Last day of my “31 days of psalms” - whoo-hoo! It’s a lot easier keeping my own personal journal of my Psalms readings, as opposed to writing out my thoughts here. I’ve been trying to eliminate Christian jargon from my vocabulary when talking about Psalms - and it’s a lot harder than I expected. Anyway, here are my thoughts from the 16 verses I’ve read over the past two days…

I have more insight than all my teachers,
for I meditate on your statutes.

I have more understanding than the elders,
for I obey your precepts. (Psalm 119:99-100)

These verses remind us that being “spiritual” does not mean simply having an extensive knowledge of God’s teachings. The poet talks about knowing more than his teachers and elders because he MEDITATES and OBEYS God’s teachings - those words indicate that he does more than just memorize words for the sake of recitation and memorization. He internalizes the words, mulls them over, soaks in them, and then - most importantly - lives them out. *That* is what God wants.

Happy new year’s eve everyone! May you ring in 2010 with a relaxing, fun, memorable, and safe evening! Assuming the rain doesn’t pour down, Matt and I are heading downtown to watch the fireworks at the Space Needle. Crowds, cold weather, maybe some rain - oh what fun!

If your law had not been my delight,
I would have perished in my affliction. (Psalm 119:92)

I like how this doesn’t say that if God’s law had not been his delight, he would have been afflicted. Instead, it says that if God’s law had not been his delight, he would have PERISHED in his affliction. So it’s not a matter of not experiencing suffering or challenges if you obey God. It’s not like that at all, no matter what some preachers say. And it’s not about people undergoing hardships as a direct consequence of not obeying God.

It’s saying that staying focused on God and what He tells us is best for us is the best way to have the right attitude when going through afflictions. Otherwise, it would be too easy to focus on the wrong things - perhaps things that will only be a quick fix or not even a fix at all.

Tough words to live by:

I have sought your face with all my heart (Psalm 119:58)…Though the arrogant have smeared me with lies, I keep your precepts with all my heart (vs. 69)…The law from your mouth is more precious to me than thousands of pieces of silver and gold (vs. 72)

Selfishness, self-righteousness, and pride make it really hard for me to live by these words. To live how God would want us to live would mean a life of trust, joy, confidence, wisdom, and patience. Unfortunately, it’s too easy, and too much of a habit, for me to take control and want to do what would make me happy, even if it isn’t what is best for myself.

My favorite verse from this bunch:

In the night I remember your name, O LORD, and I will keep your law. (vs. 55).

The nighttime is hard for me, especially when I lay down to sleep and my mind is flooded with things. Sometimes it’s just a to-do list, but sometimes I start to worry about certain things. As such, this verse resonates with me and reminds me to remember that God instructs me not to be anxious, to not be angry, to not be judgmental. And when I am left only to my thoughts at night, I need that reminder.

This verse reminds me of an earlier Psalm that I really liked - Psalm 42:8 which says, “By day the Lord directs his love, at night his song is with me…” His SONG is with me, like a parent singing his child to sleep with a lullaby. I love it!

(BTW, these photos have nothing to do with what I’m writing…I’m just posting random Christmas shots we’ve been taking around the house. ;) )

P.S. For those of you who have ornaments dating back to elementary school, you’ll appreciate this article.

From verses 17-48, this is the one that jumps out at me:

My soul is weary with sorrow; strengthen me according to your word. (Psalm 119:28)

I like the idea of being strengthened according to God’s word. Anyone can find temporary strength and comfort in things like food, a happy distraction, or the company of friends. But I believe that true comfort from sorrow comes from God - it goes deeper than any of the other things I listed. It’s not bad for you (like junk food), it’s not temporary (like the distraction), and it’s always there (unlike friends who still have their own separate lives).

In my old-school Student Bible, there’s a note about chapter 119 that was insightful:

Psalm 119 is a long, passionate love poem about God’s law. How do you fall in love with law? Most people admit that rules are necessary, and appreciate them grudgingly. But no one writes love poems to the federal drug abuse statutes.

The word translated “law” doesn’t merely mean rules. It expresses the totality of God’s written instructions. The poet sees life full of uncertainties, of enemies, of pain. But God has given a reliable guide for living - like pavement underfoot after you have been stuck in mud. Obeying God’s law, to the psalmist, is no slavery - rather it is freedom. “I run in the path of your commands, for you have set my heart free” (verse 32).

God’s laws channel God’s love into the poet’s life. They protect him from doing wrong, give him wisdom to understand his situation. They make new life flow into him. No wonder he writes with such thankfulness. In God’s word he finds more than direction. He finds God himself.

I’m on Psalm 119 - the longest chapter in the Bible. There’s no way I’m reading this in a day, so I’ll just break it up.

