Tag: SOAP

Posted in Bible study, Devotion, From the Insideout, God is good, Journey Through The Word, LGG Study, Prayer Starters, Psalm 119, Quiet Time

Let Daily Praise Arise!

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based on the LGG Study of Psalm 119 / w8d1

Scripture: Psalm 119:161-164

Rulers pursue me for no reason,
yet I am more afraid of disobeying your instructions.
162 I rejoice in your instructions,
like one who finds much plunder.
163 I hate and despise deceit;
I love your law.
164 Seven times a day I praise you
because of your just regulations.

Psalm 119:161-164 NET

While our focus./SOAP is to be on the last portion of this passage, I couldn’t help getting caught up with the statement that the writer of the Psalm was more afraid of disobeying God’s instructions than he was of the authorities that pursued him without cause. It prompted the question, ‘Do I fear1 disobeying God more than I fear those who “pursue me for no reason,” or for that matter, all of the other concerns of life that strike fear and trembling in the heart and mind?” In other words, do I have more love and respect for God’s Word than I do for the dangers that threaten? –

When we fear God, we acknowledge He is holy and highly exalted the only One worthy of our worship and complete obedience.

gotquestions.org/fearing God

The second portion of today’s journey, particularly the declaration that he hated deceit and loved God’s law, brought more questions to mind. Namely, do I “hate and despise deceit?” If not, how can I then say, like the Psalmist, “I love God’s law?” For God hates a lying tongue. It is a “detestable evil to God, who is a God of truth.”2 To have anything but contempt for deceit is to disregard the Word, which is the truth of God.3

A lying tongue is one that speaks falsehood, knowingly and willingly, with an intention to deceive others. Lying can be used to impugn the character of a brother or to flatter a friend. It is a most detestable evil to God, who is a God of truth. Nothing we do causes us to more closely resemble the devil, who is the father of lies (John 8:44).

gotquestions.org/a lying tongue

The last portion of the verse presented me not so much with a question as with a challenge/inspiration to praise Him from the rising of the sun to its going down. Praise Him when you awaken, when you lie down, and all the hours in between. Look for reasons to praise Him. While I do not believe that seven times is a mandate, I do believe it represents a day filled with praise, and as we have seen from this Psalmist, in good times as well as difficult times.

The More We Know

For more insight, check out the links below as well as the Love God Greatly blog

Posted in Bible study, Devotion, From the Insideout, God is good, Journey Through The Word, LGG Study, Prayer Starters, Psalm 119, Quiet Time

It Only Takes a Spark

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Psalm 119:145-160; Week 7 response/recap
My Response

What a great week it’s been in this week’s journey through Psalm 119! Hope…power…prayer…, and loyal love – these are all found and experienced and heightened in and through God’s Word! His true, righteous, and reliable Word is our strength in weakness, our light in darkness, our wisdom in life… our peace and comfort for fears and sorrows…and our salvation and victory over sin and death. There is no greater gift, and we must never waste it! 🦋

The following post is borrowed and shared from the lovegodgreatly.com site. I pray you will read the beautiful post and find a wealth of wisdom and encouragement from every word. Grow from it and share it as you are led – remember: it only takes a spark to get a fire going! –

passing it down to the next generation.

The precious Word of God, read and treasured…worth more than any gem or stone.

Posted in Bible study, Devotion, From the Insideout, Journey Through The Word, LGG Study, Prayer Starters, Psalm 119, Quiet Time

Repetition & Persistence

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Scripture: Psalm 119:157-160 / w7d4 of the Lgg study of Ps. 119

The enemies who chase me are numerous.
Yet I do not turn aside from your rules.
158 I take note of the treacherous and despise them,
because they do not keep your instructions.
159 See how I love your precepts.
O Lord, revive me with your loyal love.
160 Your instructions are totally reliable;
all your just regulations endure.

Psalm 119:157-160 NET

Oh, how I am loving our journey through this Psalm. It is a constant example of prayer, boldness, and persistence in coming before God, It is encouragement to come before Him persistently and boldly. It is an inspiration to stay faithfully in love with God and true to Him despite the threat of the enemy. or other circumstances we may face. The Psalm brings conviction to my heart to pray repetitively for those who do not love or keep God’s instructions. It is also a reminder to trust in and depend on the Lord’s “loyal love” and the reliability of His Word – which is the true and evident basis for the psalmist’s persistent request and hope for revival.

