Psalm Challenge: Day One Hundred and Forty-Three!

My prayer for all my readers:

Dear Heavenly Father,

There are days where I feel we (myself included) forget to focus on who You are. Lord, I pray that the person reading my blog will turn to You. Lord, You are faithful and righteous, but let us never forget of Your love for us. 

In Jesus Name,

Amen!

Psalm 143

"Lord, hear my prayer,
    listen to my cry for mercy;
in your faithfulness and righteousness
    come to my relief.
² Do not bring your servant into judgment,
    for no one living is righteous before you.
³ The enemy pursues me,
    he crushes me to the ground;
he makes me dwell in the darkness
    like those long dead.
⁴ So my spirit grows faint within me;
    my heart within me is dismayed.
⁵ I remember the days of long ago;
    I meditate on all your works
    and consider what your hands have done.
⁶ I spread out my hands to you;
    I thirst for you like a parched land.

⁷ Answer me quickly, Lord;
    my spirit fails.
Do not hide your face from me
    or I will be like those who go down to the pit.
⁸ Let the morning bring me word of your unfailing love,
    for I have put my trust in you.
Show me the way I should go,
    for to you I entrust my life.
⁹ Rescue me from my enemies, Lord,
    for I hide myself in you.
¹⁰ Teach me to do your will,
    for you are my God;
may your good Spirit
    lead me on level ground.

¹¹ For your name’s sake, Lord, preserve my life;
    in your righteousness, bring me out of trouble.
¹² In your unfailing love, silence my enemies;
    destroy all my foes,
    for I am your servant."

Psalm Challenge: Day One Hundred and Forty-Two!

Have you ever been so lonely? Maybe you think no onecares about you? God cares. He gives you life,and the freedom to run to Him. 

Psalm 142

"I cry aloud to the Lord;
    I lift up my voice to the Lord for mercy.
² I pour out before him my complaint;
    before him I tell my trouble.

³ When my spirit grows faint within me,
    it is you who watch over my way.
In the path where I walk
    people have hidden a snare for me.
⁴ Look and see, there is no one at my right hand;
    no one is concerned for me.
I have no refuge;
    no one cares for my life.

⁵ I cry to you, Lord;
    I say, “You are my refuge,
    my portion in the land of the living.”

⁶ Listen to my cry,
    for I am in desperate need;
rescue me from those who pursue me,
    for they are too strong for me.
⁷ Set me free from my prison,
    that I may praise your name.
Then the righteous will gather about me
    because of your goodness to me."

Psalm Challenge: Day One Hundred and Forty-One!

Verse three really made me ask the question "what is coming out of my mouth?" God does not want my lips to have evil on them. This is an area I need to work on because it is so easy to say unwholesome talk when stressed or you get hurt. Let's rise above what society wants us to do in order to be examples of Christ's love! 

Psalm 141

"I call to you, Lord, come quickly to me;
    hear me when I call to you.
² May my prayer be set before you like incense;
    may the lifting up of my hands be like the evening sacrifice.

³ Set a guard over my mouth, Lord;
    keep watch over the door of my lips.
⁴ Do not let my heart be drawn to what is evil
    so that I take part in wicked deeds
along with those who are evildoers;
    do not let me eat their delicacies.

⁵ Let a righteous man strike me—that is a kindness;
    let him rebuke me—that is oil on my head.
My head will not refuse it,
    for my prayer will still be against the deeds of evildoers.

⁶ Their rulers will be thrown down from the cliffs,
    and the wicked will learn that my words were well spoken.
⁷ They will say, “As one plows and breaks up the earth,
    so our bones have been scattered at the mouth of the grave.”

⁸ But my eyes are fixed on you, Sovereign Lord;
    in you I take refuge—do not give me over to death.
⁹ Keep me safe from the traps set by evildoers,
    from the snares they have laid for me.
¹⁰ Let the wicked fall into their own nets,
    while I pass by in safety."

Psalm Challenge: Day One Hundred and Forty!

