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Bible Study Ideas

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BIBLE VERSE OF THE DAY: “For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through the endurance taught in the Scriptures and the encouragement they provide we might have hope.”  – Romans 15:4

3 Fresh Ways to Study Your Bible
by Amy Green

Whenever the Bible talks about spending time with God through reading the Word, it’s never in the context of a burden. I don’t know about you, but I could use more hope in my life. Here are three fresh ways to study your Bible:

1. Praying the Bible
This method is just what it sounds like: Take a passage of Scripture and read it, line by line, pausing in between to pray its truth for specific people and situations in your life. The psalms are great for this, since they’re written as prayers. (Even the ones where David wishes death to his enemies can be turned into prayers about the destruction of sin in your own heart or evil in the world like terrorism, human trafficking, or poverty.)

This method is less about interpreting the passage and more about using its words to bring requests before God and to praise him for who He is. Try pausing between each verse and lifting up specific people and situations that relate to the words there. If you find it hard to focus in your time praying, this might be helpful for you.
Need a place to start? Try praying through Isaiah 35, Psalm 27, or Philippians 2.

2. Walk with Jesus through the Gospels
My friend once gave me this advice: If you’re going through a spiritually dry time, read through the Gospels and write down what you learn about Jesus. That’s it. Nothing fancy. It seems so simple that it can hardly be called a “method,” but at the same time… how often do we page right by the familiar stories of miracles and parables?

How long has it been since we let Jesus surprise us? When we ask what it means to follow Jesus today, do we have a clear picture of what that looks like?

All of that and more can be found when taking this exercise through each of the four Gospels. As Christians, we’re called to be disciples and imitators of Jesus. The best way to know what your faith should look like is to get to know him better.

3. Coordinate with Your Sermon Series
Take a sermon series that your church is starting and dive deeply into a parallel study. If it’s exegetical (preaching straight through a book or part of a book), read the passage before the sermon on Sunday. If it’s topical and you don’t know for sure which passages you’ll be going to, pick a portion of the Bible that has a lot to say about that topic and read through it a little at a time.

This is a great weekend devotional practice to get into, and unlike some of the other methods, it is usually pretty short, since pastors don’t often tackle massive chunks of Scripture at one time. There won’t be any “spoilers” for the sermon, but it’s amazing how much easier it is to engage in church when you’ve spent time focusing your heart on the subject ahead of time.

Editor’s Note: Portions taken from the article, “10 Fresh Ways to Study Your Bible,” written by Amy Green. You can read that piece in full here. All rights reserved.

What Does It Mean to be Living Stones?By Rachael Adams

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Today’s Bible Verse: “As you come to Him, the living Stone—rejected by humans but chosen by God and precious to Him—you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. For in Scripture it says: “See, I lay a stone in Zion, a chosen and precious cornerstone, and the one who trusts in Him will never be put to shame.” 1 Peter 2:4-8

Recently, my family and I spent a day at the lake. We pulled our boat up to the shore for our kids to explore, and before long, they started skipping rocks. As I watched them having fun and enjoying nature, my eyes started to wander the shoreline. I was drawn to the beauty and variety of rocks, layered and weathered over time. If only those rocks could talk, oh the stories they could tell.

Later, I decided to learn what the Bible says about stones and found that the Bible refers to them quite often. The majority of the mentions pertain to altars built for the Lord. An altar is a memorial built to symbolize a place where God met a person or a place to offer a sacrifice. As I studied this topic, I discovered three main kinds: an altar of sacrifice, an altar of remembrance, and an altar of faith.

An Altar of Sacrifice

In my opinion, the most notable example of an altar of sacrifice was when God asked Abraham to sacrifice his long-awaited son Isaac (Genesis 22:1-19). Abraham obeyed by making the journey, arranging the wood, and laying his bound son on top. However, at the last second God stopped Abraham and provided a ram in Isaac’s place.