 Consider how I love Your precepts; revive me, O LORD, according to Your lovingkindness: The psalmist asked God to look at his love for His word, but then asked for revival on the basis of God’s lovingkindness instead of on his own merit.

Enduringword.com

The following commentary is borrowed and shared from a wonderful commentary I found on this particular part of our journey through Psalm 119. I pray you will take the time to read it, as it has much to offer.

 (Ps 119: 157-158) Keeping to God’s word despite persecution.

Many are my persecutors and my enemies,
Yet I do not turn from Your testimonies.
I see the treacherous, and am disgusted,
Because they do not keep Your word.

a. Many are my persecutors and my enemies: The psalmist lived life in the real world, not sheltered in a constant Scripture-study environment. His trust in the word of God was forged in the real world, a world full of persecutors and enemies.

i. “Persecution, to the false professor, is an occasion of apostasy (Matthew 13:20-21); to the faithful servant of Christ, it is the trial of his faith (1 Peter 1:6-7), the source of his richest consolations (Matthew 5:10-12, Acts 13:50-52, 1 Peter 4:12-16), the guard of his profession (Matthew 10:16, Philippians 2:14-16), and the strength of his perseverance (Acts 20:22-24).” (Bridges)

b. Yet I do not turn from Your testimonies: The presence of so many persecutors and enemies did not make the psalmist despair or doubt the love of God for him. He didn’t have the expectation that a godly life was a problem-free life. Instead, he was determined to keep turned to and focused on the word of God.

i. “So long as they cannot drive or draw us into a spiritual decline our foes have done us no great harm, and they have accomplished nothing by their malice. If we do not decline they are defeated. If they cannot make us sin they have missed their mark. Faithfulness to the truth is victory over our enemies.” (Spurgeon)

c. I see the treacherous and am disgusted, because they do not keep Your word: It wasn’t that the psalmist expected godly behavior from the ungodly – something that Paul warned about (1 Corinthians 5:9-13). He felt disgusted because God and His word were being disgraced, even if it came from the disgraceful.

i. “I was sorry to see such sinners. I was sick of them, disgusted with them, I could not endure them. I found no pleasure in them, they were a sad sight to me, however fine their clothing or witty their chattering. Even when they were most mirthful a sight of them made my heart heavy; I could not tolerate either them or their doings.” (Spurgeon)

ii. This sensitivity toward sin and passion for the glory of God is entirely characteristic of the revival that the psalmist prays for repeatedly in this section.

iii. “A fellowship with the joys of angels over repenting sinners (Luke 15:10) will be accompanied with bitterness of godly sorrow over the hardness and impenitency of those, who keep not the word of God.” (Bridges)

4. (Ps. 119: 159-160) Revived by the completely true and lasting word.

Consider how I love Your precepts;
Revive me, O LORD, according to Your lovingkindness.
The entirety of Your word is truth,
And every one of Your righteous judgments endures forever.

a. Consider how I love Your precepts; revive me, O LORD, according to Your lovingkindness: The psalmist asked God to look at his love for His word, but then asked for revival on the basis of God’s lovingkindness instead of on his own merit.

i. “A second time he asks for consideration. As he said before, ‘Consider mine affliction,’ so now he says, ‘Consider mine affection.’ He loved the precepts of God – loved them unspeakably – loved them so as to be grieved with those who did not love them.” (Spurgeon)

b. Revive me, O LORD, according to Your lovingkindness: An idea stated before (Psalm 119:88) is here repeated. Revival is never deserved or earned, but given from the lovingkindness of God.

i. “The consciousness of need is revealed in the thrice repeated, ‘Quicken [Revive] me.’ He feels the weakening of his very life under the pressure of circumstances.” (Morgan)

c. The entirety of Your word is truth, and every one of Your righteous judgments endures forever: The psalmist again declares the infallible character of the word of God. The entire word is true, not merely portions or individual concepts from the word. Not only is it true; it is eternally true.

i. “The Scriptures are as true in Genesis as in Revelation, and the five books of Moses are as inspired as the four Gospels…. There is not one single mistake either in the word of God or in the providential dealings of God. Neither in the book of revelation nor of providence will there be any need to put a single note of errata. The Lord has nothing to regret or to retract, nothing to amend or to reverse.” (Spurgeon)

Posted in Bible study

The Power of God’s Word

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Scripture: Psalm 119:153-156 / W7D3 of LGG’s Study of Psalm 119

See my pain and rescue me.
For I do not forget your law.
154 Fight for me and defend me.
Revive me with your word.
155 The wicked have no chance for deliverance,
for they do not seek your statutes.
156 Your compassion is great, O Lord.
Revive me, as you typically do.

