1 My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Far from my deliverance are the words of my groaning. 2 O my God, I cry by day, but You do not answer; and by night, but I have no rest. 3 Yet You are holy, O You who are enthroned upon the praises of Israel. 4 In You our fathers trusted; they trusted and You delivered them. 5 To You they cried out and were delivered; in You they trusted and were not disappointed. 6 But I am a worm and not a man, a reproach of men and despised by the people. 7All who see me sneer at me; they separate with the lip, they wag the head saying 8"Commit yourself to the Lord; let Him deliver him let Him rescue him, because He delights in him."
9 Yet You are He who brought me forth from the womb; You made me trust when upon my mother's breasts. 10 Upon You I was cast from birth; You have been my God from my mother's womb.
11 Be not far from me, for trouble is near; for there is none to help. 12 Many bulls have surrounded me; strong bulls of Bashan have encircled me. 13 They open wide their mouth at me, as a ravening and a roaring lion. 14 I am poured out like water, and all my bones are out of joint; my heart is like wax; it is melted within me. 15 My strength is dried up like a potsherd, and my tongue cleaves to my jaws; and You lay me in the dust of death. 16 For dogs have surrounded me; a band of evildoers has encompassed me; they pierced my hands and my feet. 17 I can count all my bones. They look, they stare at me; 18 they divide my garments among them, and for my clothing they cast lots.
19 But You, O Lord, be not far off; O You my help, hasten to my assisstance. 20 Deliver my soul from the sword, my only life from the power of the dog. 21 Save me from the lion's mouth; from the horns of the wild oxenYou answer me.
22 I will tell of Your name to my bretheren; in the midst of the assembly I will praise You. 23 You who frea the Lord, praise Him; All you descendants of Jacob, glorify Him, and stand in awe of Him all you descendants of Israel. 24 For He has not despised nor abhorred the affliction of the afflicted; Nor has He hidden His face from him; But when he cried to Him for help, He heard. 25 From You comes my praise in the great assembly; I shall pay my vows before those who fear Him. 26 The afflicted will eat and be satisfied; those who seek Him will praise the Lord. Let your heart live forever! 27 All the ends of the earth will remember and turn to the Lord, and all the families of the nations will worship before You. 28 For the kingdom is the Lord's and He rules over the nations. 29 All the prosperous of the earth will eat and worship, all who go down to the dust will bow before Him, even he who cannot keep his soul alive. 30 Posterity will serve Him; it will be told of the Lord to the coming generation. 31 They will come and will declare His righteousness to a people who will be born that He has performed it.
This is a really encouraging passage, David starts out asking God why He has left him, and why He does not help him in his time of need, but in verse 3 David declares that the Lord is still holy. Through all the anguish and turmoil and despair David still clings to what he knows and what he has experienced in the past, that God is holy. He then goes on to say that his fathers trusted in Him and they were not disappointed. How great is it to know that the God David's fathers trusted is the God that still serves us and the God that will not disappoint us! David humbles himself and says that he is not favored by men, but God favored and protected him from birth. FROM BIRTH God loves us, I have done nothing to deserve this kind of love and grace, yet I build myself up thinking that I know so much and do things so much better than everybody else that they all should be like me. I have so much to learn. I realized today that I will be spending eternity with people at my church and people at GOC, so I should spend as much time as I can with my unsaved family members and share with them, because we have ETERNITY guys, rejoice.
Sunday, January 7, 2007
Saturday, January 6, 2007
Psalm 21
Psalm 21
1O LORD, in Your strength the king will be glad,
And in Your salvation how greatly he will rejoice!
2You have given him his heart's desire,
And You have not withheld the request of his lips. Selah.
3For You meet him with the blessings of good things;
You set a crown of fine gold on his head.
4He asked life of You,
You gave it to him,
Length of days forever and ever.
5His glory is great through Your salvation,
Splendor and majesty You place upon him.
6For You make him most blessed forever;
You make him joyful with gladness in Your presence.
7For the king trusts in the LORD,
And through the lovingkindness of the Most High he will not be shaken.
8Your hand will find out all your enemies;
Your right hand will find out those who hate you.
9You will make them as a fiery oven in the time of your anger;
The LORD will swallow them up in His wrath,
And fire will devour them.
