psalm 136

Forever (His Love Endures Forever)

November 18, 2014 by coleen hayden

Give thanks to the Lord our God and King
His love endures forever
For He is good, He is above all things
His love endures forever
Sing praise, sing praise

With a mighty hand and outstretched arm
His love endures forever
For the life that’s been reborn
His love endures forever
Sing praise, sing praise

Forever God is faithful
Forever God is with us
Forever

From the rising to the setting sun
His love endures forever
By the grace of God we will carry on
His love endures forever
Sing praise, sing praise

Written by Chris Tomlin ~ Performed by Robin Mark

* ~ ♥ ~ ✞ ~ ♥ ~ *

Don’t you just love to sing this praise anthem?!!? The words just give our hearts such an awesome way to acknowledge God’s goodness and praise Him for His enduring love!

This praise-filled phrase—He is good; His love endures forever—is recorded in many places throughout the Old Testament. One of the most outstanding records, in my opinion, is found in the 2nd Book of Chronicles, specifically chapters 5-7.

We see (in 2 Chronicles 5) King Solomon calling the elders of Israel, the leaders, the heads of the tribes (along with all the people of Israel) to accompany the Ark of the Covenant to its long-awaited proper home in the Temple. (It had been his father, David, to whom God gave the vision for the building of the Temple, which was never accomplished in David’s lifetime.) The priests brought the Ark to its proper, anointed place in the Holy of Holies. Surrounding the altar were the Levites and the priests ready to praise in unison with all their instruments and their voices.

The trumpeters and singers joined together to praise and thank the LORD with one voice.
They raised their voices, accompanied by trumpets, cymbals, and musical instruments,
in praise to the LORD: For He is good; His faithful love endures forever.
The temple, the LORD’s temple, was filled with a cloud.
And because of the cloud, the priests were not able to continue ministering,
for the glory of the LORD filled God’s temple.
Verses 13 and 14

The record of the dedication of the Temple continues (chapters 6 and 7) as Solomon prays and blesses the people.

As soon as Solomon finished his prayer, fire came down from heaven
and consumed the burnt offering and the sacrifices,
and the glory of the LORD filled the temple.
2 Chronicles 7:1

The peoples response?

When all the Israelites saw the fire coming down
and the glory of the LORD above the temple,
they knelt on the pavement with their faces to the ground,
and they worshiped and gave thanks to the LORD, saying,
“He is good; His love endures forever.”
Verse 3

And throughout the continued sacrifices and the ceremony of dedicating the Temple, continual praise “His love endures forever” was offered to God by the priests and the people along with the sacrifices of animals.

Just as the psalmist communicates in every single verse of Psalm 136, perhaps our own conversation and communication about our great God—as well as our prayers— should always include this praise.

Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good, for His (steadfast) love endures forever.
Verse 1

As we thank God for His goodness our hearts should overflow with words of gratitude and praise confessing that truly, “His love endures forever!” … Perhaps this year during your celebration of Thanksgiving with your friends and loved ones, you could share a time of praise and worship, and use these same words that David, and Solomon, and the Israelites used to declare God’s goodness. Because no matter what the age, the situation, the circumstance, the season, the time, the day, or the hour… ‘He is good! His love endures forever!’

Here are a few different ways this glorious praise is written in different translations:

Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good…

His love endures forever (NIV)
His faithful love endures forever (NLT)
His lovingkindness is everlasting (NASB)
His mercy endureth for ever (KJV)
His steadfast love endures forever (ESV)
His love is eternal (HCSB)
His loyal love endures (NET)
His mercy and lovingkindness are everlasting (AMP)

Filed Under: Psalms Hymns and Spiritual Songs Tagged With: Chris Tomlin, coleen hayden, GCH, Girlfriends Coffee Hour, gratitude, His love endures forever, praises, psalm 136, psalm 136:1, psalms-hymns-spiritual-songs, Robin Mark, solomon and the temple, Thankfulness, thanks giving

His Love Endures Forever

November 26, 2013 by coleen hayden

Don’t you just love to sing this praise anthem?!!? The words give our hearts such an awesome way to acknowledge God’s goodness and praise Him for His enduring love!

We see (2 Chronicles 5) King Solomon calling the elders of Israel, the leaders, the heads of the tribes (along with all the people of Israel) to accompany the Ark of the Covenant to its long-awaited proper home in the Temple. (It had been his father, David, to whom God has given the vision and provision for the building of the Temple, which was never accomplished in his lifetime.) The priests brought the Ark to its proper, anointed place in the Holy of Holies. Surrounding the altar were the Levites and the priests ready to praise in unison with all their instruments and their voices.

