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Monday, June 14, 2010

June 14 ... Psalm 1 - 8 "Am I More Concerned About My Impact on Others"

Psalm 3:3 - "But You, God, shield me on all sides;
   You ground my feet, You lift my head high."  These verses have meant so much to me the past few years.  I don't have to watch my back anymore.  HE shields me on all sides.  He's watching out for me.  Feet grounded a little more.  A little more rest than before.  A little more solid.  HE is the lifter of my head and I cannot thank Him enough!   There's not a lot in my life to cause me to lift my head high.  That sounds like a  self-hatred statement.  My point is that my Beautiful God is truly the One Who Lifts My Head!  
These psalms are all over the place.  In Psalm 4:1 David cries out for God to take his side in a tight place.  Grace me!  Hear me!   Same story in Psalm 5---please pay attention and make sense of my ramblings. 
"Every morning you'll hear me at it again."  Psalm 5:7-8 "Here I am, your invited guest---it's incredible.  I enter your house; here I am...waiting for directions."
Psalm 7:2 says:  I feel like I've been left, unlooked for, unremembered.  David speaks from his heart where he's black-and-blue from the beatings.   David didn't hide from God nor from his world.  He dropped all pretense and made known to God his fears and failures and emptiness and hopes and praises and desires.  Am I doing that?  Am I taking to God what's really going on inside my thoughts, my world?  Am I more concerned about my impact on others?  "God's power is most visibly evident in your life when, in the moment you most painfully feel the impact of another's relational failure, you pay more attention to your impact on that person than on that person's impact on you." (Larry Crabb). A family member has ignored me and I'm feeling it.  Am I more concerned about my impact on them or how they have made me feel?  Self-absorbed or unselfish living?

4 comments:

  1. I am grateful for 66 LL this morning! "I've not wanted an anchor in the storm. I've wanted a quick trip to shore." It couldn't be more true. I usually only go to His Word when I want relief and rest from the storm. Ouch. I'm making the decision again today... I want to cling to Him as I AM and am begging Him to reshape me into who He wants me to be! I'm glad God brought us all together to work through our questions in His Presence.

    I so want to live my life with my eyes fixed on Him! I can't think of a better way to start my day!
    In love,
    Angie xoxo

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  2. How I've looked forward to the Psalms and here we are already! There is at least one nugget in every one of them.

    Today, the words struck me, "More, more," they say. "More, more." I have God's more-than-enough,More joy in one ordinary day."

    Being satisfied exactly where we are--God is more than enough. He's more Joy in any ordinary day than we can take in.

    No wonder our country & world has such an insatiable hoe. It longs for God's joy, and for most, it isn't there to fill that longing.

    More, more of Him is my prayer for you all today.

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  3. Psalm 8:9

    "God, brilliant Lord, your name echoes around the world."

    Every psalm today ministered to me. Today has been a very hard day. The temp here is around 100 degrees. I have two blisters on the bottom of my feet from walking a long way at work outside to attend a meeting. Outside...walking...no trees...just pavement...in sandals...at high noon. It was so very hot.

    And, I don't want to get started here with anything but I know how David must have felt when Absalom was trying to kill him. Only my deadly enemy is my husband. How in the name of God does a man go from being your loving man to being the enemy at hand? I love him unconditionally as I work through the Love Dare. But I can feel the battle coming to a head. And I don't even know why it's a battle. I try to remember that my real enemy is satan.

    The end.

    My life is a psalm living out before the Lord. I cry out. I beg Him to shield me. And then I turn right around and praise Him for all He is doing in my life right now. I feel forsaken. I feel beloved. I feel anxious. I feel at peace. I love the part in Psalm 2 where God says it's your birthday...what do you want...just name it.

    I'm still pondering that. What do I want from God.

    Suffering seems so hard until I look at the small price I pay to become just a little bit more like Jesus. I want to ask God to rain down fire and brimstone on my enemy, but then I remember Christ saying "Father, forgive them for they know not what they do."

    I'm trying. It's hard.

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