Frank's Bible Blog

Psalm 34--You're Standing on an Enormous Power Supply

It has been there all along but until recent years no one knew it. It is called the Barnett Shale, one of the largest deposits of natural gas in the United States, and it underlies 5,000 square miles of Texas. Above the ground of this energy field sits houses, businesses, a church and even the Dallas Fort Worth Airport. These individuals and organziations were sitting on a "gold" mine. Once the discovery was made and gas companies began to tap into the Barnett shale, the money began to flow to the property owners. This enormous source of energy was right there all along but it didn't do anyone any good until it was finally tapped into. As believers, we are sitting on top of an incredible "power field," if you will. But this isn't energy that can be burned up. No, this is the power of All-Mighty God. In Psalm 34 we are told that God stands ready to answer, deliver, save from trouble, send angels, provide for every need, see, hear, draw close to the brokenhearted, save the crushed in spirit, protect, redeem, and condemn the foes of His followers. All of this is available to the believer, but must first be tapped into. How do we "tap into" the incredible power and peace that God offers? David in this chapter says we are to extol, praise, boast of, glorify, exalt, seek, look to, call, taste, take refuge in, and fear the Lord. When we turn to the Lord in this way, then He is quick to respond with a vast array of benefits. But, we must seek Him. We must fear Him. We must demonstrate our complete dependency on the Lord. By trusting in Him and not ourselves or anyone or anything else, we tap into an incredible power supply that will never run out.

_________________________

Frank Banfill is an author, international speaker, and president of MaxPoint Ministries, whose purpose is to help individuals, churches and ministries reach their full potential. Please forward this blog to your family & friends. Not a subscriber? Sign up now at www.FranksBibleBlog.com.

Psalm 29--Peace in the Thunder

It was an amazing night. I can't recall ever seeing anything like it before as a massive electrical storm lit up the Texas sky. In just a few miles of driving my children counted over 100 lightning strikes. There was no rain where we were, and at that time we could not hear any thunder. We just saw lightning flash after lightning flash. Later that night a storm did roll past, with thunder so loud it shook our house. Thunder and lightning can be incredibly powerful--and they should be reminders to us of the incredible power and might of God. David tells us in Psalm 29 "The voice of the LORD strikes with flashes of lightning. The voice of the LORD shakes the desert" (vv7-8). The mere voice of God is powerful and majestic (v4). It is impossible for us to fully grasp the magnitude of God's power and glory. Because of this, we should "Ascribe to the Lord the glory due His name" (v1). Because of this we should worship and exalt Him daily. And because of this, He "gives strength to His people; the Lord blesses His people with peace" (v1). Because God is so powerful, He can calm any storm in your life and give you the strength to overcome any adversity. So the next time you hear thunder or see lightning be reminded of God's massive power and know that the God enthroned "as king forever" is right there with you to give you peace.

_________________________

Frank Banfill is an author, international speaker, and president of MaxPoint Ministries, whose purpose is to help individuals, churches and ministries reach their full potential. Please forward this blog to your family & friends. Not a subscriber? Sign up now at www.FranksBibleBlog.com.

Psalm 26-- Maintaining Your Innocence

The headline read "18 Dallas County Cases Overturned By DNA Relied Heavily on Eyewitness Testimony." It went on to tell how 19 criminal convictions had been overturned based on new DNA evidence, 18 of which got their original convictions because of faulty eyewitness testimony. I'm sure all 19 men falsely accused of these crimes maintained their innocence even in prison. In the case of one man, he had been imprisoned 15 years before the mistake was discovered. These men were exonerated from within--from their DNA. Others looked at them and made mistakes, but they knew the truth. In Psalm 26, David boldly declares his innocence before the Lord. He took great precautions to make sure that he lived rightly, and he welcomed God's examination of his life. It didn't matter what eyewitnesses might say, what really mattered was what God would say because God knew what was within him. How could David be so bold about his innocence before the Lord? What did he do to ensure he was pure? First, he placed his trust in the Lord (v1). Second, he walked in real truth--God's truth (v3). Third, he guarded his relationships so that he did not spend significant time with those who worshiped other gods, were hypocrites, or who were just wicked (vv4-5). Fourth, he was vocal in speaking about the Lord (v7). Fifth, he spent time in God's house (v8). Finally, he was consistently righteous (vv1,11). These are great steps that we all should take to maintain our innocence before the Lord.


