine what you are becoming. So you'd better be careful what you look at. It's no wonder that the psalmist prays, "Turn away my eyes from looking at worthless things, and revive me in Your way" (v. 37). Worthless things here literally means "vanity." Much of what we see every day in the media, for example, is worthless and false. It doesn't come from God, who is Truth; it comes from Satan and th

Read Psalm 111:1-10 We live in a world with a great deal of knowledge but not a great deal of wisdom. So-called smart people do stupid things. David tells us the secret of wisdom and understanding in Psalm 111. "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; a good understanding have all those who do His commandments. His praise endures forever" (v. 10). Here we have three secrets of wisdom, and a person doesn't have to go through a university to learn them. Fear God. "The

Read Psalm 139:17,18 Yesterday, we learned that God's thoughts are personal and precious. They are full of His purpose and care. Let's consider three additional characteristics of God's thoughts. God's thoughts are practical. Paul said, "none of these things [tribulations] move me; nor do I count my life dear to myself, so that I may finish my race with joy, and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God" ( Acts 20:24 ). Pa

Read Psalm 139:17,18 A. W. Tozer used to say, "The only real world is the Bible world." Nothing is more unsure than the world, for it is passing away. But the will and Word of God will abide forever (see Mark 13:31 ). As we consider the character of God's thoughts, we will want to do His will. God's thoughts are personal (v. 17). They concern you and me. He makes the individual and then plans for him. He knows all about us. Paradoxically, the sovereignty of God is the basis f

Read Psalm 137:1-9 One test of your spiritual condition is whether or not you really have a song. Psalm 137 tells us about people who lost their song. They lost it because they lost their sanctity--they repeatedly sinned against the Lord. Here's the record: "By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down, yea, we wept when we remembered Zion. We hung our harps upon the willows in the midst of it. For there those who carried us away captive required of us a song, and those who pl

Read Psalm 5:1-12 It's imperative for us to meet God in the morning if we want to have a good day. Jesus got up early in the morning to pray, according to Mark 1:35 . Here we find the psalmist saying, "My voice You shall hear in the morning, O Lord; in the morning I will direct it to You, and I will look up" (v. 3). When I used to work the night shift, I would sleep in the morning. So when I got up in the afternoon, I would meet with the Lord. Meeting with God is not an appoi

Read Psalm 100:1-5 The next time you sing the doxology in a worship service, remember that you are singing Scripture, a version of Psalm 100. This psalm is a digest of instructions on how to worship the Lord. Who should worship the Lord? "Make a joyful shout to the Lord, all you lands!" (v. 1). God wants the whole world to worship and give thanks to Him. Why are we to go into all the world and preach the Gospel? So that all the world will one day be able to make a joyful shou

Read Psalm 3:1-8 How well we sleep sometimes indicates how much we really trust the Lord. David said, "I lay down and slept; I awoke, for the Lord sustained me" (v. 5). We may think we can do that anytime. But what if we had been where David was? He was fleeing from his son Absalom, who had turned against him and had driven him from Jerusalem. Now David was in the wilderness with his army. It would be difficult to lie down and sleep knowing that you are in a dangerous wildern

Read Psalm 103:1-12 This psalm has no petitions, only praise. Verses 3 through 5 are Hebrew poetry with parallel construction. Each verse has two statements. The idea that is presented in the first statement is repeated, illustrated or amplified in the second statement of the verse. The second statements in verses 3 through 5 are illustrations of three blessings: forgiveness, redemption and satisfaction. The first blessing is forgiveness (v. 3). The psalmist illustrates forgi

Read Psalm 103:1-12 Bless the Lord, O my soul" (v. 1). The psalmist opens by addressing God on a personal level. He is praising God for what He does and for who He is. As we read this psalm, we discover why God is so wonderful. He is the merciful Savior (vv. 8-12). God in His grace gives us what we don't deserve and in His mercy doesn't give us what we do deserve. But He does have a holy temper, and we must not provoke Him by deliberately sinning. He is the tender Father (vv.

