Psalm 36

Wickedness of Men and Lovingkindness of God.

For the choir director. A Psalm of David the servant of the Lord.

36 Transgression speaks to the ungodly within ^[a]his heart;
There is no fear of God before his eyes.
² For ^[b]it flatters him in his own eyes
Concerning the discovery of his iniquity and the hatred of it.
³ The words of his mouth are wickedness and deceit;
He has ceased to ^[c]be wise and to do good.
⁴ He plans wickedness upon his bed;
He sets himself on a path that is not good;
He does not despise evil.

⁵ Your lovingkindness, O Lord, ^[d]extends to the heavens,
Your faithfulness reaches to the skies.
⁶ Your righteousness is like the ^[e]mountains of God;
Your judgments are like a great deep.
O Lord, You preserve man and beast.
⁷ How precious is Your lovingkindness, O God!
And the children of men take refuge in the shadow of Your wings.
⁸ They drink their fill of the ^[f]abundance of Your house;
And You give them to drink of the river of Your delights.
⁹ For with You is the fountain of life;
In Your light we see light.

¹⁰ O continue Your lovingkindness to those who know You,
And Your righteousness to the upright in heart.
¹¹ Let not the foot of pride come upon me,
And let not the hand of the wicked drive me away.
¹² There the doers of iniquity have fallen;
They have been thrust down and cannot rise.

Psalm 30

it may sound a little dramatic, but God did deliver me from death.  I wanted to die; He would not allow it.

 

Thanksgiving for Deliverance from Death.

A Psalm; a Song at the Dedication of the House. A Psalm of David.

30 I will extol You, O Lord, for You have lifted me up,
And have not let my enemies rejoice over me.
² O Lord my God,
I cried to You for help, and You healed me.
³ O Lord, You have brought up my soul from ^[a]Sheol;
You have kept me alive, ^[b]that I would not go down to the pit.
⁴ Sing praise to the Lord, you His godly ones,
And give thanks to His holy ^[c]name.
⁵ For His anger is but for a moment,
His favor is for a lifetime;
Weeping may last for the night,
But a shout of joy comes in the morning.

⁶ Now as for me, I said in my prosperity,
“I will never be moved.”
⁷ O Lord, by Your favor You have made my mountain to stand strong;
You hid Your face, I was dismayed.
⁸ To You, O Lord, I called,
And to the Lord I made supplication:
⁹ “What profit is there in my blood, if I go down to the pit?
Will the dust praise You? Will it declare Your faithfulness?

¹⁰ “Hear, O Lord, and be gracious to me;
O Lord, be my helper.”
¹¹ You have turned for me my mourning into dancing;
You have loosed my sackcloth and girded me with gladness,
¹² That my ^[d]soul may sing praise to You and not be silent.
O Lord my God, I will give thanks to You forever.

Learning Curves

Some may wonder why I have posted so many of the Psalms on my blog recently.  Years ago, when we were thinking about moving to Las Vegas, I spent a lot of time seeking God’s will for my life and that of my family.  As I sought His will through His word, the different devotionals I was reading, and church, God seemed to speak to me on a daily basis.  He never failed me.  I would call my mom or my best friend and tell them what I learned from God that day.  While I sincerely did not want to move to Las Vegas, I understood that God was telling me to go.  For years after we moved here, I still did not understand why He wanted me to go to this ‘God-forsaken’ place; but this is where He was directing me and this is where I went.

I am currently in a similar situation, needing His guidance, wisdom, and comfort.  Again, He is not failing me.  I have sought Him through my current class in Church Ministries, the devotional books I am reading, and daily reading in the word.  He is speaking loudly.  I am preparing for a potential life change that is frightening, at best, and He is letting me know on a daily basis that I am His and He will protect me.  I am falling in love with Him all over again. I am grateful and amazed that the God of the universe would take the time to show me His will.  I am so undeserving. 

Psalm 28

New American Standard Bible (NASB)

A Prayer for Help, and Praise for Its Answer.

A Psalm of David.

28 To You, O Lord, I call;
My rock, do not be deaf to me,
For if You are silent to me,
I will become like those who go down to the pit.
² Hear the voice of my supplications when I cry to You for help,
When I lift up my hands toward ^[a]Your holy sanctuary.
³ Do not drag me away with the wicked
And with those who work iniquity,
Who speak peace with their neighbors,
While evil is in their hearts.
⁴ Requite them according to their work and according to the evil of their practices;
Requite them according to the deeds of their hands;
Repay them their ^[b]recompense.
⁵ Because they do not regard the works of the Lord
Nor the deeds of His hands,
He will tear them down and not build them up.