10Their offspring You will destroy from the earth,
And their descendants from among the sons of men.
11Though they intended evil against You
And devised a plot,
They will not succeed.
12For You will make them turn their back;
You will aim with Your bowstrings at their faces.
13Be exalted, O LORD, in Your strength;
We will sing and praise Your power.
1O LORD, in Your strength the king will be glad,
And in Your salvation how greatly he will rejoice!
2You have given him his heart's desire,
And You have not withheld the request of his lips. Selah.
3For You meet him with the blessings of good things;
You set a crown of fine gold on his head.
4He asked life of You,
You gave it to him,
Length of days forever and ever.
5His glory is great through Your salvation,
Splendor and majesty You place upon him.
6For You make him most blessed forever;
You make him joyful with gladness in Your presence.
7For the king trusts in the LORD,
And through the lovingkindness of the Most High he will not be shaken.
8Your hand will find out all your enemies;
Your right hand will find out those who hate you.
9You will make them as a fiery oven in the time of your anger;
The LORD will swallow them up in His wrath,
And fire will devour them.
10Their offspring You will destroy from the earth,
And their descendants from among the sons of men.
11Though they intended evil against You
And devised a plot,
They will not succeed.
12For You will make them turn their back;
You will aim with Your bowstrings at their faces.
13Be exalted, O LORD, in Your strength;
We will sing and praise Your power.
heard from two of you today about rides. the past couple of days went by really fast. can't believe that in two days school starts up again. sad that some of you haven't been posting, but i know that my time in the Word hasn't been that consistent. sometimes i gorge and sometimes i starve, but never feed and enjoy constantly.
i realize that reading the Word requires a lot of thinking. i do a lot of thinking in general, especially when it comes to observing people, but when it comes to the Word...i turn off my brain for a large part of the time...as if just by dragging my eyes over these words that somehow i will magically absorb what is in them. how we will communicate in heaven? sometimes i feel like the words that we use are so limited. strength, salvation, glory, splendor, majesty, lovingkindness, exalted, praise. i'm familiar with these words but when it comes to the truth of God...i'm lost. one thing i do know is that these all belong to God. i have still been thinking about what it means to live in joy of the gospel and salvation. but maybe i should start wrestling.
for the last day that you are with your families...rejoice in the lives that you have been given. this break opened my eyes to the wonderful, God-given blessing i have in my family. there are a lot of other blessings that i have also becoming aware to again. even in seeing more deep-rooted sin in my life...what a blessing that is. that God would never leave us to drown in such hopeless, terminal despair. all that we see around us belongs to Him. that we would long to see the one whom all this belongs to. and say with David "we will sing and praise Your power." not just tonight but always. what foolish, helpless people are we. how great our God.
i realize that reading the Word requires a lot of thinking. i do a lot of thinking in general, especially when it comes to observing people, but when it comes to the Word...i turn off my brain for a large part of the time...as if just by dragging my eyes over these words that somehow i will magically absorb what is in them. how we will communicate in heaven? sometimes i feel like the words that we use are so limited. strength, salvation, glory, splendor, majesty, lovingkindness, exalted, praise. i'm familiar with these words but when it comes to the truth of God...i'm lost. one thing i do know is that these all belong to God. i have still been thinking about what it means to live in joy of the gospel and salvation. but maybe i should start wrestling.
for the last day that you are with your families...rejoice in the lives that you have been given. this break opened my eyes to the wonderful, God-given blessing i have in my family. there are a lot of other blessings that i have also becoming aware to again. even in seeing more deep-rooted sin in my life...what a blessing that is. that God would never leave us to drown in such hopeless, terminal despair. all that we see around us belongs to Him. that we would long to see the one whom all this belongs to. and say with David "we will sing and praise Your power." not just tonight but always. what foolish, helpless people are we. how great our God.
Psalm 19 [updated]
The (A)heavens are telling of the glory of God;
And their (B)expanse is declaring the work of His hands.
2Day to (C)day pours forth speech,
And (D)night to night reveals knowledge.
3There is no speech, nor are there words;
Their voice is not heard.
