Lord, The Deliverer

 

A righteous one may have many troubles …

—from Psalm 34:19

Whenever we get into trouble, we often need someone to help us. That trouble may be something that has occurred as a result of sin in our lives. It can also be the result of something over which we have absolutely no control: such as illness, or disease, or harm to us brought on by someone else. Nevertheless, when we realize we have fallen down a deep hole, we need someone to help us out. King David recognized this very fact when he wrote these words found in Psalm 34:19-20:

A righteous man (or woman) may have many troubles, but the Lord delivers him (or her) from them all; he protects all his (or her) bones, not one of them will be broken.

This passage is often used as a Messianic prophesy referring to the death of Christ on the cross where, despite their normal procedures, the Roman soldiers did not break any of Jesus’ bones. But, it also stands on its own as yet one more example of how God patiently waits to render aid to His dearly loved children whenever trouble assails them.

As we begin this new day, let’s celebrate the reality of God’s divine Presence in our lives. He is our protector, He is our helper, He is our loving Father who looks out for us. And, when we see those in need around us, let’s show God’s agape love by being willing to help those in genuine need.

 

_{Copyright © 2026 by Dean K. Wilson. All Rights Reserved.}

_{More info at www.DeanKWilson.com}

 

Saving the Crushed in Spirit

 

The Lord is close to the brokenhearted …

—from Psalm 34:18

I once felt crushed in my spirit at a very early age. Please let me explain.

I was only seven years old at the time. I had spent a week on the shore of Lake Erie, near Silver Creek, New York. We had rented a cottage from a friend of my father’s. It was a fun time and one that opened an entire new chapter in my life.

In the rented cottage right next door, the one that actually had frontage on the Lake, lived a mother, a father, and the most beautiful little seven-year-old girl I had ever seen. I was very surprised to learn that this family also had their primary residence in my hometown of Bradford, Pennsylvania. While I lived on the north side of the city and attended the Sixth Ward Elementary School, this delightful little girl lived on the west side of the city and attended the Hobson Place Elementary School. Until meeting at the Lake, our paths had never crossed in our relatively small city of 18,000 people.

We had a delightful time at the Lake that week. And, for the first time in my young life, I became utterly fascinated with this magnificent girl. Her name was Vicki. Even after more than 71 years, I can still remember exactly what she looked like: the sun reflecting off the Lake and illuminating her beautiful pale skin.

I came home from that week at the Lake and felt lost—absolutely lost. For days I moped around the house. My mom tried to assure me that Vicki was just one of many delightful young ladies I would meet in the course of my life. But, that didn’t relieve the sense of loss that I felt. I was truly crushed in my spirit.

As I write these words, I can’t help but chuckle at my own childish foolishness. The setting that summer at the Lake was a truly unique experience. In no other setting would I ever have had the opportunity to meet and to get to know this little girl. She and I came from totally different worlds. I later learned that her family was well off financially, had a lovely up-scale home, had really nice clothing, and had a country club membership, while I came from a relatively poor family. She spent her time in various activities that included riding horses, water skiing, and learning to play golf. I spent my leisure time at church and reading books about electronics and radio stations.

I never had the opportunity to connect with her again. By the time I reached Junior High School, where all the Elementary Schools funneled into a single building, her family had moved to another city. Then I later learned, they moved back for a short time and, all too soon, moved away again. But, from all accounts that I heard, by that time she had transformed into someone that seemed quite unlike that delightful little girl I had met many years ago. I am absolutely certain that, very soon after we first met, she had no memory of me whatsoever.

When it comes to feeling crushed in one’s spirit, many of you could tell a much more realistic and much sadder tale of some very serious event in your life that caused a deep hurt in your very soul. My illustration seems quite trivial in comparison. It sticks in my mind only because it was the first time I had experienced such helpless feelings. Of course, in the many years since those long-ago days, I have had some genuine tragedies that have plunged me into an ever-deeper sense of spirit-crunching despair.

Fortunately, King David shares these comforting words from Psalm 34:18:

The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.

When we experience a genuine time of hurt and disappointment in our lives, God stands ready to reach down with His arms of love and give us a holy hug. He knows what it is to experience loss. After all, He gave up His one and only Son, Jesus, to become the One who paid the penalty for our sins, dying on the cruel Roman cross of torture. As Jesus took on the sins of all humankind, in His holiness and for a brief moment in time, God had to turn His back on His only Son.

