July 10, 2020
For the next 15 days we will be reading through the Psalms of Ascent together as a church! The Psalms of Ascent are a collection of 15 psalms (Psalms 120-134) that pilgrims would sing on their way up to Jerusalem to worship. These songs are meant to instruct and prepare the hearts of the traveler to worship the Lord! As sojourners and aliens in this world, we too need to have our hearts prepared for and instructed in the worship of our God. Let’s meditate on these psalms and allow the Spirit of the Lord to move us to true worship as we seek Him together!
This is a psalm simply expressing joy and contentment in the presence of God! The pilgrim worshipper is reminded and reminds his companions of the rest and the delight that are to be found simply by being in the presence of the Lord.
The psalmist begins with expressions of humility, saying that he is not proud or arrogant nor does he occupy his time attempting to understand things beyond his comprehension. The psalmist knows well his own limitations but, just as a weaned child is content merely with the presence of its mother (v.2), he is content merely to be in the presence of the Lord! This contentment and posture of heart towards God is reason for all of God’s people to have hope!
How many of us waste our time seeking to gain things we will never obtain, be fulfilled in things that will never fulfill, or understand things we will never understand? This song is a reminder and an invitation to simply rest and delight in God’s presence! There is hope and grace and rest to be found when we make God our contentment.
Psalm 131
I Have Calmed and Quieted My Soul
A Song of Ascents. Of David.
131 O Lord, my heart is not lifted up;
my eyes are not raised too high;
I do not occupy myself with things
too great and too marvelous for me.
2 But I have calmed and quieted my soul,
like a weaned child with its mother;
like a weaned child is my soul within me.
3 O Israel, hope in the Lord
from this time forth and forevermore.
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version® (ESV®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
Family Discussion Question:
- What things stop you from being content in the presence of God, from having a soul that is calmed and quieted in His presence? How might you take steps towards this kind of joy and contentment?
Dear Heavenly Father,
So often we are not content in what we have. We strive for more, more, more… A bigger house, a better job, a larger bank account. When really, if we have You, that is all we need. While playing a simple game yesterday, with a young child I care for, I put on some music that was in the player. All of the songs were inspirational ones, some familiar and some not. I began to notice a calm in my spirit when I heard ones like”It is Well with My Soul” and “Our God is an Awesome God”. Tears began to well up in my eyes and I thought,”why have I not been playing music daily like this before…not just hearing it on Sunday mornings at church? What a revelation I had! Thank You God for giving me that blessing. I was reminded to envelope my life with You, day in and day out, at work, at play and at home. You are indeed, an awesome God ! In Jesus’name ,I pray
Amen!
Gracias padre porque tú eres nuestro padre amado porque tú nos tienes siempre de la mano nos guía y te preocupa por tú pueblo cómo cuando los sacaste de Egipto, ahora y siempre confiamos en tú misericordia porque tus promesas se renuevan cada día y entregamos a ti toda la plaga del covid en tus manos para que seas tú mi señor a limpiar todas las naciones de enfermedades y destrucciones causadas por el hombre con el egoísmo y el poder que sabemos que tú tienes el control de cada cosa y en ti descansamos te alabamos y bendecimos tu santo nombre por amor de tú hijo amado amén y amén ?
Amen. God indeed is awesome and magnificent. I too realized that music has a power to restore my hope. Just as King David played music and swayed in the streets, he was delighted in the Lord. May today Lord I give you my delight, my joy. May my work be a sweet aroma to your throne giving you the glory and honor.
Lord, let my heart not be proud, nor my eyes haughty. I will not involve myself in great matters, or in things too difficult for me. I will compose and quiet my soul.
Praise God for a calm and quiet spirit that rests in you Lord for you are everything.
Father, my hope is in you. Thank you for sacrificing your son for my iniquities. My hope, Father, is in you alone. Amen
We have all met some people who were so heavenly minded that they were no earthly good. They spend all of energy trying to determine the date of the rapture, for example. They try to impress people with their knowledge. But humility should be their objective. There are many things that Gid has not told us and we should leave it that way. As one evangelist put it on a certain deep matter, “It is none of your business. If God had wanted you to know, He would have told you. “
Today I will not be distracted by the temporary, the trivial, by my thoughts or desires, but focus on your presence, looking for where you are at work so that I can join you.
Thanks for this devotion on today. God knew His child needed to have a calm soul on today. Thanks!!!
AMEN!!!
Lord, thank you for everything you have allowed me to have! Thank you for the trials that you have allowed in my life that have shown me how much I need you and how much you love me!