A Psalm a Day Keeps Satan Away: The Podcast

David Wachter

A Daily Devotional Series Reflecting on the Psalms goforth0913.substack.com

  1. May 20

    A Psalm a Day Keeps Satan Away, The Podcast Edition: Episode 76

    Psalm 76 – Our Warrior God Our God is a Warrior God. He dwells with us. He fights for us. His power is awesome. As we encounter the events of our day, as we interact with people who are for us and against us, we often forget that. We get mired in the anxiety of our day. We forget Who is fighting for us. Psalm 76 reminds us of our Warrior God. He is known by His people in His land. (v. 1) He dwells with His people. (v. 2). He vanquishes those who oppose Him with ease. Our psalm today doesn’t elicit much scholarly commentary. I admit it seems pretty straight forward. He IS a Warrior God. He DOES fight for us. He IS victorious. We should “make vows to the LORD [our God] and fulfill them.” (v. 11) Sometimes the message and exhortation needs no further comment. Today is one of those days! Fight on, Psalm a Dayers! The faith life is not just a grind, but a fight against a spiritual enemy. REMEMBER: G-d wins … we are on G-d’s team … live today in victorious fashion! Godspeed, DWach PS … DJ Revonda and I didn’t like any of the Psalm 76 songs available to us. So, we reached into the archives for a video made by one of our scrubs, Carson Labo, and featuring a sign language interpretation of a song by Rend Collective (one of our favs) called “Your Name is Power.” It fits with the idea that our Warrior God is fighting for us in our struggles and battles with HIS power, not ours. The signers are my children, David Luke (and his wife, Kendall), Adri (and her husband, Josh), and Hannah (the lead signer). The location is Rocky Face Mountain Recreation Area in our beloved NC mountains. Get full access to Go Forth at goforth0913.substack.com/subscribe

    4 min
  2. A Psalm a Day Keeps Satan Away AND Pondering the Parables: A Special on Location Edition

    May 16

    A Psalm a Day Keeps Satan Away AND Pondering the Parables: A Special on Location Edition

    We just completed our most recent trip to Greece and Turkey following the footsteps of St. Paul during his second (and part of his third) missionary journey. As always, it was an incredible trip, and this group leaned in to the faith lessons in a big way! We also had a lot of fun creating community and enjoying the beauty of mainland Greece and the Greek Islands as well as the hustle and bustle of Athens. I had hoped to record several on location special episodes, but had some difficulty with the technology. Alas, the best laid plans of mice and men often go awry! Thus, I can only offer this one entry from Philippi, which is definitely a Top 5 spot! Godspeed and Shalom, D-Wach PS … Next up on the Go Forth Teaching Ministry faith trip itinerary: Egypt! We are in the process of finalizing our itinerary for March 6-15, 2027. We are limiting participation to 16 … so, if you are interested, please let me know as soon as possible. Get full access to Go Forth at goforth0913.substack.com/subscribe

    2 min
  3. A Psalm a Day Keeps Satan Away, The Podcast Edition: Psalm 75

    Apr 22

    A Psalm a Day Keeps Satan Away, The Podcast Edition: Psalm 75

    Psalm 75 We are now at the halfway point of our Psalm a Day Keeps Satan Away exercise. If you are reading this … THANKS for hanging in there! For some of you, this is round 2 or 3 or 4 … again, THANKS for being a part of this exercise. Some have asked for new content … I promise, it will be forthcoming! In the meantime, now that we are using Substack, you can go to the GoForth website at in order to see/read past devotionals in the archive section. And I would love it if you would share the website with others. We have 232 subscribers (always free!) at present. We start our conversation for Psalm 75 in the most logical place, which is in the New Testament book of Revelation (Rev. 14: 6-14) In this section of John’s vision, three angels have appeared and are proclaiming an extended prophecy of judgement and exhortation. The first angel exhorts the reader to “Fear God …because the hour of his judgement has come … worship him.” The second angel proclaims, “Fallen! Fallen is Babylon the Great, which made all the nations drink the maddening wine of her adulteries.” Then the third angel speaks in a loud voice, “If anyone worships the beast and his image and receives his mark on the forehead or the hand, he too, will drink of the wine of God’s fury, which has been poured full strength into the cup of his wrath.” The words of the third angel allude directly to verse 8 of our psalm today: “In the hand of the LORD is a cup full of foaming wine mixed with spices; he pours it out, and all of the wicked of the earth drink it down to its very dregs.” The sin of the wicked in Psalm 75 is arrogance and boastfulness. They exalt and lift themselves up. G-d speaks directly to those boastful ones: “Boast no more … Do not lift up your horns.” (Ps. 75:4) It is G-d alone who lifts up or brings down. Those who exalt themselves will drink the wine of His wrath and their “horns” will be sheared off by G-d himself. The life of faith is a grinding life (Psalm 73). It is also a humble life. In our age of social media and self-promotion, it is so easy for us to exalt ourselves and boast of our accomplishments. To do so is but a click away on Facebook, IG and Tik-Tok. But it is sin. Our psalm today, in conjunction with the exhortations of the angels in Revelation 14, should stand as a corrective against the boastful mindset. Today, if you are going to “click,” celebrate the accomplishments or ministry of a friend … or celebrate the goodness of G-d like the psalmist does: “I will sing praise to the God of Jacob.” (v. 9) Shalom שָׁלוֹם DWach Get full access to Go Forth at goforth0913.substack.com/subscribe

