River of God

 River of God

July 19, 2026

Psalm 46:4-7 (NKJV) 

4 [There is] a river whose streams shall make glad the city of God, The holy [place] of thetabernacle of the Most High. 5 God [is] in the midst of her, she shall not be moved; God shall help her, just at the break of dawn. 6 The nations raged, the kingdoms were moved; He uttered His voice, the earth melted. 7 The LORD of hosts [is] with us; The God of Jacob [is] our refuge. Selah

Another song we sang in the early days was “River of God”, based on Psalm 46. I think this one was particularly popular with us as the church was named Three Rivers Fellowship for a time. Of course, Pittsburgh is also known as the three rivers city as the Allegheny, Monongahela come together at the Point to form the Ohio RIver. The church had originally been named Maranatha Gospel Tabernacle when I first joined, then was renamed TRF when Pastor Joseph joined together with Pastors Dale and Dennis to bring three churches together into one. Anyway, we enjoyed singing about the river of God.

In the Bible, the river is frequently used to symbolize the flow of blessings. In Ezekiel 47 we see the river flowing out of the temple and the imagery is repeated in Revelation 22 where the River of Life flows out from the throne of God, providing healing for the nations.

Revelation 22:1-2 The River and the Tree of Life

1 Then he showed me a river of the water of life, clear as crystal, coming from the throne of God and of the Lamb, 2 in the middle of its street. On either side of the river was the tree of life, bearing twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit every month; and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.

So today, I pray for rivers of blessing to flow into your life, and through your life to the nations. The flow of the Holy Spirit works through us to bring blessings and healing to those around us. Let the streams make you glad for the LORD of hosts is with us.

Rain

 Rain

July 14, 2026

Psalm 147:7-8 (NKJV) 

7 Sing to the LORD with thanksgiving; Sing praises on the harp to our God, 8 Who covers the heavens with clouds, Who prepares rain for the earth, Who makes grass to grow on the mountains.

Just sitting on the porch this morning watching the rain. We are thankful for the rain but you can almost see the grass grow as well! I suppose that is the Lord’s way of making sure that an old retired guy doesn’t get too bored… always grass to mow. Some things never change. Just like in the day of the psalmist, the clouds come, the rain falls, and the grass grows. 

Rain in the Bible is usually associated with blessings; showers of blessing, like the old hymn. Or in Deuteronomy, the Lord’s teaching is likened to rain showers.

Deuteronomy 32:2 (NKJV)

Let my teaching drop as the rain, My speech distill as the dew, As raindrops on thetender herb, And as showers on the grass.

So we thank God for the rain. We thank him for His blessings and His teaching. It reminds us that we are dependent on His provision every day, as nothing will grow without the rain. So let it rain, and let us bless the Lord for his blessings.

https://youtu.be/hGHMA4oLAqA?is=slNfEAXg4mjhAE7N

Labor Day Proverbs

 Labor Day Weekend Proverbs 

August 30, 2025

Proverbs for Labor Day:

Proverbs 28:19-20 (NASB95) 19 He who tills his land will have plenty of food, But he who follows empty pursuits will have poverty in plenty. 20 A faithful man will abound with blessings, But he who makes haste to be rich will not go unpunished.

Proverbs 12:11 (NASB95)

11 He who tills his land will have plenty of bread, But he who pursues worthless things lacks sense.

Proverbs 14:4 (NASB95)

4 Where no oxen are, the manger is clean, But much revenue comes by the strength of the ox.

(As an old farm boy, this is one of my favorites!)

Proverbs 27:23-27 (NASB95)

23 Know well the condition of your flocks, And pay attention to your herds; 24 For riches are not forever, Nor does a crown endure to all generations. 25 When the grass disappears, the new growth is seen, And the herbs of the mountains are gathered in, 26 The lambs will be for your clothing, And the goats will bring the price of a field, 27 And there will be goats’ milk enough for your food, For the food of your household, And sustenance for your maidens.