Psalm 119:153-156 NET

Have you ever been so desperate that you’ve prayed in this manner before? Pain, fear, danger, and/or trouble meet you around every corner, and you find yourself so weary and worn from it all that your very life seems to have been drained out of you – to the point that you need to be revived. I don’t know what kind of danger or trouble the psalmist faced from the wicked that he has mentioned, but regardless of the reason, he cries out for the Lord to see him…rescue him…fight for and defend him… and then my favorite request – the crescendo of them all: “revive me with your word.” The psalmist saw God as powerful and able to come to his aid, which isn’t surprising, but how awe-inspiring that he attributes life-giving power not just to God but to His Word as well. I can’t help but think of the words of Solomon to his sons, teaching them the wisdom he had received from God – words of wisdom that he said were life to those who find them and healing to their entire body.

My child, pay attention to my words;
listen attentively to my sayings.
21 Do not let them depart from your sight,
guard them within your heart;
22 for they are life to those who find them
and healing to one’s entire body.
23 Guard your heart with all vigilance,
for from it are the sources of life.

Proverbs 4:20-23

May we faithfully pay attention to the wisdom of God that we find in His Word. May we not let them out of our sight and diligently keep them in our hearts. May we never forget the power of His Word and not hesitate to ask Him to revive us with it – trusting that His words bring life to those who find them and healing to one’s entire body. Oh, may we all learn to pray in this manner when we face troubles of any kind. May we pray like this when we are tired and weary and worn down from seasons of strife or battles of physical or emotional health. May we pray like this for others who are struggling and/or at the end of their rope. May we remember that God cares about us and pray with boldness for Him to see us and rescue us, fight for us, and defend us. – May we pray it all in the name of Jesus – who is the Living Word of God, fully God and yet fully man, who came to reveal God to man and redeem all who believe in Him from their sin.1

The More You Know

See how to make today’s passage into a beautiful prayer for a friend or yourself

Posted in Bible study, Devotion, From the Insideout, God is good, Journey Through The Word, LGG Study, Prayer Starters, Psalm 119, Quiet Time

Finding Hope In God’s Word

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Scripture: Psalm 119:145-148

I am becoming more and more forgetful, but I have not forgotten how and when I met God – or the years that followed. I remember the ebb and flow of growing in Him throughout my childhood and into my teens and throughout my adult life. I have not forgotten the waxing and the waning of my faithfulness to Him nor the pits of muck and mire that He pulled me from along the way! I remember the sin and the shame but those memories are always followed by the beautiful revelation of God’s grace that is greater than all of my sin. I remember not just His grace but His great love, a love that brings me hope, for it is because of His great love that I wasn’t and am not consumed. It is because of this great love and hope that I learned to call out to Him in prayer, not just in the morning but throughout the day and into the night.

I remember my affliction and my wandering,
    the bitterness and the gall.
20 I well remember them,
    and my soul is downcast within me.
21 Yet this I call to mind
    and therefore, I have hope:

Lamentations 3:19-21

I cannot recall these memories without also recalling the prophet Jeremiah and the words of his sorrowful lament in Lamentations chapter three – when he remembered his affliction in the days following the destruction of Jerusalem. However, like Jeremiah, I find hope when I also recall the Lord’s great love. Jeremiah described this as God’s compassions that never fail – and I can testify to this truth. For it is because of His great love that I wasn’t consumed. Instead, I was pursued and delivered by His grace from the entrapments of the world into a relationship with Him – and a desire to keep His rules. I no longer found hope in my works or doing/being good but in talking to God and reading His Word. I fell in love with Him through His Word. I also had a baby in these early days of renewal, so like the Psalmist in our journey today – I looked to God in the early morning and looked forward to the naps and nighttime hours when I knew I could pray and meditate on His Word.