_________________________
Frank Banfill is an author, international speaker, and president of MaxPoint Ministries, whose purpose is to help individuals, churches and ministries reach their full potential. Please forward this blog to your family & friends. Not a subscriber? Sign up now at www.FranksBibleBlog.com.

Psalm 24-- Keeping the Unseen in Perspective

When I turned 40 I decided that I wanted to get a body scan--a high-tech imaging of the major body organs. I waited almost two years but eventually had it done. It was fascinating to sit with the doctor and watch the results on a computer screen. I could see what was inside of me, section by section! We don't usually think much about our heart, lungs, liver, etc. until something goes wrong. Those organs are always present with us, but since they are out of sight, we ignore them. We probably give no thought to how these organs work--we just know that they do. God is like this for many people, even believers. He is always present, but since we don't see Him we tend to forget about Him--at least until something goes wrong! Psalm 24 challenges us to always keep God before us and see Him for Who He is. First, we are reminded that everything and everyone belongs to Him (vv1-2). Second, we are told that while we have free access to God, we cannot approach Him flippantly. If we want to stand before Him expecting Him to pour out His blessing on us, then we need to come before Him in an appropriate way (v3) with purity of actions and heart (v4). Finally, we need to see the Lord as the King of kings and the Lord of lords. He is the only one with an everlasting kingdom (v9) who has never been and never will be defeated! Just because you can't see your heart doesn't mean you shouldn't pay attention to it. The same is true with God. Let's keep the Unseen in perspective.

_________________________
Frank Banfill is an author, international speaker, and president of MaxPoint Ministries, whose purpose is to help individuals, churches and ministries reach their full potential. Please forward this blog to your family & friends. Not a subscriber? Sign up now at www.FranksBibleBlog.com.

Psalm 19-- Seeing the Creator and Not Just the Creation

When you look at a beautiful sunset, observe glorious mountains, watch an ocean's waves or gander at the night's stars, what do you see? Do you see chaos and happenstance, or do you see order and design? Does what you see cause you to move your focus off from yourself and onto the One responsible for it all? Does it cause you to think about what that One might desire for your life as part of His creation? Psalm 19 is a great description of how God's handiwork not only speaks to Who God is, but how it compels us to discover His desire for our lives. God's creation (vv1-6) declares His existence and majesty to everyone in the world, regardless of their language or culture (v3). God's expectations (vv7-11) are reasonable and bring the benefits of change (v7), wisdom (v7), joy (v8), enlightenment (v8), consistency (v9) and rewards more precious than gold (vv10-11). How will we respond to God's revelation of Himself through His creation and expectations? The psalmist responded with a desire for cleansing from sin, that sin would not have control over his life (vv12-13). How would he avoid having sin in control? He would meditate on and speak the things of God (v14). When we see God for who He is, we get a glimpse of His glory and holiness. This should compel us to examine our lives, and it should move us to live godly before the Lord and this generation. If you are struggling to live holy, then examine what you spend time thinking about and the kinds of things you choose to talk about. By shifting the focus of these to the Lord, we will see our actions and attitudes take a positive shift as well. So the next time you see part of God's creation--whether a flower in your yard or a massive chain of mountains--stop and reflect. Reflect on God and ask yourself how well you are doing living up to His expectations. Allow creation to point you to the Creator.
_____________
Frank Banfill is an author, international speaker, and president of MaxPoint Ministries, whose purpose is to help individuals, churches and ministries reach their full potential. Please forward this blog to your family & friends. Not a subscriber? Sign up now at www.FranksBibleBlog.com.

Psalm 34--You're Standing on an Enormous Power Supply

It has been there all along but until recent years no one knew it. It is called the Barnett Shale, one of the largest deposits of natural gas in the United States, and it underlies 5,000 square miles of Texas. Above the ground of this energy field sits houses, businesses, a church and even the Dallas Fort Worth Airport. These individuals and organziations were sitting on a "gold" mine. Once the discovery was made and gas companies began to tap into the Barnett shale, the money began to flow to the property owners. This enormous source of energy was right there all along but it didn't do anyone any good until it was finally tapped into. As believers, we are sitting on top of an incredible "power field," if you will. But this isn't energy that can be burned up. No, this is the power of All-Mighty God. In Psalm 34 we are told that God stands ready to answer, deliver, save from trouble, send angels, provide for every need, see, hear, draw close to the brokenhearted, save the crushed in spirit, protect, redeem, and condemn the foes of His followers. All of this is available to the believer, but must first be tapped into. How do we "tap into" the incredible power and peace that God offers? David in this chapter says we are to extol, praise, boast of, glorify, exalt, seek, look to, call, taste, take refuge in, and fear the Lord. When we turn to the Lord in this way, then He is quick to respond with a vast array of benefits. But, we must seek Him. We must fear Him. We must demonstrate our complete dependency on the Lord. By trusting in Him and not ourselves or anyone or anything else, we tap into an incredible power supply that will never run out.