This unfathomable act foreshadows God sacrificing His one and only son Jesus, the lamb of God. In the ultimate sacrifice, Jesus offered Himself on an altar in the shape of a cross. Because of His sacrifice, we no longer have to offer sacrifices as they did in the Old Testament. However, we can offer ourselves to the Lord as living sacrifices and offer the altar of our hearts. In our lives this looks like daily laying aside our own desires to follow Him, putting all our energy and resources at His disposal, and trusting Him to guide us.

1 Peter 2:4-5, inspirational image

An Altar of Remembrance

One of my favorite examples of an altar of remembrance is from Joshua. If you’ll recall his story, he was leading the Israelites into the Promised Land and they needed to cross the Jordan River. But they needed a miracle from the Lord to do it—the river was at flood stage, making the waters turbulent and impossible to navigate. The Lord showed up and helped them cross safely.

But before they crossed all the way over into the Promised Land, God wanted them to go back into the Jordan and gather 12 stones to represent the 12 tribes of Israel. He directed them to build a memorial to commemorate the miracle. The altar was to serve as a reminder for future generations to learn what God had done for them (Joshua 4).

Reading Joshua’s story convicts me when I think about how many times I have prayed for something and God has shown up and answered my prayer and I just moved on to the next prayer. I want to remember, but how often I forget how He has shown up and provided for me.

This prompts me to consider building metaphorical memorials in our hearts to thank Him for being present and answering our pleas. What would it look like to symbolically lay down a memorial for Him to remember His faithfulness? Could we build a figurative altar of remembrance to tell our children and our children’s children what He has done in our lives?

An Altar of Faith

I only found one altar of faith in my research and it was built by King David. Israel was experiencing a plague, so David built an altar to the Lord and prayed on behalf of the land. God answered his plea and the plague stopped (2 Samuel 24). What faith he had to build the altar first in expectation that God would meet their need. As a result of his active belief, God showed up and performed the miracle.

I’m inspired by this kind of faith. There are many areas in my life I need God to show up and act on my behalf. I’m guessing the same is true for you. Could God be asking us to lay down stones in active faith first, as David did, so He will act on our behalf?

Our Altars

Like those rocks along the shoreline of the lake, we are living stones—unique and weathered. Our stories of sacrifice, remembrance, and faith layer generation upon generation showcasing God’s presence and displaying the evidence of His work in our lives.

Peter writes, “As you come to Him, the living Stone, you are like living stones being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices to God through Jesus Christ. (1 Peter 2:4-5).

With Christ as our Cornerstone, I pray our collective stones tell a beautiful story for His glory along the shorelines of this world. Together the altars we build to Him are also building a holy priesthood for Him, so more stones can be added to the beauty of the shoreline. If only those rocks could talk, oh the stories they could tell—God’s great story that we have the privilege to play a part. What a glorious sight to behold.

Rachael Adams is a writer, speaker, podcaster, and founder of The Love Offering. Her heart’s desire is to encourage women to realize their God-given purpose to live out our faith together by loving God, loving others, and learning to love ourselves. Rachael and her husband live in Kentucky with their two children. Connect with her online at rachaelkadams.com or @rachaeladamsauthor on social media.

Is God Your Source of Encouragement?

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By Victoria Riollano

Be strong and courageous. Do not fear or be in dread of them, for it is the LORD your God who goes with you. He will not leave you or forsake you.” – Deuteronomy 31:6

En·cour·age- to give support, confidence, or hope to someone.

Many of us are looking to be encouraged or supported.

We look to family.
We look to pastors.
We look to our friends.
We look to self-help books.
We look to influencers.

We look to man to give us that boost that will change our lives and perspective. However, at some point your friend will decline your call, your books will get lost, and your pastor will disappoint. This is the sad reality of life. Eventually, you will have to dig deep and find your encouragement from someone who cannot fail you… EVER!

In 2017, I learned very quickly that our source of encouragement must come from the Lord. The year started off seemingly normal. However, just three weeks in, my father-in-law passed away. Following this, my husband became severely ill as well. Thus, the person who was typically my source of encouragement was grieving and in need of physical and emotional support. Even more so, many of my personal relationships with friends had started to fade. I found myself in need of someone who could encourage me. Being a military spouse far away from home only added to this frustration of needing someone to stand alongside me. Amid all the trials, I was isolated and had very little strength to continue. 

