He boasts about the cravings of his heart; he blesses the greedy and reviles the Lord. In his pride the wicked man does not seek him; in all his thoughts there is no room for God.
– Psalm 10:3-4

Does this sound familiar? The wicked flaunt their ambitions and achievements. The wicked honor those who hoard at the expense of others. But the worse of these is that the wicked do not seek after the Lord, for in all of their busyness there is no room for God. We need to remember that our quest for more will crowd out our passion for the Lord. Renewal comes as we are willing to guard our ambitions in order to make room in our thoughts for God.

Shouts of joy and victory resound in the tents of the righteous: “The Lord’s right hand has done mighty things! The Lord’s right hand is lifted high; the Lord’s right hand has done mighty things!” I will not die but live, and will proclaim what the Lord has done.
– Psalm 118:15-17

There are times when we need to proclaim what the Lord has done for us. We can be easily overwhelmed by our situations, but when we remind ourselves of what God has done in the past, we build a confidence for what he will do now. Speak of the things that God has done in your past; you will find the strength that you need to go forward.

The wicked band together against the righteous and condemn the innocent to death. But the Lord has become my fortress, and my God the rock in whom I take refuge. He will repay them for their sins and destroy them for their wickedness; the Lord our God will destroy them.
– Psalm 94:21-23

The recent massacre of our brothers and sisters in Charleston is a violent reminder that sin runs through our world. But as followers of Jesus Christ we have a greater hope. A day is coming when wickedness will be destroyed in the renewal of all things, and for those who make God their rock and fortress in Christ, a day is coming when we will meet these brothers and sisters again. May our desire for justice be a reminder that Jesus will come again to judge the earth as He makes all things new.

I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being,
– Ephesians 3:16

What if you discovered that you had inherited ten million dollars? Would it change the way that you do things? That new mindset was the apostle Paul’s prayer over the Christians at Ephesus—that God is filled with glorious riches— and those riches were available to those who believed in Jesus Christ. God has not changed. Jesus has an outrageous treasure of provision and guidance waiting for those who are willing to put faith in his life, death and resurrection power. The Holy Spirit is ready to strengthen us today. Are we willing to accept that?

After that whole generation had been gathered to their ancestors, another generation grew up who knew neither the Lord nor what he had done for Israel.
– Judges 2:10

And so the book of Judges chronicles a people who turned their hearts from God, came under judgment, cried out to God, and were delivered. The only problem is that this pattern happened over and over again. One of the issues was that generations grew up who were not taught the ways of God. Whether as a parent or a leader in the church, are we empowering the next generation with God’s words and deeds, or are we protecting our achievements for our own satisfaction? The book of Judges stands as witness and a warning of what happens when the current generation does not take the time or energy to invest into the next generation.

Lord, be gracious to us; we long for you. Be our strength every morning, our salvation in time of distress.
– Isaiah 33:2

Isaiah learned to lean upon God in times of distress. There may be seasons when the morning alarm clock is the worst part of your day, but even in that place of despair you can call upon the LORD to strengthen you. Don’t allow your feelings of inadequacy to start your day. Look to the God who is gracious to you, who generously supplies all of your needs, and who will shine his glory through your time of distress.

How long, Lord? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me? How long must I wrestle with my thoughts and day after day have sorrow in my heart? How long will my enemy triumph over me?
– Psalm 13:1-2

Have you ever felt that you were barely hanging on and constantly being overcome by life’s circumstances? The Psalmist knows how you feel. Asking God “How long?” is a healthy statement, because God is not there in just the good times, but also the bad. We can face the state of our soul while we keep our faith toward the God who has answered in the past and will answer again in the future, though we may not feel that way right now.

No one will be able to stand against you all the days of your life. As I was with Moses, so I will be with you; I will never leave you nor forsake you. Be strong and courageous, because you will lead these people to inherit the land I swore to their ancestors to give them.
– Joshua 1:5-6

Joshua was faced with a terrifying situation; Moses, the leader who stabilized the Israelites in the wilderness, had died. Now Joshua had the task of leading these people into a land that he had little knowledge of. Like Joshua, God challenges us to be strong and courageous as we face life situations that we have never faced before. We need to remind ourselves that God is with us in Jesus Christ.

By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God’s command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible.
– Hebrews 11:3

Everything that we see is made from things that we can’t see. Natural science can only go so far, then it has to hand off the knowledge of the universe to super-natural causes, or things that nature does not have the capacity to explain. In the same way, there are times when our lives can’t be figured out in natural terms—we must believe by faith that the same command that formed the universe is at work in our lives as well. Faith tells us that the God of the Bible is involved in our lives in ways that we can not see.

What then shall we say that Abraham, our forefather according to the flesh, discovered in this matter? If, in fact, Abraham was justified by works, he had something to boast about—but not before God. What does Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.”
– Romans 4:1-3

Abraham is an amazing picture of God’s grace. Abraham had many flaws, but he was called righteous because he was willing to follow the guidance of the true God. We often feel like we have to do the “right thing” before we can approach God, but it is when God gets ahold of our lives that we begin to do right things. Our heavenly Father is leading us forward in Jesus Christ, now our part is to believe and obey that calling in Christ. That act of faith is where we become truly righteous.