Tag: psalm 119

How To Get Through Difficulty (Psalm 119:105-112)

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Christian Spirituality Blog, Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year ALeave a comment

Your word is a lamp
that gives light
    wherever I walk.
Your laws are fair,
and I have given my word
    to respect them all.
I am in terrible pain!
Save me, Lord,
    as you have promised.
Accept my offerings of praise
    and teach me your laws.
I never forget your teachings,
although my life is always
    in danger.
Some merciless people
    are trying to trap me,
but I never turn my back
    on your teachings.
They will always be
my most prized possession
    and my source of joy.
I have made up my mind
to obey your laws forever,
    no matter what. (Contemporary English Version)

Attitude. Affection. These are the two qualities that stand out to me in today’s Psalm lesson. The psalmist is a person who is determined to hold onto God’s Law because it is his heart’s delight.

Our attitudes and our affections are meant to fit together like a hand in a glove. Our attitudes help us push through suffering to realize better days. And our affections drive us forward, allowing us to experience joy in the present moment as we await our hope of ultimate deliverance.

Commitments are fluid, always moving – so they need to be continually rehearsed and refreshed. We are constantly either fulfilling our promises or reneging on them. There is really no such thing as a one-time vow.

Vows need reinforcement from our attitudes and our affections. Otherwise, they languish on the trash heap of good intentions. This is one reason why the Psalms are designed for constant use.

Spiritually healthy habits must be embedded in our lives, well before any suffering and hard times roll in.

If our normal daily routines involve regular sustenance of God’s Word, then we have a breadth and a depth of robust theology to draw upon when the going gets rough. Furthermore, the sheer force of habit brings us back again and again to the treasure chest of divine instruction, informing our decisions and illuminating the treacherous road ahead.

The psalter is designed to reframe our difficult situations. Especially when a person’s life hangs in the balance, we can view hard and awkward circumstances through the window of the Psalms. Although circumstances change, and we never quite know what to expect, God’s Law remains our ballast and our rock.

Circumstances may change but divine love and morality are unchanging. Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever. The Spirit is always with us, through each wave of hardship.

Life is a journey, an exploration into the unknown of the future. The path is shadowy and unclear. We are unsure of what is around the bend. God’s instructions and promises are like a forever energized flashlight, helping us navigate forward. Maybe Jesus had today’s Psalm in mind when he said:

“I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness but will have the light of life.” (John 8:12, NRSV)

In Christianity, the Word is embodied in Jesus Christ; he is both the example and fulfillment of all God’s good promises.

A sequence of four metaphors runs through our verses for today:

  1. My feet. With Jesus as Word and Light, we have a constant companion walking alongside us for the journey.
  2. My mouth. There is an intercessor who takes our wordy or malformed prayers and presents them before our heavenly Father
  3. My hands. We do God’s will, despite adverse circumstances, by observing the Master who washed the feet of others.
  4. My heart. In desiring God’s decrees and commands, our hearts find their rest in the One who loved us and gave himself for us.

Our attitudes and affections are transformed into sustainable faith for the long journey.

Our hope is made sure through the promises of God.

Our love finds a resting place in the person of Jesus.

Faith, hope, and love are the shoes enabling us to walk the long uphill road, as well as absorbing the shock as we run with abandon downhill – into the loving arms of God.

I encourage you to find what works best for you in developing helpful spiritual habits. In reading the Bible, I often take the following approach using the acronym S.O.A.P:

Scripture

• Open your Bible and slowly, meditatively, read the portion of Scripture in your reading plan for today.

• Write the reference of what you read in a journal along with the date.

• As you read, ask God’s Spirit to highlight the verse(s) that speak to your life and write it in your journal.

Observation

• Make observations about what you just read and write them in your journal.

• Think about: What is going on? What is the context?  Who are the people being spoken to? What is the background or setting for this verse?

• Paraphrase and write this scripture down in your journal, in your own words.

• What do you think God is saying to you in this scripture?

Application

• Personalize what you have read by asking yourself how it relates to your life right now.

• Ask yourself how you can apply what you just read to your own life and write it in your journal.

• Ask yourself how your life will be different or changed as a result of God speaking to you in this Scripture.

Prayer

• Write out a prayer to God in your journal.