Read Psalm 132:1-10 What is the consuming ambition of your life? What is the dream that fills your mind and heart? King David's dream was to build a temple for the Lord. He tells us about it in this psalm. I wish more people had this same wonderful ambition--to be builders, not destroyers. During much of his life, David was a soldier. He defended Israel from her enemies and brought about peace in the land. But then he wanted to turn from battling to building. He wanted to exc

Read Psalm 7:10-17 This passage presents a frightening picture. We read about swords and arrows, pits, ditches and death. God is angry and is judging sin, and He hears David's petition about his persecutors: "O Lord, they are accusing me of something I didn't do. They are Lying about me." That's tough to take. People lied about the Lord Jesus, too. And anyone who tries to live like Him is going to suffer this kind of persecution. David's enemies wanted to kill him. Some innoc

Read Psalm 119:153-160 Nobody enjoys going to court. I once was a character witness in a court case, and it wasn't fun. How much worse it must be for the accused. But if you must stand trial, it's good to know that somebody is there to plead your case. This is what the psalmist talks about when he says to the Lord, "Plead my cause and redeem me; revive me according to Your word" (v. 154). The greatest Advocate we have is God. "If God is for us, who can be against us?" ( Rom.

Read Psalm 105:5-15 Your spiritual memory is vital to your spiritual health. Do you remember what God wants you to remember? Are you grateful for what He remembers? "Remember His marvelous works which He has done, His wonders, and the judgments of His mouth.... He has remembered His covenant forever, the word which He commanded, for a thousand generations" (vv. 5,8). We should remember God's words, His wonders and His works, but we often forget. How easy it was for the Israel

Read Psalm 116:12-19 Few people really want to talk about death. Yet verse 15 says, "Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of His saints." This statement is often misunderstood, so let's examine it and see what it means to our lives today. Death is the penalty of sin; God is the Author of life. When God made His original creation, there was no death. But when man sinned, death came on the scene. It now reigns as a king. "It is appointed for men to die once, but after

Read Psalm 4:1-8 David was experiencing great difficulty. He was in a "tight corner." God permits tight corners ( II Sam. 12:10 ). He forgives but disciplines, and we reap what we sow ( Ps. 25:17 ). Psalm 4 is encouraging because it tells us that God cares for us and gives us several blessings in the midst of our trials. First, He gives us the blessing of enlargement (v. 1). Relieved means "enlarged." When God permits enlarged troubles, He enlarges His people; that is, we gr

Read Psalm 1:1 , 2 Two of the most popular words in the Christian vocabulary are bless and blessing. God wants to bless His people. He wants them to be recipients and channels of blessing. God blesses us to make us a blessing to others, but He has given us certain conditions for receiving blessings. First, we must be separated from the world (v. 1). The world is anything that separates us from God or causes us to disobey Him. Separation is not isolation but contact without co

Read Psalm 46:8-11 "Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!" (v. 10). The Hebrew word translated "be still" actually means "take your hands off." God is saying to us, "Take your hands off, and let Me be God in your life." So often we want to manipulate and control. We talk about those who are "hands on" people. In the Christian life, God uses our hands. He used Noah's hands to build the ark. He used David's hands

Read Psalm 119:73-80 Whenever my wife and I purchase a new appliance, we add another instruction manual to our collection. We have instruction manuals for the various appliances in our home, for the automobile and for office equipment, such as tape recorders, computers and copying machines. Someone may say, "I wish we had a manual of instruction for life." We do. It's called the Bible, the Word of God. "Your hands have made me and fashioned me; give me understanding, that I m

Read Psalm 103:1-5 I wonder how long we could talk to the Lord without asking for something. "Bless the Lord, O my soul; and all that is within me, bless His holy name! Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits" (vv. 1,2). Psalm 103 has no requests. It is nothing but praise; David is blessing the Lord. What are some of these benefits David sings about? They are ones we may have forgotten or that we may be taking for granted. First, the Lord saves. "Who forgiv

Read Psalm 104:27-30 Scientists tell us that our world is governed by what they call "natural law." Most of them forget that behind the law is the Lawgiver. Behind creation is a Creator, who cares for His creation and His people. Who unifies the universe? The God who made it. All of creation waits upon Him and trusts Him to supply what is needed. As the psalmist wrote, "These all wait for You, that You may give them their food in due season. What You give them they gather in;

Read Psalm 138:1-8 "The Lord will perfect that which concerns me" (v. 8). God has a purpose for each of our lives. We are not numbers in a computer; He knows our names. In fact, He has numbered all the hairs on our heads ( Matt 10:30 ). God knows our needs today. We are His personal concern, the work of His hands. When does God perfect that which concerns us? When can we expect Him to work in our lives? First, when we praise Him. Verse 1 says, "I will praise You with my whole