4Their [a](E)line has gone out through all the earth,
And their utterances to the end of the world
In them He has (F)placed a tent for the sun,
5Which is as a bridegroom coming out of his chamber;
It rejoices as a strong man to run his course.
6Its (G)rising is from one end of the heavens,
And its circuit to the other end of them;
And there is nothing hidden from its heat.
7(H)The law of the LORD is [b](I)perfect, (J)restoring the soul;
The testimony of the LORD is (K)sure, making (L)wise the simple.
8The precepts of the LORD are (M)right, (N)rejoicing the heart;
The commandment of the LORD is (O)pure, (P)enlightening the eyes.
9The fear of the LORD is clean, enduring forever;
The judgments of the LORD are (Q)true; they are (R)righteous altogether.
10They are more desirable than (S)gold, yes, than much fine gold;
(T)Sweeter also than honey and the drippings of the honeycomb.
11Moreover, by them (U)Your servant is warned;
In keeping them there is great (V)reward.
12Who can (W)discern his errors? (X)Acquit me of (Y)hidden faults.
13Also keep back Your servant (Z)from presumptuous sins;
Let them not (AA)rule over me;
Then I will be [c](AB)blameless,
And I shall be acquitted of (AC)great transgression.
14Let the words of my mouth and (AD)the meditation of my heart
Be acceptable in Your sight,
O LORD, (AE)my rock and my (AF)Redeemer.
Hey! Here’s the answer! Straight from the bible. The question why did God
make the universe so big? There seemed to be no reason for it. And of course the answer is for his glory (as is everything). But specifically here it says, “The (A)heavens are telling of the glory of God; And their (B)expanse is declaring the work of His hands. 2Day to (C)day pours forth speech, And (D)night to night reveals knowledge. 3There is no speech, nor are there words; Their voice is not heard.” How cool is that? Simply in their wondrous mind boggling beauty they declare the glory of God. And I also really like how the Lord is like an all-healing medicine cream. I can almost imagine it in an infomercial-who could resist something that is perfect, enlightening, clean, true, righteous, sweeter than honey, more desirable than gold. I imagine it would have the most alluring fragrance and would just glow. You know? The bible is kinda like God’s infomercial. Its his way of telling the world how wonderful he is. The bible is even the most printed, best selling book of all kind. But what is the use of buying the advertisement but not the prize? Not only do you obtain this absolutely amazing God but all your transgressions are forgotten! May the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart grow to be worthy of so great a prize.
- Sarah Kang
And their (B)expanse is declaring the work of His hands.
2Day to (C)day pours forth speech,
And (D)night to night reveals knowledge.
3There is no speech, nor are there words;
Their voice is not heard.
4Their [a](E)line has gone out through all the earth,
And their utterances to the end of the world
In them He has (F)placed a tent for the sun,
5Which is as a bridegroom coming out of his chamber;
It rejoices as a strong man to run his course.
6Its (G)rising is from one end of the heavens,
And its circuit to the other end of them;
And there is nothing hidden from its heat.
7(H)The law of the LORD is [b](I)perfect, (J)restoring the soul;
The testimony of the LORD is (K)sure, making (L)wise the simple.
8The precepts of the LORD are (M)right, (N)rejoicing the heart;
The commandment of the LORD is (O)pure, (P)enlightening the eyes.
9The fear of the LORD is clean, enduring forever;
The judgments of the LORD are (Q)true; they are (R)righteous altogether.
10They are more desirable than (S)gold, yes, than much fine gold;
(T)Sweeter also than honey and the drippings of the honeycomb.
11Moreover, by them (U)Your servant is warned;
In keeping them there is great (V)reward.
12Who can (W)discern his errors? (X)Acquit me of (Y)hidden faults.
13Also keep back Your servant (Z)from presumptuous sins;
Let them not (AA)rule over me;
Then I will be [c](AB)blameless,
And I shall be acquitted of (AC)great transgression.
14Let the words of my mouth and (AD)the meditation of my heart
Be acceptable in Your sight,
O LORD, (AE)my rock and my (AF)Redeemer.