• Your prayer should relate to the verse that you highlighted. It could be asking for help, thanking God, etc. Write down what your heart desires to say to God in response to his Word.

May the words of your mouth, the meditations of your heart, the work of your hands, and the movement of your feet be to the glory of Jesus Christ. Amen.

Night Prayer (Psalm 119:49-56)

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Christian Spirituality Blog, Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year CLeave a comment

Remember your promise to me, your servant;
    it has given me hope.
Even in my suffering I was comforted
    because your promise gave me life.
The proud are always scornful of me,
    but I have not departed from your law.
I remember your judgments of long ago,
    and they bring me comfort, O Lord.
When I see the wicked breaking your law,
    I am filled with anger.
During my brief earthly life
    I compose songs about your commands.
In the night I remember you, Lord,
    and I think about your law.
I find my happiness
    in obeying your commands. (Good News Translation)

During a typical day, I keep busy and am engaged with applying an understanding of the spiritual life to my work. At bedtime, sometimes the job goes with me.

Stillness and silence can sometimes, ironically, become an alchemy of restlessness and noise. I toss and turn, the racing thoughts in my head refusing to slow down and rest.

Insomnia happens to everyone, some more than others. We all have experienced the inability to sleep. 

There are some who choose not to sleep. They arise in the middle of the night – not because of insomnia or sleep disorders – but because they intentionally wake for prayer. 

Yes, many monastics routinely pray in the night. Yet, there are many lay people who do so, as well. 

In my own times of trying to sleep, I often think about those persons who are purposefully trying to stay awake and deliberately keeping watch in prayer during the night. I, then, reflexively go to the biblical psalms.

Along with the psalmist, and in solidarity with my Christian brothers and sisters in this hemisphere who are maintaining a prayerful spirit, I reflect at night on the character and nature of the Lord who created both the sun to govern the day and the moon as a faithful witness in the dark.

The psalmist seems to be awake at night because he is frustrated and upset. It irks him that there are people who spurn wise instruction and aim their contempt at those trying to live according to God’s Law.

Although insomnia can certainly be the result of angry or unwanted feelings, maybe it is something else altogether. Perhaps the psalmist simply chose to be awake at night and do some theological reflection on God, others, and himself.

At various times in my life, I have decided to set my alarm for two o’clock in the morning to pray. I know it may sound crazy to some. Yet, this discipline has taught me something valuable: God is Lord over all chronological time and every season. I am a servant. I am neither lord nor master. 

This nightly exercise of weaving my life around a set time of prayer has caused me to learn that I have spent far too much of my life trying to make time bend to my wishes. 

It’s actually delusional for me to believe that I somehow control time – that I can cause the relationship between events to be fast or slow. It is all really an illusion – that I can control the clock. Time marches forward, seasons come and go, and we are a vapor which lasts only a moment.

The only control I possess is self-control. Anything beyond this is nothing but a pathetic attempt at manipulation.

Whether we find ourselves awake in the night because we cannot sleep, or intentionally choose to use the night for connecting with God, the wee hours of darkness afford us a unique opportunity to ponder the Lord’s promises, commands, attributes, and works. 

The next time you find yourself awake at night, try avoiding the television and a zombie-like state of hoping for sleep. Try using the night-time for reflecting on the Lord in ways you might not have considered during the day. Pray. Reflect. Consider. In doing so, you may find a blessing of light within the dark.

Keep watch, dear Lord, with those who work, or watch, or weep this night, and give your angels charge over those who sleep. Tend the sick, Lord Christ; give rest to the weary, bless the dying, soothe the suffering, pity the afflicted, shield the joyous; and all for your love’s sake. Amen.

Psalm 119:17-32 – Examine the Wonders of God’s Instructions

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Christian Spirituality Blog, Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year CLeave a comment
Psalm 119:17-24, Common English Bible

ג Gimel

Be good to your servant while I live,
    that I may obey your word.
Open my eyes that I may see
    wonderful things in your law.
I am a stranger on earth;
    do not hide your commands from me.
My soul is consumed with longing
    for your laws at all times.
You rebuke the arrogant, who are accursed,
    those who stray from your commands.
Remove from me their scorn and contempt,
    for I keep your statutes.
Though rulers sit together and slander me,
    your servant will meditate on your decrees.
Your statutes are my delight;
    they are my counselors.