It was during this time of my life, I realized how much I relied on other people to be my source of hope and encouragement. When all was stripped away, and I had no family, friends, or the support of my husband, I realized how I had not leaned on God as much I had pretended to for so many years. This took me on a journey of asking, “What would it look like to depend on God for my encouragement?” In other words, what would happen if God was the source of my hope and joy? I learned day by day that if I could shift my perspective on who God is and allow Him to be what keeps me going, I could get through the most difficult times of my life.

Let’s reconsider the word encourage. Encourage…or IN-courage! The truth is when someone “encourages you” they are really giving you that extra needed push to walk “in courage.” They are helping you to be fearless and keep going when you want to give up. In order to move forward and be successful, you have to learn that true encouragement comes from withIN! This is where God comes in to shake things up.

He says… Be strong and courageous. Do not fear or be in dread of them, for it is the LORD your God who goes with you. He will not leave you or forsake you.” Deuteronomy 31:6

In other words, your courage comes from knowing that He will never leave you or forsake you. Your courage comes from knowing that everything that happens will work out in the end (Romans 8:28). YOUR courage comes from knowing that no matter what you are going through the Lord has a plan (Jeremiah 29:11). Your inner courage comes from knowing that the Lord is on your side.

When we have this viewpoint, we can walk confidently in any situation. We can know full well that even when everyone and everything fails, you serve a God who sees you and who has a plan. Although God has created us to be in a community, we recognize that others do not dictate our hope. Our friends now become a resource, not our source. God is the source of our encouragement. The bible is now your personal love letter and instruction book for the midst of every trial.

It took the hardest time of my life to realize this important aspect of who God MUST be in my life. However, in learning to trust God and look Him above all else, I gained such confidence. Even more so, I was able to help my husband through his low times. The key, however, is I was able to direct Him to the Lord versus just being dependent on me. I was able to remind him that his ability to get through those hard moments will be found in God’s presence. Thus, looking to the Lord for courage and directing others to do so, puts the ball in God’s court to bring peace and support. 

Truly, there is nothing more refreshing than having God lift you up! May you be encouraged in the Lord.

John 14:27 Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.

Is Suffering Inevitable?

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by Shawn McEvoy

For it is better, if God should will it so, that you suffer for doing what is right rather than for doing what is wrong.
1 Peter 3:17, NAS

Suffering. It’s not standard daily devotional fare, because let’s face it, usually we want to begin or end our day being uplifted, or even better, lifting up God, rather than focusing on our pains and problems.

But there’s the rub… we all have pains and problems. Christian and non-Christian. Lifelong disciple and baby believer. Red and yellow, black and white. Everyone, from the moment he or she was born, has struggled, tried, failed, hurt, sinned, misunderstood, and reacted. Humanity shares a true brotherhood over suffering, one that we might understand a lot better if suffering weren’t also so relative. By which I mean, one person’s issues may sound simple, easy-to-solve, even petty to another. “That’s nothing compared to what I’ve had to endure!”

But the fact is, your sorrows and difficulties are real to you. It’s one reason why I’m no fan of when people say a certain place or time in their lives isn’t “the real world,” as if the spot they are currently tucked away at is immune from any degree of difficulty.

Suffering is very real, and there’s certainly no reason any Christian would expect life to be otherwise. We purport to follow a “Suffering Savior.” His stripes have healed us, and wow do we seem to feel them sometimes, which is as it should be, as we deserved them instead of Him. If we agree that no person but One – no matter where they lived or how easy or hard they had it – has escaped sin’s corruption, then how much more must we agree that truly NO person has escaped suffering?

Look at what Peter suggests in today’s verse: you can suffer for doing good, or you can suffer for doing bad. By extension, some of the problems in your life may be a result of your own rebellious choices, while other hurts may naturally result from walking so closely with Christ that you ache at the injustice and hardship around you, with the world despising and persecuting you.

