Psalms

Psalm 150

1 Praise the LORD!

Praise God in his sanctuary;


  praise him in his mighty heaven!


2 Praise him for his mighty works;


  praise his unequaled greatness!


3 Praise him with a blast of the ram's horn;


  praise him with the lyre and harp!


4 Praise him with the tambourine and dancing;


  praise him with strings and flutes!


5 Praise him with a clash of cymbals;


  praise him with loud clanging cymbals.


6 Let everything that breathes sing praises to the LORD!

Praise the LORD!



Today I just finished sequentially reading through the Psalms again.

It was in January, 2003 that I started reading the Bible every day without fail (RTBEDWF).

Each day since then I sequentially have read a psalm each day.

I read somewhere that Billy Graham read a psalm every day.

I figured if it was good enough for Billy, it was good enough for me ;-)


I just multiplied 365 days times 15 years divided by 150 psalms.

So, roughly, I've read through the Psalms at least 36 times.


Now, I'm not bragging.

I said all that to say this - Psalms is an incredibly rich book.

Every time I read through it I get something else.

It also speaks to me in different ways as the years roll by.

I sometimes date a verse or passage, & definitely underline.

And each time I read through Psalms I'm reminded about what was going on in my life when I dated that verse.

Please, do yourself an enormous favor & read a psalm every day.

Most of them are fairly short, although #119 is killer long ;-)

Do it - you will never, EVER regret allowing God to speak to you through this incredible book.

XXIII

This psalm is good to read anytime, not just at funerals...


Psalm 23

1 The LORD is my shepherd;


  I have all that I need.


2 He lets me rest in green meadows;


  he leads me beside peaceful streams.


3   He renews my strength.


He guides me along right paths,


  bringing honor to his name.


4 Even when I walk


  through the darkest valley,

I will not be afraid,


  for you are close beside me.


Your rod and your staff


  protect and comfort me.


5 You prepare a feast for me


  in the presence of my enemies.


You honor me by anointing my head with oil.


  My cup overflows with blessings.


6 Surely your goodness and unfailing love will pursue me


  all the days of my life,


and I will live in the house of the LORD


  forever.

really following

What does this passage have to say to us - to you - to me - today?

Remember, this is Jesus talking here



Luke 18

18 Once a religious leader asked Jesus this question: 

"Good Teacher, what should I do to inherit eternal life?"



  19 "Why do you call me good?" Jesus asked him. 

"Only God is truly good.

20 But to answer your question, you know the commandments: 

'You must not commit adultery. 

You must not murder. 

You must not steal. 

You must not testify falsely. 

Honor your father and mother.'"


  21 The man replied, "I've obeyed all these commandments since I was young."



  22 When Jesus heard his answer, he said, 

"There is still one thing you haven't done. 

Sell all your possessions 

and give the money to the poor, 

and you will have treasure in heaven. 

Then come, follow me."



  23 But when the man heard this he became very sad, 

for he was very rich.



  24 When Jesus saw this, he said, 

"How hard it is for the rich to enter the Kingdom of God!

25 In fact, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the Kingdom of God!"


  26 Those who heard this said, 

"Then who in the world can be saved?"



  27 He replied, "What is impossible for people is possible with God."



  28 Peter said, "We've left our homes to follow you."



  29 "Yes," Jesus replied, "and I assure you that everyone who has given up house or wife or brothers or parents or children, for the sake of the Kingdom of God, 30 will be repaid many times over in this life, and will have eternal life in the world to come."

servanthood

This is Jesus talking to His disciples...



Luke 17

7 "When a servant comes in from plowing or taking care of sheep, does his master say, 'Come in and eat with me'?

8 No, 

he says, 

'Prepare my meal, 

put on your apron, 

and serve me while I eat. 

Then you can eat later.'

9 And does the master thank the servant for doing what he was told to do? 

Of course not.

10 In the same way, when you obey me you should say, 

'We are unworthy servants who have simply done our duty.'"



In the past 7 1/2 years I have come to understand some basic truths about being a servant.

It bears little resemblance to what we are constantly told by others as to what servanthood looks like.

It's not glamorous.

