Category: Psalm

Psalm 103:20a Praise the Lord, you his angels,

We were made to praise. When I think about the amount of time that I spend being grumpy about so many inconsequential things, the simple fact that we were made to praise astounds and humbles me.

Psalm 103:20b you mighty ones who do his bidding, who obey his word.

I think I have gotten better at praising Him, but I’m definitely not there yet. But maybe that’s the point of this life? To draw closer to Him, to learn to praise Him?

Psalm 103:21 Praise the Lord, all his heavenly hosts, you his servants who do his will.

Precious Savior, Help me to get better and better at praising You. Help me to take to heart Psalm 150:6, “Let everything that has breath praise the Lord!” Thank You that there are so very many reasons to praise You. Always. Amen.

Psalm 103:22 Praise the Lord, all his works
everywhere in his dominion. Praise the Lord, my soul.

Have a blessed day.

Psalm 103:16 the wind blows over it and it is gone, and its place remembers it no more.

If there is one thing I hold on to with both hands, it is the fact that God will never leave us nor forsake us. Never. In the words of verse 17, “But from everlasting to everlasting the Lord’s love is with those who [honor, revere, respect] him….”

Psalm 103:17 But from everlasting to everlasting the Lord’s love is with those who fear him, and his righteousness with their children’s children—

From everlasting to everlasting. From beginning to end. God is with us. Strengthening us. Encouraging us. Holding us. Collecting our tears. Whispering to our hearts. We are His beloved children. He knows our hearts. He would never leave us to face difficulties alone. And while He doesn’t wave a magic wand to make everything ok, He never leaves us. He stays. He holds us. Always.

Psalm 103:18 with those who keep his covenant and remember to obey his precepts.

Precious Savior, Life can be so difficult. Thank You for the promise to never leave us, never forsake us. Thank You for keeping Your promises always. Help us to trust, even in the hard times, that You are there–holding us, loving us, whispering to our hearts. Amen.

Psalm 103:19 The Lord has established his throne in heaven, and his kingdom rules over all.

Have a blessed day.

Psalm 103:9 He will not always accuse, nor will he harbor his anger forever;

Today’s verses, specifically the word fear in verse 11, sent me on a hunt. I do not worship a God of fear, a God who strives to make His followers afraid. So what does verse 11 mean, “so great is his love for those who fear him”?

Psalm 103:10 he does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities.

A quick search reveals the synonyms honor, revere, respect. One source even said that to fear the Lord means to give Him your undivided attention. Those definitions I can get behind. Fear in the traditional sense I cannot. God is not a bully. He doesn’t wield power in order to make others afraid. That’s not who He is.

Psalm 103:11 For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him;

Precious Savior, Thank You that I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that You are not a God of fear. Thank You that it is easy to give You honor, glory, respect. Thank You that You love me so much that You do not treat me as my sins deserve but instead fling my sins as far away from me as the east is from the west. Help me to treat others with Your grace, compassion, and love. Amen.

Psalm 103:12 as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us.

Have a blessed day.

Psalm 103:5 …who satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.

Verse 8 really stands out to me in today’s scripture. “Compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love,” what a beautiful description of the Lord. What a beautiful description of anybody. I would like to be more like that. At my best, I hit many of those traits, but, unfortunately, I’m not always at my best.

Psalm 103:6 The Lord works righteousness and justice for all the oppressed.

If I had to pick one thing to focus on, to work on, to get better about, I think it would be being slow to anger. I shared not long ago a valuable lesson about my spouse I have learned over the years–If something seems out of character, then I’m probably misinterpreting what happened (or why). That realization helped ease my knee-jerk anger reaction with my spouse, but I still have the anger reaction in a lot of areas in my life. That’s definitely something I need to work on.

Psalm 103:7 He made known his ways to Moses, his deeds to the people of Israel:

Precious Savior, Thank You for a beautiful description of You to emulate. Help me to be more like You: “compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love.” Let love, not anger, be my default reaction. Help me to be more like You with each breath, so that when others look at me, they see You shining through. Amen.

Psalm 103:8 The Lord is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love.

Have a blessed day.

Psalm 103:1 Praise the Lord, my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name.

Since I mentioned Psalm 103 *and* I reached the end of Micah 7 in yesterday’s reflection, I thought I’d focus on the whole of Psalm 103 as my next chapter to reflect on in my daily devotionals. I’ve mentioned that I love the Psalms because they are so real, they can be so raw and honest. Psalm 103 is absolutely a Psalm of praise.

