Firm Foundation with Bryan Hudson

Day 4 — Delight in the Lord 

Psalm 37:4 Delight yourself also in the Lord, and He shall give you the desires of your heart.

Key Thought: God reshapes desires before fulfilling them.

Prayer: Align my heart’s desires with Yours.

Delighting in the Lord reshapes our heart so that what God does is not the fulfillment of personal wants, but rather desires that have been transformed by God. The things I “desired” before walking with Jesus are very different from when I began walking with the Lord.

As we have been teaching, the biblical meaning of “delight” means to take pleasure in, to incline toward, or to bend. Our delight is known by the things we take pleasure in, are inclined toward, or that bend us. That can be something positive or something negative. Therefore, we must pay attention to our desires and judge whether we are motivated by God or by something else.

Delighting in the Lord is more than inclining, or bending, toward circumstances, success, or outcomes. We delight in the Lord Himself – His character, presence, and promises. Life with God is relational, not transactional.

What comes out of becoming “bent” through our relationship with God is being granted, bestowed, and entrusted with our genuine desires of the heart. The Lord wants to do all the things He has put into our hearts. We just need to get out of our own way.

This verse is often misunderstood as a blank check for personal wishes. However, the promise is conditional in a “formative” sense. We are being formed by our interactions with God. For this reason, it is important to purify and clarify our desires and delights.

As we delight in the Lord, our heart is shaped. We open the door for Jesus to refine, align, and calibrate our hearts. What we grow to desire increasingly reflects God’s will.

Psalm 37:4 teaches that fulfillment does not come from chasing desires, but from delighting in God. When God becomes the joy of our heart, He provides what that renewed heart desires. This comes from the Lord and flows from Him toward us.

REFLECTION QUESTION: How have my desires and delights changed?

Key insight I gained today:

Today’s action item based on insight:

Donate to New Covenant Church: https://cash.app/$newcovenantindy

Sow seed to Pastor Bryan Hudson, https://cash.app/$BryanIndy

Day 3 — Trust & Do Good

Psalm 37:3, Trust in the Lord, and do good;
Dwell in the land, and feed on His faithfulness.

Key Thought: Trust in God must be accompanied by faithful action.

Prayer: Teach me to trust You through faithful living.

As previously stated, Psalm 37 is a psalm of wisdom. David is not lamenting injustice as much as he is instructing God’s people on how to live faithfully when evil seems to prosper.

There are four commands from the Lord in this text. Remember that whatever God requires, He provides.

Command #1: “Trust in the LORD.”
The Hebrew verb "trust" means to place full confidence in the Lord and rely on His security. Trusting God is relational and lifelong, not just a transaction for the moment.
Trust is the foundation of righteous living. Everything flows out of confidence in God’s character. He is trustworthy!

Command #2: “Do good.”
The Hebrew verb "do good" speaks of active, intentional righteousness—ethical living, generosity, justice, and faithfulness in everyday life. There is nothing passive about doing good. It cannot be done in isolation, only among people. This is how we overcome the effects of evil in our world—we do good.

Command #3: “Dwell in the land.”
We know our ultimate “land” is with the Lord, but while living in this present time, we are to dwell in the land of God’s promise, provision, and presence. The idea behind the word dwell is to settle, remain, or abide—not merely pass through.
Trusting God means we refuse to abandon our God-given place, calling, or responsibility, regardless of the circumstances we face.

Command #4: “Feed on His faithfulness.”
The Hebrew verb "feed" means to graze, to shepherd, or to be nourished.
The word faithfulness refers to God’s steadfastness, reliability, firmness, and truth.

The picture is of a person who is continually nourished by God’s dependable character, much like sheep grazing in a secure pasture. Some translations render this phrase as “enjoy safe pasture” (NIV), emphasizing sustained provision and security.

Christ-followers do not feed on fear, outrage, or comparison, but on the proven faithfulness of God.

God is faithful!

REFLECTION QUESTION: How do the four "commands" speak to you?

Key insight I gained today:

Today’s action item based on insight:

Donate to New Covenant Church: https://cash.app/$newcovenantindy

Sow seed to Pastor Bryan Hudson, https://cash.app/$BryanIndy

Watch or Listen to the Message from Sunday, February 1

“Learning to Trust God More”

Day 2 — The Temporary Nature of Evil

Psalm 37:2 (NKJV), “For they shall soon be cut down like the grass, And wither as the green herb.”

Key Thought: Wicked success is short-lived

Prayer: Help me remember what truly lasts

The first thing to recognize is that Psalm 37 is a wisdom psalm, not a lament. Some passages in the Bible only express the heartbreak of the writer. Here, David is instructing God’s people on how to live faithfully when the wicked appear to prosper.

The Hebrew word for “soon” does not necessarily mean immediately. In biblical time, “soon” is measured against eternity, not according to our frustration and impatience. This is another reason why we don’t want to fret. The prosperity of the wicked that looks stable now is already on a countdown.