22 Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed,
    for his compassions never fail.
23 They are new every morning;
    great is your faithfulness.
24 I say to myself, “The Lord is my portion;
    therefore I will wait for him.”

Lamentations 3:22-24

Oh, the beauty of these memories and of His faithful mercies, which are still new every morning! As my memory fades, this one prayer increases: May I always remember His Word and never forget that God, in His great love, pursued me, delivered me, and changed the desire of my heart.

25 The Lord is good to those whose hope is in him,
    to the one who seeks him;
26 it is good to wait quietly
    for the salvation of the Lord.

Lamentations 3:25-26
Encouragement for the Journey

Let’s never allow God and His Word or time in prayer to be just a “To Do” on the agenda of our day. Instead, let’s purposefully set aside or find time to spend with Him in His Word and in prayer. Let’s seek to know Him – His desires…the things He loves and delights in, and the things He detests… Let’s learn His rules… observe His character…put Him first in our lives – loving His ways over the ways of the world. Let’s look for His fingerprints every day, listening for His ‘still small voice,’ and learning to trust Him with every need and thank Him for all He has done.

The More We Know

You won’t want to miss this beautiful devotion from the Love God Greatly Team

Posted in Bible study, Devotion, From the Insideout, Journey Through The Word, LGG Study, Psalm 119

 HIS RIGHTEOUSNESS IS FOREVER…

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Today’s post borrowed from the LGG Post by missionary Joy Forney | Jul 23, 2015 | LGG Psalm 119 Study/w6d5

A recap/response to this week’s journey through Psalm 119:121-144

I spent a few days earlier this week having a little pity party for myself. Yes, I know what you are thinking. I’m not under ten years old, and this is not appropriate behavior for a grown woman, let alone a missionary. But there it is.

The story is this: I was invited to a fun gathering of women that met last week in the States, but as I live in Uganda, I couldn’t make it. Seeing the photos of everyone attending and wishing I could be there… well, a little pity party started. Then I started thinking about my sister having her baby in the next few weeks. It’s her fourth, and I’ve not been there for even one of the births. Sigh. Don’t forget, of course, we’ll be missing out on yet another Thanksgiving and Christmas with family this year (yes, I’m aware it’s only July, but pity parties aren’t limited by the calendar).

And because misery loves company, I wrote a little snippet on Facebook about how I was sad about all of this, thereby extending said pity party not only in my head and heart, but around the world.

And one comment on that post really brought me back to reality. Randy Alcorn, author of  the book Heaven, wrote this on my sorry little post:

“You sound like Paul: “Remembering your tears, I long to see you that I may be full of joy” (2 Tim 1:4). You are in good company missing loved ones! The great reunion awaits, all together with the Lord:

“Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord. Therefore encourage one another with these words.” 1 Thes 4:17-18.

Thanks for joining Paul in bringing the gospel to the nations on our behalf. Some reward comes now, much will come later. Meanwhile He feels your pain.”

Ah yes, sweet perspective.

It brought me back to truth that my heart needed to hear and reminded me of two things:

1. Our memory verse for this week: 

Love God Greatly Week 6 Memory Verse

This. His righteousness is FOREVER. Forever. The part I was sorely missing in my self-imposed sadness. His righteousness really is forever, and we will be with Him forever. What a promise!

And His law is TRUE. His words are the words of a gentleman, and they are true. I can cling to His word, his promises, and his faithfulness when I am feeling down, lonely, and sad.

2. He has given us each other to remind us of this. 

Clearly, I needed Randy and others to bring me back to the truth, and that is why I love this community here at Love God Greatly so much. We are here to encourage one another in our walks with the Lord. We are here to spur one another on, and to remind each other of His righteousness and His Word.

So, thank you.

Thank you for being my community; for walking this road with me. Let’s commit to pick each other up when we stumble and fall, and point each other back to Forever and Truth.

Let’s continue to encourage each other in the comments. Share your struggles and find someone else to remind of both forever and truth!!

