Psalm 1

I thought I'd give a try at putting the Psalms into my own words. The Psalms is the book that helps me the most in life. I believe God understands our feelings and our day to day life when I read them.

Psalm 1

It feels so good inside not to listen to the wicked or hang around with them. I love to think about the good things God has done and what he has told us to do.

It is like being a tree planted by a stream. It is always watered, like the Holy Spirit waters me. He enables me to grow fruit so I can bring joy to others.

This isn't true of wicked people. They do worthless things that will be blown away forever. They will be judged for what they do that hurts other people.

For God watches over the path of the ones who love Him.
But the path of the wicked leads to destruction.

God Our Home.

Two of my granddaughters, aged 16 and 18, were visiting yesterday. The eldest is graduating high school this year and has to find a job or go to college. She's not too excited about that. The girls were talking about the toys they played with when they were small and how much fun they had. My oldest granddaughter said, "I wish life was easy like it was back then."

I know what she means. If you have a loving home, good friends and like school, then having to find a job and go out into the big world can be daunting. She is such a sensitive, sweet girl and the world can be harsh. But she'll still be living at home while she works or goes to college and I'm sure she will do well.

For me, God is like a loving home I can go to when life is harsh. I can run to him and feel safe.

"The LORD is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer; my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold." Psalm 18:2

"For my father and my mother have forsaken me, but the LORD will take me in." Psalm 27:10

"In My Father's house are many dwelling places; if it were not so, I would have told you; for I go to prepare a place for you. When everything is ready, I will come and get you, so that you will always be with me where I am." John 14:2,3

Counseling.

I went to see a counselor today for my depression and was overjoyed to find out she was a Christian too. God has worked things out for me this way many times. At different times in my life I have needed some counseling. More often than not my therapists have been Christians who easily understood my references to God.

We talked about writing in a daily journal. She said the reason this helps people so much is that our minds become too full of feelings and thoughts and if we don't talk about these different feelings with someone we can feel overwhelmed. She said that after you write each day you then throw the paper away and not read it again. This is so you don't emphasize those feelings to yourself over again.

So, I will be doing this and see how it works. I used to write my prayers down each day because I found it so hard to concentrate. I don't need to do that any longer and I will move on to writing about my feelings and thoughts, and will probably address them to God. It is wonderful how God uses different people to help you in your life and I thank and praise him for this.

In the Bible, Moses received counsel from his father-in-law and it helped him. God can use other people to help you and me also.

Moses' father-in-law replied, "What you are doing is not good. You and these people who come to you will only wear yourselves out. The work is too heavy for you; you cannot handle it alone. 

Listen now to me and I will give you some advice, and may God be with you. You must be the people's representative before God and bring their disputes to him. Teach them his decrees and instructions, and show them the way they are to live and how they are to behave.

 But select capable men from all the people--men who fear God, trustworthy men who hate dishonest gain--and appoint them as officials over thousands, hundreds, fifties and tens. Have them serve as judges for the people at all times, but have them bring every difficult case to you; the simple cases they can decide themselves. That will make your load lighter, because they will share it with you. If you do this and God so commands, you will be able to stand the strain, and all these people will go home satisfied." Moses listened to his father-in-law and did everything he said.  Exodus 18:24

From Birth to Death.

"Listen to me, descendants of Jacob, all you who remain in Israel. I have cared for you since you were born. Yes, I carried you before you were born. 

Even to your old age and gray hairs I am he, I am he who will sustain you. I have made you and I will carry you; I will sustain you and I will save you.   Isaiah 46:4,5

I read this verse yesterday and found it so comforting. I am in my old age with gray hairs now. I have walked with God since I was 19 yrs. old. Still, I do believe God had me in his hands from the day I was born. The first verse says he carried me before I was born.

I love the description of what God will do for us through our lives; he made us, he cares for us, he carries us, he sustains us and finally he save us. What a description of our God! Sometimes we don't see this with literal eyes. We suffer and wonder why. But these things must be seen with spiritual eyes, for God is speaking of something deep and eternal. He is speaking of our inner life where he will lift us up above the things of this world.

