Well girls, how did you enjoy your first Psalm of the Summer? I purposely did not give you any direction, other than to ask that you read and meditate and live out what you were able to glean for yourself over these past three days. My whole intent was to allow you to sense where you are in relation to studying without direction or an outline of any sort. For some, the freedom of this can seem quite daunting, with questions like, "well, what am I supposed to do - just sit and read it? Then what?"
Today, before we actually look at this particular Psalm, I would like to share with you my own personal approach this week, in the hopes that perhaps it will deepen your time of study and meditation in the weeks to come. Although it is my express intent this summer not to study inductively beyond the basics of observation, interpretation and application - you will probably notice that some other aspects of inductive study will just naturally unfold into my time in God's Word.
The first thing that I did was to prepare a book bag with all that I will need - my Bible, a journal, pens, pencils, reading glasses (hey, age happens!), bottled water, and anything else that will allow me to have undisturbed time without jumping up because I don't have what I need. I will not always be reading or studying in the same place during the summer, so a book bag is easy to grab and put in the car or carry outside to study on the deck or under a shady tree.
With my book bag all prepared, next comes my own personal preparation. For those of you that were in my study last year what I am about to say next will be a refresher for you - for others, it may be brand new...it is regarding the way in which we approach God's Word...
We are to approach God's Word as God-breathed (2 Timothy 3:16-17)
Hebrews 4:12 tells us that God’s Word is alive... it is a living, active Word. Every time you open the Bible to read or study, it comes to you with a warm breath, fresh out of God's mouth, you will never be able to separate the Word of God from the mouth of God, ever. Don't ever think that what you read yesterday is old news...God's Word is fresh for you today sweetheart, believe it!
In Isaiah 55:10-11 and 2 Timothy 3:16-17 we can clearly see that God speaks an accomplishing Word over us. Every time you open your Bible, God is all about accomplishing something in you, accomplishing a good work in you - and by the way, He will (Philippians 1:6) be faithful to complete it! God is all about equipping us for today and for what lies ahead, so we are to approach God’s Word like no other book - having respect for the Bible whenever we open it, knowing that every time we do open it's cover, God's mouth is literally opening towards us, the mouth and voice of God Himself - it is your right, as a child of God, to be able to spiritually sense the warm, living and active, FRESH breath from God, each and every time you open His Word.
We are to approach God's Word with the Spirit's filling. The moment that we are born again, the moment we receive Jesus as our Lord and Savior - having acknowledged in humility through confession and repentance our sinful state and His death on the cross as payment for our sin - His Holy Spirit immediately takes up residency in us…literally the very Spirit of Christ…and we are then, at that moment indwelt by the Holy Spirit. God speaks to us by His Spirit and it is His Spirit that leads us into all truth. It is imperative then, when approaching God's Word, that we ask Him for the infilling of the Spirit to “open our eyes that we might behold wondrous things from His Word" (Psalm 119:18)...very often this is the missing link when we open the Word of God, and so it remains dry to us. God's Words are spiritually discerned - without the indwelling of the Holy Spirit any study of Scripture will simply be an intellectual pursuit...or worse, a complete and utter frustration.
Approach God's Word ready...when God talks, talk back! We need to not just read God’s Word…but actively respond to it! God is about relationship…not just scholarship - if you are completely lost in Deuteronomy or Leviticus, for heaven's sake tell Him and ask Him to give you understanding! Understanding then may come through your own further personal study of His Word or perhaps through your study group, your pastor or your teachers.
Or perhaps you are suddenly hit with a spirit of unbelief. Then tell Him (Mark 9:24) and ask Him to increase your faith! Sometimes, it is just a matter of not being able to stay awake during Bible reading or study, once again, tell Him! Talk to Him about what He is speaking to you...dialogue back with whatever it is that is upon your heart and mind...listen girls, God already knows our hearts and minds, but when we open our mouths to Him then we are actually living in a full on relationship with Him. Honestly, there have been times when I have raised my hand and "high fived" God, yelling out "Yes!" as I saw unfold in Scripture His magnificence and power and let's face it...just sheer Godness! Get active in your dialogue with God, after all, the God of the Universe is walkin' with us, and talkin' with us, and tellin' us that we are His own...do we really have nothing to say back to Him? Just wears me out thinking about it!