Fortunately, that’s not the end of the story. But, as we begin this new day, whenever we wonder if anyone can relate to what we may be experiencing in our lives, we can rest assured that God can. He understands. He will comfort us and He will heal our broken hearts.

 

_{Copyright © 2026 by Dean K. Wilson. All Rights Reserved.}

_{More info at www.DeanKWilson.com}

 

God Hears Us

 

The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears them …

—from Psalm 34:17

If you fall down a deep hole and yell for help, help will not come if no one can hear you. That seems self-evident. You may cry out over and over again. If no one can hear you call, then help won’t come.

But, if you cry out for help and someone is specifically listening for that cry, aid will come to you quickly. That’s the concept that King David wanted to convey, when he wrote the words found in Psalm 34:17:

The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears them; he delivers them from all their troubles.

God is always listening to our cry for help. Therefore, as we begin another new day, we can launch out into the world knowing that God is always listening to our cries that indicate we need help. We don’t ever have to face a time when no one is listening. God is ever-present and always attuned to the sound of our voices. Why? Because God loves us with His unfailing, undying love. He has called us to come to Him and receive every good and perfect gift that He longs to joyfully give to us.

In like manner, as followers of Jesus, we can keep our own ears tuned to hear the genuine cries for help that may come from those who have very real needs. When we hear those cries, we can answer them on behalf of the God who loves us and desires us to show His agape love to others.

 

_{Copyright © 2026 by Dean K. Wilson. All Rights Reserved.}

_{More info at www.DeanKWilson.com}

 

An Angry Face

 

The face of the Lord is against those who do evil …

—from Psalm 34:16

Has anyone ever given you an angry look? Maybe it was one of your parents, when you persisted in doing something that they had told you not to do. Perhaps it was a teacher, who had made it clear there were rules to follow, but you decided to do what you wanted to do anyway. It might even have been your boss at work, who would let you know that what you were saying in a meeting was not acceptable.

I had some friends growing up who spoke about their dad having what they called “The Look.” Their dad was a quiet man, who never said very many words. But, whenever one of his sons did something wrong, he could instantly shame them by giving them “The Look.” This is exactly what King David has in mind when he writes about God in Psalm 34:16:

The face of the Lord is against those who do evil, to cut off the memory of them from the earth.

God has “The Look,” and it communicates all too well whenever someone does something that displeases Him. We may not see “The Look.” But, we can sense “The Look,” through the indwelling Holy Spirit, whenever God gives us “The Look.”

I know that it is not fashionable today to speak of God as someone who might get angry. But, Scripture makes it clear that a holy God cannot tolerate sin. That’s why He sent His one and only Son, Jesus, to become a human and die on the cruel cross of Calvary to pay the penalty for the sins of all humankind.

God wants the children that He chooses to belong to Himself to become more and more obedient to His will and to His written Word. So, as we begin another new day, let’s determine to do just that—let’s become obedient children, as a sign of our love and appreciation for the God who first loved us.

 

_{Copyright © 2026 by Dean K. Wilson. All Rights Reserved.}

_{More info at www.DeanKWilson.com}

 

His Eyes Are On Us!

 

The eyes of the Lord are on the righteous …

—from Psalm 34:15

I always enjoy seeing the sign that reads:

“Warning! Neighborhood Watch!”

This sign reminds me that the people living in that particular neighborhood feel a responsibility to themselves and to each other to remain vigilant. They keep watch on what is going on in their surroundings. There is less chance of crime occurring whenever the people stay alert.

Not long ago, a “Neighborhood Watch” person reported to police that a moving van had pulled up to a house across the street. The neighbor knew that the people had experienced a death in the family and had traveled out of state for a funeral.

When the police arrived, they found criminals attempting to steal all of those people’s possessions. You see, the crooks had watched the obituaries to find someone that had died out of state. Then, they targeted the loved ones, who had gone to attend the far away funeral. Thanks to “Neighborhood Watch,” the criminals were arrested and their plot was foiled.

King David praises God for His ever-vigilant watchfulness in Psalm 34:15:

The eyes of the Lord are on the righteous and his ears are attentive to their cry.