A few years ago, I memorized this verse:

I seek you with all my heart; do not let me stray from your commands.I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you. (Psalm 119:10-11)

Back then when I memorized the verse, I was on ICQ all the time, so I thought of “ICQ” (sounds like “I seek you”) to trigger the beginning of the verse. heheh…

Anyway, I really liked those verses because I got comfort out of the idea of hiding God’s word in my heart. Not for the sake of reciting mantras to keep myself pure, but rather words of wisdom to help me in my daily life. I feel like there are verses to run through your head for almost any situation. They could be verses of encouragement (like to be strong and courageous), verses of guidance and advice in relationships (like to be slow to speak), or verses of comfort (like God being our shepherd and how he makes us - figuratively - lie down in green pastures).

I could think of an example of how having verses memorized and in the forefront of my mind helped me out. About a year and half ago, Matt and I were in a difficult situation, in which I was constantly bothered by the behavior of some people we knew. The behavior wasn’t directed at us, but it did affect us - and I was having an extremely difficult time just letting things go. I thought more about why I was so bothered…why did it irritate me so much, when it wasn’t even personal? “I wouldn’t do things that way,” I would tell myself. “I can’t believe they do that- they’re so irresponsible!!”

I then realized that by having those thoughts, I was basically thinking that I was better than them - that my way of doing things was better than theirs. And I looked down on them for not doing things the “right” way. Somehow, I kept running into verses that talked about not looking down on others, not thinking that I’m better than others, and not judging other people. Ouch. So I surrounded myself with those verses, and tried to bombard myself with them so that I’d have a better attitude toward these people.

Did it work? Well, not always. But every time I saw those verses, I’d renew my vow to be better at it.

It is better to take refuge in the LORD
than to trust in man. (Psalm 118:8)

Even when I know that people will disappoint me - that I will disappoint myself even - why do I still put so much stock on others? Better to put trust in someone that is unwavering and omnipotent than those around who us who make mistakes, hurt us, disappoint us, or have selfish motives. Wish it were as simple as it sounds…

It’s the weekend…whoo-hoo!!! Can’t wait to get some good sleep…I hope.

I liked this verse from chapter 116:

The LORD protects the simplehearted; when I was in great need, he saved me. (Psalms 116:6)

I believe that God protects the simple hearted, but also those who are more complex (if that’s the right way to describe the opposite), but this sentence made me think a little more. When I think about the simple hearted, I immediately think of all the people I read about every day at work - people who live in thatched huts who run around barefoot and play with soccer balls made of plastic bags. I also think of communities I’ve visited where “houses” are really structures made of cardboard and other debris, but children who play outside have huge grins on their faces and are always eager to hold your hand.

I think these are the people who might be more aware of the spiritual - that there’s something else out there. There’s less of a focus on wealth, material possessions, and power - less reliance on self. And maybe that means these people are giving less thought to selfish things, and have more capability to have a greater understanding and realization of some Supreme Being. I don’t know. Just a guess. Goes back to the same idea of children being innocent and trusting because they have not grown to be cynical and selfish.

Wow, chapter 117 is really short - and nothing really new.

I was a little confused as to why I had one less day of Psalms, but then I realized that when we flew to Hong Kong, we lost a day. When we go back tomorrow, we would have gained that time back - whoo-hoo!

In the meantime, here are my thoughts on Psalms 112-113:

He will have no fear of bad news; his heart is steadfast, trusting in the LORD. (Psalm 112:7)

This verse - so not me. I’m one of those people who thinks the worst when the phone rings late at night or early in the morning. I fear bad news…and I fear events to come that aren’t even remotely close to occurring. It would be great to be able to say that my heart steadfastly trusts in God, and no matter what, I never have to feel anxious or fearful. I think it shows that I try too hard to be in control of everything…

Who is like the LORD our God, the One who sits enthroned on high, who stoops down to look on the heavens and the earth? (Psalm 113:5-6)

I’m don’t think I like this verse that much. When I think of God, I don’t think of Him stooping down to look at us. I picture Him being right next to me all the time, closer than anyone can ever get. I definitely don’t picture Him as an unreachable being who just looks down on us from a high and mighty throne.

The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom; all who follow his precepts have good understanding. (Psalms 111:10)

I think one of the most common complaints about Christianity is that there are too many rules to follow. It’s too restrictive and people can’t have fun. I think that statement can be true, depending on which church you attend. But there is some truth to that - that there are guidelines. However, I think most of those “guidelines” - or more like life instructions - are justifiably wise, and many people (Christian or not) can agree that they are good to follow.

I don’t believe that these life instructions are meant to put a damper on our life. I believe they’re all for our own good, even when it doesn’t seem like it. And it’s no different than instructions that we get from our parents. Some teenagers might want to stay out late with friends into the wee hours, but parents know that it isn’t good for a bunch of 15-year-olds to be out on the streets at 3 a.m. To the teens, their parents are keeping them from having fun. But the parents really are watching out for their kids’ own safety and well-being.