Psalms/Songs
Colossians 3:16 “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God.”
Why do we read psalms? Why are they important? What does the bible have to say about them? And where is Jesus in the psalms?
Personally, I tend to turn to the psalms when I need encouragement during a difficult time. Although the psalms were written by several different people, for me, the main writer, King David, is the one I think of when I read them. We know he was a musician. We know he was a man who had a heart for God. And the psalms reflect so many different experiences he went through. Underlying them all is the deep emotions of a man who truly loved God and reflected all the human emotions we go through in life (love, anger, fear, anguish, joy, responsibility, backsliding, repentance, etc.).
One of my favorites is Psalm 91. It begins with a promise. “He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.” This year, the word I was given to reflect on was ‘abide’. As soon as I read this first sentence, I knew it was the right Psalm to be focusing on for this piece. To dwell/live in the secret place of God, one needs to abide/live under or in His shadow. How does one do that? I have asked that very question of God more than once.
We live in a fallen world, surrounded by the expectations of our culture and our society. We are bombarded by the world all the time. We have responsibilities to our husbands and our families, our communities, both church and neighborhood. It seems we are always struggling to find that place for God in the middle of all of that.
And what is the SECRET PLACE?
The second verse, “I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God: in Him I will trust,” shows us the way. God is our refuge, the place we go when life gets tough, when it all seems to be coming apart at the seams. And not only is He our refuge, but He is also our fortress! A mighty fortress and a mighty God! Fortresses are meant for defense. When life becomes hard, unbearable, and overwhelming, we can enter the fortress for respite and relief. But what if God doesn't want us just coming into the fortress in times of distress but what if he wants us to learn how to live in that fortress all the time? Is that possible? And if it is possible, how do we do that? Good question to think about…
Lets ponder in the comments…. And tomorrow is part TWO. Stay tuned because the best is yet to come. -LuAnn
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