The trumpeters and singers joined together to praise and thank the LORD with one voice.
They raised their voices, accompanied by trumpets, cymbals, and musical instruments,
in praise to the LORD: For He is good; His faithful love endures forever.
The temple, the LORD’s temple, was filled with a cloud.
And because of the cloud, the priests were not able to continue ministering,
for the glory of the LORD filled God’s temple.
(Verses 13 and 14)

The record of the dedication of the Temple continues (chapters 6 and 7) as Solomon prays and blesses the people.

As soon as Solomon finished his prayer, fire came down from heaven
and consumed the burnt offering and the sacrifices,
and the glory of the LORD filled the temple.
2 Chronicles 7:1

The peoples response?

And throughout the continued sacrifices and the ceremony of dedicating the Temple, continual praise “His love endures forever” was offered to God by the priests and the people along with the sacrifices of animals.

And, as such, this <without the animal sacrifice!> should be our continual praise. We are oh-so-very blessed! The provision and supply that our great God brings to our lives deserves our continual exclamation, “He is good! His love endures forever!” Just as the psalmist communicates in every single verse of Psalm 136, our conversation and our communication should always include this praise.

Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good, for His (steadfast) love endures forever.
Verse 1

As we thank God for His goodness our hearts should overflow with words of gratitude and praise confessing that truly, “His love endures forever!” … Perhaps in your celebration of Thanksgiving with your friends and loved ones, you could have a time of praise and worship and use these same words that David, and Solomon, and the Israelites used to declare God’s goodness. Because no matter what the age, the situation, the circumstance, the season, the time, the day or the hour… ‘He is good! His love endures forever!’

Here are a few different ways this glorious praise is written in different translations:

His love endures forever (NIV)
His faithful love endures forever (NLT)
His lovingkindness is everlasting (NASB)
His mercy endureth for ever (KJV)
His steadfast love endures forever (ESV)
His love is eternal (HCSB)
His loyal love endures (NET)
His mercy and lovingkindness are everlasting (AMP)

Filed Under: Women's Ministry Tagged With: 2 chronicles 5-7, Chris Tomlin, coleen hayden, forever, GCH, Girlfriends Coffee Hour, gratitude, His love endures forever, nearly 50 times, psalm 136, Thankfulness, thanksgiving

16 Day Love Challenge: Chapter 16 – Love Never Fails

November 22, 2013 by coleen hayden

Love is patient, love is kind.
It does not envy, it does not boast; it is not proud.
It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking,
It is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.
Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the Truth.
It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
Love never fails.
1 Corinthians 13:4-8

Quite a list of accomplishments, wouldn’t you say? Perhaps you might say to yourself, ‘Do you really think anyone can do that—love that way?’ Well, I DO know someONE Who can! (You do, too!) Our Father, Almighty God, the Great I AM…He can! And He does!

Here are a few verses just to remind us of God’s never failing love.

But I have trusted in your steadfast love; my heart shall rejoice in your salvation.
I will sing to the Lord, because he has dealt bountifully with me.
Psalms 13:5 and 6

I have loved you with an everlasting love….
Jeremiah 31:3

Psalm 136 tells us “Give thanks to the LORD, for He is good, for His love endures forever.” And this truth is reiterated in every single verse throughout this psalm…26 times!

As our study of the 16 Day Love Challenge: Matching our Words and Actions with 1 Corinthians 13:4-8 draws to a close, we look at God’s final statement in this passage about LOVE.

Love never fails.
1 Corinthians 13:8

It doesn’t say ‘almost never’ or ‘almost all the time’ or ‘99 out of 100 times’, does it? No, ma’am…it says ‘Love never fails.’

never (adverb)

1. at no time in the past or future; on no occasion; not ever.
synonyms: not ever, at no time, not at any time, not once, ne’er.

2. not at all
synonyms: certainly not, not for a moment, under no circumstances, on no account

(and here are a few informal synonyms: no way, not on your life, not in a million years, when pigs fly, when hell freezes over.)

Can I tell you something? I do know someone else, besides our great God who can love that way! Really! It is y.o.u. Yes, my friend, you CAN love others in that same way! Hey, now, no scoffing, no pshawing, no doubting—the Scriptures clearly communicate this!

…Because God’s love has been poured into our hearts
through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.
Romans 5:5

A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another,
even as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if You have love for one another.
John 13:34-35

This is my commandment: that you love one another as I have loved you.
John 15:12

Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God
and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God.
Anyone who does not love does not know God,
because God is love.
Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.
1 John 4:7-8, 11

God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God and God in them.