With Love From Uganda,

joy signature
Posted in Bible study, Devotion, From the Insideout, Journey Through The Word, LGG Study, Prayer Starters, Psalm 119, Quiet Time

Joy in His Commands

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Scripture: Psalm 119:137-144

I grew up in a home where going to church was a Wednesday and Sunday habit, prayers were prayed, and God’s Word was taught and instilled in us. I am forever grateful for this part of my childhood. The foundations that were laid are priceless and counted as a treasured gift from the Lord. However, as I was reading this passage today – the thought hit me again of how easy it is to become so familiar with the Word and even with God through the eyes of others that we can find ourselves caught up in a religion rather than a relationship with God. We wake up one day to find ourselves living off of the beliefs and the truths we’ve heard preached, only to realize that they lack the joy and substance that come from a life spent with God.

Don’t get me wrong, it is a great gift to grow up in a godly home and to be familiar with God and His Word from infancy, and to place your faith in Him at a young age – but at some point, we must make it our own faith and build on the knowledge we have been given by searching out the Scriptures as the Bereans1 did and by building a relationship with God through Christ that leaves us able to say of our God the same beautiful truths that the Psalmist declared – by belief and experience – he knew and trusted God and found his joy in God’s commands – so much so that he became filled with indignation when others, namely his enemies, disregarded God’s Word.

Read the passage again, noting all of the declarations the Psalmist makes about the Lord. He sees God as righteous and His regulations as fair. He proclaims God’s laws to be perfect and completely trustworthy. He reveals that his love for God’s promises is based on the fact that they have been thoroughly tested, most likely throughout the course of his own life. He doesn’t just assess the Word of God but makes particular note of the indignation he feels because his enemies have disregarded God’s Word. My favorite acknowledgment and assessment comes in verse 143, when he talks of the joy he finds in God’s commands – even when the stresses and pressures of his life weigh him down.

O Lord, you are righteous,
    and your regulations are fair.
138 Your laws are perfect
    and completely trustworthy.
139 I am overwhelmed with indignation,
    for my enemies have disregarded your words.
140 Your promises have been thoroughly tested;
    that is why I love them so much.
141 I am insignificant and despised,
    but I don’t forget your commandments.
142 Your justice is eternal,
    and your instructions are perfectly true.
143 As pressure and stress bear down on me,
    I find joy in your commands.
144 Your laws are always right;
    help me to understand them so I may live.

Psalm 119:1137-144 NLT
Living Out the Journey (personal application)

How about you? How would you describe God and His Word (laws, commands, instructions, regulations)? Do you see them as fallible, fair, righteous, perfect, and trustworthy? Or do you doubt and question them? Are they so precious to you that you are offended or riled up when others disregard them? Do you strive to understand them, remember them, and live them out – or are they just in one ear and out the other until the next time? Have you experienced God’s peace and the joy that comes from His commands, even when life is pressing in on you? – I’m not trying to weigh you down with questions, but rather just simply hoping to share with you the encouragement that God pressed on me as I read the words of the Psalmist. – Know who God is, find delight in His Word, and if you don’t know or see God as the Psalmist described Him – search the Word – ask God for the understanding of who He is and the truths of His Word. Seek Him with all of your heart, and I promise you – He will be found –

The More We Know

You will find me when you seek me … While these prophecies and promises are specifically related to the people of Judah and Israel, the principle that God will draw near to those who draw near to Him is a universal truth (James 4:8a). But we have to draw near to God on His own terms—with clean hands and purified hearts (James 4:8b) that only God can provide by grace through faith in Jesus Christ (Ephesians 2:8–9). While Jeremiah’s letter recorded the words of God for the exiled people of Judah, readers today can benefit from recognizing that the same God who said, “You will find me when you seek me with all your heart,” has also told us that we can draw near to Him and He will draw near to us (James 4:8) and that He will never leave or forsake us (Hebrews 13:5).

gotquestions.org/Jer 29:13

Seek and you will find… The heart of Jesus’ point is that God is listening, paying attention to His people, and ready to give them good gifts. What a remarkable truth! The God of all creation cares so deeply about His children that He hears them when they pray. Even better: He answers. This also speaks to those with doubts and questions about faith. Those who lack faith, but pursue truth, will find it in Christ (Mark 9:24; John 14:6).

