In Matthew 10, Jesus uses the imagery of a dove and serpent to describe how believers should interact in this world. The stark contrast between the two animals speaks to our complex role in culture.

Some people make works of art with paper and pen or a brush and a canvas. Others turn a lump of clay into something truly remarkable. But then, there is Erik Varszegi. You can find his art form in most kid's playrooms - Legos.

All good things come to an end, including this Summer Sabbath devotional series. It seems like we started this journey only yesterday with a question: what if we treated the summer like a Sabbath? For the past ten weeks, we've embraced the disruption summer brings by slowing down and letting the words from the book of Psalms wash over us. By doing so, we gained insight into the profoundness of the human heart and the depth of God's love and faithfulness. In these quiet moments, we sensed God's presence, heard His voice, and gained clarity on the well-being of our souls.

Throughout his long life, the author of Psalm 71 faced periods of adversity, moments of misfortune, and times of trouble. Yet, as he reflected on God's faithfulness every step of the way, he remained confident God would be by his side during his present trials. Today, as we dig deeper into this passage, we'll see the transformational power in our difficult seasons.

Our time together this week has us in Psalm 71, contemplating the words of an aging writer in trouble; his enemies look to capitalize on his fragile condition. While reflecting on a lifetime of faithful devotion, he declares his continued trust in God. He asks God to save him again - not so he can enjoy retirement, bask in his glory days, kick up his feet, and live the good life, but to do something unexpected: share his faith with the next generation.

Persevering faith and steadfast endurance characterize Psalm 71, our passage for this week's study. Its confident words come from an aging author reflecting on his current distress through the lens of a lifelong faith, declaring God's heart is to provide refuge and rescue to those who call on His name. Today, we want to explore how the author's dependency on God caused others to take notice.

During this time, we've learned about God's love and mercy, His presence and peace, and how God pursues us and displays His faithfulness. We also gained insight into the heart and soul of humanity and the depth of our emotions. This collection of songs and prayers speaks to the ups and downs of our faith journeys - doubts, distress, and despair in the same space where dependency, declaration, and determination reside. So as we turn our attention to our final passage, it makes sense that it would be Psalm 71 - a scripture overflowing with familiar themes and imagery from previous psalms.

What do you hope defines the Church you call home? What would be the prayer you utter for your community? What do you wish the people of your town would say when talking about your Church? Is it something like, "Oh yeah... that's the community who's reliant on prayer, focused on serving, making a difference in hurting places, welcoming everyone, or displaying love through their actions." A reputation like that requires something from each one of us and it gets built one small step of obedience and faith at a time.

Every day, all around us, we are confronted with brokenness. We see needs in our neighborhood, our city, and our world. We may even feel a nudge to get involved, to do something and take action, but fear, doubt, and feelings of inadequacy win out. Some of us allow our convenience, comfort, and complacency to justify our inactivity. We shrink back, turn away, and hope someone else will rise to the occasion. But, Christ asks you and me to play a vital part in healing our culture.

This week's time inside Psalm 67 has challenged us to look outside ourselves by setting our sights on the world around us. The author pours his soul out to God in prayer, not for personal blessings, but for a day when all nations will praise God's name. In that gap between the prayer and its culmination, we reside and play a part in its fulfillment. Today, we want to consider how our message to the world is a heart and life transformed by Christ's love.

The seven short verses of Psalm 67 pack quite a punch, jolting us from our tendency to think of faith through an individualistic lens. Rather than a consumer or critic, it invites us to be a contributor to the work God is actively doing. Instead of pondering what the Church can do for us, it challenges us to consider how we can be the Church in the places we call home as well as to our hurting and lost world.

In our divided and jaded world, Psalm 67 brings us hope while giving us responsibility for its restoration. Amid our selfish, me-focused culture, the beautiful liturgy that is Psalm 67 challenges us to take our attention off ourselves and set our focus outward. These words sung for centuries among different faith traditions and various languages across the globe are a melody of mission, a tune for togetherness, and a hymn dedicated to His name glorified among the nations.

The words of Psalm 63, this prayer from David, contains both moments of praise and meditations. We can appreciate its contents and insight by reading it. However, we can experience and unlock its powerful truths when we pray along with it, and that’s what we want to do today.

For the last few days, the words of David captured in Psalm 63 have brought us comfort and insight on quenching our spiritual thirst, the power of worship, and the art of dependency. A common theme threaded through each verse is the power that comes through a mind centered on God. We want to delve deeper into this topic today and recognize that our minds shape our hearts, direct our eyes, and guide our steps.

Today, as we continue our journey through Psalm 63, we witness worship erupt in the wilderness. While on the run as others attempt to take his life, David directs his praise to the One who created his life. Like David, God wired us to worship. It is part of our DNA to give our affections and attention to something greater than ourselves.

Yesterday, we began our journey through Psalm 63 and saw how David's response to his wilderness experience sheds light on how we should react to those times when we find ourselves in a spiritually dry season. First, he sought God and looked to Him to quench His thirst. Today, David recalls an encounter with God, which reframed his perspective on his troubles, leading him to worship.

We often forsake the very thing (FAITH) that can sustain us through our struggles, difficulties, and adversity. What we fill ourselves with amid adversity is critical to how we recover. We need to create space for recovery. By tending to our hearts, we learn how to respond with courage declaring, like David, our need for God. Amid those dry places, David recognized his spiritual thirst in Psalm 63. By strengthening our faith, we activate a sustaining source that we can rely on no matter what comes our way.

A jaded heart is unusable to God. A prideful heart doesn't believe it needs God in the first place. A fearful heart will never come out of hiding. But, a broken and contrite heart - that is one God not only welcomes and accepts but is eager to capture and transform. We display a broken spirit and contrite heart when we come humbly before God, acknowledging our sin and proclaiming God’s goodness. By doing so, we express our desperate and dependent need for God and His mercy.

The words of King David found in Psalm 51 have served as our meditations this week. Written during a time of internal strife, David can no longer bear the weight of his hidden sin and struggles. So instead, he pleads for mercy and forgiveness, to sense God's presence, and that God would cleanse his heart while renewing his spirit. As we continue our journey, we encounter another prayer - this time, it's for restoration. But, it's not restoring his strength, determination, or faithfulness. Instead, David asks God to bring back the joy of salvation.

Our journey this week has us in Psalm 51, focusing on King David’s pleas for mercy and forgiveness. With the weight of his sin and struggles too much to bear, David pours his heart out to God with vulnerability and transparency. Today, as we continue exploring this passage, we come across a prayer for restoration - one for a pure heart and a renewed spirit, a bold and desperate prayer that only God can answer.