(Photo Credit: I do not own this photo. All rights belong to the respected owner of this photo)

Psalm 140

"Rescue me, Lord, from evildoers;
    protect me from the violent,
² who devise evil plans in their hearts
    and stir up war every day.
³ They make their tongues as sharp as a serpent’s;
    the poison of vipers is on their lips.

⁴ Keep me safe, Lord, from the hands of the wicked;
    protect me from the violent,
    who devise ways to trip my feet.
⁵ The arrogant have hidden a snare for me;
    they have spread out the cords of their net
    and have set traps for me along my path.

⁶ I say to the Lord, “You are my God.”
    Hear, Lord, my cry for mercy.
⁷ Sovereign Lord, my strong deliverer,
    you shield my head in the day of battle.
⁸ Do not grant the wicked their desires, Lord;
    do not let their plans succeed.

⁹ Those who surround me proudly rear their heads;
    may the mischief of their lips engulf them.
¹⁰ May burning coals fall on them;
    may they be thrown into the fire,
    into miry pits, never to rise.
¹¹ May slanderers not be established in the land;
    may disaster hunt down the violent.

¹² I know that the Lord secures justice for the poor
    and upholds the cause of the needy.
¹³ Surely the righteous will praise your name,
    and the upright will live in your presence."

Psalm Challenge: Day One Hundred and Thirty-Nine!

Who do you think knows you best? Maybe it's a best friend, parent, or sibling? God knows you the best. He created you and knows your life before you were ever born. 

Psalm 139

"You have searched me, Lord,
    and you know me.
² You know when I sit and when I rise;
    you perceive my thoughts from afar.
³ You discern my going out and my lying down;
    you are familiar with all my ways.
⁴ Before a word is on my tongue
    you, Lord, know it completely.
⁵ You hem me in behind and before,
    and you lay your hand upon me.
⁶ Such knowledge is too wonderful for me,
    too lofty for me to attain.

⁷ Where can I go from your Spirit?
    Where can I flee from your presence?
⁸ If I go up to the heavens, you are there;
    if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.
⁹ If I rise on the wings of the dawn,
    if I settle on the far side of the sea,
¹⁰ even there your hand will guide me,
    your right hand will hold me fast.
¹¹ If I say, “Surely the darkness will hide me
    and the light become night around me,”
¹² even the darkness will not be dark to you;
    the night will shine like the day,
    for darkness is as light to you.

¹³ For you created my inmost being;
    you knit me together in my mother’s womb.
¹⁴ I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
    your works are wonderful,
    I know that full well.
¹⁵ My frame was not hidden from you
    when I was made in the secret place,
    when I was woven together in the depths of the earth.
¹⁶ Your eyes saw my unformed body;
    all the days ordained for me were written in your book
    before one of them came to be.
¹⁷ How precious to me are your thoughts,God!
    How vast is the sum of them!
¹⁸ Were I to count them,
    they would outnumber the grains of sand—
    when I awake, I am still with you.

¹⁹ If only you, God, would slay the wicked!
    Away from me, you who are bloodthirsty!
²⁰ They speak of you with evil intent;
    your adversaries misuse your name.
²¹ Do I not hate those who hate you, Lord,
    and abhor those who are in rebellion against you?
²² I have nothing but hatred for them;
    I count them my enemies.
²³ Search me, God, and know my heart;
    test me and know my anxious thoughts.
²⁴ See if there is any offensive way in me,
    and lead me in the way everlasting."

Psalm Challenge: Day One Hundred and Thirty-Eight!

This morning I was eating my apple, and then all of the sudden a piece of the skin fell off. It made a heart! It is just another proof that God loves me. This psalm is also proof that He loves us!

Psalm 138
"I will praise you, Lord, with all my heart;
    before the “gods” I will sing your praise.
² I will bow down toward your holy temple
    and will praise your name
    for your unfailing love and your faithfulness,
for you have so exalted your solemn decree
    that it surpasses your fame.
³ When I called, you answered me;
    you greatly emboldened me.

