Psalm 98

A psalm.

1 Sing to the LORD a new song,
for he has done marvelous things;
his right hand and his holy arm
have worked salvation for him.

2 The LORD has made his salvation known
and revealed his righteousness to the nations.

3 He has remembered his love
and his faithfulness to the house of Israel;
all the ends of the earth have seen
the salvation of our God.

4 Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth,
burst into jubilant song with music;

5 make music to the LORD with the harp,
with the harp and the sound of singing,

6 with trumpets and the blast of the ram's horn—
shout for joy before the LORD, the King.

7 Let the sea resound, and everything in it,
the world, and all who live in it.

8 Let the rivers clap their hands,
Let the mountains sing together for joy; 9 let them sing before the LORD,
for he comes to judge the earth.
He will judge the world in righteousness
and the peoples with equity.

This is yet another psalm that reminds us to worship and praise God. The interesting thing is that Psalm 98 is divided into 3 stanzas.

The first stanza (v1-3) describes the congregation of God worshipping God.
The second stanza (4-6) describes all the people of the earth worshipping God.
The second stanza (4-6) describes all of creation worshipping God.

Indeed, worshipping God must be a priority in our lives.


Yet, I realised that I can get along the day well without involving God much. I find myself not relying on God's wisdom in my daily life. It's only when things go wrong, then I'm reminded to pray and seek God. That's not prioritizing worship.

A life that prioritizes worship should be one whereby every moment of a person's life, he should be engaging God, talking to Him, sharing with Him his concerns. Lord, help me to become one such person!


Things to ponder
1. Looking at the description above, do you think you have a life that prioritzes worship? Rate yourself 1 to 10.
2. What are some things that stop you from prioritizing worship?
3. Pray for yourself to have a change of heart. Desire a heart of constant worship unto God!

Pastor YC "Psalm 97: Immersion"

It takes an active immersion and imagination to grasp what the scriptures are trying to bring across.

PS 97:2 Clouds and thick darkness surround him; righteousness and justice are the foundation of His throne.
PS 97:3 Fire goes before him and consumes his foes on every side.
PS 97:4 His lightning lights up the world; the earth sees and trembles.
PS 97:5 The mountains melt like wax before the LORD, before the Lord of all the earth.

PS 97:6 The heavens proclaim his righteousness, and all the peoples see his glory.

And our rightful response to all of God's glory is this:

1. PS 97:10 Let those who love the LORD hate evil, for he guards the lives of his faithful ones and delivers them from the hand of the wicked.


2. PS 97:12 Rejoice in the LORD, you who are righteous, and praise his holy name.

Pastor YC "Psalm 96: Psalms are to be Sung"

Ok I missed blogging the devotions yesterday. :p And it had to be the big 40th birthday!

I just found this psalm to contain so many of the lyrics of familiar songs I've sung.

PS 96:1 Sing to the LORD a new song; sing to the LORD, all the earth.
Sing unto the Lord a new song
Sing unto the Lord all the earth (x2)
For God is great and greatly to be praised(x2)

PS 96:4 For great is the LORD and most worthy of praise
Great is the Lord and most worthy of praise
The city of our God the holy place
The joy of the whole earth
And great is the Lord in whom we have the victory
He aids us against the enemy
We bow down on our knees

And Lord we want to lift your name on high
And Lord we want to thank you for the work you've done in our lives
And Lord we trust in your unfailing love
For you alone are God eternal
Throughout earth and heaven above

PS 96:11 Let the heavens rejoice, let the earth be glad
Let the heavens rejocie and the earth be glad
Let the seas resound with a mighty roar
Let the trees of the forest clap their hands
Let the earth be filled with the glory of the Lord
All of creation is loudly confessing
The wonderful works he has done
Let's join with all nations in one declaration

Psalm 97

1 The LORD reigns, let the earth be glad;
let the distant shores rejoice.

2 Clouds and thick darkness surround him;
righteousness and justice are the foundation of his throne.

3 Fire goes before him
and consumes his foes on every side.

4 His lightning lights up the world;
the earth sees and trembles.

5 The mountains melt like wax before the LORD,
before the Lord of all the earth.

6 The heavens proclaim his righteousness,
and all the peoples see his glory.

7 All who worship images are put to shame,
those who boast in idols—
worship him, all you gods!

8 Zion hears and rejoices
and the villages of Judah are glad
because of your judgments, O LORD.

9 For you, O LORD, are the Most High over all the earth;
you are exalted far above all gods.

10 Let those who love the LORD hate evil,
for he guards the lives of his faithful ones
and delivers them from the hand of the wicked.