In the classic allegory Hinds’ Feet on High Places, Much-Afraid journeys with companions named Sorrow and Suffering, and these two assist her in her climb up the Injury Precipice, which is a part of her transformation into “Grace and Glory.”

The same is true for you. Your sufferings have informed you, educated you, helped you along in your journey. You may despise them, but they are yours. And they will be with you whether you are doing right, or not. Of course, the nature of them will be quite different.

There may yet be one way, though, to avoid suffering. There’s a third option, left out here by Peter, but not left out by John in the Revelation. It’s the middling, lukewarm response to life, the do-nothing approach. This is the approach that cocoons itself off from life and all of its pain (but also all of its involvement). And make no mistake, “Life is pain, Highness. Anyone who says differently is selling something,” says that famous theologian the Man in Black in The Princess Bride.

Life is pain, Highness. Anyone who says differently is selling something,”

says that famous theologian the Man in Black in The Princess Bride.

You may not feel anything from inside a cocoon; in fact, it may be an abundance of pain and suffering that forced you in there. But remember, no creature that cocoons itself is intended to stay locked up forever. The point is to be rested, healed, matured, transformed. To become more beautiful, useful. Even the emerging process itself carries a degree of struggle, but one that, if the insect did not go through unhindered, would leave it too weak to fly.

So be lifted up in your suffering today.

It is a companion.

It is designed to transform you.

It gives you a share in the inheritance of Christ and the brotherhood of humanity.

And it gives you empathy, which gives you every excuse for ministry.

Intersecting Faith & Life: Make it your goal to partake, as much as possible, only of the brand of suffering that comes from doing what is right according to God’s Word.

Growing Weary?

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A Prayer to Not Grow Weary in Doing Good
By Tiffany Thibault

And let us not grow weary in doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up. So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith. – Galatians 6:9-10

If it isn’t fun anymore, give up. If it isn’t easy, give up. If it isn’t exciting, give up. Walk away. Do what makes you happy. Your happiness and your needs are what really matter at the end of the day.

This quitting attitude is a staple in a society that lacks perseverance.

While our culture screams at us to focus on our needs, this verse tells us to serve others, to not give up, to take every opportunity to do good – to everyone.

When we accepted Christ as Savior, as the Lord of our life, we became His vessels. Galatians 2:20 says: I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. As we devote ourselves to studying the scriptures and following the Lord each day, we become more holy, which allows us to reflect on the Lord and enables us to share His love with everyone.

As you think about each area of your life, where are you becoming weary? Are your co-workers difficult to work with? Is your spouse not a Christian? Are your children rebellious? Are your relatives causing you great anxiety? Is your neighbor being difficult? Have your friends become distant or negative?

Galatians 6:9-10-sq

In every single one of those areas, in every single situation that you are walking through, our Bible verse tells us to not grow weary. We are not to give up. We are to face each new day with the promise that in due time we will reap good if we keep on doing good to everyone whom God has placed in our path.

How does “doing good” look in your daily life? Maybe it’s simply interjecting a positive remark when everyone else is critical. Maybe it’s keeping your mouth shut when you would rather lash out. Maybe it’s walking away from the gossip. Maybe it’s sitting next to the person whom everyone else ignores. Maybe doing good is a meal, a card, a phone call, even when you don’t feel like it. Maybe doing good is encouraging someone. Maybe doing good is just praying for that person. Maybe doing good is putting what you want aside to spend a few moments giving someone else your attention.

With the Lord’s help, we can have all the strength that we need to just keep on doing good to everyone, and not to grow weary or give up. Since Christ is living in us, we can know that no situation is beyond His power or is even out of His plan. He will work in us, through us and for us in every situation that we face today, if we do not give up.