⁴ May all the kings of the earth praise you, Lord,
    when they hear what you have decreed.
⁵ May they sing of the ways of the Lord,
    for the glory of the Lord is great.

⁶ Though the Lord is exalted, he looks kindly on the lowly;
    though lofty, he sees them from afar.
⁷ Though I walk in the midst of trouble,
    you preserve my life.
You stretch out your hand against the anger of my foes;
    with your right hand you save me.
⁸ The Lord will vindicate me;
    your love, Lord, endures forever—
    do not abandon the works of your hands."

Psalm Challenge: Day One Hundred and Thirty-Seven!

No matter where you are, may the praises of God come off your tongue. In a foreign land or your current city, praise God!

Psalm 137

"By the rivers of Babylon we sat and wept
    when we remembered Zion.
² There on the poplars
    we hung our harps,
³ for there our captors asked us for songs,
    our tormentors demanded songs of joy;
    they said, “Sing us one of the songs of Zion!”

⁴ How can we sing the songs of the Lord
    while in a foreign land?
⁵ If I forget you, Jerusalem,
    may my right hand forget its skill.
⁶ May my tongue cling to the roof of my mouth
    if I do not remember you,
if I do not consider Jerusalem
    my highest joy.

⁷ Remember, Lord, what the Edomites did
    on the day Jerusalem fell.
“Tear it down,” they cried,
    “tear it down to its foundations!”
⁸ Daughter Babylon, doomed to destruction,
    happy is the one who repays you
    according to what you have done to us.
⁹ Happy is the one who seizes your infants
    and dashes them against the rocks."

Psalm Challenge: Day One Hundred and Thirty-Six!

It is said twenty six times that "His love endures forever." As I grow older, I am starting to see this be true in my life. This is mine. 

Give thanks to the One 

who gave me life

His love endures forever. 

Give thanks to God

 who healed my mommy from Colon cancer 

His love endures forever. 

To the One who gave the strengthen 

to worship Him freely 

His love endures forever. 

To the One who watches and protects me from wickedness 

His love endures forever. 

To the One who sent His Son to wash me white as snow and give me worth

His love endures forever. 

Psalm 136

"Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good.
His love endures forever.
² Give thanks to the God of gods.
His love endures forever.
³ Give thanks to the Lord of lords:
His love endures forever.

⁴ to him who alone does great wonders,
His love endures forever.
⁵ who by his understanding made the heavens,
His love endures forever.
⁶ who spread out the earth upon the waters,
His love endures forever.
⁷ who made the great lights—
His love endures forever.
⁸ the sun to govern the day,
His love endures forever.
⁹ the moon and stars to govern the night;
His love endures forever.

¹⁰ to him who struck down the firstborn of Egypt
His love endures forever.
¹¹ and brought Israel out from among them
His love endures forever.
¹² with a mighty hand and outstretched arm;
His love endures forever.

¹³ to him who divided the Red Sea asunder
His love endures forever.
¹⁴ and brought Israel through the midst of it,
His love endures forever.
¹⁵ but swept Pharaoh and his army into the Red Sea;
His love endures forever.

¹⁶ to him who led his people through the wilderness;
His love endures forever.

¹⁷ to him who struck down great kings,
His love endures forever.
¹⁸ and killed mighty kings—
His love endures forever.
¹⁹ Sihon king of the Amorites
His love endures forever.
²⁰ and Og king of Bashan—
His love endures forever.
²¹ and gave their land as an inheritance,
His love endures forever.
²² an inheritance to his servant Israel.
His love endures forever.

²³ He remembered us in our low estate
His love endures forever.
²⁴ and freed us from our enemies.
His love endures forever.
²⁵ He gives food to every creature.
His love endures forever.

²⁶ Give thanks to the God of heaven.
His love endures forever."

Psalm Challenge: Day One Hundred and Thirty-Five!

How many things are you thankful for in your life? How many times do you say thank you to your Father in Heaven? I struggle with this, and I know that it is hard, but when we offer up our praises to the Lord, He personally grows closer to us. Thank you, Abba!