11 Light is shed upon the righteous
and joy on the upright in heart.

12 Rejoice in the LORD, you who are righteous,
and praise his holy name.

I am really inspired by what is written in v11 "Light is shed upon the righteous and joy on the upright in heart."

When we seek God with all our heart, and put our faith in Jesus, we're considered righteous and upright - because of the blood of Jesus. And the Lord's promise to us is that His light will be shed upon us. His joy will be in our heart.

Everyone (by right) around us should know that we're Christians because they see the joy in us (even when things go wrong), and our lives reflect the light (goodness) of God.

But I really think we cannot just be lukewarm Christians. We have to be Christians that are passionate for God - we will grow from strength to strength. Then the above promises will be fulfilled!


Personally, I realized that I've become kind of lukewarm. My passion for seeing salvations, discipling youths seemed to be less now. I pray that today I will apply what Pastor Khong shared about how to grow from strength to strength. Then my light will shine and joy will always be in my heart - no matter the circumstances.


Things to ponder
1. How bright are you shining for God? Rate yourself from 1 to 10.
2. How joyful do you feel today? Rate yourself from 1 to 10.
3. Pray for yourself to be a 'hot' Christian and God's light and joy be upon you!

Psalm 96

1 Sing to the LORD a new song;
sing to the LORD, all the earth.

2 Sing to the LORD, praise his name;
proclaim his salvation day after day.

3 Declare his glory among the nations,
his marvelous deeds among all peoples.

4 For great is the LORD and most worthy of praise;
he is to be feared above all gods.

5 For all the gods of the nations are idols,
but the LORD made the heavens.

6 Splendor and majesty are before him;
strength and glory are in his sanctuary.

7 Ascribe to the LORD, O families of nations,
ascribe to the LORD glory and strength.

8 Ascribe to the LORD the glory due his name;
bring an offering and come into his courts.

9 Worship the LORD in the splendor of his holiness;
tremble before him, all the earth.

10 Say among the nations, "The LORD reigns."
The world is firmly established, it cannot be moved;
he will judge the peoples with equity.

11 Let the heavens rejoice, let the earth be glad;
let the sea resound, and all that is in it;

12 let the fields be jubilant, and everything in them.
Then all the trees of the forest will sing for joy;

13 they will sing before the LORD, for he comes,
he comes to judge the earth.
He will judge the world in righteousness
and the peoples in his truth.

The main theme of this psalm seems to be telling the ALL nations to praise and worship God.

Sometimes we have this lingering thought: Is it really possible that ALL the nations will bow down and worship God? Well, in Philippians 2:9-11, it is mentioned so.

By our physical eyes, we can't see it happening of course. But by faith, faith in the Bible, faith in God, it is possible. That's why our God is a God of Miracles!

Another thought that came to my mind is that we need to win Singapore for Christ first. Our nation is in a very unique position. Despite being just a red dot, we've put ourselves on the world map. Look at the Youth Olympic Games (YOG) which we're going to host in 2010. Look at how our Singapore Airlines (SIA) has such great influence in the world aviation industry.

Bottomline is God has blessed Singapore tremendously. It is really time to win Singapore for Christ, and the nations around us can be blessed and worship God as well.


I'm committed to pray for Singapore. Let's start first by praying for our government leaders. PM, MM, SM, DPM all remain the same. Check out the other appointments at this webpage.


Things to ponder
1. Pray for the Love Singapore churches to rise up and work together as a body of Christ>
2. Pray for Singapore to be saved.
3. Pray for our government leaders.
4. Pray for Singapore to be a blessing to other nations in Asia.

Pastor YC "Psalm 95: Response to the Almighty God"

Creator of the depths and the heights of all things physical (whatever we can see and understand).

Expressed in limited words, it just comes out as "the great God, the great King above all gods"

PS 95:3 For the LORD is the great God, the great King above all gods.
PS 95:4 In his hand are the depths of the earth, and the mountain peaks belong to him.
PS 95:5 The sea is his, for he made it, and his hands formed the dry land.