The Hebrew word for “cut down” is often used of harvesting or mowing, not violent destruction. The “green herb” mentioned in this text refers to quickly growing plants without a deep root system. Some plants grow fast, and they fade fast. During the summer, we had an abundance of beautiful plants in our yard; now, in the middle of winter, they’re all gone. That’s how God will ultimately deal with the wicked.

What looks alive is already dying. So we don’t want to overreact to wicked people. That’s not to say that a civil justice system should not deal with evildoers before God’s judgment. This psalm emphasizes the importance of believers not fretting or living in lament and frustration.

Psalm 37 reminds us that evil has visibility, not viability. Wickedness has momentum, not longevity. God does not need to rush judgment—but judgment is certain.

However, remember that in a pluralistic democratic republic, we have both the ability and the duty to resist evil and seek justice. Some believers make the mistake of thinking they should sit back and let God handle everything. That mindset only allows oppressors to hurt people more.

Encourage yourself in the Lord by keeping these realities in your heart and mind.

REFLECTION QUESTION: What things that you thought would happen "soon" need to be reevaluated in light of God's timing?

Key insight I gained today:

Today’s action item based on insight:

Donate to New Covenant Church: https://cash.app/$newcovenantindy

Sow seed to Pastor Bryan Hudson, https://cash.app/$BryanIndy

Watch or Listen to the Message from Sunday, February 1

“Learning to Trust God More”

Greetings! Today we begin our 21-day journey through Psalm 37!

Our theme is “Learning to Love God More.” We will go verse by verse and allow the Lord to speak to our hearts and minds. In addition to myself, other contributors include Patricia Hudson, Stacy Williams, Min. Bertha Fields, and Pastor Lee Rob. I will be writing the majority of the lessons, and I deeply appreciate the contributions of these fellow servants of God.

Lessons will be posted by 5:30AM each day. I encourage you to incorporate these brief lessons into your regular devotional rhythm.

Would also like to invite you to join New Covenant Church for Corporate Prayer on Zoom Wednesday evening at 7:30 PM (EST).

Zoom meeting info:

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89794097465
Meeting ID: 897 9409 7465

One Tap Mobile: +13052241968,,89794097465#

If you'd like to do your own study in the book of Psalms 37, here are some resources:

Enduring Word
https://enduringword.com/bible-commentary/psalm-37/

Bible Gateway; (The paid version has many more resources)
https://www.biblegateway.com/resources/commentaries/

StudyLight
https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/eng/dsb.html#google_vignette

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Day 1 — Do Not Fret

Scripture: Psalm 37:1, Do not fret because of evildoers, nor be envious of the workers of iniquity.

Key Thought: Anxiety over evil drains the soul more than evil itself.

Prayer: “Lord, quiet my spirit and anchor my trust in You.”

It is no exaggeration to say that we are witnessing, in real time in our nation, workers of iniquity. This is not something new, but rarely has it been on full display at a national level among national political leaders. We are seeing despotism and dictatorial tactics in a nation where the Constitution says that “We The People” are the basis of our form of government—what Abraham Lincoln described as government “of the people, by the people, and for the people.”
I share this because we have to be very mindful of not allowing ourselves to fret when we consider what is going on. Here in our state of Indiana, we are seeing situations that are harmful to people, especially the most vulnerable among us.

As we are dealing with many grievous situations in our world, those of us who will not be silent must maintain balance. We must remain vigilant and active. At the same time, we must avoid strife or becoming obsessed with the deeds of evildoers.

The Scripture plainly says, “do not fret.” As a matter of fact, in Psalm 37 the words “do not fret” appear three times. The third mention, in verse 8, states: “Cease from anger, and forsake wrath; do not fret—it only causes harm.”

So while we who will not be silent, as many others are, must stay engaged. We also have to draw closer to God and keep our hearts clear of wrath, strife, and fretfulness.

One way to do that is what we are doing right now—spending time in the Word, in prayer, and allowing the Holy Spirit to minister peace to our hearts.

Jesus said in John 14:26–27, “Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.”

Through this peace, we can steady our troubled hearts, and we will not fear the actions of ungodly people.

REFLECTION QUESTION: "In what ways, specifically, do I need to stop fretting?"

Key insight I gained today:

Today’s action item based on insight:

Donate to New Covenant Church: https://cash.app/$newcovenantindy

Sow seed to Pastor Bryan Hudson, https://cash.app/$BryanIndy

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This message by Bryan Hudson provides insight on the powerful and often misunderstood principle of delight—what it truly means to delight ourselves in the Lord and, through that delight, learn to trust God more. Scripture teaches us that trust is not static; it can grow, mature, and deepen as our hearts are trained, shaped, and aligned with God’s purposes. As we enter this season of reflection and devotion, we are reminded that delight is not merely an emotion but a disciplined orientation of life—one that influences our desires, our decisions, and our direction. When we learn to delight in the Lord, we discover that trust increases, wisdom grows, and God faithfully brings His purposes to pass.

Donate to New Covenant Church: https://cash.app/$newcovenantindy
Sow seed to Pastor Bryan Hudson, https://cash.app/$BryanIndy