Hey! Here’s the answer! Straight from the bible. The question why did God
make the universe so big? There seemed to be no reason for it. And of course the answer is for his glory (as is everything). But specifically here it says, “The (A)heavens are telling of the glory of God; And their (B)expanse is declaring the work of His hands. 2Day to (C)day pours forth speech, And (D)night to night reveals knowledge. 3There is no speech, nor are there words; Their voice is not heard.” How cool is that? Simply in their wondrous mind boggling beauty they declare the glory of God. And I also really like how the Lord is like an all-healing medicine cream. I can almost imagine it in an infomercial-who could resist something that is perfect, enlightening, clean, true, righteous, sweeter than honey, more desirable than gold. I imagine it would have the most alluring fragrance and would just glow. You know? The bible is kinda like God’s infomercial. Its his way of telling the world how wonderful he is. The bible is even the most printed, best selling book of all kind. But what is the use of buying the advertisement but not the prize? Not only do you obtain this absolutely amazing God but all your transgressions are forgotten! May the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart grow to be worthy of so great a prize.
- Sarah Kang
Wednesday, January 3, 2007
Psalm 18
"I love You, O LORD, (A)my strength."
2The LORD is (B)my rock and (C)my fortress and my (D)deliverer,
My God, my rock, in whom I take refuge;
My (E)shield and the (F)horn of my salvation, my (G)stronghold.
3I call upon the LORD, who is (H)worthy to be praised,
And I am (I)saved from my enemies.
4The (J)cords of death encompassed me,
And the (K)torrents of [a]ungodliness terrified me.
5The (L)cords of Sheol surrounded me;
The snares of death confronted me.
6In my (M)distress I called upon the LORD,
And cried to my God for help;
He heard my voice (N)out of His temple,
And my (O)cry for help before Him came into His ears.
7Then the (P)earth shook and quaked;
And the (Q)foundations of the mountains were trembling
And were shaken, because He was angry.
8Smoke went up out of His nostrils,
And (R)fire from His mouth devoured;
Coals were kindled by it.
9He (S)bowed the heavens also, and came down
With thick (T)darkness under His feet.
10He rode upon a (U)cherub and flew;
And He sped upon the (V)wings of the wind.
11He made (W)darkness His hiding place, (X)His canopy around Him,
Darkness of waters, thick clouds of the skies.
12From the (Y)brightness before Him passed His thick clouds,
Hailstones and (Z)coals of fire.
13The LORD also (AA)thundered in the heavens,
And the Most High uttered His voice,
Hailstones and coals of fire.
14He (AB)sent out His arrows, and scattered them,
And lightning flashes in abundance, and routed them.
15Then the (AC)channels of water appeared,
And the foundations of the world were laid bare
At Your (AD)rebuke, O LORD,
At the blast of the (AE)breath of Your nostrils.
16He (AF)sent from on high, He took me;
He drew me out of (AG)many waters.
17He (AH)delivered me from my strong enemy,
And from those who hated me, for they were (AI)too mighty for me.
18They confronted me in (AJ)the day of my calamity,
But (AK)the LORD was my stay.
19He brought me forth also into a (AL)broad place;
He rescued me, because (AM)He delighted in me.
20The LORD has (AN)rewarded me according to my righteousness;
According to the (AO)cleanness of my hands He has recompensed me.
21For I have (AP)kept the ways of the LORD,
And have (AQ)not wickedly departed from my God.
22For all (AR)His ordinances were before me,
And I did not put away His (AS)statutes from me.
23I was also [b](AT)blameless with Him,
And I (AU)kept myself from my iniquity.
24Therefore the LORD has (AV)recompensed me according to my righteousness,
According to the cleanness of my hands in His eyes.
25With (AW)the kind You show Yourself kind;
With the blameless (AX)You show Yourself blameless;
26With the pure You show Yourself (AY)pure,
And with the crooked (AZ)You show Yourself [c]astute.
27For You (BA)save an afflicted people,
But (BB)haughty eyes You abase.
28For You (BC)light my lamp;
The LORD my God (BD)illumines my darkness.
29For by You I can [d](BE)run upon a troop;
And by my God I can (BF)leap over a wall.
30As for God, His way is (BG)blameless;
The (BH)word of the LORD is tried;
He is a (BI)shield to all who take refuge in Him.
31For (BJ)who is God, but the LORD?
And who is a (BK)rock, except our God,
32The God who (BL)girds me with strength
And makes my way (BM)blameless?