As we begin a new day, let’s remain thankful that God watches over us. His eyes never leave us. His ears listen for our cries asking for help. We can move confidently into this day knowing that the God who loves us with His everlasting love keeps us always in view. He remains attentive to our cries for help. He listens for our expressions to Him of our love.

 

_{Copyright © 2026 by Dean K. Wilson. All Rights Reserved.}

_{More info at www.DeanKWilson.com}

 

Pursue Peace

 

Turn from evil and do good …

—from Psalm 34:14

“Peace!” This word refers to the “absence of conflict.” On the world scene, that’s in terms of nations. Within an individual, it’s an “undisturbed state of mind.”

“Peace!” Even the word sounds good, doesn’t it?

Notice the occurrence of the word “peace” in today’s passage of Scripture, found in Psalm 34:14:

Turn from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it.

When we point our web browsers to Facebook, or X, or Instagram, or SnapChat, or any of a number of social media websites, we must not focus on posts or photos that are cruel, or demeaning, or provocative, or salacious, or nasty. Instead, we should read posts that encourage, or uplift, or make us feel at peace.

It is so easy, especially in this time of supercharged political strife and disagreement, to be drawn into posts that tear down the people who think differently than we do. Yes, there are some issues about which we may have strong feelings. But, should our political or social feelings overwhelm the divine agape love that Christ has placed in our heartss?

“Peace belongs to those whose minds have been channeled properly.” That’s my key suggestion for today. Here’s where the battleground is staged: in our minds. And, to paraphrase an old-time comic strip character, “Li’l Abner”:

“… personal peace is a whole lot better than internal conflict or war, because believe me, it’s just a whole lot nicer.”

“Peace of mind”—the world for the most part has not listened to the Prince of Peace. Neighbor has not done for neighbor what he would like done for himself. Too often, even believers have fancied that the peace of Christ could be mixed with the turmoil and confusion and hostilities of Satan the deceiver. But, that’s not so. One can’t allow his or her mind to be channeled improperly without courting problems.

As a new day begins, let’s guard our minds, think on only those things that are worthy, and determine to seek peace and pursue it. We do well when we decide to do just that.

 

_{Copyright © 2026 by Dean K. Wilson. All Rights Reserved.}

_{More info at www.DeanKWilson.com}

 

Keeping Our Tongues from Evil

 

Whoever of you loves life and desires to see many good days …

—from Psalm 34:12

It is relatively easy to actively maintain what my friends from the United Kingdom call “keeping a sharp tongue.” In these days of unbelievable strife in our nation, we are a people deeply divided by a false narrative of politics, a false narrative of racial division, a false narrative of religious division, and a false narrative of income inequality.

Even in describing these points of division as “false narratives,” I will be deeply offending some individuals, who truly believe these matters divide us. I choose to sincerely believe these are all false narratives constructed by our enemy, Satan, to cause strife among us. Nevertheless my point remains: it is very easy to keep a sharp tongue.

On the other hand, King David lived at a time when deep division had afflicted the people of Israel, as well. He also realized that these divisions were largely created by false narratives. And, David pushes back against these narratives by writing these words found in Psalm 34:12-13:

Whoever of you loves life and desires to see many good days, keep your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking lies.

How many times in the last days have we read something on Facebook, X, or some other social media, or taken note of an article in a blog post or on-line newspaper or magazine, and immediately repeated what the article said, without making any effort whatsoever to check out the so-called facts against the accuracy of first sources? I have watched entire churches divide over false narratives created by individuals who wanted to punish someone for a real or imagined hurt. A lie here, a stretching of the truth there, a bit of distorted information said enough times, and soon strife arises.

As we begin a new day, let’s determine to speak only verifiable truth—verified from first sources. Let’s be very slow to jump on any bandwagon these days. Instead, let’s look to God’s written Word as our source of truth. Let’s invite the Holy Spirit to help keep our minds and hearts pure and free from falsehoods. Let’s be very careful what we repeat on social medial. If we do this, God will be pleased to honor our embracing of the truth.

 

_{Copyright © 2026 by Dean K. Wilson. All Rights Reserved.}

_{More info at www.DeanKWilson.com}