Man goes forth to his work and to his labor until evening. — Psalm 104:23

Evening—work isn't the curse; it was given before the fall, though the curse made it toil. Paul insisted that if a man won't work, he shouldn't eat, but the bigger picture is this: work with all your might because the night is coming when no one can work. There's a rest that remains for the people of God, and your labor of love isn't forgotten.

Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God. — Romans 12:2

Don't be squeezed into the world's mold—be transformed by the renewing of your mind, because the world presses in from every side and friendship with it is enmity with God. You can't renovate the old life; you need a whole new mind, and that's what God gives you in Christ—you've been taught to put off the old self and put on the new, created after God in true righteousness and holiness. Stop loving the world—it's passing away.

But those who wait upon the LORD will renew their strength; they will mount up with wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not faint. — Isaiah 40:31

Those who wait upon the LORD will renew their strength—the Hebrew says 'change strength,' meaning God trades your weakness for his power, because when Paul was weak, then he was strong. That strength doesn't come from trying harder but from cleaving to the mighty one of Jacob and refusing to let go until he blesses you. Cast your burden on the Lord, and the God who equipped David against goliath will equip you for whatever stands before you.

I will give them one heart and one way, so that they will always fear Me for their own good and for the good of their children after them. — Jeremiah 32:39

That's what Jesus prayed for and what the spirit produces in the church. The unity of believers isn't manufactured by programs—it's the fruit of the spirit's work in each heart.

But as for me, my feet had almost stumbled; my steps had nearly slipped. — Psalm 73:2

My feet had almost stumbled; my steps had nearly slipped—every believer knows that feeling when the road is slippery and you're a step away from falling, but here's the Gospel: when you falter, the Lord holds you up. Even when you fall, you won't be utterly cast down, just like Peter found out when satan wanted to sift him like wheat but Jesus prayed for him. Christ lives to intercede for you too.

He has filled the hungry with good things, but has sent the rich away empty. — LUKE1:53

He fills the hungry with good things and sends the rich away empty—that's the pattern of the kingdom: the ones who know their need get satisfied, and blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, because they'll be filled. If you think you're full, you'll leave empty, so open your mouth wide and He'll fill it. Don't spend your labor on what doesn't satisfy—come to Christ, the true bread, and eat freely.

But each in his own turn: Christ the firstfruits; then at His coming, those who belong to Him. — 1 Corinthians 15:23

Christ the firstfruits—he is the beginning of the harvest, the guarantee that the full ingathering is coming; a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, then bears much fruit. Because he lives, we who are united with him in his death will also be united with him in resurrection. He is the firstborn from the dead, and where the head has gone, the body follows—death couldn't hold him, and it won't hold you.

TEKEL means that you have been weighed on the scales and found deficient. — Daniel 5:27

You've been weighed in the balances and found wanting—that's the verdict on every man who stands before God on his own merits, because God weighs the heart and sees what we try to hide. Whatever you count as gain, you'll have to count as loss for Christ. The only way to pass the test is to stop pretending, confess your emptiness, and let Christ be your righteousness.

But I am poor and needy; may the Lord think of me. You are my helper and deliverer; O my God, do not delay. — Psalm 40:17

I am poor and needy, yet the Lord thinks upon me—isn't that remarkable? The high and lofty one who inhabits eternity stoops to consider the lowly, choosing the poor of this world to be rich in faith. His thoughts toward you are precious, more than the sand, and you might feel like the least of all saints, but that's exactly the kind of person the Lord draws near to. He has plans for your welfare, not for calamity.

Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, persistent in prayer. — Romans 12:12

Rejoice in hope—not a vague wish but a certain expectation anchored in Christ, so solid that you can rejoice even while suffering. If in this life only we had hope in Christ, we'd be most miserable, but we don't; the trials are real, yet so is the joy the spirit gives. A living hope means a glad heart, even through many tribulations.