It's good to think more deeply about the mercies of God in times of crisis. To help guide us in this effort, we'll consider Paul David Tripp's collection of meditations from Psalm 27 called "A Shelter in the Time of Storm." You can get your own copy on Amazon here.

Psalm 27 is a psalm of trouble and worship, of difficulty and beauty, of the evil of people against people, and of the mercy of God. Because of its honesty about life in this fallen world, Psalm 27 speaks into the life of every believer. At the same time it places joyful and self-sacrificing worship right next to the trouble that is the psalm's background theme. This juxtaposition makes Psalm 27 unique, interesting, practical, challenging, and encouraging.

I'm not going to be reprinting the meditations in their entirety; I'll be pulling out some of my favorite parts, answering the recommended dicussion questions, and adding some of my own commentary. Whether you read the book yourself or just follow along with these posts, I'm confident you'll benefit from carefully considering the message of Psalm 27.

Archives for April 2020

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Verse 14 - Spiritual Muscles

Waiting is hard; especially waiting on God. But if all things work for our good (toward our Christlikeness), does that include waiting?...

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Verse 10 - The Rejection of Rejection

Rejection is a terrible feeling but it's not one that we suffer alone. ...

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Verse 6 - The Worship of Another

Who is most likely to become an idol in our lives? Ourselves....

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Verse 4 - Singleness of Focus

The kingdom of self and the kingdom of God are always vying for our loyalty. Which do we pursue?...

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Verse 9 - The Delusion of Independence

Our quest for autonomy is is not good for us. The independence we seek is slavery of the worst kind....

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Verse 5 - Safe

What makes you safe? What do you think makes you safe? ...

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Verse 21 - The Pursuit-of-God Paradigm

Your life has an organizing purpose - it's what your after and why you do what you do. What is it?...

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Verse 3 - Sinned Against Again

When sinned against, what should we do? What shouldn't we do? Which list best describes what we actually do? ...

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Verse 8 - Not Yours

What objects do our hearts long for? For what should they long?...

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Verse 14 - Take Heart

If comfort cannot be found in platitudes, where can we find it? In what can we "take heart?"...

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Verse 6 - Uber Music

God has placed a song on the lips of his people. We should remember, especially in difficult times, the invitation to join in that song with the heavenly chorus....

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Verse 16 - Mercy Prayer

We have no plea to offer before God except that which is based on his own mercy toward us in Christ. ...

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Verse 11 - The Shortest Distance between Two Points

While our paths from justification to glorification could be straight, we choose detours into sin and rebellion. ...

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Verse 8 - You're Talking to Yourself

How good are we at self-counseling? What do we tell ourselves in times of trouble? ...

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Verse 7 - Why Would God Ever Answer Me

God hears the prayers of his people, but why? How can we know that he will hear and respond to us? ...

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Verse 13 - Goodness

God is good, and in that unchanging goodness is our hope made secure....

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Verse 14 - Inner Strength

Our savior waits with us for the recreation of all things. Be patient....

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Verse 4 - Sign Beauty

The beauty we see here is reflective; pointing back to and drawing us toward its source and creator. ...

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Verse 9 - Two Words Your Never Want to Hear

Would God ever tell us to "go away"? Are we afraid that he might?...

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Verse 4 - Your One Thing

What's the "one thing" that your heart craves? The "one thing" that you think will change your life? ...

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Verse 4 - Sight Problems

What can the inability to gaze with the eyes of the body teach us about the failure to "gaze" with the eyes of the heart? ...

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Verse 5 - On Christ the Solid Rock

Humans were made to search for stability and to feel "unstable" without proper grounding. That feeling of instability exists to lead us to God....

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Verse 1 - The World's Best Security System

While we try to find security in all kids of things, the only place it can really be found is in the knowledge that God is our Father - our Light and our Salvation. ...

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Verse 1 - Fearless Forever

Psalm 27:1 asks the key question for every Christian: whom shall I fear? If the Lord is your light and your salvation, the answer must be "no one."...

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Verse 5 - Realistic Expectations

We, and the world in which we live, are both fallen. We need to set our expectations accordingly....

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Verse 12 - Breathing Violence

Once we understand just how far we've fallen (from "very good" to "breathing out violence") we start to understand how much we need God's grace. ...

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Verse 11 - Life as a Student

David prayed that God would teach him, even because of his enemies. Do we still have teachable hearts when it comes to the important questions of life? Do we have a plan for the things we need to learn. ...

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Series Introduction

Why this Psalm? Why now? Since the answer to the second question is pretty obvious, let's focus on the first. What does Psalm 27 have to say that will help us in times of trouble? ...

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