Dear Lord, 

Thank you that you are in my life, that you are working in all my situations today. Please give me the strength that I need to be able to do good to everyone that I will encounter today. Help me to reflect your goodness to those around me. Help me to see opportunities where I can be the good today to whoever needs it. Help me to not focus on what I think I need, but to see that you have placed me right where I am today so that I can do good to someone. Help me to trust you as I encounter those difficult people, and show me how to do good to them. Lord, give me strength to not grow weary in doing good. 

In Your Name I pray, 

Amen

Where Is God When I Need Him Most?

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By Melissa Spoelstra

Today’s Truth
Moses built an altar there and named it Yahweh-Nissi (which means “the Lord is my banner”) (Exodus 17:15 NLT).

Friend to Friend
During her kindergarten year, my daughter had a variety of puzzling symptoms that caused her organs to start shutting down with septic shock. During the days on the ventilator in the ICU, I felt God’s presence and power in a way unparalleled to any other time in my life. But I wasn’t prepared for the battles I would face after going home.  

My other children had been displaced during the long ordeal and needed extra attention. My daughter was getting better but still required daily shots in her stomach because of a blood clot that resulted from a central line IV. To say I was weary would have been an understatement. But the crazy thing was the battle going on in my mind. I had stood firm in faith in the midst of the scary parts of the journey, but now that things were mostly better, I began replaying the original incident over and over in my mind.  

What if I had gone to the ER sooner? What if I had pressed harder with questions and advocated harder for her in the early days of her symptoms? I knew that playing out these scenarios accomplished nothing, yet I was plagued with a battle in my mind. 

God’s character revealed in His names can help us stand firm when we find ourselves in the midst of a battle – whether the struggles are mental, physical, emotional, or spiritual. One of His names is Yahweh Nissi: the Lord Our Banner. The first mention of this name is found in Exodus 17. After the people of Israel crossed the Red Sea, sang a song of praise, and complained about bitter water, they stood face to face with an enemy army. They were weary from travel and harsh conditions. They were asking a question we sometimes ask when we face challenges: Where is God when I need Him most?

When we find ourselves here, we can complain or we can seek God. When we are hungry, angry, lonely, or tired, we often are called to battle. While we may not have a physical army in front of us, we may be battling bad habits, addictions, and choices. 

Yahweh Nissi reminds us that we have a source of strength in our weakness. In scripture, a banner was an object that represented something greater. In Exodus 17, Moses’s staff served as a banner to remind the people of God’s power. This “banner” was an object to lift high so that, during a weary season of battle, the people could remember that God had performed supernatural works in the past to give them strength in the present!  

The people were to look up at Moses’s staff – the object associated with the plagues, the Red Sea, and the water they drank out of a rock. Then they would remember that God was bigger than their enemy. After they won the battle, Moses worshipped God. 

Exodus 17:15 says, “Moses built an altar there and named it Yahweh-Nissi (which means ‘the Lord is my banner’).” Like a flag that represents a nation, God wants us to set our eyes on symbols or reminders of His power rather than the strength of the enemy or our own personal weariness.

When we want to quit, we can look to Jesus Christ. He is the banner that shows us how greatly God loves us, and the cross is the symbol of His sacrificial death for us. Through Jesus we have the power to fight every battle. 

Some things that have helped me raise a banner of faith include calling a friend and asking for prayer, memorizing or meditating on a Scripture, writing in a journal, and thinking about the cross. 

What are some symbols or reminders of God’s help in the past that bring you hope and strength in the midst of today’s challenges? Click on the comment button and let’s share. 

Let’s Pray
Yahweh Nissi, help me to remember often how You have worked in the past so I can trust You in the present! Show me what it would look like to raise a banner today remembering all that You have done in my life. Reveal to me those alongside me who need strength and support today. I want to point them to You and support them as they seek You. Give me wisdom also to know how prayer and action are needed in my weary seasons.

In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Called-Out Ones

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“For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus.”

—Galatians 3:26

By Greg Laurie

I think one of the great features of the church today is that we have people of different backgrounds, different races, and different ages coming together under the banner of Jesus Christ.

Paul wrote in Galatians 3, “For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus” (verses 26–28 NKJV).