Yet in light of this awesome truth, our rightful response is two-fold:

1. "Come, let us bow down in worship, let us kneel before the LORD our Maker"(v6)
2. "Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts as you did at Meribah" (v7b,8)

Today in the hustle and bustle of life, it is so easy to simply accept God's majesty as fact. It gets stuffed into our brains as knowledge, stacked alongside much of other knowledge we've acquired and considered as insignificant.

Yet the Holy Spirit can take this truth and speak to our hearts, and inspire a response that is in proportion with how awesome this truth is.

Fact of the matter is, there is nothing more exciting than to behold God in His majesty. We may bring a picture book of the Grand Canyon into the very place in order to help us appreciate the place. But it would be crazy if we were to be absorbed in the pictures while being in Grand Canyon itself.

Let's put aside the lesser things of temporal life and get caught up in the eternal!

Psalm 95

1 Come, let us sing for joy to the LORD;
let us shout aloud to the Rock of our salvation.

2 Let us come before him with thanksgiving
and extol him with music and song.

3 For the LORD is the great God,
the great King above all gods.

4 In his hand are the depths of the earth,
and the mountain peaks belong to him.

5 The sea is his, for he made it,
and his hands formed the dry land.

6 Come, let us bow down in worship,
let us kneel before the LORD our Maker;

7 for he is our God
and we are the people of his pasture,
the flock under his care.
Today, if you hear his voice,

8 do not harden your hearts as you did at Meribah,
as you did that day at Massah in the desert,

9 where your fathers tested and tried me,
though they had seen what I did.

10 For forty years I was angry with that generation;
I said, "They are a people whose hearts go astray,
and they have not known my ways."

11 So I declared on oath in my anger,
"They shall never enter my rest."

The very last words of this psalm really shook me up. I think I will break down and cry like mad if I ever hear God saying this to me.

Time and time again, the Israelites tested God when they were wandering in the desert. Even though they had witnessed first hand Moses parting the Red Sea and many other miraculous signs, yet their hearts were hardened (v8).

Upon some reflection, I realised that over the past few days (just a few days after the 40 Days' Fast & Pray), I have not been spending much time with God. But during the Fast & Pray season, I was quite committed to it and really enjoyed God's presence.

Right now, I just sense that my heart is starting to turn cold again. It takes a moment of disobedience to undo months of discipline.


No!!! I shall reject that in the name of Jesus. I want to be intentional and disciplined about spending time with God. I want to talk to Him everyday in my life. O Lord, let my heart not be hardened!


Things to ponder
1. How're you spiritually after the 40 Days' Fast & Pray? Rate yourself from 1 to 10 (10 means very good!).
2. What are you going to do to help you maintain a tender heart before God?
3. Pray for yourself to always have a heart that is tender and teachable before God.

Pastor YC "Psalm 94: 良药苦口"

良药苦口利于病，忠言逆耳利于行。

PS 94:12-13 Blessed is the man you discipline, O LORD, the man you teach from your law; you grant him relief from days of trouble, till a pit is dug for the wicked.

The graph on the left shows startling research results: self-discipline is better predictor of academic performance compared to IQ.

Although I have no expertise to debate the validity of this result, it does brings my mind to 2 things:

1) God disciplines us for our own good. We must learn to delight in His loving discipline and resist from running away. If success is determined by how well disciplined we are, then surely one of the goal of our lives would be to learn delaying gratification.

2) Self-discipline is somewhat of a incongruous and contradictory term. We do cannot have "self"-control unless it was first learned through external discipline or stimulus. So it does not begin inside but instead it starts "outside". External stimulus and discipline forms in us patterns that eventually becomes "self"-discipline.

Psalm 94 portrays God in his justice. He not only defines what justice is, he also executes judgement.

"Let's not be run away from God when we do wrong but rather run to Him so that we can be refined."

Psalm 94

1 O LORD, the God who avenges,
O God who avenges, shine forth.

2 Rise up, O Judge of the earth;
pay back to the proud what they deserve.

3 How long will the wicked, O LORD,
how long will the wicked be jubilant?

4 They pour out arrogant words;
all the evildoers are full of boasting.

5 They crush your people, O LORD;
they oppress your inheritance.

6 They slay the widow and the alien;
they murder the fatherless.

7 They say, "The LORD does not see;
the God of Jacob pays no heed."

8 Take heed, you senseless ones among the people;
you fools, when will you become wise?

9 Does he who implanted the ear not hear?
Does he who formed the eye not see?

10 Does he who disciplines nations not punish?
Does he who teaches man lack knowledge?

11 The LORD knows the thoughts of man;
he knows that they are futile.

12 Blessed is the man you discipline, O LORD,
the man you teach from your law;

13 you grant him relief from days of trouble,
till a pit is dug for the wicked.