How Blessed

 How Blessed is the Man…

July 24

Psalms 1:1-6 (NASB95) 

1 How blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, Nor stand in the path of sinners, Nor sit in the seat of scoffers! 2 But his delight is in the law of the LORD, And in His law he meditates day and night. 3 He will be like a tree firmly planted by streams of water, Which yields its fruit in its season And its leaf does not wither; And in whatever he does, he prospers. 4 The wicked are not so, But they are like chaff which the wind drives away. 5 Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, Nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous. 6 For the LORD knows the way of the righteous, But the way of the wicked will perish.

This morning, an old friend of mine posted a life verse. I don’t know that I have a single life verse. The whole book of Psalms is pretty much my guiding part of scripture, and Psalm 1 is a good introduction to the Psalms. “How blessed is the man…” My life does reflect this verse. I have been blessed as I study and meditate on the word of the Lord and I have prospered like the tree by the stream of water. The Lord is Good and His mercies are everlasting. Great is His faithfulness!

Of course, then the capstone to the Psalms is Psalm 150, the great hallelujah. When you have done all and been all that you can be, all that is left for the blessed man is to praise the Lord. When all is said and done, the only thing that matters is praising the Lord. We were created to worship the Lord, and the ultimate blessing is to be able to join that great choir in heaven and sing praises to the Lord for all eternity. Hallelujah!

Psalms 150:1-6 (NASB95) 

1 Praise the LORD! Praise God in His sanctuary; Praise Him in His mighty expanse. 

2 Praise Him for His mighty deeds; Praise Him accordingto His excellent greatness. 

3 Praise Him with trumpet sound; Praise Him with harp and lyre. 

4 Praise Him with timbrel and dancing; Praise Him with stringed instruments and pipe. 

5 Praise Him with loud cymbals; Praise Him with resounding cymbals. 

6 Let everything that has breath praise the LORD. Praise the LORD!

Blessed

 Blessed

July 22, 2025

Ephesians 1:3-6 (NASB95)

 3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, 4 just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we would be holy and blameless before Him. In love 5 He predestinedus to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the kind intention of His will, 6 to the praise of the glory of His grace, which He freely bestowed on us in the Beloved.

The word this morning is blessed. No matter what appears to be the situation around you, remember that you are blessed. And not just a small pleasing, but you are blessed with every spiritual blessing In heavenly places in Christ. You are chosen, adopted, empowered to do His will. You are blessed. So bless the Lord this morning. You are beloved of the Father, and you are blessed.

To Him Who is Able

 To Him Who is Able

April 8, 2025

Romans 16:20

20 The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet.

The grace of our Lord Jesus be with you.

Romans 16:25-27

25 Now to Him who is able to establish you according to my gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery which has been kept secret for long ages past, 26 but now is manifested, and by the Scriptures of the prophets, according to the commandment of the eternal God, has been made known to all the nations, leading to obedience of faith; 27 to the only wise God, through Jesus Christ, be the glory forever. Amen.

The epistle to the Romans ends with a great doxology. After all of the teaching and exhortation in the book, what is left is encouragement that the God of Peace will give you grace and that He is able to establish and keep you. He is the only wise God who reveals mysteries, so give Him glory forever.

This is a good example of a blessing. Any teaching, especially one that involves correction or admonition, should end with such a blessing. Our God is an encouraging God. It is He who is able to establish and sustain us. It is good to close with such an  encouraging word. So, God bless you today, and may He provide for all your needs and give you His Peace. Shalom and Amen.

Bless the Lord

 Bless the Lord

April 7, 2025

Psalms 103:1-7 - Praise for the LORD’S Mercies.

1 Bless the LORD, O my soul,

And all that is within me, bless His holy name.

2 Bless the LORD, O my soul,

And forget none of His benefits;

3 Who pardons all your iniquities,

Who heals all your diseases;

4 Who redeems your life from the pit,

Who crowns you with lovingkindness and compassion;

5 Who satisfies your years with good things,

So that your youth is renewed like the eagle.

6 The LORD performs righteous deeds

And judgments for all who are oppressed.

7 He made known His ways to Moses,

His acts to the sons of Israel.

