"Give me happiness, O Lord, for I give myself to you." Psalm 86:4
Today's Psalm is so full of uncovered truths that the hair on my arms stands up at what we can learn but my heart sinks at all that we can't uncover in this short post. So much to learn, so little time. My focus will be on two verses.
So much to learn. Oh, how verse 11 resonates in my soul.
"Teach me your ways, O Lord, that I may live according to your truth!"
The comma after the word ways and Lord represent a pause. Reread the verse inserting the pause in the appropiate place. Do you hear the thought and emotion King David put into this imperative and exclamatory statement? He wants to be taught the ways of the Lord. Why? So he can live according to the truth of the ways. My souls longs for this like one in a dry desert land.
The word teach is the Hebrew word yarah. The meaning surprised me. It means to throw, shoot, cast or pour. David was a excellent warrior and knew full well what it meant to throw, shoot, and cast. The ways of the Lord could be shot in, thrown to, or cast on him. My favorite is pour. I love the image I get of God pouring His ways into my me all so that I might live according to His truth which is a life that pleases Him. David finishes verses 11 asking God to grant him purity of heart which translates as unite. It implies one who has a heart to obey God.
Turn back to our key verse and the idea of giving ourselves to the Lord. Give means to lift up, bear, take or lift oneself up to. David begins the Psalm beckoning God to bend down and hear his prayer and then three verses later after delcaring his trust and devotion to God, he says "I lift myself up to you." Isn't that beautiful? The scene is the God of the Heavens bending down and the man-after-God's own heart lifting himself up.
Can we have this same moment with the same God today? We serve and are devoted to the same God. We desire to know the ways of the Lord and live by His truths with a heart united to His. Bend down, O Lord, and hear our prayer as we lift ourselves to you."
12 Comments:
Good Morning!
Thank you Wendy for the beautiful picture of God bending down to listen, and David lifting himself up.
As I prayed, I actually pictured me standing on my tippy toes as God came in closer to lend me His ear. My prayer felt sweet as I whispered into it. I felt Him smiling as I poured out my heart cupping His ear with my hand so he could be sure to hear. Childlike...it is the way we are supposed to have faith....it felt so good on those tippy toes.
What an amazing Abba Father we serve and love.
Praising and thanking Him for all of you this beautiful morning!!
with love,
Dawn
Good Morning~
Wendy before I even read what you wrote, my heart was drawn to the same verse. I read Psalm 86:11 in the AMP and it says, "Teach me Your way, O Lord, that I may walk and live in Your truth, direct and unite my heart [solely, reverently] to fear and honor Your name." I was then drawn back to Psalm 25:12, "Who, then, is the man that fears the Lord? He will instruct him in the way chosen for him."
Lord, I pray that You will teach me Your ways so I can walk in Your truth. I pray that I will have an undivided, pure heart that solely and reverently fears Your name so that Your plan for my life will be revealed to me.
Hope you all have a wonderful day!
God Bless~
Brandee
Dear Girlfriends,
Wendy, what a sweet lesson you presented to us this morning! I think all of us today needed to here this! As we all seek God to know Him better, the enemy does all he can to throw us off kilter. He does his best to get us focused on other "stuff." As he tries to create havoc in our daily lives, we need to out-smart him! Pause. Inhale. Exhale,
and be reminded of the sweet picture you presented to us!
"Bend down, O LORD, and hear my prayer; I will call to you whenever I am in trouble."
[I will not go to the phone. :) I will not throw myself a pity party! :) I will not allow turmoil to overtake me. I will not get angry and be a spectacle to my family. :) ]
Praise you, LORD, for I know you will answer me. Help me wait on You patiently because You know what You are doing with me. I lift myself up to You.
What would we do without, The Word, girls? Help me remember LORD, to lift myself up to you, and not to meander onto own crooked path!
Enjoy the moments girls...That is what the Lord is telling me to do. Slow down. Think about what you're doing. Seek His peace.
Praying for each of you and your individual needs!
Love you, Lori - AZ
PS Kristen, I received the "Self Talk, Soul Talk" yesterday! It looked so good-can't wait to begin it!
I also underlined "Bend down, O Lord, and hear my prayer." It's such a beautiful picture of One who truly cares and gives his full attention.
When my dad made the decision not to have surgery and be moved to Palliative Care, the doctor from that unit came in to talk to Dad. What impressed me most was when the doctor went to the side of the bed and bent down on his knees to talk to my dad. I knew by this doctor's actions that he cared for his patients.
It brings tears to my eyes to recall that scene. The doctor looked at my dad, face to face, and asked, "Are you at peace with your decision?" and Dad responded, "I'm more at peace than I've been in a long time."
Bend down, O Lord... when the Lord is near, I need not fear.