_________________________

Frank Banfill is an author, international speaker, and president of MaxPoint Ministries, whose purpose is to help individuals, churches and ministries reach their full potential. Please forward this blog to your family & friends. Not a subscriber? Sign up now at www.FranksBibleBlog.com.

Psalm 29--Peace in the Thunder

It was an amazing night. I can't recall ever seeing anything like it before as a massive electrical storm lit up the Texas sky. In just a few miles of driving my children counted over 100 lightning strikes. There was no rain where we were, and at that time we could not hear any thunder. We just saw lightning flash after lightning flash. Later that night a storm did roll past, with thunder so loud it shook our house. Thunder and lightning can be incredibly powerful--and they should be reminders to us of the incredible power and might of God. David tells us in Psalm 29 "The voice of the LORD strikes with flashes of lightning. The voice of the LORD shakes the desert" (vv7-8). The mere voice of God is powerful and majestic (v4). It is impossible for us to fully grasp the magnitude of God's power and glory. Because of this, we should "Ascribe to the Lord the glory due His name" (v1). Because of this we should worship and exalt Him daily. And because of this, He "gives strength to His people; the Lord blesses His people with peace" (v1). Because God is so powerful, He can calm any storm in your life and give you the strength to overcome any adversity. So the next time you hear thunder or see lightning be reminded of God's massive power and know that the God enthroned "as king forever" is right there with you to give you peace.

_________________________

Frank Banfill is an author, international speaker, and president of MaxPoint Ministries, whose purpose is to help individuals, churches and ministries reach their full potential. Please forward this blog to your family & friends. Not a subscriber? Sign up now at www.FranksBibleBlog.com.

Psalm 26-- Maintaining Your Innocence

The headline read "18 Dallas County Cases Overturned By DNA Relied Heavily on Eyewitness Testimony." It went on to tell how 19 criminal convictions had been overturned based on new DNA evidence, 18 of which got their original convictions because of faulty eyewitness testimony. I'm sure all 19 men falsely accused of these crimes maintained their innocence even in prison. In the case of one man, he had been imprisoned 15 years before the mistake was discovered. These men were exonerated from within--from their DNA. Others looked at them and made mistakes, but they knew the truth. In Psalm 26, David boldly declares his innocence before the Lord. He took great precautions to make sure that he lived rightly, and he welcomed God's examination of his life. It didn't matter what eyewitnesses might say, what really mattered was what God would say because God knew what was within him. How could David be so bold about his innocence before the Lord? What did he do to ensure he was pure? First, he placed his trust in the Lord (v1). Second, he walked in real truth--God's truth (v3). Third, he guarded his relationships so that he did not spend significant time with those who worshiped other gods, were hypocrites, or who were just wicked (vv4-5). Fourth, he was vocal in speaking about the Lord (v7). Fifth, he spent time in God's house (v8). Finally, he was consistently righteous (vv1,11). These are great steps that we all should take to maintain our innocence before the Lord.


_________________________
Frank Banfill is an author, international speaker, and president of MaxPoint Ministries, whose purpose is to help individuals, churches and ministries reach their full potential. Please forward this blog to your family & friends. Not a subscriber? Sign up now at www.FranksBibleBlog.com.

Psalm 24-- Keeping the Unseen in Perspective

When I turned 40 I decided that I wanted to get a body scan--a high-tech imaging of the major body organs. I waited almost two years but eventually had it done. It was fascinating to sit with the doctor and watch the results on a computer screen. I could see what was inside of me, section by section! We don't usually think much about our heart, lungs, liver, etc. until something goes wrong. Those organs are always present with us, but since they are out of sight, we ignore them. We probably give no thought to how these organs work--we just know that they do. God is like this for many people, even believers. He is always present, but since we don't see Him we tend to forget about Him--at least until something goes wrong! Psalm 24 challenges us to always keep God before us and see Him for Who He is. First, we are reminded that everything and everyone belongs to Him (vv1-2). Second, we are told that while we have free access to God, we cannot approach Him flippantly. If we want to stand before Him expecting Him to pour out His blessing on us, then we need to come before Him in an appropriate way (v3) with purity of actions and heart (v4). Finally, we need to see the Lord as the King of kings and the Lord of lords. He is the only one with an everlasting kingdom (v9) who has never been and never will be defeated! Just because you can't see your heart doesn't mean you shouldn't pay attention to it. The same is true with God. Let's keep the Unseen in perspective.