We are to approach God's Word as healing. Psalm 107:20a tells us that God "sent forth His Word and healed them". That is just about enough to cover this particular point...He sends forth His Word and healed them...period.
Think upon this...you and I are sanctified (set apart) by God’s Word (1 Timothy 4:5)
We are healed by God’s Word (Psalm 107)
God's Word is the Word of Life (1 John 1:1)
God’s Word is Living and active (Hebrews 4:12)
And as redundant as it sounds...God’s Word – is God’s Word, for heaven's sake!
His Word is everything. Read Revelation 19:13 and see that Jesus is "THE WORD OF GOD"! Some people say that they just want a Word from God...well, we've been given the Word, He is Jesus and Jesus is God (John 20:28) and He has Spoken! Have you ever wanted to hear God speak...read His Word! it has been literally God-breathed into existence for us. And here is the thing...John 8:31 tells us that those that continue in His Word prove to be His disciples. And that is exactly what you are doing over this summer girls, you are continuing in His Word and proving yourselves to be His precious disciples!
Now, onto Psalm 16!
Monday morning was my time to spend reading through this Psalm...over and over again. As I went through it verse by verse, writing in my journal, I began to notice that with every verse a question arose within me, I will not go through every verse and response in my journaling for that initial day, but I will share a few of them with you...by the way, these questions were not just written down and left, I then took these questions and presented them to God - the reason that it is so important to take these questions that arise in our hearts, directly to God, is that quite often we begin asking ourselves...and ourselves will usually rise up and take the opportunity to answer! What sorry counsel that has the potential of becoming and hugely dangerous to our souls! Ask these questions of God and let Him, by His Holy Spirit counsel you...what refreshment this brings to our thirsting souls!
Just a little note, don't ever assume anything when reading Scripture, if you think you know what it means, then check it out, back up your position from Scripture on why you think that way...a little time consuming, but well worth it!
v.1 I know that I belong to the Lord -but do I always take refuge in Him?; or have I begun to take refuge (comfort and security) in the things of this world? Is this "preservation" in this verse a one time thing that comes with salvation, or a continual "preserving"?
v. 3 Is all of my delight in the saints that are upon the earth?; do I truly consider them to be majestic?
v.5 All that I have, all of my days, the time that I live in, the body that I have are all given to me by God; do I truly view them as such?
v.7 The counsel of the Lord goes deep - instructing me even as I sleep; am I then blessing the Lord by truly walking in the counsel that He has given me?
v.8 Setting the Lord continually before me and acknowledging the reality of His continual presence at my right hand is my responsibility...do I actively engage my thoughts towards this reality and walk accordingly?
The following day, Tuesday, I again read through Psalm 16 in the morning, again in the afternoon and then later that evening. At each point during the day, I perhaps read it through 7 or 8 times - each time taking notes in my journal...what follows are brief excerpts from those notes...
v. 1 "Preserve me..." - do not let me have any movement outside of Christ; I've been born again; I am a new creature in Christ, let none of the old, only the new be an evident reality in me.
v. 2 Humility of the heart before God, posture of humility and yielding to Him and His will, ways and purposes...He is my Good.
v. 3 I do take delight in my sisters!; when those who claim the Name of Jesus bring dishonour to His Name Philippians 4: 8 it!; When I am disappointed or grieved by their actions or words Philippians 4:8 it!; take my delight in the saints who are on the earth!
v. 4 Daily awareness of those things which are idols; turn from them; point others to the One True God as I faithfully serve Him; do not speak or lift up false gods or idols, nor uphold those who pursue them.
v.5 The Lord Himself is my portion; He is my inheritance; He is also my cup (which, Psalm 23 tells me overflows!); He supports my lot, He is the One that holds all things concerning me.