14 For the LORD will not reject his people;
he will never forsake his inheritance.

15 Judgment will again be founded on righteousness,
and all the upright in heart will follow it.

16 Who will rise up for me against the wicked?
Who will take a stand for me against evildoers?

17 Unless the LORD had given me help,
I would soon have dwelt in the silence of death.

18 When I said, "My foot is slipping,"
your love, O LORD, supported me.

19 When anxiety was great within me,
your consolation brought joy to my soul.

20 Can a corrupt throne be allied with you—
one that brings on misery by its decrees?

21 They band together against the righteous
and condemn the innocent to death.

22 But the LORD has become my fortress,
and my God the rock in whom I take refuge.

23 He will repay them for their sins
and destroy them for their wickedness;
the LORD our God will destroy them.

Are there times whereby you feel so overwhelmed by the number of things that you need to do? If you haven't, you're probably still quite young.

The truth is, the older you get, the more things you have to do (even though each day is still 24 hours only). You have to ask God for wisdom to know how to balance. And you need God's peace definitely.

Psalm 94 talks about the character of God and the futility of wicked men. In the end, God will always prevail - v23.

What caught me was v19. I wasted no time in memorizing it. "When anxiety was great within me, Your consolation brought joy to my soul."


Next time, when I'm overwhelmed by work or ministry or any other thing, I would remember the above-mentioned verse - Psalm 94:19. I claim God's consolation because I know He dotes on me.


Things to ponder
1. Which verses of this psalm speak to you the most? Why?
2. Make an effort to memorize that verse and claim it for your life.
3. Pray for the verse to sink deep into your life and change your heart!

Pastor YC "Psalm 93: Behold the King"

Whatever the form of the crown, the Lord remains KING.

He is king over the earth

The world is firmly established; it cannot be moved. Your throne was established long ago;
you are from all eternity.

He is king over the seas

The seas have lifted up, O LORD, the seas have lifted up their voice; the seas have lifted up their pounding waves. Mightier than the thunder of the great waters, mightier than the breakers of the sea--the LORD on high is mighty.

He is king over Jerusalem

Your statutes stand firm; holiness adorns your house for endless days, O LORD.

Is the Lord your king?

He is king anyway, regardless of whether we acknowledge Him :)

Psalm 93

1 The LORD reigns, he is robed in majesty;
the LORD is robed in majesty
and is armed with strength.
The world is firmly established;
it cannot be moved.

2 Your throne was established long ago;
you are from all eternity.

3 The seas have lifted up, O LORD,
the seas have lifted up their voice;
the seas have lifted up their pounding waves.

4 Mightier than the thunder of the great waters,
mightier than the breakers of the sea—
the LORD on high is mighty.

5 Your statutes stand firm;
holiness adorns your house
for endless days, O LORD.

This is indeed a beautiful psalm that describes the various attributes of God.

If I were to put everything into one sentence, this is how it looks:

Our God is a majestic, mighty and holy God who reigns over everything for all of eternity.


I don't just have a God who dotes on me. I have an almighty God who dotes on me forever and ever.


Things to ponder
1. In your own way, write a few sentences to praise God for who He is.
2. Pray for yourself to always reemember God for who He is even in times of hardship and disappointment.

Pastor YC "Psalm 92: Eternal God, Temporal Humans"

PS 92:5 How great are your works, O LORD, how profound your thoughts!

I was speaking to a dear friend who had gone through some setbacks in life and is confused why a good God will allow bad things to happen to good people.

Our human minds are limited in our perception. At best we can scan and comprehend things according to earthly, time-based criteria. However, only God can see into the eternal. And our criteria for evaluation CANNOT be limited to an earthly perspective. Because that only measures earthly "results".

PS 92:6-9 The senseless man does not know, fools do not understand, that though the wicked spring up like grass and all evildoers flourish, they will be forever destroyed. But you, O LORD, are exalted forever. For surely your enemies, O LORD, surely your enemies will perish; all evildoers will be scattered.