33He (BN)makes my feet like hinds' feet,
And (BO)sets me upon my high places.
34He (BP)trains my hands for battle,
So that my arms can (BQ)bend a bow of bronze.
35You have also given me (BR)the shield of Your salvation,
And Your (BS)right hand upholds me;
And (BT)Your gentleness makes me great.
36You (BU)enlarge my steps under me,
And my (BV)feet have not slipped.
37I (BW)pursued my enemies and overtook them,
And I did not turn back (BX)until they were consumed.
38I shattered them, so that they were (BY)not able to rise;
They fell (BZ)under my feet.
39For You have (CA)girded me with strength for battle;
You have (CB)subdued under me those who rose up against me.
40You have also made my enemies (CC)turn their backs to me,
And I [e](CD)destroyed those who hated me.
41They cried for help, but there was (CE)none to save,
Even to the LORD, but (CF)He did not answer them.
42Then I beat them fine as the (CG)dust before the wind;
I emptied them out as the mire of the streets.
43You have delivered me from the (CH)contentions of the people;
You have placed me as (CI)head of the nations;
A (CJ)people whom I have not known serve me.
44As soon as they hear, they obey me;
Foreigners [f](CK)submit to me.
45Foreigners (CL)fade away,
And (CM)come trembling out of their fortresses.
46The LORD (CN)lives, and blessed be (CO)my rock;
And exalted be (CP)the God of my salvation,
47The God who (CQ)executes vengeance for me,
And (CR)subdues peoples under me.
48He (CS)delivers me from my enemies;
Surely You (CT)lift me above those who rise up against me;
You rescue me from the (CU)violent man.
49Therefore I will (CV)give thanks to You among the nations, O LORD,
And I will (CW)sing praises to Your name.
50He gives great [g](CX)deliverance to His king,
And shows lovingkindness to (CY)His anointed,
To David and (CZ)his descendants forever.
hellooo ladies. we shall be reuniting in less than a week, isnt that exciting hehhehheh
haha.
i read this psalm last night and i like cried. maybe i was already crying, and it made me cry more. because God is so good! Its so amazing how David gives glory to God for everything he does. Gives God all the credit. it think through reading these Psalms we can understand more why God called David a man after his own heart. "After removing Saul, he made David their king. He testified concerning him: 'I have found David son of Jesse a man after my own heart; he will do everything I want him to do." Acts 13:22. And its funny how he adds there, "he will do everything i want him to do." he's talking about obedience! i remember i went to a retreat a few years ago, and the main thing was about obedience. i dont remember really all the sermons, but i just remember something i saw on my friend's xanga, to love God is to obey him. its like the same concept about faith without works. how james says, "But someone may well say, "You have faith and I have works; show me your faith without the works, and I will show you my faith by my works." James 2:18 How valid would be the word of a spouse who claims to love their spouse and then cheats on him/her? yet that's us. and yet God is so patient with us! i remember Ezekiel 16: 32-34
I'm amazed at David's faith in God, and his trust in him even though he goes through such trials. never blames God for his troubles, calls him his strength, his rock, fortress, delivever, in whom he takes refuge. Also at his hatred of sin, as God hates sin. Like you all have said, just the way he portrays God, and sees God is different from my views of him, especially in the midst of "trials" that don't even threaten my life. Makes me realize how blessed i am, and how blessed i am that God cares enough for me to discipline me.
2The LORD is (B)my rock and (C)my fortress and my (D)deliverer,
My God, my rock, in whom I take refuge;
My (E)shield and the (F)horn of my salvation, my (G)stronghold.
3I call upon the LORD, who is (H)worthy to be praised,
And I am (I)saved from my enemies.
4The (J)cords of death encompassed me,
And the (K)torrents of [a]ungodliness terrified me.
5The (L)cords of Sheol surrounded me;
The snares of death confronted me.
6In my (M)distress I called upon the LORD,
And cried to my God for help;
He heard my voice (N)out of His temple,
And my (O)cry for help before Him came into His ears.
7Then the (P)earth shook and quaked;
And the (Q)foundations of the mountains were trembling
And were shaken, because He was angry.