v. 6 The boundary lines, the defining lines of my life and all that concerns me have fallen in pleasant places; there is a 'cease striving' in this reality; ask God to give me eyes to see the abundant provision of this; let my heritage be increasingly beautiful to me as I see it unfold throughout the pages of Scripture and in the reality of my own life.
v. 7 The Lord Himself Counsels me - astonishing! empowering!; this instruction and counsel is living and active in me, even instructing me in the night; it is my purpose to daily, moment by moment, bless the Lord in the living out before Him, and others, His wise and sufficient counsel.
v.8 Purposeful daily living, setting the Lord continually before me; being fully aware of the reality of His close presence, will assure my not being shaken.
v. 9 Because of this awareness and assurance, my heart is glad and my glory rejoices; my flesh also will dwell securely (for time and eternity)
v. 10 My soul will not be abandoned by God, nor will my body undergo permanent decay.
v. 11 God Himself will make known to me the path of life (Psalm 23 - the path of Life is the path of righteousness); live daily in His presence where there is fullness of joy; in God's right hand there are pleasure forever (contrast this with v. 4)
On Wednesday, I took those notes and began to do a deeper study. I meditated on the fact that God Himself is my cup which runneth over. I studied further what it means to have "my glory rejoice". I contrasted the sorrows that would be multiplied to those that follow after other gods with the fact that in God's presence there is fullness of joy and pleasures forever. I further pursued the reality of my inheritance being God Himself and my heritage in the faith. Now, this initial Week One Gathering Place post is different, in that I am simply showing you my own process in going through the Psalms and also in the fact that I am writing out simple notes from my journal. From now on, these posts will contain the FINAL results of my reading and study without showing the process!
You probably noticed that Psalm 16 is referred to in the Bible as a Mikhtam of David. Mikhtam in the original Hebrew means "gold or precious", 6 of the 150 Psalms are titled in this way. So we know that David wrote this particular Psalm and that it was considered to be as precious as gold.
There are many scholars that believe this Psalm is speaking of Jesus because of what they read in Acts 2:25-28 and Acts 13:35...however, these Scriptures only refer to Psalm 16:10 which is definitely pointing to Christ and we know this from the context of the verses in Acts.
Some believe that Psalm 16 is exclusively about David - however, that is completely contrary to what we have read in Acts.
Others say that Psalm 16 is applicable to David as a "type" or "foreshadowing" of Christ, but this cannot be the case since we know that David "saw corruption".
Some say that the first part of Psalm 16 is referring to David and the second part to Christ, but, there is no change in the subject of the first person "I or my" as we move through verse by verse; the one who is appealing to God for help in verse 1 is the same one who is rejoicing in verse 11!
Consider with me, if you will, that perhaps the "precious as gold" aspect of this Psalm is in part, due to the fact that it applies, in it's entirety, both to Christ and David - but also to us! Girls, we have just left the book of John, remember Jesus in the garden of Gethsemane? In view of the sufferings set before Him did He not call upon the Father to "preserve Him", yet not His will but the Father's be done? We learned that Jesus only and always did those things that were pleasing to the Father and only spoke those things that were the very words of the Father, so did He not "continually set the Lord God before" Him, did He not "bless the Lord God, Who counselled Him"? Are we not also to become more and more like Christ, being transformed into the image of the Son? Doing those things that Jesus did? These things that we read through Psalm 16 are indeed as precious as gold because they relate and speak to us as well as of David, through belief. We too, as co-heirs with Christ (Romans 8:16-17) will one day know the joy of being given glorified bodies, of not having our souls abandoned to Sheol! This is just about doin' me in...have you any idea the restraint I need to use in order not to begin teaching out of Romans and Hebrews right now...Lord, have mercy!
OK girls, I'll see you in Cathie's Cafe, through the comment link! I need to hear what you have gleaned throughout these past few days! The additional three days of Friday through Sunday are intended for us to dialogue with one another, learning and growing together and for meditating on all that we have learned through His precious Word!
Today, before we actually look at this particular Psalm, I would like to share with you my own personal approach this week, in the hopes that perhaps it will deepen your time of study and meditation in the weeks to come. Although it is my express intent this summer not to study inductively beyond the basics of observation, interpretation and application - you will probably notice that some other aspects of inductive study will just naturally unfold into my time in God's Word.