    6 min
  4. A Psalm a Day Keeps Satan Away, The Podcast Edition: Episode 74

    Apr 12

    A Psalm a Day Keeps Satan Away, The Podcast Edition: Episode 74

    Psalm 74 – The Good New Days Have you ever longed for the “good ol’ days?” Do you remember the days of old when your body was fit, and you could eat anything you wanted and not gain weight? Do you remember the “good ol’ days” before Facebook, IG and Tik-Tok? Do you remember the “good ol’ days” when we only had three TV channels and an antenna on the roof? Do you remember the “good ol’ days” when the ACC was the ACC and didn’t include any schools from the mid-West or from north of the Mason-Dixon line? Even the young scrubs in our Psalm a Day community can remember times of their idyllic youth where the pressures of school and social media were non-existent. Today’s psalm is a communal lament (complaint) of Israel harking back to the “good ol’ days” prior to the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem in 586 BCE and the subsequent exile of the ‘rich and famous’ of Israel to Babylon. This psalm is almost certainly a product of the Jewish exile community that yearned, after three generations, to return to their homeland of Israel and re-build the Temple. The psalmist shouts at G-d: “Why have you rejected us forever, O God?” (v. 1); “Your foes roared in the place where you met us.” (v. 4); “They burned your sanctuary to the ground; they defiled the dwelling place of your name.” (v. 7); “How long will the enemy mock you, O God?” (v. 10); “Why do you hold back your hand, your right hand? … Destroy them!” (v. 11) These are the words of a bold nation and a bold people who have trusted in G-d, who have seen Him in action, and acknowledge His power and might. Why won’t he restore them to their dwelling place with Him so that things could be the way they were? (remember, the Bible is a book of questions!) We can relate to that sentiment and that question! The psalmist acknowledges G-d’s sovereignty over Creation in verses 12-17 before picking up the clarion call again for G-d to act: “Rise up, O God, and defend your cause.” (v. 22) The psalm ends seemingly without any clarity as to what will happen next. History and the Scriptures tell us that after 70 years of exile, G-d’s people slowly started emigrating back to Jerusalem and its surroundings. But it wasn’t the same. The Temple re-build project was difficult, and the end result was but a shadow of the glory of the first Temple. The people once again yearned for the “good ol’ days.” The people had no foresight into how G-d would once again use His people and His Temple and His Jerusalem to enact His plan of salvation for all of Creation. They were focused on their seemingly less than ideal situation in the present and the glory of their past. However, the cold hard truth about the “good ol’ days” is that they weren’t as good as we remember. I’m betting there were, without me knowing anything about your story, instances of struggle and strife. But we are obsessed with re-writing our history based on today’s struggles. My granddaddy had a saying, “There’s a reason rear view mirrors are so small: if you spend a lot of time looking backwards, you will crash going forward.” The journey we call faith needs to be forward-looking. We can’t spend a lot of time looking back, because we will miss where G-d is leading us. Our psalm today is a good reminder to limit our “good ol’ day” mindset. I spent some time this morning looking in the rear view mirror of my life: the good, bad AND ugly. I don’t regret any experience that I have had, no matter how painful those memories might be. I delight in past successes. The good, bad AND ugly have shaped me into the person G-d wants me to be TODAY. So, it was a nice morning thinking about the “good ol’ days.” Praise G-d for it all. But now is the time to contemplate the “good new days” that lie ahead. I can’t wait to see what G-d has in store for me and for each of us! Godspeed and Shalom שָׁלוֹם DWach Get full access to Go Forth at goforth0913.substack.com/subscribe

    6 min
  5. A Psalm a Day Keeps Satan Away AND Pondering the Parables

    Mar 15

    A Psalm a Day Keeps Satan Away AND Pondering the Parables

    Today is our 250th Substack submission! Thanks to our more than 300 subscribers for reading/listening/watching. This endeavor has been a humbling and unexpected experience. And now, as promised in the podcast, our shameless plug for our small book “Creating a Christian Seder Worship: A Maundy Thursday/Good Friday Worship Experience.” See the link below: Book Link Godspeed and Shalom, Pastor D-Wach Get full access to Go Forth at goforth0913.substack.com/subscribe