This is how love is perfected with us
so that we will have confidence on the day of Judgment;
because as He is, so are we in this world.
Verses 16 and 17

And He has given us this command:
anyone who loves God must also love their brother or sister.
Verse 21

God’s Word is Truth! And so, we are what the Word of God says that we are! We ARE able to love as God loves. As we were reminded the other day by Cherie, truth is not determined by our experience but simply by the Truth of the Scriptures.

Try this! Read through these verses again (out loud, please!), inserting your name along with ‘love.’ Like this…

{Cherie’s} love is patient, {Rebecca’s} love is kind.
{Kim’s love} does not envy, {Cynda’s love} does not boast; {Rae Ann’s love} is not proud.
{Darcie’s love} does not dishonor others, {Jennifer’s love} is not self-seeking,
{Cyndie’s love} is not easily angered, {Clella’s love} keeps no record of wrongs.
{Beverly’s} love does not delight in evil but {Robin’s love} rejoices with the Truth.
{Shari’s love} always protects, {Chelle’s love} always trusts,
{Kristen‘s love} always hopes, {Aminah‘s love} always perseveres.
{Christi’s} love never fails.

Let’s Pray:
Lord, we are so thankful that it was Your plan for us to study together and to work the 16 Day Love Challenge together!!! Our lives are forever changed. We do so need Your help through the Holy Spirit that You have placed within us, Lord! You know (we do, too) that there will be times we are tempted to think that we cannot love like this. Help us to recognize that lie and to replace it with the Truth that we can love because You have placed Your love within us! Today may we reach out to everyone around us with Your love that is in our hearts! Thank You, Lord! It is only because of Your great grace and mercy! We pray these things in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Filed Under: Women's Ministry Tagged With: 1 Corinthians 13:4-8, 1 john 4:16-17, 1 john 4:21, 1 john 4:7-8, 16 dy love challenge, Cherie Zack, coleen hayden, GCH, Girlfriends Coffee Hour, Jeremiah 31:3, john 13:34-35, john 15:12, love never fails, psalm 136, psalms 13:5-6, Rebecca LeCompte, romans 5:5, Women's Online Bible Study

Make a Joyful Noise

August 5, 2013 by coleen hayden

Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth!
Serve the Lord with gladness! Come into His Presence with singing!
Know that the Lord, He is God! It is He who made us, and we are His;
we are His people, and the sheep of His pasture.
Enter His gates with thanksgiving, and His courts with praise!
Give thanks to Him; bless His name!
For the Lord is good; His steadfast love endures forever,
and His faithfulness to all generations.
Psalm 100

‘Make a joyful noise!’ Oh, you don’t have to tell me twice! (And sometimes it is just that—a joyful noise.) Do we not just love to sing our praises to the Lord God?!? We have so many, many reasons to praise Him, to thank Him, to bless His Holy Name.

Here in Psalm 100, verse 5 offers three extremely compelling reasons to praise Him:

He is good

The Lord is good, a refuge in times of trouble.
He cares for those who trust in Him.
Nahum 1:7

This we know…in fact, isn’t there a praise chorus that we love to sing: ‘God is good ALL the time! And ALL the time, God is good!’

His love endures forever

Give thanks to the God of Heaven for His steadfast love endures forever.
Psalms 136:26

Twenty-six (yes, 26!) times in Psalm 136, this praise is exclaimed! (Here’s a link to read the whole psalm.) Throughout the entire history of mankind from Adam & Eve, all the way along through the Scriptures, we read of the myriad of ways that our Great God has manifested His steadfast love. AND He has made promise after promise to His children (us! you and me!) that His love will endure for eternity!

He is faithful to all generations

Know therefore that the Lord your God is God; He is the faithful God, keeping His covenant of love to a thousand generations of those who love Him and keep His commandments.
Deuteronomy 7:9

What a promise of hope He has made—His covenant of love to those who love Him and obey! Our God always brings to pass His promises! What a faithful God!

Dear Lord,
We love to make a joyful noise, Lord, singing Your praises! You are the Almighty God Who deserves all the praise there is to give! Thank You for Your faithfulness, Your goodness, and Your love! HalleluJAH! Amen.

* * * * * * *

Today’s devotional has been written by Coleen Hayden.

Filed Under: Seeking Him Daily Devotional Tagged With: deuteronomy 7:9, GCH, Girlfriends Coffee Hour, God is faithful, God is good, His love endures forever, make a joyful noise, Nahum 1:7, Psalm 100, psalm 136

Forever (His Love Endures Forever)

His Love Endures Forever

16 Day Love Challenge: Chapter 16 – Love Never Fails

never (adverb)