The first thing that I did was to prepare a book bag with all that I will need - my Bible, a journal, pens, pencils, reading glasses (hey, age happens!), bottled water, and anything else that will allow me to have undisturbed time without jumping up because I don't have what I need. I will not always be reading or studying in the same place during the summer, so a book bag is easy to grab and put in the car or carry outside to study on the deck or under a shady tree.With my book bag all prepared, next comes my own personal preparation. For those of you that were in my study last year what I am about to say next will be a refresher for you - for others, it may be brand new...it is regarding the way in which we approach God's Word...
We are to approach God's Word as God-breathed (2 Timothy 3:16-17)
Hebrews 4:12 tells us that God’s Word is alive... it is a living, active Word. Every time you open the Bible to read or study, it comes to you with a warm breath, fresh out of God's mouth, you will never be able to separate the Word of God from the mouth of God, ever. Don't ever think that what you read yesterday is old news...God's Word is fresh for you today sweetheart, believe it!
In Isaiah 55:10-11 and 2 Timothy 3:16-17 we can clearly see that God speaks an accomplishing Word over us. Every time you open your Bible, God is all about accomplishing something in you, accomplishing a good work in you - and by the way, He will (Philippians 1:6) be faithful to complete it! God is all about equipping us for today and for what lies ahead, so we are to approach God’s Word like no other book - having respect for the Bible whenever we open it, knowing that every time we do open it's cover, God's mouth is literally opening towards us, the mouth and voice of God Himself - it is your right, as a child of God, to be able to spiritually sense the warm, living and active, FRESH breath from God, each and every time you open His Word.
We are to approach God's Word with the Spirit's filling. The moment that we are born again, the moment we receive Jesus as our Lord and Savior - having acknowledged in humility through confession and repentance our sinful state and His death on the cross as payment for our sin - His Holy Spirit immediately takes up residency in us…literally the very Spirit of Christ…and we are then, at that moment indwelt by the Holy Spirit. God speaks to us by His Spirit and it is His Spirit that leads us into all truth. It is imperative then, when approaching God's Word, that we ask Him for the infilling of the Spirit to “open our eyes that we might behold wondrous things from His Word" (Psalm 119:18)...very often this is the missing link when we open the Word of God, and so it remains dry to us. God's Words are spiritually discerned - without the indwelling of the Holy Spirit any study of Scripture will simply be an intellectual pursuit...or worse, a complete and utter frustration.
Approach God's Word ready...when God talks, talk back! We need to not just read God’s Word…but actively respond to it! God is about relationship…not just scholarship - if you are completely lost in Deuteronomy or Leviticus, for heaven's sake tell Him and ask Him to give you understanding! Understanding then may come through your own further personal study of His Word or perhaps through your study group, your pastor or your teachers.
Or perhaps you are suddenly hit with a spirit of unbelief. Then tell Him (Mark 9:24) and ask Him to increase your faith! Sometimes, it is just a matter of not being able to stay awake during Bible reading or study, once again, tell Him! Talk to Him about what He is speaking to you...dialogue back with whatever it is that is upon your heart and mind...listen girls, God already knows our hearts and minds, but when we open our mouths to Him then we are actually living in a full on relationship with Him. Honestly, there have been times when I have raised my hand and "high fived" God, yelling out "Yes!" as I saw unfold in Scripture His magnificence and power and let's face it...just sheer Godness! Get active in your dialogue with God, after all, the God of the Universe is walkin' with us, and talkin' with us, and tellin' us that we are His own...do we really have nothing to say back to Him? Just wears me out thinking about it!
We are to approach God's Word as healing. Psalm 107:20a tells us that God "sent forth His Word and healed them". That is just about enough to cover this particular point...He sends forth His Word and healed them...period.
Think upon this...you and I are sanctified (set apart) by God’s Word (1 Timothy 4:5)
We are healed by God’s Word (Psalm 107)
God's Word is the Word of Life (1 John 1:1)
God’s Word is Living and active (Hebrews 4:12)
And as redundant as it sounds...God’s Word – is God’s Word, for heaven's sake!
