Reading Plan:
Psalms 33


Praise and Worship
Author: Bailey Woods


As a worship guitar player for our Gulf Coast Campus, I must admit I am a bit biased when it comes to passages of scripture centered around praise. After all, bringing God glory and praise is our sole purpose on this planet, and it inevitably is going to be our eternal purpose once Christ returns and renews Earth. Our worship is a natural response to who God is. Scripture says that if we didn’t praise Him, then the rocks would cry out themselves.

Psalms 33 is a perfect picture of what our praise should look like. Verse by verse, the Psalmist denotes reason after reason to give God glory. From His righteousness to His justice; from His creative ability to His power to strike fear into those who believe in Him, God is certainly worthy of all praise.

Towards the end of this excerpt in verses eighteen and nineteen, the writer begins to describe an important character trait of God:

“…the eye of the Lord is on those who fear Him…who hope in his mercy to deliver their soul from death and keep them alive in famine.”

In other words, the Lord sees you. Just as He saw Hagar’s pain and suffering as mentioned in Pastor Jeff’s message a few weeks back, God also sees your hardships as well. He also sees when we hold fast to our faith during trials. God recognizes when we put our trust in His faithfulness instead of trying to carry the load of the world ourselves. Just as Jones County Campus Pastor Kyle Warren mentioned in his message a few weeks ago, the Lord most certainly will give us more than we can handle so that we might lean into His providence and learn to hand Him our shortcomings.

In verses twenty through twenty-two, the Psalmist goes on to affirm this:

“Our soul waits for the Lord; He is our help and our shield. For our heart shall rejoice in Him, because we have trusted in His holy name. Let Your mercy, O Lord, be upon us, just as we hope in you."

The Lord is so faithful in His promise to shelter us that we don’t even have to seek that refuge. All He asks is that we simply wait on Him and trust in Him solely because of who He is. What a comfort it is that, as Christians, we can face this world with the peace of mind knowing that the God who created it is on our side. Who could honestly be against us?





Reflection:

Anxiety is a strong adversary for many in this world. How do you combat anxiety in your life daily? Are you trusting God with this struggle?
Many times, we seek comfort in things other than God and His refuge. What are some ways to avoid looking for safety in ungodly items/activities?
Prayer: Lord, we thank You for creating us. We thank You for placing us on this Earth with the sole purpose of bringing You glory in all that we do. How easy it is to prioritize when we orient our goals around Your will for our lives. Thank You for comforting the broken-hearted and loving those who feel unloved. Your blessings are countless, and Your mercy is limitless. Amen.


Family Application: God is in control.
Author: Cooper Herrington

We are getting to hear another person tell God how great He is! Part of the reason that God is so great is that He is in control of everything. He made everything, and He is in control.
God is in control. It can be really easy to get worried and upset about what is going to happen next when I think I have to do everything on my own. The good news is that God is in control! He is going to take care of you! What is the thing you are most nervous about right now?
In this Psalm, it tells us to make music and tell God how great He is! Today, listen to some worship music and sing and dance, and tell God how great He is! He loves you. He takes care of you! He is in control! We don’t have to worry because God is with us!
Prayer: God, You are the only true God! Thank You that I don’t have to worry because You are with me and You are in control. Help me tell the people around me how great You are. Amen.