What's Your Favorite Psalm? (A Psalm for Everything)

I love the Psalms. A lot of people do. They speak to so many because they're a model for how to communicate with God-and live for Him-in every situation life brings: great victories; deep despair; somewhere in between.

I first came to truly understand the value of the Psalms for "teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in rigteousness" (2 Timothy 3:16) around my first year of college. At the time, I felt there was a wall between God and myself that I couldn't cross. I asked God to show me how to seek him more, and he brought me the Psalms in a way I had never understood them in all my years before.

As I pored over the Psalms that year, I found the ones known written by David are tend to impact me most. Of the 150 Psalms, more than 70 were clearly authored by David, although the number is likely higher. I love Psalm 15, because it asks and answers what it means to be righteous in God eyes. I can't do without Psalm 27, because in it David speaks of seeking God's face with all his haeart, and oping in Him no matter what happens. In Psalms 42 and 63, David models the meaning of having passion for God; in Psalm 42, David speaks about his soul longing for God's delevrance like a deer pants for water. Psalm 63: 1-8 challenges me, because David talks about true intimacy with God, in some part the way we'd often talk about a lover. Verses 1-3: "Oh God you are my God, earnestly I seek you. My soul thirsts for you, my body longs for you, in a dry and weary land where there is no water. So I have looked for you in the sanctuary and beheld the power of your glory. Because your lovingkindness is better than life, my lips will glorify you." I also love Psalm 119, the longest chapter of the Bible, because David presents such a rich discussion of the essentiality of studying and loving God's word in order to know him. I'm partial to the scripture-memory favorite, verses 119: 9-11 & 105. But I also treasure verses 97-104; David talks about loving God's law some more. And I've saved my favorite Psalm of David for last: PSALM 139, "God's Perfect Knowledge of Man." It reminds me that I am never out of God's hands; He knows a word before it's on my tongue; wherever I am, I can't escape Him. And this knowledge reminds me that I can give him everything, and when I do, He'll show me what I need to change. It's just so raw--a rawness that God valued in David, and the the kind he wants to see in us. It's also the kind that helps us understand what it means to make him our "first love" (Revelation 2:4). And when we ignite passion for God in our hearts, coupled with a sound knowledge of what we need to live out that passion, we truly become discplies of Christ who deny ourselves daily and take up his cross to follow him. They are a reminder that to anyone who's received Jesus as Savior, scripture should not just be someting we open up in church on Sunday, or read during the week out of obligation--it should be our food: our life.

What I think guarantees making the Psalms come alive? Memorize them. You can pick the ones you're most passionate about--the ones that speak to you most, so that in any situation--when you doubt God's promises in your life; you're not sure if you're doing what God requires of you; when you just want to praise--you'll have it ready to meditate on. I constantly pray Psalm 139, and I'mm always Or, just read and let God lead you to memorize them depending on your situation. Life's challegenes resulted in God bringing me Psalm 63.

If you haven't already, discover your favorite Psalms. They speak directly to life's situations--just about everything.

The Essence of Praise

Sometimes, it seems hard to praise. It shouldn’t be, but it can be. Something’s not going the way I want it to. I just don’t feel in the mood. But not praising in all circumstances isn’t just not okay, it’s a sign of not truly understanding God’s character. He’s not just God when my situation is rosy; He’s God all the time.

I’ve written about praising continuously before (See January ‘06 and December ’06, to name a couple entries). When God appears to be about to answer something major I’ve prayed about for a long time, I sometimes start to get ahead of Him. I begin to predict—or sometimes expect—an outcome where God is actually telling me to wait just a little longer for His answer. It’s when I lose my focus on Him that things start to go another direction, usually to remind me to trust His timing. In these situations, praising God—simply because He is—is essential. It helps me—and you—understand God’s core—that no matter what happens in my life, He is gracious, loving, and all those great “Os” you may have learned growing up: Omnipresent (everywhere); Omniscient (all-knowing); Omnipotent (all-powerful). When I was young I knew these descriptions of God’s character by denotation; now I know them by connotation. And when I think and act on them, I’m transformed beyond my situation, and my focus turns back to Him. Here’s a passage to meditate on. Let it be a reminder of how—and why—we praise Him.

PSALM 100
1 Make a joyful shout to the LORD, all you lands!
2 Serve the LORD with gladness;
Come before His presence with singing.
3 Know that the LORD, He is God;
It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves;[a]
We are His people and the sheep of His pasture.
4 Enter into His gates with thanksgiving,
And into His courts with praise.
Be thankful to Him, and bless His name.
5 For the LORD is good;
His mercy is everlasting,
And His truth endures to all generations.
http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm%20100;&version=50 (NKJV); http://www.ibs.org/niv/passagesearch.php?passage_request=psalm+100&niv=yes&submit=Lookup (NIV)