Yet there are a lot of churches today that want to gear their entire church toward a specific group of people based on certain demographics.

But we need to be careful with this because the Church is made up of true believers from every background. Regardless of who you are, if you are a follower of Jesus Christ, then you are a part of His Church.

Jesus said, “On this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it” (Matthew 16:18 NKJV).

The word Jesus used here for “church” is the Greek word ekklēsia, which means “called-out ones.” The Jews used this word to describe themselves as a unique group of people, a unique race. And some Gentiles used it in describing a community.

But here Jesus used it in a unique context, which wasn’t for only Jews or for people living in a community together. He was saying, “I’m going to build a new unit of believers. But it’s not just for Jews. It’s not just for Gentiles. It’s for everyone.” That was a revolutionary thought.

Now, there may be a place for specialized ministry to various groups, but we must not allow that to overshadow God’s primary desire of bringing us all together. That’s one of the great testimonies of the church.

We are the called-out ones—called together, called to worship the Lord.

Faith in Unexpected Places

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“Faith shows the reality of what we hope for; it is the evidence of things we cannot see. Through their faith, the people in days of old earned a good reputation.”

—Hebrews 11:1–2

Greg Laurie

God can do what He wants, where He wants, through whomever He chooses. But I find it interesting how God chooses to do His work through people.

He could have sovereignly parted the Red Sea without Moses playing any role, but instead He told Moses, “Pick up your staff and raise your hand over the sea. Divide the water so the Israelites can walk through the middle of the sea on dry ground” (Exodus 14:16 NLT).

God could have brought down fire from Heaven without Elijah, but he directed the prophet to pray, and then fire came down.

Jesus could have healed everyone, everywhere during His earthly ministry. He didn’t have to lay hands on one person or speak a word to another person. He could have simply said, “On the count of three, everyone is healed,” and boom, they all would’ve been healed.

Instead, Jesus worked in the lives of people who called out to Him and applied their faith.

I think of Bartimaeus, who was blind. He heard that Jesus was coming his way, so he cried out, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” (Mark 10:47 NLT).

Someone told him to be quiet, but he yelled even louder. Then Jesus commanded that they call Bartimaeus over. Jesus asked him, “What do you want me to do for you?” (verse 51 NKJV).

Bartimaeus replied, “I want to see!” (verse 51 NKJV).

Jesus said, “Go, for your faith has healed you” (verse 52 NKJV).

Then there are those who were quieter in their faith, like the woman who reasoned that if she could just touch the hem of Jesus’s garment, she would be healed. And she was.

Faith is often found in the most unexpected and unusual places. It’s grace, not the place, that makes a person a believer.

What does it mean to be “blessed”?

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Devotional by Greg Laurie

It isn’t about what you have; it’s about the One you know.

Greg laurie

Do not fear, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.”

—Luke 12:32

When I’m with my grandchildren, I love to do things for them. I like taking them out for ice cream or buying a little toy for each of them.

In the same way, God loves to bless us, and He wants to bless us. Isn’t that a great thing to know? Jesus said, “Do not fear, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom” (Luke 12:32 NKJV).

However, we throw the word blessing around a lot. We might say, “You’re such a blessing” or “Wasn’t that a blessing”? Sometimes we even use it to end a conversation that has gone too long, as in, “Okay, I’ve got to go. God bless you!”

Even our secular culture may try to hijack the word, but non-Christians really have no idea of what it means. It’s something that only the child of God can experience, because blessing is a spiritual word.

It’s worth noting that Jesus loved to bless people. Even the beautiful Beatitudes, part of His Sermon on the Mount, begin with the word blessed.

We sometimes describe these statements of Jesus as the “be happy attitudes” because another way to translate blessed is “happy,” which comes from the Greek word makários.

God wants you to be blessed and happy. In the opening chapter of Genesis, we read that God created man in His own image. And the next verse begins, “Then God blessed them . . .” (Genesis 1:28 NKJV).

This blessing that God gives to us is something He wants us to experience. It’s also independent of our circumstances.