ד Daleth

I am laid low in the dust;
    preserve my life according to your word.
I gave an account of my ways and you answered me;
    teach me your decrees.
Cause me to understand the way of your precepts,
    that I may meditate on your wonderful deeds.
My soul is weary with sorrow;
    strengthen me according to your word.
Keep me from deceitful ways;
    be gracious to me and teach me your law.
I have chosen the way of faithfulness;
    I have set my heart on your laws.
I hold fast to your statutes, Lord;
    do not let me be put to shame.
I run in the path of your commands,
    for you have broadened my understanding. (New International Version)

The biblical psalms are one of my favorite places in the whole of Holy Scripture. I especially like Psalm 119 because it reminds me that I am not only saved from something, but I am also saved to something.

Genuine and real deliverance comes so that we can be free to love and serve God with our whole being. And Psalm 119 is there to help us know how to do just that.

Psalm 119 stretches for 176 verses as an acrostic to the Hebrew alphabet. Each Hebrew letter has its own 8 verse stanza, with each of those verses beginning with that letter. Unfortunately, of course, we lose this insight through translation.

One of the reasons the psalm was organized this way is because it was meant to be learned and memorized. In fact, the entire psalter was meant for public consumption – to be engrafted into the soul and hidden in the heart.

The wonders of Psalm 119 are, overall, a paeon of reverence and praise of God’s law. That’s because the Lord’s commands and instructions are an extension of the divine character. Laws of mercy and holiness are given to the people because God is merciful and holy.

Grace and law are not antithetical. They go together like a hand in a glove and rely upon each other. The hand of grace is what fills the glove of the law, and together, they extend divine help and direction to people in this fallen world of ours.

The heartfelt prayer of the psalmist is that the Lord would open his eyes so that he could see the wonders contained within God’s divine instructions for humanity.

“Open my eyes so I can truly see
the marvelous things in your law.”

Psalm 119:18, NET

This is a prayer for us, as well. Those who desire to please the Lord and walk in the way of God are continually seeking awareness of the divine all around them, insight into others, and understanding of self.

It is one thing to read the Bible, but it’s another thing altogether to understand it. The psalmist is asking for God to intervene on his behalf and remove anything and everything that would inhibit his ability to understand and discern God’s words and actions.

Insight, understanding, and application to life comes from dwelling in the Word. It is a process. A daily crumb will neither do to satiate our physical hunger nor our spiritual appetite.

Going days, even weeks, without ingesting God’s instructions will only lead to spiritual emaciation. It harms us and helps no one. Instead, we need to feed on Holy Scripture and savor every bite. Like the cow, we need to slowly chew and ruminate on Scripture so that it can be fully digested and become part of us.

I have memorized large chunks of the Bible over the years. The main reason my memory can call up so much Scripture is that I have read it, and continue to read it, over and over again. Even though I’ve read the Old Testament about one-hundred times and the New Testament in the neighborhood of three-hundred times, I still gain insight and understanding, seeing new and wondrous things.

I truly believe the Bible is an inexhaustible source of sage instruction and a continual fountain of wisdom. I’ll spend an eternity in heaven examining God’s Word and will never reach the height, depth, length, and breadth of it’s incredible, massive, and glorious precepts.

I am a strong advocate of straightforward readings of Scripture, over and over again. Although I encourage looking at devotionals, commentaries, and reflections (like this blog!) to help and encourage us, nothing can replace our constant and continual reading of the Bible.

The biblical Book of Psalms is the Church’s prayerbook. All 150 of them are meant to be used for every sort of life circumstance. Whether discouraged or anxious, joyful or confident, the psalms encompass the full range of the human condition – and Psalm 119 lets us know how central God’s instructions are to the life of God’s people.

So, read today’s psalm… several times. Let Scripture do it’s marvelous and wondrous work within you.

Blessed Lord, you caused all Holy Scriptures to be written for our learning. Help us so to wisely hear, read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest them so that by our patient reading of your holy Word, we may embrace and ever hold fast the blessed hope of everlasting life, which you have given us in our Savior Jesus Christ.

