Great Privileges

This year, I'm sharing my "Treasures" of my study of my "Ponder the Morsels" book. I've picked 31 Psalms to study throughout 2013. Today I studied Psalm 117. Here is what I learned.

Praise God, everybody! Applaud God, all people! His love has taken over our lives; God’s faithful ways are eternal. Hallelujah! Psalm 117 (MSG)

The privilege of these servants: that, as to the Jews, so also to the Gentiles, who know and serve God the Saviour, eternal life and blessedness are brought, assured in this life, and prepared in heaven. Mollerus

I can’t even fathom the great goodness of God. How do I begin to understand Who God is and what He has done and has planned for me? 

Perhaps you are thinking, “But wait, you live in chronic pain... how can you say that God is good?” Because God’s goodness isn’t based on me, or my life on earth. Rather His goodness is based on Him and His plan of eternity. 

If I look at things from my perspective of only wanting to feel good and do things I enjoy... well that’s not even reality. There are things we must do each and every day that we don’t necessarily enjoy. Maybe you don’t like vacuuming, or dusting. Or maybe going to work each day is drudgery. But you still do those things, knowing that it is all necessary. There are times when God allows “bad things” to happen in our lives so that His ultimate will and purpose can be accomplished. But from God’s perspective, they are not “bad things” rather they are only necessary to bring glory and honor to Him, and share His news of salvation. 

Sometimes, God allows things in our lives so that we first of all will recognize God for Who He is–God Almighty. Then we will realize that we are not in control of things, rather He is. And lastly, realize that His purpose and plan is based on eternal outcomes, not just “feeling good” right now. 

Privilege of knowing God.

Privilege of experiencing God’s blessings.

Privilege of serving God.

Privilege of spending eternity with God.

Each of those privileges in and of itself should produce praise to God. And if I consider them altogether, I should be bursting with praise for God Almighty. 

To create a positive day, it’s all about realizing the great privileges that are mine because of God Almighty’s love. 

An Automatic Reflex of Praise!

This year, I'm sharing my "Treasures" of my study of my "Ponder the Morsels" book. I've picked 31 Psalms to study throughout 2013. Today I studied Psalm 150. Here is what I learned.

Let everything that breathes praise the Lord! Hallelujah! Psalm 150:6 (GW)

No one should be left out; Let every man and every beast— every creature that has the breath of the Lord—praise the Eternal! Praise the Eternal! Psalm 150:6 (VOICE)

Breath: respiration, especially as necessary to life.

Breathe: to take air, oxygen, etc., into the lungs and expel it; inhale and exhale.

Breathing is necessary to life! I take in oxygen and then expel. It’s a natural reflex. I don’t have to think about breathing. I don’t practice breathing. It “just happens”. 

Just think if praise became a natural reflex, just as breathing is. How would that change my attitude, my outlook, my overall day? 

If I want to make praise an automatic reflex, it needs two things.

First, I have to “inhale” who God is, and what He is doing. For how can I praise God if I don’t know about Him?

And secondly,  since praise is not an automatic reflex, like breathing, I must train myself! I have to create a habit of praising God. Then if I continue to practice the habit of praise.... if will become an automatic reflex! 

I can’t think of an easier way to create a positive day, than to create an automatic reflex of praise! 

Intimate Understanding

Throughout this year, each day of the month, I'm "Treasure Hunting" in a Psalm. I've created a "Ponder Every Morsel of Truth" Book to record the truths as I learn them. The ninth of each month, I'm studying Psalm 100. Here's what Treasure I found today.

Acknowledge that the Lord is God. He made us, and we belong to him; we are his people, we are his flock. Psalm 100:3 (GNT)

Know (perceive, recognize, and understand with approval) that the Lord is God! It is He Who has made us, not we ourselves [and we are His]! We are His people and the sheep of His pasture. Psalm 100:3 (AMP)

Realize that the Lord alone is God. He made us, and we are his. We are his people and the sheep in his care. Psalm 100:3 (GW)

Know: comprehend, consider, discern, discover, perceive, have respect, understand, be aware.