8Smoke went up out of His nostrils,
And (R)fire from His mouth devoured;
Coals were kindled by it.
9He (S)bowed the heavens also, and came down
With thick (T)darkness under His feet.
10He rode upon a (U)cherub and flew;
And He sped upon the (V)wings of the wind.
11He made (W)darkness His hiding place, (X)His canopy around Him,
Darkness of waters, thick clouds of the skies.
12From the (Y)brightness before Him passed His thick clouds,
Hailstones and (Z)coals of fire.
13The LORD also (AA)thundered in the heavens,
And the Most High uttered His voice,
Hailstones and coals of fire.
14He (AB)sent out His arrows, and scattered them,
And lightning flashes in abundance, and routed them.
15Then the (AC)channels of water appeared,
And the foundations of the world were laid bare
At Your (AD)rebuke, O LORD,
At the blast of the (AE)breath of Your nostrils.
16He (AF)sent from on high, He took me;
He drew me out of (AG)many waters.
17He (AH)delivered me from my strong enemy,
And from those who hated me, for they were (AI)too mighty for me.
18They confronted me in (AJ)the day of my calamity,
But (AK)the LORD was my stay.
19He brought me forth also into a (AL)broad place;
He rescued me, because (AM)He delighted in me.
20The LORD has (AN)rewarded me according to my righteousness;
According to the (AO)cleanness of my hands He has recompensed me.
21For I have (AP)kept the ways of the LORD,
And have (AQ)not wickedly departed from my God.
22For all (AR)His ordinances were before me,
And I did not put away His (AS)statutes from me.
23I was also [b](AT)blameless with Him,
And I (AU)kept myself from my iniquity.
24Therefore the LORD has (AV)recompensed me according to my righteousness,
According to the cleanness of my hands in His eyes.
25With (AW)the kind You show Yourself kind;
With the blameless (AX)You show Yourself blameless;
26With the pure You show Yourself (AY)pure,
And with the crooked (AZ)You show Yourself [c]astute.
27For You (BA)save an afflicted people,
But (BB)haughty eyes You abase.
28For You (BC)light my lamp;
The LORD my God (BD)illumines my darkness.
29For by You I can [d](BE)run upon a troop;
And by my God I can (BF)leap over a wall.
30As for God, His way is (BG)blameless;
The (BH)word of the LORD is tried;
He is a (BI)shield to all who take refuge in Him.
31For (BJ)who is God, but the LORD?
And who is a (BK)rock, except our God,
32The God who (BL)girds me with strength
And makes my way (BM)blameless?
33He (BN)makes my feet like hinds' feet,
And (BO)sets me upon my high places.
34He (BP)trains my hands for battle,
So that my arms can (BQ)bend a bow of bronze.
35You have also given me (BR)the shield of Your salvation,
And Your (BS)right hand upholds me;
And (BT)Your gentleness makes me great.
36You (BU)enlarge my steps under me,
And my (BV)feet have not slipped.
37I (BW)pursued my enemies and overtook them,
And I did not turn back (BX)until they were consumed.
38I shattered them, so that they were (BY)not able to rise;
They fell (BZ)under my feet.
39For You have (CA)girded me with strength for battle;
You have (CB)subdued under me those who rose up against me.
40You have also made my enemies (CC)turn their backs to me,
And I [e](CD)destroyed those who hated me.
41They cried for help, but there was (CE)none to save,
Even to the LORD, but (CF)He did not answer them.
42Then I beat them fine as the (CG)dust before the wind;
I emptied them out as the mire of the streets.
43You have delivered me from the (CH)contentions of the people;
You have placed me as (CI)head of the nations;
A (CJ)people whom I have not known serve me.
44As soon as they hear, they obey me;
Foreigners [f](CK)submit to me.
45Foreigners (CL)fade away,
And (CM)come trembling out of their fortresses.
46The LORD (CN)lives, and blessed be (CO)my rock;
And exalted be (CP)the God of my salvation,
47The God who (CQ)executes vengeance for me,
And (CR)subdues peoples under me.
48He (CS)delivers me from my enemies;
Surely You (CT)lift me above those who rise up against me;
You rescue me from the (CU)violent man.
49Therefore I will (CV)give thanks to You among the nations, O LORD,
And I will (CW)sing praises to Your name.
