Slippery Places

Trip Kimball
God's Word, Psalms Devos_Studies, Personal Faith

Jealousy is called "the green-eyed monster." The expression was coined by Shakespeare but the emotion has existed since the first humans on earth.

Jealousy or envy includes a range of emotions, all of which bring a sickness of the soul. Left unchecked it breeds greed and lust that are akin to idolatry (Eph 5:5; Col 3:5).

It is a destructive feeling and has no upside. Adam and Eve believed the serpent's lie because they thought God was holding back something good (Gen 3:4-6). Today we characterize it as FOMO—the fear of missing out.

May All Kings Worship Him

Trip Kimball
God's Word, Psalms Devos_Studies, Personal Faith

King Solomon was a great king of Israel. He inherited a united kingdom that endured great struggles before he became king. His father, King David, was given a promise that looked ahead to the coming of the Messiah and an eternal kingdom (2 Sam 7:12-16).

God gave King Solomon great wisdom, along with great blessings. Solomon understood that the Kingdom of Israel was God's kingdom, not his own. This psalm reflects that insight.

You Know

Trip Kimball
Psalms Devos_Studies, Personal Faith, God's Word

Sound bites reign in this day and age. For the most part, sound bites are quotes yanked our of a larger context. They're truncated thoughts disconnected from a whole sentence, conversation, or speech. These brief expressions often give a distorted sense of all that was said.

We all blurt out things we later regret or need to explain, and some of us do this more than others, especially when we allow our emotions or passions drive us.

Save Me, Oh God!

Trip Kimball
God's Word, Psalms Devos_Studies, Personal Faith

We all deal with despair—a sense of hopelessness—from time to time. At times the dark hole of despair may seem inescapable for some of us. Even when someone else's despair appears deeper and darker than our own, we can relate.

The depth of emotion in the Psalms captures great heights of joy and disorienting depths of despair. They paint a picture with words we can all relate to at different times in our life.

This is God's design. His intention. David and other psalmists express for us the heights and depths and in-betweens of life.

A God Who Saves

Trip Kimball
God's Word, Devos, Psalms Devos_Studies, Personal Faith

When things are not good it's easy to get discouraged. Discouragement can lead to depression and a sense of hopelessness and despair. The antidote, of course, is hope. We need to believe things will get better.

Although real life is not black and white, we can view it that way, as either good or bad. Maybe you've seen graphics that have part of a photo in black and white with one portion or half in color. It's a dramatic change and contrast. Faith enables a person to see in color.

Your Ways Will Be Known

Trip Kimball
Psalms Devos_Studies, Personal Faith, God's Word

I've had the privilege of traveling to many different places in the world because of God's call on my life. And I've worked with many people in various nations. People who love and serve Jesus, just as I do.

They love their homeland and people but their daily life can be a struggle. Their lives are simple because their means for life are basic and limited compared to our American way of life.

Simply put, what we may complain about, they would probably appreciate. We don't just have abundance, we have excess.

An Antidote for Terror

Trip Kimball
God's Word, Psalms Devos_Studies, Personal Faith

As a new year begins, many anticipate great change and have much hope for what the coming year will bring. Others are concerned about various threats from global warming to terrorism.

But, as Solomon said so many years ago and Shakespeare echoed, "there is nothing new under the sun" (Eccl 1:9 NIV). It's not that changes won't come or that there's no hope, but life is cyclical and the worries of today are like the worries of yesterday.