His Word is everything. Read Revelation 19:13 and see that Jesus is "THE WORD OF GOD"! Some people say that they just want a Word from God...well, we've been given the Word, He is Jesus and Jesus is God (John 20:28) and He has Spoken! Have you ever wanted to hear God speak...read His Word! it has been literally God-breathed into existence for us. And here is the thing...John 8:31 tells us that those that continue in His Word prove to be His disciples. And that is exactly what you are doing over this summer girls, you are continuing in His Word and proving yourselves to be His precious disciples!
Now, onto Psalm 16!
Monday morning was my time to spend reading through this Psalm...over and over again. As I went through it verse by verse, writing in my journal, I began to notice that with every verse a question arose within me, I will not go through every verse and response in my journaling for that initial day, but I will share a few of them with you...by the way, these questions were not just written down and left, I then took these questions and presented them to God - the reason that it is so important to take these questions that arise in our hearts, directly to God, is that quite often we begin asking ourselves...and ourselves will usually rise up and take the opportunity to answer! What sorry counsel that has the potential of becoming and hugely dangerous to our souls! Ask these questions of God and let Him, by His Holy Spirit counsel you...what refreshment this brings to our thirsting souls!
Just a little note, don't ever assume anything when reading Scripture, if you think you know what it means, then check it out, back up your position from Scripture on why you think that way...a little time consuming, but well worth it!
v.1 I know that I belong to the Lord -but do I always take refuge in Him?; or have I begun to take refuge (comfort and security) in the things of this world? Is this "preservation" in this verse a one time thing that comes with salvation, or a continual "preserving"?
v. 3 Is all of my delight in the saints that are upon the earth?; do I truly consider them to be majestic?
v.5 All that I have, all of my days, the time that I live in, the body that I have are all given to me by God; do I truly view them as such?
v.7 The counsel of the Lord goes deep - instructing me even as I sleep; am I then blessing the Lord by truly walking in the counsel that He has given me?
v.8 Setting the Lord continually before me and acknowledging the reality of His continual presence at my right hand is my responsibility...do I actively engage my thoughts towards this reality and walk accordingly?
The following day, Tuesday, I again read through Psalm 16 in the morning, again in the afternoon and then later that evening. At each point during the day, I perhaps read it through 7 or 8 times - each time taking notes in my journal...what follows are brief excerpts from those notes...
v. 1 "Preserve me..." - do not let me have any movement outside of Christ; I've been born again; I am a new creature in Christ, let none of the old, only the new be an evident reality in me.
v. 2 Humility of the heart before God, posture of humility and yielding to Him and His will, ways and purposes...He is my Good.
v. 3 I do take delight in my sisters!; when those who claim the Name of Jesus bring dishonour to His Name Philippians 4: 8 it!; When I am disappointed or grieved by their actions or words Philippians 4:8 it!; take my delight in the saints who are on the earth!
v. 4 Daily awareness of those things which are idols; turn from them; point others to the One True God as I faithfully serve Him; do not speak or lift up false gods or idols, nor uphold those who pursue them.
v.5 The Lord Himself is my portion; He is my inheritance; He is also my cup (which, Psalm 23 tells me overflows!); He supports my lot, He is the One that holds all things concerning me.
v. 6 The boundary lines, the defining lines of my life and all that concerns me have fallen in pleasant places; there is a 'cease striving' in this reality; ask God to give me eyes to see the abundant provision of this; let my heritage be increasingly beautiful to me as I see it unfold throughout the pages of Scripture and in the reality of my own life.
v. 7 The Lord Himself Counsels me - astonishing! empowering!; this instruction and counsel is living and active in me, even instructing me in the night; it is my purpose to daily, moment by moment, bless the Lord in the living out before Him, and others, His wise and sufficient counsel.
v.8 Purposeful daily living, setting the Lord continually before me; being fully aware of the reality of His close presence, will assure my not being shaken.
