This is a GREAT Psalm. There are so many "nuggets" that one can take from this Psalm. I love the imagery that David gives. Just little things like him saying, "Your awe-inspiring deeds will be on every tongue; I will proclaim your greatness!" So many times I've read that and passed right over it, never thinking about it. What David is saying here is, though everyone on earth will recognize God's greatness, he will be the one to shout it out, regardless of who else does or not. That's the way David was. He never concerned himself with what others were doing. He only focused on how he was worshiping. I'm not saying that we don't need to focus on other people. We do! Cause we're in charge of leading them. But we CANNOT worry about them until we are centered ourselves. Which goes back to last week's post and the question: How are we doing in preparing ourselves before we take that podium on sundays? I think we need to really investigate our boy, David. We could all learn a lot about worship from him. What are some other things that stand out to you in this Psalm? I'll give you one more for me. Verse 18. "The Lord is close to all who call on him, yes, to all who call on him in truth." The key words here are the last two! How many people call on the Lord when they need Him? Just about everyone. How many of them call on Him in truth? What does that even mean to you? What are your thoughts?
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I know one that has always stuck out to me is Verse 2- "I will praise you every day, yes I will praise you forever". This is such a wonderful responsibility that we have all been given, but I know that although I think of Him every day and pray every day, I need to do a better job at praising Him to the point that He knows that my praise for Him is everlasting. I think often people get so busy in their lives that they put other things first, and He is often an afterthought who is only addressed after you lay your head down on a pillow to go to sleep. This brings me to the next verse, verse 3- "Great is the Lord. He is most worthy of praise. No one can measure His greatness". When we get caught up in our busy lives, like I spoke of earlier, I think we forget that noone can measure His greatness. He is the reason we accomplish what we do. He is the reason we have the gifts and talents that we have. He provides for us in a way that nothing else can. We put whatever other things that are important in our lives at the time, first, and for selfish reasons we praise him second. We have to keep Him alive all week long and make sure he can feel our praises, whether it is Sunday, or Tuesday. We have been blessed with the honor of praising Him through our talents, and although it's a huge responsibility, it is not a chore, and we should never treat it as such. I promise to do a better job at praising Him more, both publicly with my voice, and when alone in silence. It is my commitment to you all, and to Him.
ReplyDeleteThese scriptures move me to take an inventory of myself. "They speak of the lord's greatness, power, love, all that he is, and that his followers will proclaim this truth." Am I one of those that will speak the truth? Do I truly understand and respect all that he is and know that he is most worthy? Do others see his greatness through me? Do I set an example and inspire others to sing praises? Do I meditate upon him everyday in everything I do and give him praise? Practically all these ( do I's ) I fall short on. But I can say he is working on me everyday that I may not fall so often. I also know this is true with others on our team. "We must stay in his word!"
ReplyDeleteVerse 6: Let each generation tell its children of your mighty acts; let them proclaim your power.
ReplyDeleteSimple: we should be taking our kids to church and teaching them about Him. I think a lot of parents think that it's old fashioned to "push" your kids to God. They think, "Let them make their own decisions. They'll find Him eventually." But then it may be too late!
Amy, great insight! (Danny and Molly Too!) but, Amy you hit on a key element of our culture right now. More and more we hear about changes made in schools that take responsibility out of the hands of the teachers and the parents in order for our kids to decide for themselves. At what point did we forget that we have been assigned, by God, to raise our kids to know Him and His ways? The scriptures tell us to raise a child in the ways of the Lord and when he grows older, he shall not stray. I truly believe this. It is why I try to spend time with Cason, telling him about God, praying with him, teaching him how to make decisions that would please God. But I don't just teach him that stuff and leave it at that. I also tell him WHY! It's important for our kids to know why we want them to learn to pray, or to make decisions that honor God. Let's not forget that we will be held accountable for the way they turn out as adults. Their choices are a direct reflection of how we raised them. And if we never showed them God's ways, I get the feeling that we're going to be in major trouble! We may get put in a time out that lasts for a looooooong time!
ReplyDeleteWhat sticks out to me most is verse 5 "I will meditate on your majestic glorious splendor and you wonderful miracles." I find sometimes that I get caught up in the "don't have" and forget how truly blessed I am. I have to make myself take a mental inventory of all my blessings which makes the problem at hand seem so small and insignificant. Its when I remember where Ive been and where He has brought me that I can just let go. The last line also stuck me "The Lord always keeps his promises; He is gracious in all He does"...that's one to cling to but I have to remember to add that its in HIS TIME...not mine and be patient and refer to verse 5 and meditate!!
ReplyDeleteWhat if we all wrote our own Psalm? I feel like this is David just pouring out his heart, and it is so simple and yet profound. So much stands out to me, but I want to take a stab at my own outpouring in the same way David has done:
ReplyDelete"Praise the Lord, for the surroundings you have placed me in. Your glory is evident in Mt.Juliet.
Praise the Lord in my home, for my wife and son are are reflections of you. Bless my family for we desire to share your love so that your light is carried throughout the world.
Praise the Lord in this church. Your spirit abounds and is moving through the hearts of this body. Stir our lives and build our courage in this town, in this city, in this state.
You are faithful, God, to your followers and you are so very worthy of all of our adoration, worhip, and praise.
Grant us peace, and guide us in your ways, for you alone are worthy."
Verses 7 and 10-13 speak of how one day the universe and everything in it, all of God's creation, will one day all join in worship of Him. This is encouraging, especially when we feel like no one seems to care about God anymore. As hard as our days on earth may be, as sinful as the world may seem, we can always have hope in the day when we will join with all of creation in worship of the One who made us all.
ReplyDelete"I will meditate on Your majestic, glorious splendor and Your wonderful miracles."
ReplyDeleteMeditation requires reflection, to think and be still. So many times I'm in the moment and think how great everything is going, God and I are so close, and then I mess up. And instead of pausing to reflect, I get down on myself. Instead of thanking God for His majestic splendor, I'm thinking how I should just not even try anymore. Instead of realizing the amazing miracles God has done in my life and others lives, I down God by saying He isn't good enough to pick up this rough rock and turn it into a diamond.
I get out of touch with God when I don't pause to meditate and reflect on the good works He's done. And trust me, He has done so many, that if I tried to think of everything He has done, I wouldn't have time to do anything else!
Philip, good thought. I was maintaining a prayer/praise journal of sorts for a while and unfortunately fell out of the habit, but looking back I found psalms of sorts that I had written. I want to be able to praise God wholeheartedly every day when I rise - forsaking ill thoughts, bad temperament and selfishness to truly embrace the power and majesty of my Creator. It is always good to hear of God's kindness and unfailing love because, while I know these to be distinguishing characteristics of our God, I find myself thinking God is waiting to punish me when I mess up. I want to embrace the love of God and give Him my whole heart, praising Him always.
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