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Psalm 35-38<\/strong><\/span> Per the NIV Study Bible, Psalm 35 today is an appeal to the heavenly King, as divine Warrior and Judge, to come to the defense of his servant David who is being maliciously slandered by those toward whom he had shown only the most tender friendship.\u00a0 I like verse 10 a lot: \u201cI will praise him from the bottom of my heart: \u201cLORD, who can compare with you? Who else rescues the weak and helpless from the strong? Who else protects the poor and needy from those who want to rob them?\u201d\u201d <\/em>Have you recently praised God from the bottom of your heart?\u00a0 Do you think that anyone\/anything compares with God?\u00a0 Do you believe that God has rescued you and protected you?\u00a0 Perhaps many times when you have not even realized it?\u00a0 I think about this on occasion.\u00a0 It is my hunch that God literally rescues us and protects us dozens if not hundreds if not thousands of times each and every day.\u00a0 And I think we typically miss it\u2026.\u00a0 If we knew it, I am sure we would be praising Him from the bottom of our heart very frequently!<\/span><\/p>\n Psalm 35 verses 22 & 23 are two very impassioned verses that I think we should take note of: \u201cO LORD, you know all about this. Do not stay silent. Don\u2019t abandon me now, O Lord. Wake up! Rise to my defense! Take up my case, my God and my Lord.\u201d <\/em>I think what these verses do is remind me that we don\u2019t have to always speak to God in \u201chushed\u201d tones or in our \u201cchurch voices\u201d.\u00a0 We can interact with God at any moment as we really are.\u00a0 I don\u2019t think we should try to hide our emotions from God.\u00a0 We should come before God at any time \u2013 as we are \u2013 and let Him take us from there\u2026\u00a0 and heal us from there\u2026\u00a0 When is the last time you literally cried out to God?<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n I love Psalm 36 today!\u00a0 There are some powerful verses in this Psalm\u2026\u00a0 Starting off with verse 1 being a scary & true verse\u2026\u00a0 \u201cSin whispers to the wicked, deep within their hearts. They have no fear of God to restrain them.\u201d<\/em>\u00a0 Wow.\u00a0 \u00a0I\u2019ll admit \u2013 I\u2019ve been there.\u00a0 I know what it is like to have sin whispering deep within my heart.\u00a0 Thank God for the gift of Jesus \u2013 the savior of my world\u2026\u00a0 Thank God for the gift of the fear of God.\u00a0 And thank God for the gift of the Holy Spirit who directs us along the narrow path \u2013 the path of life and light.\u00a0 I pray that verse 1 does not ring too true for you today \u2013 but if it does, please pray to Jesus to instead fill your heart with Jesus\u2019 Spirit, which is the only power that can truly dispel the whisper of sin within.<\/span><\/p>\n Psalm 39, verses 5 & 6 reminded me immediately of the Third Day song \u201cYour Love Oh Lord\u201d, which borrows nicely from these verses. \u201cYour unfailing love, O LORD, is as vast as the heavens; your faithfulness reaches beyond the clouds. Your righteousness is like the mighty mountains, your justice like the ocean depths.\u201d<\/em> I believe Third Day won the Grammy for their CD \u201cWire\u201d.\u00a0 Great CD.\u00a0 Thanks to TD for their ministry!\u00a0 <\/span><\/p>\n Psalm 36:9 just has so much simplicity in it\u2019s truth\u2026 I love it\u2026\u00a0 I hope you believe this too\u00a0 \u2013 \u201cFor you are the fountain of life, the light by which we see.\u201d<\/em>\u00a0 Are there really any other lights by which we may see?\u00a0 Are there really any other fountains of life?\u00a0 <\/span><\/p>\n Today we read Psalm 37, which is most definitely a Wisdom Psalm! It\u2019s like we are reading Proverbs! I love verse 5: \u201cCommit everything you do to the LORD. Trust him, and he will help you.\u201d<\/em> Do you commit everything you do to God? EVERYTHING? Your waking life? Your sleeping life? Your job? Your relationships? Your family? Your finances? Your time? If so, do you trust that God will help you in everything you do in your life? Do you believe what verse 4 teaches? \u201cTake delight in the LORD, and he will give you your heart\u2019s desires.\u201d<\/em> I love that thought \u2013 take delight in God. Do you take delight in God each and every day? Do you believe that he will give you your heart\u2019s desires?\u00a0 And for Psalm 37 verse 6 we have this lovely image below to meditate upon:<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Psalm 37 verse 16 is powerful today \u2013 \u201cIt is better to be godly and have little than to be evil and possess much.\u201d<\/em>\u00a0 I don\u2019t know what I can add to this\u2026. I think you probably get it.\u00a0 \ud83d\ude42\u00a0 Do you live it?\u00a0 Verse 23 is so amazing\u2026 \u201cThe steps of the godly are directed by the LORD. He delights in every detail of their lives.\u201d<\/em>\u00a0 I don\u2019t mean to infer that I am godly here\u2026 but, I will admit that there are times in my life where I really sense that God is directing my steps \u2013 and taking care of every detail.\u00a0 And basically, it feels like I am sort of just going with God\u2019s flow.\u00a0 Things are just happening beautifully.\u00a0 And I do sense the Spirit often during these times.\u00a0 My sadness in this area is that I don\u2019t realize that God is directing my steps all of the time.\u00a0 And that he is delighting in every detail of my life \u2013 most of the time\u2026\u00a0 \ud83d\ude42\u00a0 I pray you and I will come to a greater awareness of this in our lives each and every moment: \u201cThe steps of the godly are directed by the LORD. He delights in every detail of their lives.\u201d<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n Psalm 37 verses 30 & 31 read like amazing Proverbs: \u201cThe godly offer good counsel; they know what is right from wrong. They fill their hearts with God\u2019s law, so they will never slip from his path.\u201d<\/em>\u00a0 Are you filling your heart with God\u2019s teachings?\u00a0 Are you doing this so that you will never slip from His path?\u00a0 Are you offering good counsel to those around you?\u00a0 When others around you see you, do they see someone that clearly knows what is right from wrong?\u00a0 Below is a little Right & Wrong sign humor for you \ud83d\ude42 \u2013 <\/span><\/p>\n Psalm 38 is powerful.\u00a0 Verses 4 & 5 speak so much to our human condition \u2013 \u201cMy guilt overwhelms me\u2013it is a burden too heavy to bear. My wounds fester and stink because of my foolish sins.\u201d<\/em>\u00a0 Does this verse speak to you in any way, shape or form?\u00a0 \u00a0If so, please consider then verse 18 \u2013 \u201cBut I confess my sins; I am deeply sorry for what I have done.\u201d<\/em> Will you confess your sins to God today?\u00a0 Will you admit that you are truly sorry for your sins?\u00a0 Will you pray for healing from your sins?\u00a0 Will you make confession of your sins to God a regular practice?<\/span><\/p>\n Worship Video: <\/strong>Based on my reflection above in Psalm 36 about \u201cYour Love, Oh Lord\u201d by Third Day, here\u2019s a live version below. Enjoy!<\/span><\/p>\n \n
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