v. 9 Because of this awareness and assurance, my heart is glad and my glory rejoices; my flesh also will dwell securely (for time and eternity)
v. 10 My soul will not be abandoned by God, nor will my body undergo permanent decay.
v. 11 God Himself will make known to me the path of life (Psalm 23 - the path of Life is the path of righteousness); live daily in His presence where there is fullness of joy; in God's right hand there are pleasure forever (contrast this with v. 4)
On Wednesday, I took those notes and began to do a deeper study. I meditated on the fact that God Himself is my cup which runneth over. I studied further what it means to have "my glory rejoice". I contrasted the sorrows that would be multiplied to those that follow after other gods with the fact that in God's presence there is fullness of joy and pleasures forever. I further pursued the reality of my inheritance being God Himself and my heritage in the faith. Now, this initial Week One Gathering Place post is different, in that I am simply showing you my own process in going through the Psalms and also in the fact that I am writing out simple notes from my journal. From now on, these posts will contain the FINAL results of my reading and study without showing the process!
You probably noticed that Psalm 16 is referred to in the Bible as a Mikhtam of David. Mikhtam in the original Hebrew means "gold or precious", 6 of the 150 Psalms are titled in this way. So we know that David wrote this particular Psalm and that it was considered to be as precious as gold.
There are many scholars that believe this Psalm is speaking of Jesus because of what they read in Acts 2:25-28 and Acts 13:35...however, these Scriptures only refer to Psalm 16:10 which is definitely pointing to Christ and we know this from the context of the verses in Acts.
Some believe that Psalm 16 is exclusively about David - however, that is completely contrary to what we have read in Acts.
Others say that Psalm 16 is applicable to David as a "type" or "foreshadowing" of Christ, but this cannot be the case since we know that David "saw corruption".
Some say that the first part of Psalm 16 is referring to David and the second part to Christ, but, there is no change in the subject of the first person "I or my" as we move through verse by verse; the one who is appealing to God for help in verse 1 is the same one who is rejoicing in verse 11!
Consider with me, if you will, that perhaps the "precious as gold" aspect of this Psalm is in part, due to the fact that it applies, in it's entirety, both to Christ and David - but also to us! Girls, we have just left the book of John, remember Jesus in the garden of Gethsemane? In view of the sufferings set before Him did He not call upon the Father to "preserve Him", yet not His will but the Father's be done? We learned that Jesus only and always did those things that were pleasing to the Father and only spoke those things that were the very words of the Father, so did He not "continually set the Lord God before" Him, did He not "bless the Lord God, Who counselled Him"? Are we not also to become more and more like Christ, being transformed into the image of the Son? Doing those things that Jesus did? These things that we read through Psalm 16 are indeed as precious as gold because they relate and speak to us as well as of David, through belief. We too, as co-heirs with Christ (Romans 8:16-17) will one day know the joy of being given glorified bodies, of not having our souls abandoned to Sheol! This is just about doin' me in...have you any idea the restraint I need to use in order not to begin teaching out of Romans and Hebrews right now...Lord, have mercy!
OK girls, I'll see you in Cathie's Cafe, through the comment link! I need to hear what you have gleaned throughout these past few days! The additional three days of Friday through Sunday are intended for us to dialogue with one another, learning and growing together and for meditating on all that we have learned through His precious Word!
9 comments:
I just thought that perhaps I would try and start off this discussion! I was so blessed in noting the personal references throughout Psalm 16. There are 28 personal references, 29 if you include "Your Holy One" in v. 10. The ones that really stood out to me though were the "my" references, because they carry with it the sense of acquisition and appropriation, giving the sense of ownership and stewardship. There are 13 "my" references, and not one of them are repeated! Each one being significant, I believe, in the believer's life. They are: my Lord, my delight, my lips, my inheritance, my cup, my lot, my heritage, my mind, my right hand, my heart, my glory, my flesh, my soul. Beside each one I wrote down the corresponding reference, for example for "my lips" it would be "free from idolatry" or for "my mind" it would be "instructed by the Lord's counsel". This Psalm has really settled peace deep within my soul this week and has been of significant refreshment to me. I am praying for each one of you girls, each morning throughout this summer, that you too would find refreshment in Him through His Word!
