Psalm 33

Praise to the Creator and Preserver.

1^(A)Sing for joy in the LORD, O you righteous ones;
Praise is ^(B)becoming to the upright.
2Give thanks to the LORD with the ^(C)lyre;
Sing praises to Him with a ^(D)harp of ten strings.
3Sing to Him a ^(E)new song;
Play skillfully with ^(F)a shout of joy.
4For the word of the LORD ^(G)is upright,
And all His work is done ^(H)in faithfulness.
5He ^(I)loves righteousness and justice;
The ^(J)earth is full of the lovingkindness of the LORD.
6By the ^(K)word of the LORD the heavens were made,
And ^(L)by the breath of His mouth ^(M)all their host.
7He gathers the ^(N)waters of the sea together as a heap;
He lays up the deeps in storehouses.
8Let ^(O)all the earth fear the LORD;
Let all the inhabitants of the world ^(P)stand in awe of Him.
9For ^(Q)He spoke, and it was done;
He commanded, and it stood fast.
10The LORD ^(R)nullifies the counsel of the nations;
He frustrates the plans of the peoples.
11The ^(S)counsel of the LORD stands forever,
The ^(T)plans of His heart from generation to generation.
12Blessed is the ^(U)nation whose God is the LORD,
The people whom He has ^(V)chosen for His own inheritance.
13The LORD ^(W)looks from heaven;
He ^(X)sees all the sons of men;
14From ^(Y)His dwelling place He looks out
On all the inhabitants of the earth,
15He who ^(Z)fashions the hearts of them all,
He who ^(AA)understands all their works.
16^(AB)The king is not saved by a mighty army;
A warrior is not delivered by great strength.
17A ^(AC)horse is a false hope for victory;
Nor does it deliver anyone by its great strength.
18Behold, ^(AD)the eye of the LORD is on those who fear Him,
On those who ^(AE)hope for His lovingkindness,
19To ^(AF)deliver their soul from death
And to keep them alive ^(AG)in famine.
20Our soul ^(AH)waits for the LORD;
He is our ^(AI)help and our shield.
21For our ^(AJ)heart rejoices in Him,
Because we trust in His holy name.
22Let Your lovingkindness, O LORD, be upon us,
According as we have hoped in You.

im in the clicc lab at powell right now and its pretty dark outside. i was sitting outside the steps earlier eating oranges and was looking at royce hall, it was so beautiful, and thought, wow...im lucky to be here at UCLA. then i wondered if i ever really stand in awe of God. this psalm is titled praise to the creator and the preserver. lately, i've been struggling alot trying to do my spiritual life on my own, if that makes any sense at all. i've been trying to be perfect through a series of deeds, as if i could find more favor in God through rituals like we've been reading the books of Moses. i keep remembering CJ mahaney's sermons about grace. and what the Bible says about grace. that it was God's grace that saved me in the first place and it will be God's grace the brings me home. im scared of the future i guess, im scared of failing and amounting to nothing, at least on worldly terms. but what a great opportunity to trust in God s'more and examine my heart and really trust him with my future, and one way is not despairing in the present. who by worrying can add a single hour to his life? im amazed at the psalmist's hope in God, and complete trust in God. you can tell that he knows that without God, he would be nothing, and would not even exist. Ashley talked about joy in her last post, and i trully desire for joy to overflow in my heart. but im still stuck in my shortminded ways. looking to whats next, instead of looking to eternity. what does it mean to find joy in ever station? how is that accomplished, because i know putting my hope in meaningless things, brings meaningless results, and even if i get the thing i so desired, the joy is gone, and the desire for something new arises. Finding joy in Christ is the only way! go figure! finding joy in everything station in the Lord. that way, Paul learned to be content in anything situation, with much and with little, because he could do all things through Him who strengthened him. im tired of the things i put my joy in and put my hope in, up til now, they have all failed me. only Christ hasn't failed. and he hasn't failed since the beginning and promised not to till the end.

What peace and joy is found in Christ.
Oh that we would realize it.