Surely people who do not follow God may prosper, but it will not be forever. "God is exalted FOREVER". Eventually things will work out.

PS 92:10-15 You have exalted my horn like that of a wild ox; fine oils have been poured upon me. My eyes have seen the defeat of my adversaries; my ears have heard the rout of my wicked foes. The righteous will flourish like a palm tree, they will grow like a cedar of Lebanon; planted in the house of the LORD, they will flourish in the courts of our God. They will still bear fruit in old age, they will stay fresh and green, proclaiming, "The LORD is upright; he is my Rock, and there is no wickedness in him."

I claim with all my heart that I will prosper over the long run, over eternity. With this certainty, I have a hope and an anchor, I do not go up and down with the highs and lows of life - because I know where I will end up.


Dear friend, I pray that God will give you divine wisdom and perspective, so that you can truly truly see how faithful God is, and that He will never ever short-change you.

Psalm 92

A psalm. A song. For the Sabbath day.

1 It is good to praise the LORD
and make music to your name, O Most High,

2 to proclaim your love in the morning
and your faithfulness at night,

3 to the music of the ten-stringed lyre
and the melody of the harp.

4 For you make me glad by your deeds, O LORD;
I sing for joy at the works of your hands.

5 How great are your works, O LORD,
how profound your thoughts!

6 The senseless man does not know,
fools do not understand,

7 that though the wicked spring up like grass
and all evildoers flourish,
they will be forever destroyed.

8 But you, O LORD, are exalted forever.

9 For surely your enemies, O LORD,
surely your enemies will perish;
all evildoers will be scattered.

10 You have exalted my horn like that of a wild ox;
fine oils have been poured upon me.

11 My eyes have seen the defeat of my adversaries;
my ears have heard the rout of my wicked foes.

12 The righteous will flourish like a palm tree,
they will grow like a cedar of Lebanon;

13 planted in the house of the LORD,
they will flourish in the courts of our God.

14 They will still bear fruit in old age,
they will stay fresh and green,

15 proclaiming, "The LORD is upright;
he is my Rock, and there is no wickedness in him."

Pastor Seng Lee shared this with us many times: we have to abandon ourselves when we come before God in worship every Sunday. We have to give Him the best. It appears that from v1-5, during the time of the psalmist, worship was far from boring. It was HAPPENING!!

We worship God because we know that when we put our faith in Him, He will be our source of strength and energy. He will sustain us, be it when we're alive on the earth or when we're with Him in heaven.

But if we follow the world, we will be like weeds. Our successes or enjoyments won't last long at all (v12-15).

I feel extremely upset when I see a Christian leaving the church in pursuit of the things of the world. Doesn't he trust that God will give Him the best? Doesn't he put his hope in Him?


And I myself have many flaws too. How many times have I put the things of the world first? Even before writing this psalm, I was wasting time doing things on the internet. O'Lord! I want to seek You and Your righteousness! Bless me to have this desire more each day!


Things to ponder
1. How many hours a week do you spend doing quiet time, going to church and cell-related activites? Be honest!
2. How many hours a week do you spend doing other things like studies and outings with friends? Be honest again!!
3. Compare the answers. Commit to God more! Pray for yourself to seek God more as the source of your strength.

Pastor YC "God my Protection"

"A hen with the softest feathers yet clad in iron on the outside"

That's the best my imagination can bring me as I consider the amazing promises of God in Ps 91 - a God in whose arms I feel so comfortable and yet affords the best protection anyone can find anywhere.

PS 91:4 He will cover you with his feathers, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart.
PS 91:5-6 You will not fear the terror of night, nor the arrow that flies by day, nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness, nor the plague that destroys at midday.
PS 91:7 A thousand may fall at your side, ten thousand at your right hand, but it will not come near you.
PS 91:8 You will only observe with your eyes and see the punishment of the wicked.

"Psalm 91 is called the Soldier's Psalm. We are told that in World War I, the soldiers of the 91st Brigade recited the 91st Psalm daily. This brigade engaged in three of the war's bloodiest battles. Other units suffered up to 90% casualties, but the 91st Brigade did not suffer a single combat-related death.

PS 91:14 "Because he loves me," says the LORD, "I will rescue him; I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name.
PS 91:15 He will call upon me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble, I will deliver him and honor him.
PS 91:16 With long life will I satisfy him and show him my salvation."

I'm going to commit this psalm to memory - join me?