Psalm 119:89-96 – Relying on the Eternal

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Christian Spirituality Blog, Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year CLeave a comment

Your word, O Lord, will last forever;
    it is eternal in heaven.
Your faithfulness endures through all the ages;
    you have set the earth in place, and it remains.
All things remain to this day because of your command,
    because they are all your servants.
If your law had not been the source of my joy,
    I would have died from my sufferings.
I will never neglect your instructions,
    because by them you have kept me alive.
I am yours—save me!
    I have tried to obey your commands.
The wicked are waiting to kill me,
    but I will meditate on your laws.
I have learned that everything has limits;
    but your commandment is perfect. (Good News Translation)

Our present life, currently in the here and now, is characterized by limitations and continual change. Whatever is up today can be down tomorrow, and vice versa. The people around us, as well as our own emotions, can be often frustratingly fickle. And our circumstances are constantly changing, not to mention our bodies and minds. For some, even their very life hangs in the balance due to either a personal enemy or the enemy of disease, disaster, or death.

In this orbit of revolving change, we are limited in our choices. We can make changes to our lifestyle that will hopefully extend the quality and quantity of life, yet every one of us will eventually die. There is decision-making we can make with our resources and finances, yet if a company closes and jobs are lost, or the market plunges and our investments tank, there is no nice seamless transition to getting back on our feet.

It might be easy to slide into discouragement, if we all we know is a domino effect of change, revolving circumstances, and an inability to influence very little of it all. Yet, there is hope because there is another side to the coin.

Although life situations change, and we experience limitations in both our choices and our abilities, there are some bedrock realities which will never change that we can bank and build our lives upon. God’s Word and God’s faithfulness are eternal; they will last forever.

Whenever it feels as if nothing is on solid ground, it is necessary to come back to the things we know which are permanent and reliable. Notice some of the unchangeable elements of God’s Word….

Love never dies. Inspired speech will be over some day; praying in tongues will end; understanding will reach its limit. We know only a portion of the truth, and what we say about God is always incomplete. But when the Complete arrives, our incompletes will be canceled.

When I was an infant at my mother’s breast, I gurgled and cooed like any infant. When I grew up, I left those infant ways for good.

We don’t yet see things clearly. We’re squinting in a fog, peering through a mist. But it won’t be long before the weather clears, and the sun shines bright! We’ll see it all then, see it all as clearly as God sees us, knowing him directly just as he knows us!

But for right now, until that completeness, we have three things to do to lead us toward that consummation: Trust steadily in God, hope unswervingly, love extravagantly. And the best of the three is love. (1 Corinthians 13:8-13, MSG)

Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever! (Hebrews 13:8, CEB)

Notice the unchangeable nature of God’s faithfulness….

Your steadfast love, O Lord, extends to the heavens,
    your faithfulness to the clouds.
Your righteousness is like the mighty mountains,
    your judgments are like the great deep;
    you save humans and animals alike, O Lord. (Psalm 35:5-6, NRSV)

This saying is reliable:

“If we have died together, we will also live together.
        If we endure, we will also rule together.
        If we deny him, he will also deny us.
If we are disloyal, he stays faithful”
    because he can’t be anything else than what he is. (2 Timothy 2:11-13, CEB)

It is possible to have peace smack in the middle of hardship and adversity. Racing thoughts do not need to be a given experience whenever there are those who oppose us or give us grief. Relying upon God’s Holy Word is the very ballast and rock we need. It will never fail nor pass away….

Just thinking of my troubles
and my lonely wandering
    makes me miserable.
That’s all I ever think about,
    and I am depressed.
Then I remember something
    that fills me with hope.
The Lord’s kindness never fails!
If he had not been merciful,
    we would have been destroyed.
The Lord can always be trusted
    to show mercy each morning.
Deep in my heart I say,
“The Lord is all I need;
    I can depend on him!”

The Lord is kind to everyone
    who trusts and obeys him.
It is good to wait patiently
    for the Lord to save us. (Lamentations 3:19-26, CEV)

This present life with all its change, limitations, and transience can and will give way to that which is permanent, unending, timeless, immortal, imperishable, and indestructible.

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. (1 Peter 1:3-4, NIV)

May you know the joy and peace of relying upon the eternal and changeless reality of God.

Our God and Father, thank you that in a world of despair that you are our hope. In a world of darkness, you are our light. In a world of sorrow, you are our joy. Help us to strengthen and encourage one another with your eternal faithfulness and steadfast love, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.