    9 min
  6. Rules of Engagement in the Faith Community

    Feb 15

    Rules of Engagement in the Faith Community

    Cancel culture is killing our country. The faith community is not immune from it. It is HaSatan’s most lethal weapon. Ten years ago I created a set of principles to help me through a relationship conflict … I needed something to help guide me to forgiveness and reconciliation. Given recent events that are dividing us, I offer fellow believers the following. Godspeed and Shalom, Pastor D-Wach D-Wach’s Rules of Engagement within the Faith Community 1. Seek empathy; everyone has a back story, and it is our responsibility to know and honor it. And empathy is a two-way street. (John 4:1-26) 2. Practice extreme hospitality. (Genesis 18) 3. Practice the 80/20 rule (Speak less and ask questions). (James 1:19; Proverbs 10:19) 4. Focus on common ground; there is always common ground. 5. Build up and affirm rather than tear down and destroy. That means do not label and stereotype; live at peace with others (Romans 12: 17-18). 6. Seek to reflect God’s character in our words and actions; we are priests of the Most-High God (Exodus 19:6). 7.Practice Jesus’ rule of forgiveness: 70 x 7 (Matthew 18: 21-22). Get full access to Go Forth at goforth0913.substack.com/subscribe

    13 min
  7. A Psalm a Day Keeps Satan Away, The Podcast Edition: Psalm 73

    Feb 1

    A Psalm a Day Keeps Satan Away, The Podcast Edition: Psalm 73

    Psalm 73 Don’t you hate it when good things happen to bad people? Isn’t it frustrating when you “fight the good fight” and it seems in vain? It should come as no surprise that the psalms articulate that very sense of frustration. The psalmist laments today, “For I envied the arrogant when I saw the prosperity of the wicked. They have no struggles; their bodies are healthy and strong. They are free from the burdens that are common to man; they are not plagued by human ills.” (Psalm 73:3-5) The psalmist admits he is tempted to throw in the ‘faith towel:’ “But as for me, my feet had almost slipped; I nearly lost my foothold.” (v. 2) And then, crying out in frustration, he proclaims that the life of faith seems fruitless: “Surely in vain have I kept my pure heart; in vain have I washed my hands in innocence.” (v. 11) Sometimes the life of faith sucks! That is the cold hard truth. Most days, it would be easier, and probably in the short term, more profitable, to take the easy route ... and give up on G-d. But my long-time students know what I will say next! “Embrace the suck! The life of faith is a grinder’s life. And you can’t cheat the grind!” And then, after days/months/years of grinding, when all seems in vain, something truly beautiful happens: G-d reveals Truth to us. Listen to the psalmist: “When I tried to understand this [the success of the wicked], it was oppressive to me until I entered the sanctuary of God; then I understood their final destiny.” (v. 16-17) When that flash of Truth hits us, maybe during a worship service (like for the psalmist), or maybe at the top of a mountain peak after a long hike, or witnessing a sunrise, or having a deep conversation with a friend or family member … when that flash of “Spirit Wisdom” is revealed to us, we get it. We get G-d’s bigger picture and then we can proclaim that Truth back to G-d, “Yet I am always with you; you hold me by my right hand. You guide me with your counsel, and afterward you will take me into glory. Whom have I in heaven but you? And earth has nothing I desire beside you. My flesh and heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.” (v.23-26) Yes, Psalm 73 is a top fiver! Grind on, Psalm a Dayers! Shalom שָׁלוֹם DWach Get full access to Go Forth at goforth0913.substack.com/subscribe

    7 min
  8. A Psalm a Day Keeps Satan Away, The Podcast Edition: Psalm 72

    Jan 25

    A Psalm a Day Keeps Satan Away, The Podcast Edition: Psalm 72

    Psalm 72 – Legacy, Part 2 Fun facts about Psalm 72: 1. It is the last psalm in ‘Book II’ of the Psalter, which ends in a characteristic doxology (v. 18-19) similar to the ends of other ‘books’ of the Psalter. In addition to that, there is an addendum, v. 20, that reads “This concludes the prayers of David, son of Jesse.” This is clearly an add-on. Is it inspired? Is it Scripture? Why does this notation deserve a ‘verse’ designation in Christian Bibles and the superscripts do not? 2. Speaking of superscripts, this is the first of two psalms with the superscript לִשְׁלֹמֹ֨ה ‘to/of/for Solomon.’ For those familiar with the lineage of King David, you will recognize Solomon as his son. The context of the psalm seems to be a coronation ceremony whereby King David prays for and blesses his successor, Solomon. Our text builds upon the legacy theme of yesterday’s Psalm 71, In addition to worshiping G-d, serving G-d, looking out for the poor and marginalized, our job as G-d followers is to pass on the faith to our children and to those who look up to us. Who is looking up to you for spiritual and emotional guidance? Whom can you pray a blessing over today? Whose journey can you advance today? Today is another day to embrace your legacy and be a witness and testimony to all that is good about G-d. Our exhortation today has a post script: it is interesting to note that while Solomon is known for his wisdom, his reign as King of Israel did not end well. Read I Kings 11 to see how Solomon got too comfortable in his Kingship, and as a result, let his legacy slip away. The result of this was a split Kingdom that never fully recovered. So, the exhortation today has a warning: FINISH WELL! Don’t get so comfortable in the legacy that you have received that your witness and testimony gets tarnished. שָׁלוֹם DWach Get full access to Go Forth at goforth0913.substack.com/subscribe

    12 min
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A Daily Devotional Series Reflecting on the Psalms goforth0913.substack.com

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