Bibleref.com/Matthew 7:7
https://atomic-temporary-62140760.wpcomstaging.com/2023/03/14/know-these-truths
Posted in Bible study, Devotion, From the Insideout, Journey Through The Word, LGG Study, Psalm 119, Quiet Time

FLEEING FAST FOOD SPIRITUALITY…

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Scripture: Psalm 119:133-136

Today’s post is borrowed and shared from LoveGodGreatly.com’s study of Psalm 119

by WhitneyD | Jul 22, 2015 | Week6/Day3

Wanna know a terrible secret of mine?

I like french fries. What’s worse? The more salt on them, the better.

When I was pregnant with my first baby, they were my quick go-to snack when I could no longer ignore those impatient hunger cravings that came on without notice. I know, I know… super unhealthy choice. But fast food is convenient, man. Preparing healthier options took time, preparation, and intentionality, and it was honestly just easier to indulge in a moment of weakness than to plan ahead.

I got away with it for awhile. At least it seemed that way. But over the course of my pregnancy, all of those moments of weakness eventually went straight to my hips. Of course, they did. Postpartum, I found myself uncomfortably weighed down by my unhealthy choices – both literally and figuratively.

I was miserable, and something had to change.

As I began to pay attention to my eating habits, I noticed that it wasn’t one huge bad decision that put me over the edge each day. Rather, it was a combination of small compromises that added up over time. A bite here. A lick there. A desensitization to the long term effects that the sum of my choices would produce over time, because I could justify my desire just this once.

In my desperation I started implementing small changes. Trust me, my body wouldn’t be transformed overnight. But as I made physical exercise and healthy eating greater priorities in my life, day by day and bite by healthy bite, I noticed that I craved those french fries less and less over time.

As I fed my body the good stuff, it got easier to leave the bad habits behind.

Love God Greatly

Taking the undisciplined, compromised road physically has its consequences. Sort of like our spiritual lives.

Sin is all around us, screaming for us to indulge.

It creeps up on us in our weakest moments.

Over time, it weighs us down and makes us all kinds of uncomfortable.

Sometimes it’s one big flop, but often it’s the seemingly small stuff that we justify because we think we can pull it off with minimal damage.

It desensitizes our convictions and tempts us to give in just this once.

It convinces us that it’s more fun to indulge in the moment than it is to invest wisely in the future.

And unfortunately for most of us, sin usually isn’t defeated overnight. 

But as we make God’s Word a priority in our lives, our hearts are redirected. By God’s transforming power we crave His law more and more, and by His grace we begin to crave the things of this world less and less.

“Direct my footsteps according to your word; let no sin rule over me.” ~ Psalm 119:133

Reading God’s Word won’t always be convenient. It takes time, preparation, and intentionality, and is a task that will require planning and commitment every day for the rest of our lives.

But the results are oh, so satisfying.

Are you tired of settling for fast food spirituality?

Let’s fight against sin by feasting on the good stuff… together.

*Let’s Talk: What do YOU need to flee from in order to pursue more intimacy with God through His Word?

Posted in Bible study, Devotion, From the Insideout, God is good, Journey Through The Word, LGG Study, Psalm 119, Quiet Time

Your View of God’s Rules…

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Scripture: Psalm 119:129-132

How do you view God’s rules (laws, commands, instructions)? –This was the question that came to mind as I read the words of the Psalmist in verse 125: “Your laws are wonderful. No wonder I obey them!” Keep in mind what we learned earlier in our study concerning the variation of Moses’ “use of the word laws (commands, commandments, decrees, and statutes…), how they refer to the overall principle of obedience to all that the Lord commands, whether it is a general command, a prescribed law, a legal verdict, or a religious festival or ritual.”1

Having established this, let me ask you the question that I asked myself, ‘How do you view God’s rules?’ Do you consider them burdensome or wonderful? Do you believe they need to be faithfully followed or do you find yourself thinking, or at least wondering if, they are archaic and no longer of importance? Or do you possibly see them as burdensome, too hard to understand or to obey/follow?

This Psalm (and the Holy Spirit) have reminded me that how we view the rules and regulations of God matters greatly. When we see them as wonderful rather than burdensome or discount them as archaic – we will, like the Psalmist, count them worthy of obedience. We will use them as light for our paths and seek them as necessary insight for our understanding not only of the Word but of God Himself. When this is our view, we will long both for God and His commands – and we will be found as faithful followers of the One whose mercies are new every morning.

