271st Week, Psalm Chapters 117-119 (Click on Picture for Video Introduction)

 

Click on Picture for Video Intro

Monday Psalm Chapter 117

Psalm 117

Verse 1

Matt Strayer

Verse 1:  Praise the Lord, all you nations; extol him, all you peoples.

THOUGHT

I’m not sure why, but the first thing that came to mind when I read this was that many times in the Old Testament God’s chosen people did the exact opposite of what the above verse says to do. My friend Josh and I are currently in the Book of Hosea, and today I just read a verse that I think applies perfectly.

Hosea 13:4-6 says, “But I am the Lord our God, Who brought you out of Egypt. You shall acknowledge no God but me, no Savoir except me. I cared for you in the desert, in the land of burning heat. When I fed them, they were satisfied; when they were satisfied, they became proud; then they forgot me.”

I guess I bring this up to help each of us in our great country. We must be on our guard in the U.S. not to follow this same path. We are blessed with so many things that it is very easy to forget God. It is very easy to worship other idols. All of you are aware of these pitfalls, but let’s try to encourage others around us to praise and thank God as well. It all starts with small changes from a lot of people to change a nation.

Hosea goes on to give more great advice.

Hosea 14:9 says “Who is wise? He will realize these things. Who is discerning? He will understand them. The ways of the Lord are right; the righteous walk in them, but the rebellious stumble in them.”

Finally, we know that if we do stumble, God is there for us. He concludes this Psalm once again with his love.

Psalm 117:2 says, “For great is his love toward us, and the faithfulness of the Lord endures forever. Praise the Lord.”

PRAYER

Dear God, help each one of us to encourage ourselves as well as others to praise and extol God. We love You.  AMEN

Tuesday, Psalm Chapter 118

Psalm 118

Verse 6

Kristin Strayer

Verse 6:  The Lord is with me; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me? 

THOUGHT

I do not like it when Matt is away overnight. My mind tends to be very imaginative as to what might happen, probably due to watching too many detective-type shows. In those times, this verse has been a comfort to me. It has reminded me to trust God and give my fear over to Him. He is my ultimate protector.

PRAYER

God, thank You for the safety You have provided for all of us. I am sure there are many times we are completely unaware of how You prevented something bad from happening, and we praise You for it! AMEN

Wednesday, Psalm 119 (Verses 1-64)

Psalm 119

Verses 11

Delores Little

Verse 11:  I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against You.

THOUGHT

I will pick out some words that came out to me while reading these verses today.  We are to do these things as we walk and talk with our Lord.  This Psalm starts out with the word “BLESSED are they whose ways are blameless.”  We have to walk according to His ways. Next, “SEEK Him with all their hearts.”  We are to OBEY His decrees.  “PRAISE Him with an upright heart.”  “HIDE His Word in our hearts.”   To do this we have to be in The Word daily and know what it says and what we are to do. 

We are to REJOICE in following His ways and DELIGHT in His decrees and not to NEGLECT His word.  We are to ask Him to TEACH us His Word, and His Holy Spirit will do it for us if we only ask.  Like Matthew 7-8 says,  “Ask, and it will be given to you; Seek and you will find; Knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.”

He will give us UNDERSTANDING of His teachings. We are to MEDITATE on His Word. His Word will STRENGTHEN us daily.  “I have chosen the way of truth; I have set my heart on Your laws.”  Jesus fulfilled the law, and He is our Truth, Way and Life. (John 14:6) He will DIRECT us in His commands and TURN our HEARTS to His ways and our EYES away from worthless things. He will PRESERVE our life according to His word and fulfill His PROMISES to us all.

Verse 40:  How I long for your precepts!  Preserve my life in Your righteousness.  In 2 Corinthians 5:21 it says, “God made Him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God.” Only through Christ can we be right before God.  I thank Him daily for what He has done for us sinners and open His door for us to come in to Him by faith and grace of Jesus Christ.  Praise be to the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

PRAYER

Father, forgive us as we fall short of Your ways daily.  Thank You that we can come before You every day of our lives.  Be with all of us this week and show us Your truth as we read Your Word daily.  In Jesus Name.  AMEN

Thursday, Psalm Chapter 119 (Verses 65-120)

Psalm 119

Delores Little

May 14, 2008

THOUGHT

This is a good reading for anyone who goes through hardships or sickness in their lifetime.

Verse 73 says, “Your hands made me and formed me; give me understanding to learn your commands.”  Psalm 139:13-16 speaks of God creating us.  In the first chapter of Jeremiah it says, “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born¡ I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.”

We may not be a prophet but we are Moms and Dads and children of God to be used by Him.  Verses 73-96 speak of the many times that David called out to God for help.  He is in affliction, and he is reminding God of His Word to us and how he is trying to follow what God’s Word says.

Don’t we do the same in our lives? When things get rough or tough, we do the same. BUT all at once we see what we should focus on.  Verses 97-112 say it for us. Focus on His Word and Meditate on it all day long. By doing so we will understand and will obey. Verse 103 says, “How sweet are Your Words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth!”  Verse 105 states, “Your Word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path.” How true those words are to us even today.

Verse 107 informs us, “I have suffered much; preserve my life, O Lord, according to Your Word.”   In the next few verses we see him Praising God.  He has Joy and wants to set his heart on keeping God’s decrees to the very end.

I send cards to people in our church.  If I didn’t have the Word of God daily, the struggles of illness and grief that the people are going through would really disturb me.  Yes, I have wept over many of them and pray very hard for them. I so desire they know our Father, Jesus and Holy Spirit first of all and that He will never leave or forsake them.  He is always there even when we don’t feel or think so.  Glory be to our God above.  What a wonderful Father, Savior, and Teacher we have.  

WE ARE SO BLESSED EVERY DAY OF OUR LIVES.  LET US NEVER FORGET IT.

PRAYER

Father, forgive us when we take our eyes off You.  Let us keep our focus on You every day and moment of our lives.  Use us, Lord, for Your work.  AMEN

Friday, Psalm Chapter 119 (Verses 121-176)

Psalm 119E

Delores Little

THOUGHT

I read in a devotion today these words, “The conversion of a soul is the miracle of a moment; the growth of a saint is the work of a lifetime.”

Verse 145 says, “I call with all my heart; answer me, O Lord, and I will obey Your decrees.”  All the rest of this Psalm is calling out to God knowing of the HOPE IN HIS WORD.  We call out to Him in suffering and ask Him to defend our cause and to redeem us and preserve our lives according to His Promise. It speaks of Salvation, Compassion, and Rejoicing.  As spoken in verse 164, “Seven times a day I praise Your righteous laws.”  How many times do we praise Him during the day?  None, once, or seven times???  Seven is better. Like Psalm 150:6 says, “Let everything that has breath PRAISE THE LORD. PRAISE THE LORD.”

I have believed for years that Praise breaks the yoke off of us. The devil does not want us to Praise and Thank God in anything. Phil 4:4-7 says, “Rejoice in the Lord always, I will say it again. Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” 

I Thessalonians 5:16-18 states, “Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”

Verse 116 reads, “I wait for Your salvation, O Lord and follow Your commands.”  We believers don’t wait for His salvation for He has given it to us by His loving grace through Jesus. Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, they so longed for this back then, but it is ours now and theirs also when they accept our Lord Jesus Christ.  We indeed have much to Praise God for and Thank Him every day of our lives.

PRAYER

Heavenly Father, we do Thank and Praise You for being with us every day.  Lead us more and more into the truth of Your Word and let us share it with others daily one way or another in word, thought or deed.  In Jesus Name. AMEN