⁶ Blessed be the Lord,
Because He has heard the voice of my supplication.
⁷ The Lord is my strength and my shield;
My heart trusts in Him, and I am helped;
Therefore my heart exults,
And with my song I shall thank Him.
⁸ The Lord is ^[c]their strength,
And He is a ^[d]saving defense to His anointed.
⁹ Save Your people and bless Your inheritance;
Be their shepherd also, and carry them forever.

Psalm 27

New American Standard Bible (NASB)

A Psalm of Fearless Trust in God.

A Psalm of David.

27 The Lord is my light and my salvation;
Whom shall I fear?
The Lord is the ^[a]defense of my life;
Whom shall I dread?
² When evildoers came upon me to devour my flesh,
My adversaries and my enemies, they stumbled and fell.
³ Though a host encamp against me,
My heart will not fear;
Though war arise against me,
In spite of this I ^[b]shall be confident.

⁴ One thing I have asked from the Lord, that I shall seek:
That I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life,
To behold the ^[c]beauty of the Lord
And to ^[d]meditate in His temple.
⁵ For in the day of trouble He will conceal me in His ^[e]tabernacle;
In the secret place of His tent He will hide me;
He will lift me up on a rock.
⁶ And now my head will be lifted up above my enemies around me,
And I will offer in His tent sacrifices ^[f]with shouts of joy;
I will sing, yes, I will sing praises to the Lord.

⁷ Hear, O Lord, when I cry with my voice,
And be gracious to me and answer me.
⁸ When You said, “Seek My face,” my heart said to You,
“Your face, O Lord, I shall seek.”
⁹ Do not hide Your face from me,
Do not turn Your servant away in anger;
You have been my help;
Do not abandon me nor forsake me,
O God of my salvation!
^10 [g]For my father and my mother have forsaken me,
But the Lord will take me up.

¹¹ Teach me Your way, O Lord,
And lead me in a level path
Because of ^[h]my foes.
¹² Do not deliver me over to the ^[i]desire of my adversaries,
For false witnesses have risen against me,
And such as breathe out violence.
^13 [j]I would have despaired unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of the Lord
In the land of the living.
¹⁴ Wait for the Lord;
Be strong and let your heart take courage;
Yes, wait for the Lord.

Psalm 25

New American Standard Bible (NASB)

Prayer for Protection, Guidance and Pardon.

A Psalm of David.

25 To You, O Lord, I lift up my soul.
² O my God, in You I trust,
Do not let me be ashamed;
Do not let my enemies exult over me.
³ Indeed, none of those who wait for You will be ashamed;
^[a]Those who deal treacherously without cause will be ashamed.

⁴ Make me know Your ways, O Lord;
Teach me Your paths.
⁵ Lead me in Your truth and teach me,
For You are the God of my salvation;
For You I wait all the day.
⁶ Remember, O Lord, Your compassion and Your lovingkindnesses,
For they have been ^[b]from of old.
⁷ Do not remember the sins of my youth or my transgressions;
According to Your lovingkindness remember me,
For Your goodness’ sake, O Lord.

⁸ Good and upright is the Lord;
Therefore He instructs sinners in the way.
⁹ He leads the ^[c]humble in justice,
And He teaches the ^[d]humble His way.
¹⁰ All the paths of the Lord are lovingkindness and truth
To those who keep His covenant and His testimonies.
¹¹ For Your name’s sake, O Lord,
Pardon my iniquity, for it is great.

¹² Who is the man who fears the Lord?
He will instruct him in the way he should choose.
¹³ His soul will abide in ^[e]prosperity,
And his ^[f]descendants will inherit the ^[g]land.
¹⁴ The ^[h]secret of the Lord is for those who fear Him,
^[i]And He will make them know His covenant.
¹⁵ My eyes are continually toward the Lord,
For He will ^[j]pluck my feet out of the net.

¹⁶ Turn to me and be gracious to me,
For I am lonely and afflicted.
^17 [k]The troubles of my heart are enlarged;
Bring me out of my distresses.
¹⁸ Look upon my affliction and my ^[l]trouble,
And forgive all my sins.
¹⁹ Look upon my enemies, for they are many,
And they hate me with violent hatred.
²⁰ Guard my soul and deliver me;
Do not let me be ashamed, for I take refuge in You.
²¹ Let integrity and uprightness preserve me,
For I wait for You.
²² Redeem Israel, O God,
Out of all his troubles.