Psalm 107

One of the themes of this Psalm, obviously is thankfulness. 5 times we see this verse: Let them give thanks to the LORD for his unfailing love
and his wonderful deeds for men.

But there are also other times that the author encourages us to express our thankfulness. This Psalm encourages the people to remember the times that God has rescued or saved them, the times that God has fed them when they were hungry, and given them drink when they were thirsty.

One of the reasons people started praying before meals was because it was an opportunity to remind us to give thanks to God for the gifts of food we had been given....but how manyt imes do we just go through the ropes of saying a blessing, without really being thankful for what we've been given. How many other times a day do we give thanks for our gifts, and remember the times that God has seen us through a dessert?

How many times do we share those memories with others? The PSalmist is not only reminding us to give thanks to God, but to share that thankfulness with those around us so that they too can be reminded of God's faithfulness.

The Psalm ends with these words: "Whoever is wise, let him heed these things
and consider the great love of the LORD."

The Wise person gives thanks to God. The Wise persons looks back, and remembers that God has been faithful in all things, and will continue to be faithful no matter what we may think our future is.

Thanks be to God. Amen.

Psalm 19

It is the last verse of this Psalm that has stuck with my heart this week:
May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart
be pleasing in your sight,
O LORD, my Rock and my Redeemer.

I know you've probably noticed that i use these words a lot when I pray before preaching. I think it's such a beautiful prayer; we should all desire that the things that come out of our mouths, and the things that we meditate on in our hearts are things that are focused on and pleasing to the Holy One.

If we're honest with ourselves, we know that's not always the case....most of us think about things we shouldn't, and let things slip out of our mouths that are hurtful, mean-spirited, and ungodly.

But what would the world look like if we came to such a place of perfection that even MOST of what we said was loving and pleasing to God and MOST of what we thought about were ways we could love our neighbor, do justice, and were not focused on ourselves? What a beautiful world that would be. That's why I pray this....so that the Holy Spirit might work in me in such a way that I notice when i'm not saying things that are pleasing to God, and help me to change that.

What verse(s) did you get "stuck" on this week?

Psalm 22

Our Psalm this week was 22; it is the Psalm that Christ recites part of when he's crucified crying out, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" If you read this same Psalm in the Message, a contemporary version of the Bible, it reads,
"God, God...my God! Why did you dump me
miles from nowhere?
Doubled up with pain, I call to God
all the day long. No answer. Nothing.
I keep at it all night, tossing and turning."

I can understand the Psalmist feeling this way. Aren't there times when all of us feel like God has dumped us in the middle of nowhere and left us? I'm sure there are lots of people who are feeling that now-people without jobs, with no good out-look in the future, trying to make do with what they have while taking care of families. People who've lost loved ones, who feel like life will never be the same and don't understand why these things have happened.

Are there times when you've felt like this?

The Psalmist also reminds us however, that while we might feel like God has left us.....we're wrong. God has been there all along. Something changes halfway through this Psalm....some revelation by God, some reminder of God's presence that changes the mood of the Psalm from one of self-pity and whineyness to one of worship and gratitude.

The truth is God is big enough to take all of that......the anger, the disappointment, and the gratitude.

What do you think?!