Psalm 103:2 Praise the Lord, my soul, and forget not all his benefits—

There are times when I can get rather grumpy. In those times, especially, I would do well to remember Psalm 103. God is bigger than my feelings, than my grumpiness. And He has been so incredibly gracious to me. If I look–and I truly don’t have to look far, I see so many blessings to thank Him for, no matter my headspace.

Psalm 103:3 …who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases…

Precious Savior, Thank You for understanding when I am grumpy. Thank You for the abundant blessings in my life, regardless of my attitude. Help me, even in my grumpiness, to see Your abundant grace, to praise You for Your mercy and blessings, to take all those blessings to heart, especially when I want to grump. Thank You, Jesus. Amen.

Psalm 103:4 …who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion…

Have a blessed day.

Psalm 71:21 You will increase my honor and comfort me once more.

One of my favorite stories to tell is how I ended up in Taylorsville and how I met my husband for the first time. Those two stories are intertwined and are definitely God-stories, specific times when I know God was guiding me. (I would never have ended up in Taylorsville otherwise, and the second words I ever said to my husband of over two decades were: “I’ve been looking for you!”)  I love those stories because they are fundamental to who I am in this moment, but I love more the fact that they are ways for me to share how God has moved in my life.

Psalm 71:22 I will praise you with the harp for your faithfulness, my God; I will sing praise to you with the lyre, Holy One of Israel.

That–sharing our God-stories, stories of how God has moved in our lives–is exactly what David, the author of this Psalm, is talking about in today’s verses: “I will praise you…” “I will sing praise to you…” “My lips will shout for joy when I sing praise to you…” “My tongue will tell of your righteous acts…”

Psalm 71:23 My lips will shout for joy when I sing praise to you—I whom you have delivered.

Precious Savior, Thank You for the reminder that sharing our God-stories with each other is important. It’s important so that we can remember Your faithfulness, so that we can encourage each other, because praising You is one of the reasons we were created. Help us to revel in our God-stories and to share them often as a form of worship and praise. Amen.

Psalm 71:24 My tongue will tell of your righteous acts all day long, for those who wanted to harm me have been put to shame and confusion.

Have a blessed day.

Psalm 71:17 Since my youth, God, you have taught me, and to this day I declare your marvelous deeds.

I take exception to verse 20. While God will let us live with the consequences of our actions, everything is filtered through Him, and sometimes life just stinks, I do not believe that God sends trouble as a punishment. Again, I *do* think He very routinely lets us live with the negative consequences of our actions.

Psalm 71:18 Even when I am old and gray, do not forsake me, my God, till I declare your power to the next generation, your mighty acts to all who are to come.

I just cannot believe in a vengeful God. A God who would send His one and only Son to earth to live as a human and die for my sins is not a God who would point the finger of judgment, sending plagues upon the earth. Humans make a big enough mess on our own. Natural consequences are a real thing. Sometimes others get hurt because of the natural consequences of *my* choices, but that’s not God. That’s humanity.

Psalm 71:19 Your righteousness, God, reaches to the heavens, you who have done great things. Who is like you, God?

Precious Savior, Thank You for Your Son, Jesus. Thank You for the change in our relationship that happened when You sent Your Son for my sins. Forgive me when I make bad decisions. Forgive me when my bad decisions result in pain and suffering for others. Help me to grow closer to You with each breath. Amen.

Psalm 71:20 Though you have made me see troubles, many and bitter, you will restore my life again; from the depths of the earth you will again bring me up.

Have a blessed day.

Psalm 71:13 May my accusers perish in shame; may those who want to harm me be covered with scorn and disgrace.

Verse 14 is a personal favorite of mine and one I try to hold on to and live out daily. Hope is a beautiful gift. Praising God for all the blessings in my life helps give me hope when times are tough and having hope allows me to praise God more and more.

Psalm 71:14 As for me, I will always have hope; I will praise you more and more.

When I was younger, I used to get into what I called a “blue funk” where everything just seemed wrong. It’s a tough spot. To combat it, I eventually started counting my blessings. Literally. It always, always helped my perspective. Even when things are not great, there are still so very many blessings. Praising God for them, focusing on them, gives me hope.

Psalm 71:15 My mouth will tell of your righteous deeds, of your saving acts all day long—though I know not how to relate them all.

Precious Savior, Thank You for the reminder to hold on to hope, the reminder that praising You, thanking You, helps me to be grateful and hopeful. Thank You that even when life seems bleak, there are so many things to be thankful for. Thank You. Amen.

Psalm 71:16 I will come and proclaim your mighty acts, Sovereign Lord; I will proclaim your righteous deeds, yours alone.

Have a blessed day.