Hi Cathie - first time visiting. Will talk more later. Your blog is inspiring.
I have been reading Psalm 16 throughout the week as I have gone about daily activities. At first I read it through the eyes of David and then saw a verse where it seemed to mean Jesus, vs:10. I am not sure I totally understand the last part of vs:4. The best part came when I read it and took it in personally! To walk with Him and grow in His Word is to be able to say as in vs:8 I will not be shaken! With lifes difficult moments vs:9 my body will rest secure. Knowing I am HIS and vs:11 being in His presence,HE fills me with JOY! Jan shared with us that JOY that she had during our last Bible Study and I could have listened to her all morning. That is the beauty and the precious gem that we have in Psalm 16.
Hi girls! I just have a minute but thought that I would share this with you...I'll expound more on it later! Check out v. 5 and v.8 and note what the Lord is. Also, take a closer look at the mentions of intent that are scattered throughout this Psalm, like "I will" and "I take"...hope you are having an already blessed start to your day and you continue on in Psalm 16!
I am reluctant to take up time and space once more and I promise I won't take advantage again but I had an amazing experience today and would like to share it with you. I have a friend who is terminally ill and she called me to say she would like to speak with a pastor. I called my pastor and he immediately agreed to go see her with me. I read Psalm 16 before I left and mentioned it to my pastor. We had a special time with my friend and her husband. After my pastor had prayed with them he said "I think you should read Psalm 16 for us and so I did...with new eyes,for my friend, and God's breath just filled that room. Vs:11 says, You have made known to me the path of life, you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand. Psalm 16 really is more precious than gold. Thank you Cathie for starting us out with this one for it was the "perfect" one for my day today.
Angie, are you kidding me? That's what this space is for... TAKE IT UP SWEETHEART! Girls, this Summer in the Psalms will reach farther than just our hearts and souls, God's Word reaches out through us and ministers to others. Angie, thank you for sharing this with us, you have ministered to me just in the telling of it...may God continue to bless you as you minister to your dear and precious friend through the living and active Word of God.
Well, I am back to do a "little expounding" - just a little, I promise! A few comments back I had asked you to look a little closer at the mentions of "intent" that were scattered throughout Psalm 16. The bottomline here girls, is that we need to be purposeful women...living intentionally upon blessing the Lord and glorifying Him in all that we do, say, and in the musings of our hearts. The other thing was looking at Who God is. v. 5 is just huge to me...HE IS MY CUP! He is my Cup that runneth over in Psalm 23, He is my Cup of salvation (Psalm 116:13), He is my Cup of blessing in 1 Corinthians 10:16...just thought that I would share - this Psalm has really ministered to me this week, it is my prayer that it has done the same in you.
Hi Cathie, Finally got on to this with the help of Lorne. What a perfect Psalm to start us out with. It meant so much to me and did give me such a feeling of peacefulness and contentment. Vs 8 really meant a lot to me because I do worry about being able to be strong in my faith in times of difficulty. The main thought that came to me was how hard it is to put God first and to ask for His counsel in everything. I still tend to try to do things on my own and then ask God. I realize it would be so much easier to speak to God first and ask for his guidance but this will be a long learning process that I hope to conquer. I learned so
much with your help last week . I am at a much simpler level than you but I am taking in so much. Thanks and please keep it up for us.
PS. Psalm 19 is much harder for me and will take a lot of work - can't wait to see where it leads me!
Hi Debbie and Welcome! Thank Lorne for us, it is a delight to have you come and join us! I am so glad that this first Psalm of Summer was so meaningful to you - the effects of peace and contentment cannot be minimized! I agree with you sweetheart, when it comes to v. 8 - that is my "take away" verse from this Psalm. Setting the Lord continually before us is an attitude and intention of the heart, it is a daily spiritual discipline that God promises will result in a glad heart and a life that is full of the joy of bringing glory to God. Debbie, the last sentence of your comment sent me to my knees...sweetheart, as long as God enables me, I could do no less -
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