50He gives great [g](CX)deliverance to His king,
And shows lovingkindness to (CY)His anointed,
To David and (CZ)his descendants forever.
hellooo ladies. we shall be reuniting in less than a week, isnt that exciting hehhehheh
haha.
i read this psalm last night and i like cried. maybe i was already crying, and it made me cry more. because God is so good! Its so amazing how David gives glory to God for everything he does. Gives God all the credit. it think through reading these Psalms we can understand more why God called David a man after his own heart. "After removing Saul, he made David their king. He testified concerning him: 'I have found David son of Jesse a man after my own heart; he will do everything I want him to do." Acts 13:22. And its funny how he adds there, "he will do everything i want him to do." he's talking about obedience! i remember i went to a retreat a few years ago, and the main thing was about obedience. i dont remember really all the sermons, but i just remember something i saw on my friend's xanga, to love God is to obey him. its like the same concept about faith without works. how james says, "But someone may well say, "You have faith and I have works; show me your faith without the works, and I will show you my faith by my works." James 2:18 How valid would be the word of a spouse who claims to love their spouse and then cheats on him/her? yet that's us. and yet God is so patient with us! i remember Ezekiel 16: 32-34
"You adulteress wife, who takes strangers instead of her husband!
"Men give gifts to all harlots, but you give your gifts to all your lovers to bribe them to come to you from every direction for your harlotries.
"Thus you are different from those women in your harlotries, in that no one plays the harlot as you do, because you give money and no money is given you; thus you are different."
"All of us like sheep have gone astray, Each of us has turned to his own way; But the LORD has caused the iniquity of us all To fall on Him." - Isaiah 53:6
I'm amazed at David's faith in God, and his trust in him even though he goes through such trials. never blames God for his troubles, calls him his strength, his rock, fortress, delivever, in whom he takes refuge. Also at his hatred of sin, as God hates sin. Like you all have said, just the way he portrays God, and sees God is different from my views of him, especially in the midst of "trials" that don't even threaten my life. Makes me realize how blessed i am, and how blessed i am that God cares enough for me to discipline me.
Tuesday, January 2, 2007
Psalm 17
1 Hear a just cause, O Lord, give heed to my cry; give ear to my prayer, which is not from deceitful lips. 2 Let my judgement come forth from Your presence; let Your eyes look with equity. 3 You have tried my heart; You have visited me by night; You have teseted me and You find nothing; I have purposed that my mouth will not transgress. 4 As for the deeds of men, by the word of Your lips I have kept from the paths of the violent. 5 My steps have held fast to Your paths. My feet have not slipped.
6 I have called upon You, for You will answer me, O God; incline Your ear to me, hear my speech. 7 Wondorously show Your lovingkindness, O Savior of those who take refuge at Your right hand from those who rise up against them. 8 Keep me as the apple of the eye; hide me in the shadow of Your wings 9 from the wicked who despoil me, my deadly enemies who surround me. 10 They have closed their unfeeling heart, with their mouth they speak proudly. 11 They have now surrounded us in our steps; they set their eyes to cast us down to the ground. 12 He is like a lion that is eager to tear, and as a young lion lurking in hiding places.
13 Arise, O Lord, confront him, bring him low; deliver my soul from the wicked with Your sword, 14 from men with Your hand, O Lord, from men of the world, whose portion is in this life, and whose belly You fill with Your treasure; they are satisfied with children, and leave their abundance to their babes. 15 As for me, I shall behold Your face in righteousness; I will be satisfied with Your likeness when I awake.
Reading these psalms is really a blessing for my heart because they show so much of God's character, how He provides for david when he asks for help, and how david in spite of all the trials he went through and the affliction he suffered, in the end he praised God, was satisfied with Him and kept on striving for righteousness still more. Urbana was really great, it took a couple days to get used to different worship sets and a different style of preaching, but God used this conference to broaden my view of the church and how it conducts itself, and to humble me from a prideful heart in the way we do things at grace church. And whats also cool is that we got to praise God in spanish, korean, mandarin, and african? languages, and bring in the new year singing and dancing our hearts out in a crowd of 22,000. God is good.
so how do i add my post for psalm 12 without making the order go crazy?