Know ye what God is in himself, and what he is to you. Know it; consider and apply it, then you will be more close and constant, more inward and serious, in his worship. Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary

Know God. How do I get to know God almighty? One place to begin is Proverbs 6:16-19., it tells me what the Lord hates. He hates these things because they are against His very nature, His character, who He is. 

There are seven things that the Lord hates and cannot tolerate: • A proud look, • a lying tongue, • hands that kill innocent people, • a mind that thinks up wicked plans, • feet that hurry off to do evil, • a witness who tells one lie after another, • and someone who stirs up trouble among friends.

Proverbs 6:16-19 (GNT)

Knowing God means that I not only learn who He is, but act on that knowledge. The more I get to know God, the richer my life will be. For as I get to know God, that knowledge (should) will change my heart, my mind, my attitude, and my actions. “Knowledge has power.” But more than that knowledge produces an intimate understanding of an Almighty God. 

Getting to know God, understanding who He is, creates a deeper love and respect for Him, and that intimate understanding of who God is creates a positive day!

More About Him and Less About Me

This year, I'm sharing my "Treasures" of my study of my "Ponder the Morsels" book. I've picked 31 Psalms to study throughout 2013. Today I studied Psalm 61. Here is what I learned.

Hear my cry, O God; listen to my prayer. Psalm 61:1 (AMP)

God, listen to me shout, bend an ear to my prayer. Psalm 61:1 (MSG)

Cry. Shout. 

The word rendered cry in this place sometimes denotes a joyful shout - a shout of triumph; but the connection makes it certain that it here refers to the voice of prayer. It is implied that it was audible prayer, or that the psalmist gave utterance to his desires in words. It is language such as would be produced by deep distress; when a sad and burdened heart gives vent to its feelings in a loud cry for mercy. Barnes' Notes on the Bible

As I read this verse this morning, I first am very grateful that when I am in trouble, or distress, that I can cry out to my God and He hears me. But is that the ONLY time I cry out to God? 

Do you like to hear people complain—all the time? I know I don’t. And I don’t like to hear kids (or even worse adults) with a “give me attitude”. But how often do my prayers to God sound just like that.... full of complaints and give me lists? Thankful that God hears and listens to my prayers.... but maybe, prayers need to be more than just complaints and wish lists. 

Prayer. What is prayer? Simply put,  prayer is talking with God. It’s a conversation. 

On June 10, 2010 I posted this on my blog: 

Prayer is not a vending machine—say the right words and get what you want. Prayer is the privilege of communicating with God. 

Our ordinary views of prayer are not found in the New Testament. We look upon prayer as a means for getting something for ourselves; the Bible idea of prayer is that we may get to know God Himself. -Oswald Chambers  

So when we sing, 'Draw me nearer, nearer, blessed Lord,' we are not thinking of the nearness of place, but of the nearness of relationship. It is for increasing degrees of awareness that we pray, for a more perfect consciousness of the divine Presence. We need never shout across the spaces to an absent God. He is nearer than our own soul, closer than our most secret thoughts. A.W. Tozer  

Communication. So simple. So vital. So taken for granted. 

When I pray, I need to remember to Whom I’m talking—God Almighty! And as I talk with God, I need to stop my complaining and giving Him my wish list, and spend time getting to know Him.

To create a positive day, my conversations with God need to be more about Him, and less about me.

Building My Relationship

This year, I'm sharing my "Treasures" of my study of my "Ponder the Morsels" book. I've picked 31 Psalms to study throughout 2013. Today I studied Psalm 91. Here is what I learned.

Because he hath set his love upon me, therefore will I deliver him: I will set him on high, because he hath known my name. Psalm 91:14 (ASV)

Because you love me, I will rescue you. I will protect you because you know my name. Psalm 91:14 (GW)

The Lord says, “Whoever ·loves [desires] me, I will ·save [rescue]. I will ·protect [lift to safety] those who know ·me [my name]. Psalm 91:14 (EXB)

Because (for): assuredly, but, certainly, doubtless.

Set: to be (inaccessibly) high, be excellent

Love: join to love, delight in, be attached to, strongest attachment, himself with me; is my friend.

Deliver (rescue): carry away safe, deliver, cause to escape.