Psalms 103:19-22

19 The LORD has established His throne in the heavens,

And His sovereignty rules over all.

20 Bless the LORD, you His angels,

Mighty in strength, who perform His word,

Obeying the voice of His word!

21 Bless the LORD, all you His hosts,

You who serve Him, doing His will.

22 Bless the LORD, all you works of His,

In all places of His dominion;

Bless the LORD, O my soul!

One of the definitions for Bless in Websters 1828 dictionary is as follows:

Bless

- To praise; to glorify, for benefits received. Psalm 103

- To praise; to magnify; to extol, for excellencies. Psalm 104. 

Another definition of bless is to speak the truth about someone. In blessing a person, you can speak the God’s truth about their purpose and destiny. In blessing God, you can speak the truth about His greatness and majesty. It is in the basic character of the Lord to want to bless and to be blest. In Psalm 103 we see how the psalmist lists all of the blessing we have received and out of gratitude, we bless the Lord. He encourages us to bless the Lord and also lists other parts of Hs creation that bless Him: Angels, heavenly hosts, in deed, all of His works bless His holy name.

We were created to worship the Lord. One aspect of worship is blessing. When we bless the Lord, we extol His virtues and magnify His majesty. We also thank Him for His blessings and all of creation in which we dwell and have provision. In fact, every breath comes from Him, so when we proclaim His blessings, we are returning to Him the very breath that He has given us. All that is within me, bless His holy name! So today, let us join with the angels and the hosts of heaven and bless HIs holy name.

Psalms 104:1-5 - The LORD’S Care over All His Works.

1 Bless the LORD, O my soul!

O LORD my God, You are very great;

You are clothed with splendor and majesty,

2 Covering Yourself with light as with a cloak,

Stretching out heaven like a tent curtain.

3 He lays the beams of His upper chambers in the waters;

He makes the clouds His chariot;

He walks upon the wings of the wind;

4 He makes the winds His messengers,

Flaming fire His ministers.

5 He established the earth upon its foundations,

So that it will not totter forever and ever.

We have been talking about blessing and being blest, but what does it mean to bless the Lord! If the Lord is the source of all blessings, how can we bless Him? What can we add to Him that could add one iota to His majesty?

Being Blessed

 Being Blest

April 4, 2025

Matthew 5:1-12

The Sermon on the Mount; The Beatitudes

1When Jesus saw the crowds, He went up on the mountain; and after He sat down, His disciples came to Him. 2 He opened His mouth and began to teach them, saying,

3 “ Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

4 “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.

5 “Blessed are the gentle, for they shall inherit the earth.

6 “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.

7 “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.

8 “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.

9 “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.

10 “Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

11 “Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me. 12 Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great; for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

Do you want to be blest? In the sermon on the mount, Jesus started off by listing the kind of people that are blessed. It’s not a list that you would find in any popular self help book about getting ahead in business. But it is a list that describes a faithful disciple of Jesus. Meek, gentle, righteous, just, peacemaker, etc. But one attitude that is not listed, but that I think is also very important is gratitude. 

Colossians 2:6-7

6 Therefore as you have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, 7 having been firmly rooted and now being built up in Him and establishedin your faith, just as you were instructed, and overflowing with gratitude.

When you walk in the Spirit for awhile, and He establishes you in your faith, you will be blest, and you attitude should be an overflowing gratitude. That is one area that I’m not very good at. When we consider all that the Lord has brought us through, all that he has taught us, and all the blessings that he has given into our lives, we need to be grateful. When you look at the beatitudes, not everything in that list appears to be a blessing at the time; poor in spirit, hunger and thirst for righteousness, being insulted and persecuted. But the Lord said that you are blessed when you go through these things with the proper attitude, and a key part of a good attitude is gratitude. We once has a pastor that made up little signs saying “Attitude of Gratitude” which we out in our bathroom mirror so we would be reminded every morning to be grateful. 

So Lord, help us to be grateful for all of our blessings, even when they don’t look pleasant at first. As the old hymn said, 

“Count your blessings, 

Name them one by one.

Count your blessings,

See what God has done.”

So be blessed and be a blessing today.