Psalm 135

" Praise the Lord.

Praise the name of the Lord;
    praise him, you servants of the Lord,
² you who minister in the house of the Lord,
    in the courts of the house of our God.

³ Praise the Lord, for the Lord is good;
    sing praise to his name, for that is pleasant.
⁴ For the Lord has chosen Jacob to be his own,
    Israel to be his treasured possession.

⁵ I know that the Lord is great,
    that our Lord is greater than all gods.
⁶ The Lord does whatever pleases him,
    in the heavens and on the earth,
    in the seas and all their depths.
⁷ He makes clouds rise from the ends of the earth;
    he sends lightning with the rain
    and brings out the wind from his storehouses.

⁸ He struck down the firstborn of Egypt,
    the firstborn of people and animals.
⁹ He sent his signs and wonders into your midst, Egypt,
    against Pharaoh and all his servants.
¹⁰ He struck down many nations
    and killed mighty kings—
¹¹ Sihon king of the Amorites,
    Og king of Bashan,
    and all the kings of Canaan—
¹² and he gave their land as an inheritance,
    an inheritance to his people Israel.

¹³ Your name, Lord, endures forever,
    your renown, Lord, through all generations.
¹⁴ For the Lord will vindicate his people
    and have compassion on his servants.

¹⁵ The idols of the nations are silver and gold,
    made by human hands.
¹⁶ They have mouths, but cannot speak,
    eyes, but cannot see.
¹⁷ They have ears, but cannot hear,
    nor is there breath in their mouths.
¹⁸ Those who make them will be like them,
    and so will all who trust in them.

¹⁹ All you Israelites, praise the Lord;
    house of Aaron, praise the Lord;
²⁰ house of Levi, praise the Lord;
    you who fear him, praise the Lord.
²¹ Praise be to the Lord from Zion,
    to him who dwells in Jerusalem.

Praise the Lord."

Psalm Challenge: Day One Hundred and Thirty-Four!

Psalm 134

"Praise the Lord, all you servants of the Lord
    who minister by night in the house of the Lord.
² Lift up your hands in the sanctuary
    and praise the Lord.

³ May the Lord bless you from Zion,
    he who is the Maker of heaven and earth."

Psalm Challenge: Day One Hundred and Thirty-Three!

Psalm 133

"How good and pleasant it is
    when God’s people live together in unity!

² It is like precious oil poured on the head,
    running down on the beard,
running down on Aaron’s beard,
    down on the collar of his robe.
³ It is as if the dew of Hermon
    were falling on Mount Zion.
For there the Lord bestows his blessing, 

    even life forevermore."

Psalm Challenge: Day One Hundred and Thirty-Two!

Often when a person gets saved, they pray a prayer of salvation. Not only is it a prayer, but it is also a promise to God. Do we live everyday according to the promise we said so long ago? Remember the first time you fell in love with someone. Did you eagerly wait for them to call you? Or maybe you put all your time and attention into getting ready for your first date. God wants this promise to be more important. 

Psalm 132

"Lord, remember David
    and all his self-denial.

² He swore an oath to the Lord,
    he made a vow to the Mighty One of Jacob:
³ “I will not enter my house
    or go to my bed,
⁴ I will allow no sleep to my eyes
    or slumber to my eyelids,
⁵ till I find a place for the Lord,
    a dwelling for the Mighty One of Jacob.”

⁶ We heard it in Ephrathah,
    we came upon it in the fields of Jaar:^[a]
7 “Let us go to his dwelling place,
    let us worship at his footstool, saying,
⁸ ‘Arise, Lord, and come to your resting place,
    you and the ark of your might.
⁹ May your priests be clothed with your righteousness;
    may your faithful people sing for joy.’”

¹⁰ For the sake of your servant David,
    do not reject your anointed one.