Rainy day today in Illinois, but your comments and insights bring the Lord's rays of sunshine into my day!
Brandee, you inspired me to check out a couple other versions of the Bible for Psalm 86:11. Sometimes it gives us an even deeper look/insight into the scriptures.
NIV study Bible: "Teach me your way, O Lord, and I will walk in your truth; give me an undivided heart, that I may fear your name."
The study portion/commentary at the bottom says, "Teach me....give me. What would be the benefit if God saved him from his enemies but abandoned him to his own waywardness? David's dependence on God is complete, and so is his devotion to God-save me from the enemy outside but also from my frailty within. cross references to Psalms 25:4&5...
"Show me your ways, O Lord, teach me your paths; guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my Savior, and my hope is in you all day long."
Another cross reference listed was 1 Cor 7:35 "I am saying this for your own good, not to restrict you, but that you may live in a right way in undivided devotion to the Lord."
The Living Traslation (The Way)
Ps 86:11 "Tell me where you want me to go and I will go there. May every fiber of my being unite in reverance to your name.
"My hope is in you all day long..." may we be in the practice of being in the prescence of the Lord as we go about our day and hear the whispers of the Holy Spirit as He leads and guides us.
Love from Debbie in Illinois
Before I take off I have to pop back in to share God's Glory! This morning, while walking I was praying to God, lifting up my requests...later on, after showering,I was blow-drying my hair. I was praying over a couple of you girls. Eyes closed. The buzzing of the blow-dryer tuned out the world. It was just me and God. I was so focused on Him and knew I was in His presence. In between one of the prayers, he whispered something that relayed an answer to a request I had given to him this morning! I was floored with His answer! The simplicity of it! My heart was pounding because He answered me so quickly. What an awesome God we serve, girls. Oh, when we just turn situations over to Him, He's there. Ready for us. He's just waiting for us to come to Him.
Also, one more bit of goodness. Sunday morning when I woke up [my weekend had a bit of drama, so I know God knew what I needed]...I went to my Bible. I opened it to my daily reading and there, tucked in, was a home-made Mother's Day card and letter from my 17 year old son! No other gift could have been wanted. To know that my son knew where to find me first thing!
My other 15-year old son, greeted me with a hug when he woke up and handed me his hand-made card. Teenagers have their good moments!
:) :) Even, strong-willed ones! :)
I praise God for them everyday, because they lead me right to my knees, and that's where God wants me-going to Him. Love you LORD!
Catch my prayers dear girlfriends. Focus on God. He's our answer today!
Lori - AZ
Love the comments today everyone! December Rose - we need more doctors like the one you described.
I was drawn to Psalm 69:20. "If only one person would show some pity; if only one would turn and comfort me."
Am I that one person? Let's look around us....we are only 1, but to someone that's all they may need today.
God's unfailing love,
Morgen
"Bend down, O Lord, and hear our prayer as we lift ourselves to you."
Smiling as I read that prayer Wendy. The reason I'm later today is because I was doing just that this morning...quite literally. I had such a longing to drive to the lake, share some quiet time with the Lord and get on an old fashioned swing, lifting myself and my requests up to Him. I just arrived back home a short time ago.
Using Psalm 68:9, I posted my response and some pics if anyone cares to visit. "You sent abundant rain, O God, to refresh the weary land." (http://ponderinginhispresence.blogspot.com/2009/05/showers-of-blessings.html)
Yes, today it is raining, and I've been caught without my umbrella. The Lord is drenching me with His love.
"Praise the Lord; praise God our savior! for each day he carries us in his arms." Psalm 68:19
Blessings sweet friends,
Joy
Loving this week's posts on the Psalms. Oooh weee, good stuff!!! Thanks for sharing all these insights. I know you are loving it. I can tell in your writing. God is using to bless so many and I am one of them!!!
Hugs,
Renee
Renee... speaking of inspiration...loved your Proverbs 31 devotion this morning about failure. That we need to learn from them and fall/move forward as you say. We are all works in progress and the times of failure, the valley and dark tunnel times all help us to emerge closer to the woman God intends us to be! Thanks for the uplifting devotion...I passed it on to my SS and Bible study friends!
Debbie in Illinois
Hightly Favored
Isn't God awesome? Teach me your ways, O Lord, that I may live according to your truth. This verse was also dropped into my spirit. I was reminded of children and how we as parents and educators are often times looking for teachable moments with children. We adults sometimes forget that God is looking for moments to show and teach us life lessons as well.
My prayer is that I will be open to his teaching.
Hi Ladies,
Reading the Psalms causes such a hunger and a thirst after the righteous of God! Just to know and trust him as David did through all of life's trials and tribulations is a place I long to inhabit.
Thanks for all your prayers for my Pastor friend who lost her daughter last week.
Blessings,
Debbie McKee
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