Know: be aware, comprehend, perceive, understand, acknowledge, acquainted with.

Name: honor, authority, character, especially as embodying the (revealed) character of, 

Because he hath set his love upon me - Has become attached to me; has united himself with me; is my friend. The Hebrew word expresses the strongest attachment, and is equivalent to our expression - "to fall in love." It refers here to the fact that God is the object of supreme affection on the part of his people; and it also here implies, that this springs from their hearts; that they have seen such beauty in his character, and have such strong desire for him, that their hearts go out in warm affection toward him.

Therefore will I deliver him - I will save him from trouble and from danger.

I will set him on high - By acknowledging him as my own, and treating him accordingly.

Because he hath known my name - He has known me; that is, he understands my true character, and has learned to love me. Barnes' Notes on the Bible

There are two responsibilities I’m to carry out in Psalm 91:14: 1. Love God. 2. Know God. And they are both intertwined. If I love God, I want to get to know Him, and the more I know about God, the more I’ll love Him. Think of your friendships. The deeper the love, the more you know, the more you want to spend time with that individual, and the friendship continues to become deeper and more meaningful. 

Love God. Know God. Two simple statements. But what do they mean?

Love: delight in, be attached to, strongest attachment. Know God: be aware, comprehend, perceive, understand, acknowledge, acquainted with. Simply put, I need to build a relationship with God. 

If I delight in God and get acquainted with Him, then He should have an impact in my life.  The impact starts with several things:

1. WANTING to obey His Word & to do that, I need to spend time IN His Word.
2. Share Him with others. Don’t you want others to know about your great friends? “Can’t stop talking about Him”
3. Talk with God. Praying is not giving God my wish list. Rather it’s about being ”in tune” with God so that I understand His will.
4. Create a desire to love God even more, which will be a natural occurrence as I get to know God. 

To create a positive day I need to work on building my relationship with God; the more I love Him, the more I want to know Him—the more I know Him, the more I love Him.

Shout & Leap for Joy!

This year, I'm sharing my "Treasures" of my study of my "Ponder the Morsels" book. I've picked 31 Psalms to study throughout 2013. Today I studied Psalm 100. Here is what I learned. 

Shout triumphantly to the LORD,

all the earth.

Psalm 100:1 (HCS)

Shout happily to the LORD,

all the earth.

Psalm 100:1 (GW)

Shout: exult, triumph, leap for joy. glad shout

The word used for “shout” is one to also convey public worship with music and sacrifice. I am to be SHOUTING our praise to God, and should be doing it HAPPILY and JOYOUSLY! 

As I thought about Psalm 100:1, what I pictured was a concert. If you have ever been to a concert, then you know that audience can’t help but sing along as the performer(s) sing. At some concerts depending on your seat, it’s hard to actually hear the performer, due to the audiences “shouting” the songs. 

Even more than shouting happily at a concert, I should be shouting worship praise to my God. These are not to be just “random” shouts, but rather shouts of joy and worship directed to my Heavenly Father. Yet, in order for me to be able to shout to my God, I need to recognize Who He is, and all that He is. 

Our happy God should be worshipped by a happy people; a cheerful spirit is in keeping with his nature, his acts, and the gratitude which we should cherish for his mercies in every land Jehovah's goodness is seen, therefore in every land should he be praised. The Treasury of David

Going back to the concert venue, the performers always sing old songs mixed in with their newer songs. Why? Because the performers know that to keep the audience engaged, the audience need to know the  songs. When the audience knows the words, they can “shout” and create a fun concert. 

So, back to Psalm 100:1, if I’m to “Shout happily to the LORD” I need to KNOW God. How do I get to know God? It starts with reading His Word, the Bible. And recognizing God working in my life each and very day. 

What can I shout to God in worship and praise? 1) He is a very loving God. 2) He is a very caring God. 3) He is a holy God. 4) He is faithful. 5) He is truthful. 6) God is good—all the time! And all the time God is good! 

Those are just a few facts about God that I can shout and leap for joy about as I worship Him. 

Creating a positive day is getting to know Who God is, recognizing Him working in my life, and then SHOUTING and LEAPING for joy in praise to my awesome God!