Tag: psalms

Psalm 46

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year BLeave a comment
            For centuries the psalms have been the beloved prayer book of God’s people.  Pious Jews would know all one-hundred fifty of them by memory; medieval monks would recite them all over the course of a week, going over each one fifty-two times a year.  The psalms do more than present sound theology for modern humans; they give voice to our deepest feelings and greatest fears.
             Psalm 46 is one of the finest pieces of Hebrews poetry you will find.  Its message is one of comfort; its God is one who is in control; its prose is simply beautiful.  “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.  Therefore we will not fear though the earth gives way, though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea, though the mountains tremble at its swelling.”  The psalms inspire trust in God, and help relieve the chaos that seems to envelop all around us.
             It is therefore a small thing to recite this psalm many times, and allow it to become part of memory.  Being able to draw from its well in times of trouble and meditate on it can be significant in the heat of a situation.  Knowing this psalm intimately is not a shot that inoculates us from difficulty and brings instant deliverance.  But it can point us to a faithful and trusted God who knows what he is doing and is always with us, even in the cataclysmic events of our lives.
             O God, you are my refuge and my strength.  Bolster my faith in all the difficult situations around me so that I might not fear, but trust you.  I will be still and wait for your deliverance without trying to orchestrate my own.  In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.

Psalm 86

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year BLeave a comment
            This psalm is a prayer of David.  David was a guy who knew what it was like to have evil men pursuing him and hating his life through no fault of his own.  I don’t know about you, but, although I have never faced adversity to such a degree as David, I do know something about people who, to put it bluntly, just flat-out hate my guts.  It is not a good feeling, and it can be terribly draining emotionally and even spiritually.  Having disrespectful and rude people who talk behind your back (and sometimes even to your face) is in direct contrast to who God is.
 
            God is described by David as merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness.  Whereas insolent people objectify others and do not seek their best interests, God always acts in accord with his basic character of love and grace.  Based upon the nature of God, we can choose to cry out, just like David did, to show us a sign of God’s favor.  That is, we can pray for God to provide us with some tangible communication of his love on our level that we can grasp and understand so that we can be helped and receive the kind of comfort we need through our adversity.
 
            We can be assured that God will not only hear, but that such ungodliness will not go unnoticed.  While we receive divine guidance and help, we can trust God to address the insolence that exists around us and toward us.
            O God, I cry out to you!  Give me a sign that you are with me, that your love and grace are my twin companions through the difficulties I face.  Help me, strengthen me, and comfort me so that I can keep going for the sake of Jesus, my Savior.  Amen.

Psalm 139:1-6, 13-18

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year BLeave a comment
            It is no wonder that so many people struggle with self-image today.  Beautiful people reign across the television channels and movie theatres; the rich and powerful are highlighted in the media; and, people with perfect teeth and immaculate attire are splashed in front of us in the daily barrage of advertisements.  Meanwhile, the rest of us 99% of the population quickly notice that we do not measure up to such a standard.  It only takes a few minutes of people watching at the local grocery store or mall to realize that the vast majority of persons have less than perfect bodies and do not have much of a budget to live like the other less than 1% of the famous.
 
            Into this dark abyss of feeling depressed about one’s image enters the biblical truth that each and every one of us, no matter our station in life, is “fearfully and wonderfully made.”  The Creator God took great care to make us and form us just the way he wants us.  The psalmist, David, praised God for the way we were created.  The real standard from which we ought to judge ourselves is this:  God knows us intimately, inside and out, and he does not condemn us or shame us but loves us wholly.  Why? Because he is the one who made us.
 
            So, rather than wasting our emotional energy and our mental faculties on wishing we looked different or were more like so-and-so who seems to always have it all together, try practicing what David did:  praising God.  Whenever we think we do not measure up to the standard by which we compare ourselves, the only real measurement is grace.  No matter who we are, the entire race of humanity has been created in the image of God, and, on that basis alone, we have inherent value, worth, and majesty.  Let us, then, treat ourselves and others with the yardstick of grace.
            O God, thank you that I am wonderfully made in your likeness.  I praise you that I am fully accepted, even when I do not accept myself.  In Jesus Christ you have demonstrated the height of your love and mercy.  May this grace be with me every day so that I will conduct myself in a manner worthy of being part of the human family.  Amen.

Psalm 69:1-5, 30-36

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year BLeave a comment
            We have all likely at times felt the anguish of the psalmist:  being so overwhelmed that it feels like we are drowning.  The feeling is compounded exponentially when behind the sense of trying to keep our heads above water there are people who do not like us – maybe even hate us, to the point of undermining our work every chance they get.  It is in such circumstances that we can experience sleepless nights hoping that somehow and someway God will show up.
 
            The typical modus operandi for such a situation is the age old route of complaining and wishing things were different.  But neither griping about our adversity nor dishing out slander and gossip toward others is a godly way of dealing with problems.  Just the opposite response is the proper path to the bone-crushing feeling of opposition:  praising God’s name with a song, and magnifying him with thanksgiving.  The reason the believer can engage in adoring God in the midst of trouble is not some Jedi-type mind trick to make us think more positively.  Instead, the basis for praise is in knowing God.  It is God who ultimately will deal with the wicked; it is the Lord who will bend his ear to listen to our lament when times are hard. 
 
            Thanking God for answers to prayer in advance of them actually being answered is a biblical thing to do.  Having a faith robust enough to see ahead toward hope can bring love to a loveless situation, and usher in praise before the divine deed of deliverance is even accomplished.
            Saving God, thank you for your deliverance!  I give you praise for loving me through sending your Son, the Lord Jesus, to this realm so that I might experience salvation from sin, death, and hell.  By Christ’s authority, in the power of the Holy Spirit given to me, I resist the enemy’s attempts to seize control of my life.  I belong to you, God.  Amen.