It's not guaranteed success.

It has nothing to do with "the American Dream".

And a lot of the time the simple answers are seldom given as to the questions of who, what, where, when, or how.

Servants serve.

They are seldom in command.

And many times the results of our service won't be revealed until we "all get to heaven".


I've become suspicious of someone who loves to frequently, sanguinely, & wistfully say, "all I want to be is a servant of the Lord."

Usually that means they've never been one.

Just saying...

XXVII

Psalm 27

1 The LORD is my light and my salvation—
  so why should I be afraid?
The LORD is my fortress, protecting me from danger,
  so why should I tremble?
2 When evil people come to devour me,
  when my enemies and foes attack me,
  they will stumble and fall.
3 Though a mighty army surrounds me,
  my heart will not be afraid.
Even if I am attacked,
  I will remain confident.

4 The one thing I ask of the LORD—
  the thing I seek most—
is to live in the house of the LORD all the days of my life,
  delighting in the LORD's perfections
  and meditating in his Temple.
5 For he will conceal me there when troubles come;
  he will hide me in his sanctuary.
  He will place me out of reach on a high rock.
6 Then I will hold my head high
  above my enemies who surround me.
At his sanctuary I will offer sacrifices with shouts of joy,
  singing and praising the LORD with music.

7 Hear me as I pray, O LORD.
  Be merciful and answer me!
8 My heart has heard you say, "Come and talk with me."
  And my heart responds, "LORD, I am coming."
9 Do not turn your back on me.
  Do not reject your servant in anger.
  You have always been my helper.
Don't leave me now; don't abandon me,
  O God of my salvation!
10 Even if my father and mother abandon me,
  the LORD will hold me close.

11 Teach me how to live, O LORD.
  Lead me along the right path,
  for my enemies are waiting for me.
12 Do not let me fall into their hands.
  For they accuse me of things I've never done;
  with every breath they threaten me with violence.
13 Yet I am confident I will see the LORD's goodness
  while I am here in the land of the living.

14 Wait patiently for the LORD.
  Be brave and courageous.
  Yes, wait patiently for the LORD.

notorious

Luke 15

1 Tax collectors and other notorious sinners often came to listen to Jesus teach.

2 This made the Pharisees and teachers of religious law complain that he was associating with such sinful people—even eating with them!



Do any "notorious sinners" ever want to hang with us?

Is there just so much of the Holy Spirit in us that people who fit into that catagory want to be around us?

Do we ever want to hang with "notorious sinners"?

Or are we too afraid of what our "Christian friends" might think if they saw us with such questionable people - you know: birds of a feather...?

Or are we just so smug & arrogant, & self-righteous too, that we're too holy to hang with such low life's?


I wonder where you & I would be if those people who influenced us to follow Jesus had not wanted to hang with us when we were "notorious sinners"?

this is for someone?

I'm not sure why I feel like I'm supposed to share this passage.

I could be wrong.

This is Jesus speaking in this passage.

So, if this section of Luke 14 was for you, would you let me know in the comments?



Luke 14

25 A large crowd was following Jesus. 

He turned around and said to them,

26 "If you want to be my disciple, you must hate everyone else by comparison—your father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even your own life. 

Otherwise, you cannot be my disciple.

27 And if you do not carry your own cross and follow me, you cannot be my disciple.



  28 "But don't begin until you count the cost. 

For who would begin construction of a building without first calculating the cost to see if there is enough money to finish it?

29 Otherwise, you might complete only the foundation before running out of money, 

and then everyone would laugh at you.

30 They would say, 'There's the person who started that building and couldn't afford to finish it!'
  

31 "Or what king would go to war against another king without first sitting down with his counselors to discuss whether his army of 10,000 could defeat the 20,000 soldiers marching against him?

32 And if he can't, he will send a delegation to discuss terms of peace while the enemy is still far away.

33 So you cannot become my disciple without giving up everything you own.



  34 "Salt is good for seasoning. 

But if it loses its flavor, how do you make it salty again?

35 Flavorless salt is good neither for the soil nor for the manure pile. 

It is thrown away. 

Anyone with ears to hear should listen and understand!"