6 I have called upon You, for You will answer me, O God; incline Your ear to me, hear my speech. 7 Wondorously show Your lovingkindness, O Savior of those who take refuge at Your right hand from those who rise up against them. 8 Keep me as the apple of the eye; hide me in the shadow of Your wings 9 from the wicked who despoil me, my deadly enemies who surround me. 10 They have closed their unfeeling heart, with their mouth they speak proudly. 11 They have now surrounded us in our steps; they set their eyes to cast us down to the ground. 12 He is like a lion that is eager to tear, and as a young lion lurking in hiding places.
13 Arise, O Lord, confront him, bring him low; deliver my soul from the wicked with Your sword, 14 from men with Your hand, O Lord, from men of the world, whose portion is in this life, and whose belly You fill with Your treasure; they are satisfied with children, and leave their abundance to their babes. 15 As for me, I shall behold Your face in righteousness; I will be satisfied with Your likeness when I awake.
Reading these psalms is really a blessing for my heart because they show so much of God's character, how He provides for david when he asks for help, and how david in spite of all the trials he went through and the affliction he suffered, in the end he praised God, was satisfied with Him and kept on striving for righteousness still more. Urbana was really great, it took a couple days to get used to different worship sets and a different style of preaching, but God used this conference to broaden my view of the church and how it conducts itself, and to humble me from a prideful heart in the way we do things at grace church. And whats also cool is that we got to praise God in spanish, korean, mandarin, and african? languages, and bring in the new year singing and dancing our hearts out in a crowd of 22,000. God is good.
so how do i add my post for psalm 12 without making the order go crazy?
Monday, January 1, 2007
Psalm 16
Psalm 16
1Preserve me, O God, for I take refuge in You.
2I said to the LORD, "You are my Lord;
I have no good besides You."
3As for the saints who are in the earth,
They are the majestic ones in whom is all my delight.
4The sorrows of those who have bartered for another god will be multiplied;
I shall not pour out their drink offerings of blood,
Nor will I take their names upon my lips.
5The LORD is the portion of my inheritance and my cup;
You support my lot.
6The lines have fallen to me in pleasant places;
Indeed, my heritage is beautiful to me.
7I will bless the LORD who has counseled me;
Indeed, my mind instructs me in the night.
8I have set the LORD continually before me;
Because He is at my right hand, I will not be shaken.
9Therefore my heart is glad and my glory rejoices;
My flesh also will dwell securely.
10For You will not abandon my soul to Sheol;
Nor will You allow Your Holy One to undergo decay.
11You will make known to me the path of life;
In Your presence is fullness of joy;
In Your right hand there are pleasures forever.
1Preserve me, O God, for I take refuge in You.
2I said to the LORD, "You are my Lord;
I have no good besides You."
3As for the saints who are in the earth,
They are the majestic ones in whom is all my delight.
4The sorrows of those who have bartered for another god will be multiplied;
I shall not pour out their drink offerings of blood,
Nor will I take their names upon my lips.
5The LORD is the portion of my inheritance and my cup;
You support my lot.
6The lines have fallen to me in pleasant places;
Indeed, my heritage is beautiful to me.
7I will bless the LORD who has counseled me;
Indeed, my mind instructs me in the night.
8I have set the LORD continually before me;
Because He is at my right hand, I will not be shaken.
9Therefore my heart is glad and my glory rejoices;
My flesh also will dwell securely.
10For You will not abandon my soul to Sheol;
Nor will You allow Your Holy One to undergo decay.
11You will make known to me the path of life;
In Your presence is fullness of joy;
In Your right hand there are pleasures forever.
today was a sad day because i said bye to my brother and sister. spending time with my family was really good. had a lot of good laughs. i'll post about it soon on my xanga. i drove up to norcal today to send my brother home. ate lunch with a childhood friend and caught a plane to long beach. ate dinner with the sis and then drove back home. had a good conversation with my brother about why i have such a hard time loving ppl...i keep going back to the gospel. head's not working right cuz of the cold, but when i read this psalm i had to laugh at God's sovereignty because all the things i've been thinking about lately are in this psalm. is this true of you? can you hear yourself saying this psalm? so much to share with you girls. learning to love you in the Lord.
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