Friend, if God’s commands seem burdensome or archaic and dismissable, ask Him to change your view. Ask Him to help you see them as beautiful, helpful, good, and needful instructions. Ask Him to help you long for them, to pant for them as the deer pants for the water, and to follow them faithfully. When this happens, Your relationship with God will deepen, and You will see the faithful goodness and mercies of Your God – and your view of His commands will change from dread to delight. I know this – because this is the story of my life!

Me-from the inside-out🦋

Posted in Bible study, Devotion, From the Insideout, God is good, Journey Through The Word, LGG Study, Psalm 119, Quiet Time

I AM THE PSALMIST…

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Scripture: Psalm 119:121-128

Guest post today: by Angela Perritt | Jul 20, 2015 | Week 6/Day 1 of the LGG Psalm 119 Study

I am the Psalmist.

I, too, have a history of crying out to God, reminding Him of all that I do for Him, and asking Him the “whens” and the “whys”…

When Lord? When will you avenge?

Why Lord? Why have you allowed this?

And I, too, have a history of telling Him when He needs to act…

“It is time for you to act, O Lord…” ~ Psalm 119:126

Because of my limited sight and understanding, I struggle to comprehend the ways of our Lord at times.

I don’t have His perspective.

I don’t have His knowledge.

I am not God.

And so I become the Psalmist and cry out to Him with questions that are beyond my understanding… and I realize I am just a child.

Age is funny, you know. The older I get the more I realize how much there is to learn in life, and how very patient God is with my growth.

God is good and patient (Psalm 136:1 & 2 Peter 3:9).

I like that God is good. But patient? That can be a little harder when I’m waiting on Jesus to act.

The Jews in Jesus’ day wanted a Savior who would concur and overthrow the Roman oppressors. They wanted action. They wanted revenge. They wanted all those who had hurt them to finally have their day.

And in many ways, I am no different. And neither is our buddy the Psalmist.

He has highs and lows as he pursues knowing God better and gaining greater wisdom… just like me.

I’m taking comfort that here is a man who is completely sold out to God – a man who treasures God’s Word more than gold or gems – and yet I see this man struggle with waiting on the Lord to move. I hear him remind God of the righteous life he has led, just in case God may have missed it. I see him plead with God as he continues to be oppressed.

And in a strange way, it encourages me. It strengthens me.

Maybe it’s the progression of moving from “baby food” to “solids” in terms of spiritual growth, but it comforts me to know that other people who are 100% sold out for God – those who desperately want to live their lives for Him – struggle in their understanding of why He chooses to act sometimes, and at other times remains patient and does not step in and fix the situation like we want Him to.

But I’m starting to notice that in the waiting…there is precious growth.

In the waiting there is purpose.

“Deal with your servant according to your love and teach me your decrees. I am your servant; give me discernment that I may understand your statutes.”

The Psalmist does cry out to the Lord, but he also accompanies it with a sincere desire to know God and learn His ways:

“… teach me your decrees.”~ Psalm 119:124

“… give me discernment that I may understand your statutes.”~ Psalm 119:125

His heart is humble and teachable. He wants God’s ways over his own.

And maybe that’s the purpose of the waiting: the precious growth it produces.

“God’s delays are not God’s denials.”- Warren W. Wiersbe

So, like the Psalmist, I cry out to God and say:

“It is time for you to act, O Lord; your law is being broken.” ~ Psalm 119:126

But in these days of waiting, I’m learning to dig a little bit deeper into God’s Word and pray a little more earnestly. And that’s always a good thing.

“Your Kingdom come, Your will be done…” ~ Matthew 6:10

“The day will come when the truth will be revealed and sin will be judged; meanwhile, instead of complaining about what we have paid or lost, let us rejoice in the wealth that we have in God’s Word; wealth that can never be taken from us.”- Warren W. Wiersbe

Let’s Talk:

Don’t doubt for a second that God doesn’t see what’s going on in our world. But in the waiting, how can we be more proactive in growing in our faith and reaching out to a hurting world… being the hands and feet of Jesus?

Love God Greatly!

– I’d love for you to leave your thoughts on this question in the comment section 🦋