_________________________
Frank Banfill is an author, international speaker, and president of MaxPoint Ministries, whose purpose is to help individuals, churches and ministries reach their full potential. Please forward this blog to your family & friends. Not a subscriber? Sign up now at www.FranksBibleBlog.com.

Psalm 19-- Seeing the Creator and Not Just the Creation

When you look at a beautiful sunset, observe glorious mountains, watch an ocean's waves or gander at the night's stars, what do you see? Do you see chaos and happenstance, or do you see order and design? Does what you see cause you to move your focus off from yourself and onto the One responsible for it all? Does it cause you to think about what that One might desire for your life as part of His creation? Psalm 19 is a great description of how God's handiwork not only speaks to Who God is, but how it compels us to discover His desire for our lives. God's creation (vv1-6) declares His existence and majesty to everyone in the world, regardless of their language or culture (v3). God's expectations (vv7-11) are reasonable and bring the benefits of change (v7), wisdom (v7), joy (v8), enlightenment (v8), consistency (v9) and rewards more precious than gold (vv10-11). How will we respond to God's revelation of Himself through His creation and expectations? The psalmist responded with a desire for cleansing from sin, that sin would not have control over his life (vv12-13). How would he avoid having sin in control? He would meditate on and speak the things of God (v14). When we see God for who He is, we get a glimpse of His glory and holiness. This should compel us to examine our lives, and it should move us to live godly before the Lord and this generation. If you are struggling to live holy, then examine what you spend time thinking about and the kinds of things you choose to talk about. By shifting the focus of these to the Lord, we will see our actions and attitudes take a positive shift as well. So the next time you see part of God's creation--whether a flower in your yard or a massive chain of mountains--stop and reflect. Reflect on God and ask yourself how well you are doing living up to His expectations. Allow creation to point you to the Creator.
_____________
Frank Banfill is an author, international speaker, and president of MaxPoint Ministries, whose purpose is to help individuals, churches and ministries reach their full potential. Please forward this blog to your family & friends. Not a subscriber? Sign up now at www.FranksBibleBlog.com. If you would like to share a comment about today's blog, you may do so at http://www.maxpoint.org/maxpoint/message_board.

Genesis 7-- The Forgotten Chapter

Our family enjoys traveling. We have been blessed to have seen some beautiful places on  this earth. It is always interesting to see how "man" tries to explain away the beauty. Whether it is an incredible canyon or rugged, majestic mountains, the "reason" for these usually is said to have been natural occurrences over millions of years. Yet these and other things, such as fossils, really can't be explained as happening over millions of years. They can only be explained by a sudden and catastrophic event. What is missing from these attempts to explain our earth is one chapter from the Bible--Genesis 7. This "forgotten" chapter (or maybe a better phrase is "ignored chapter") records the story of Noah and the great flood. This global, sudden and catastrophic event permanently altered the landscape of the world as "the fountains of the great deep were broken up" (v11) and "the waters prevailed exceedingly on the earth, and all the high hills under the whole heaven were covered" (v19). The real issue is do we want to take God at His word or not. As long as we choose to ignore God, then we will continue our lame attempts to explain away anything that reminds us of God. God said to Noah "Come into the ark" (v1). God had provided a vehicle for deliverance but it was up to Noah to take God at His word and utilize it. The same is true today. God the Father, through the Son Jesus Christ, has provided a means for deliverance from our personal sin and the sin of this world. Will we take God at His word and utilize His provision? Or will we ignore it and allow it to become just another forgotten chapter?
_____________
Frank Banfill is an author, international speaker, and president of MaxPoint Ministries, whose purpose is to help individuals, churches and ministries reach their full potential. Please forward this blog to your family & friends. Not a subscriber? Sign up now at www.FranksBibleBlog.com. If you would like to share a comment about today's blog, you may do so at http://www.maxpoint.org/maxpoint/message_board.