You might be going through a time of struggle, but you still can be happy. It isn’t about where you are geographically; it’s about where you are spiritually. It isn’t about what you have; it’s about the One you know.

Daily Devotional

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Today’s devotional from Proverbs 31 ministries, is a good read, and a good reminder for ALL of us.

“My heart is steadfast, O God, my heart is steadfast! I will sing and make melody!” Psalm 57:7 (ESV)

Pinterest Image

Lysa Terkeurst

I trust God. Until I don’t.

That doesn’t feel like a very Christian thing to say. But if I don’t acknowledge this struggle, I can’t address it. And I don’t think I’m the only one.

So many of us raise our hands high as we proclaim our God is a “good, good Father,” but then we find ourselves lying in our beds at night with tear-stained pillows, facing realities that don’t feel very good at all.

It’s hard not to feel suspicious of God when our circumstances don’t seem to line up with His promises. And it’s difficult not to doubt the light of His Truth when everything around us looks dark.

Which brings us to Psalm 57 — a passage penned by David in the midst of a season when his circumstances and God’s promises appeared to be in complete and total opposition.

At this point, David had already been anointed as the future king of Israel (1 Samuel 16:1-13) and had faithfully served King Saul. Sadly, though, Saul “rewarded” David for his service and obedience with persecution and death threats. David was left to run for his life and then hide out in a cave.

Scripture also reveals David wasn’t hiding alone. This anointed but not-yet-appointed king was leading a pretty discouraging group of men. First Samuel 22:1-2 describes these 400 men as in distress, debt-ridden and discontented. Not exactly the positive, resourceful and hopeful type of people you want to have with you during one of the darkest seasons of your life.

I wouldn’t judge David for one second if he had cried out to God in total frustration, saying, “I don’t understand any of this. I’m leading a bunch of unsettled and unstable people. We are hiding in a cave. And I’m feeling utterly defeated and completely hopeless!”

But the words he wrote in Psalm 57 are neither exclusively a psalm of lament nor a psalm of thanksgiving. David didn’t deny the darkness of his situation, but he also refused to allow his soul to get stuck in a place of despair. Instead, David chose to declare praises about the true nature and character of God. He reminded his soul of who God is — a God who fulfills His purposes (v. 2), a God who saves (v. 3), a God known for His faithfulness and steadfast love (vv. 3, 10).

Even though David’s soul was “bowed down” by his circumstances (v. 6), he allowed what he knew to be true about God to steady him. This enabled David to declare in our key verse for today: “My heart is steadfast, O God, my heart is steadfast! I will sing and make melody!” (v. 7).

I love knowing the story behind this psalm. In a cave that surely felt like an end to all he hoped and dreamed, David acknowledged his distress, but he also lifted his eyes to praise God. David’s praise wasn’t in vain. It steadied his heart. And his painful circumstances weren’t wasted. God used those hardships to mature David. Yes, David had already been anointed to eventually become king. But it was in the womb of the earth where God met him and birthed in him a heart ready to lead.

Darkness was the perfect training ground for David’s destiny. And those difficult places we so desperately want to be done with can become good training ground for us as well. But we have some choices to make. Will we see this dark time as a womb or a tomb? Is it a birth of something new or the death of what we thought should be? Will we fix our eyes on the Truth of God’s goodness, or will we give in to hopelessness and despair?

Oh, friend. I know the dark places are scary. But let’s choose to believe there is purpose in every season, even the ones that don’t seem to make any sense. Let’s ask God to birth something new inside of us, allowing Him to do a work in us that will better prepare us to walk out His promises. And instead of being suspicious of Him, let’s lift up our praises to Him.

Praise may not shift our circumstances, but it will definitely begin to change our hearts. We don’t always get to choose our situations, but we can choose how we live through them.

Father God, thank You so much for reminding me I am never forsaken nor forgotten. You see me in this dark place, and You promise there is purpose here. Bring Your life and light where all hope seems lost, Lord. Show me how to live authentically today, making room for both sorrow and praise to coexist together. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.