From cradle to grave, our God is with us. He will give us strength to live this life if we ask him.  He will give us comfort if we pray to him. He will give us eternal life if we believe in him.

Rain in the Wilderness.

"The poor and needy search for water, but there is none; their tongues are parched with thirst. But I the LORD will answer them; I, the God of Israel, will not forsake them. I will make rivers flow on barren heights, and springs within the valleys. I will turn the desert into pools of water, and the parched ground into springs. I will plant trees in the barren desert--cedar, acacia, myrtle, olive, cypress, fir, and pine."
Isaiah 41:17-20

One of the themes in the Old Testament is God turning the desert into a garden full of streams and pools of water. This is symbolic of what he will do with our lives for without him we are barren, lonely and dead while we still live.

Perhaps we feel that even with him we are not yet a garden but sometimes still feel barren. These are just feelings and we can never rely on feelings. This promise is not just for now but for eternity, where we will live with God in heaven. He will make up for us all the suffering we had in this world. He will turn our desert into a garden.

"See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland."  Isaiah 43:19

"You heavens above, rain down my righteousness; let the clouds shower it down. Let the earth open wide, let salvation spring up, let righteousness flourish with it; I, the LORD, have created it." Isaiah 45:8

Headline News.

I read yesterday about a mother in Iran. A man had murdered her son and was to be hanged. In Iran, the family of the deceased can take part in the death sentence. Instead of kicking the chair out beneath him, this woman took the noose off of his neck. This made the headlines in the newspapers.

Forgiveness like this is so rare it makes front-page news. Forgiveness like this is what God does every day, but when people do it in this world it is a shocking thing.

Remember Rodney King, who was beaten almost to death by police which sparked the Watts riots? What I remember best about the riots is the forgiveness shown by two men.

'King said he had forgiven everyone involved in the incident."God has forgiven many people on this Earth. Not only that, but people have forgiven me over the years ... so why wouldn't I forgive them? I would have to forgive them, because I wouldn't want to go to bed with all that anger every day, being mad about something that you have no control over," he continued."

Reginald Denny, who was pulled out of his truck and beaten during the riots also forgave his attackers.

Although Denny was targeted because he is white, he said focusing on race in thinking about the riots is foolish and shortsighted.

“People seem to forget it was black folks that saved my life,” Denny said. “On one hand, there were some out there to try to kill me or do me in. On the other hand, they are trying to save me because I’m not the enemy, and believe me I am not the enemy.”  At the time of the interview 10 years ago, Denny had long since forgiven the men who assaulted him. 

It is hard to find forgiveness when we hurt someone's feelings; it is hard to forgive when someone hurts us. Yet, when we realize the great beauty of forgiveness and how good it feels to forgive and be forgiven, it becomes easy. God is full of forgiveness, and we can be too if we ask him for that gift.

God Understands.

"Things come up every day. What a blessed thing it is to have the Master at hand, to hand them over to him as they come up and say, "Lord, here is another piece of your territory; govern it; I don't know anything about it." But there is the business.

I don't know myself, but God knows me, understands all the complex relationships of my life, knows how matter affects mind, and physical and mental and spiritual are blended in one in the high ideal of humanity."

written by Henry Drummond

This is something that gives me comfort, that I believe God knows me better than I know myself. He knows what I need in every situation. Whatever comes my way, he will hold my hand and walk me through it.

"For I am the LORD your God who takes hold of your right hand and says to you, Do not fear; I will help you."  Isaiah 41:13

"For I am the LORD your God who takes hold of your right hand and says to you, Do not fear; I will help you. You search out my path and my lying down and are acquainted with all my ways. Even before a word is on my tongue, behold, O LORD, you know it altogether. You go before me and follow me. You place your hand of blessing on my head. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too lofty for me to attain."
Psalm 139:2-6