¹¹ The Lord swore an oath to David,
    a sure oath he will not revoke:
“One of your own descendants
    I will place on your throne.
¹² If your sons keep my covenant
    and the statutes I teach them,
then their sons will sit
    on your throne for ever and ever.”

¹³ For the Lord has chosen Zion,
    he has desired it for his dwelling, saying,
¹⁴ “This is my resting place for ever and ever;
    here I will sit enthroned, for I have desired it.
¹⁵ I will bless her with abundant provisions;
    her poor I will satisfy with food.
¹⁶ I will clothe her priests with salvation,
    and her faithful people will ever sing for joy.

¹⁷ “Here I will make a horn grow for David
    and set up a lamp for my anointed one.
¹⁸ I will clothe his enemies with shame,
    but his head will be adorned with a radiant crown.”

Psalm Challenge: Day One Hundred and Thirty-One!

Psalm 131

"My heart is not proud, Lord,
    my eyes are not haughty;
I do not concern myself with great matters
    or things too wonderful for me.
² But I have calmed and quieted myself,
    I am like a weaned child with its mother;
    like a weaned child I am content.

³ Israel, put your hope in the Lord
    both now and forevermore."

Psalm Challenge: Day One Hundred and Thirty!

This psalm gives us four characteristics of who God is. Let's take a look!

1) He is forgiveness! God keeps no record of sins to His children because we are forgiven. 

2) He is unfailing love! The LORD loves me just the way I am! 

3)He is full of redemption! Day after day He offers us a second chance. 

4) He redeems Israel! God saved us, so we can have a relationship with Him. 

Psalm 130

"Out of the depths I cry to you, Lord;
²     Lord, hear my voice.
Let your ears be attentive
    to my cry for mercy.

³ If you, Lord, kept a record of sins,
    Lord, who could stand?
⁴ But with you there is forgiveness,
    so that we can, with reverence, serve you.

⁵ I wait for the Lord, my whole being waits,
    and in his word I put my hope.
⁶ I wait for the Lord
    more than watchmen wait for the morning,
    more than watchmen wait for the morning.

⁷ Israel, put your hope in the Lord,
    for with the Lord is unfailing love
    and with him is full redemption.
⁸ He himself will redeem Israel
    from all their sins."

Psalm Challenge: Day One Hundred and Twenty-Nine!

Out of this psalm, I mostly take away the second part of verse two "but they have not gained the victory over me." Because I live for King Jesus nothing can break me or take away my worth. God wins the victory! I win because I am a daughter of the King! You win too because you are a child of the Jesus! Amen!

Psalm 129

"'They have greatly oppressed me from my youth,'
    let Israel say;
² 'they have greatly oppressed me from my youth,
    but they have not gained the victory over me.
³ Plowmen have plowed my back
    and made their furrows long.
⁴ But the Lord is righteous;
    he has cut me free from the cords of the wicked.'

⁵ May all who hate Zion
    be turned back in shame.
⁶ May they be like grass on the roof,
    which withers before it can grow;
⁷ a reaper cannot fill his hands with it,
    nor one who gathers fill his arms.
⁸ May those who pass by not say to them,
    'The blessing of the Lord be on you;
    we bless you in the name of the Lord.'"

Psalm Challenge: Day One Hundred and Twenty-Eight!

So you wanna know how to become more blessed? There is not a simple formula, but God does yearn for your obedience to Him. When we start obeying, we start living the life God wants for us: an abundant life of blessings. 

Psalm 128

"Blessed are all who fear the Lord,
    who walk in obedience to him.
² You will eat the fruit of your labor;
    blessings and prosperity will be yours.
³ Your wife will be like a fruitful vine
    within your house;
your children will be like olive shoots
    around your table.
⁴ Yes, this will be the blessing
    for the man who fears the Lord.

⁵ May the Lord bless you from Zion;
    may you see the prosperity of Jerusalem
    all the days of your life.
⁶ May you live to see your children’s children—
    peace be on Israel."

Psalm Challenge: Day One Hundred and Twenty-Seven!

How do you start the day the Lord has made? Do you wake up and think of the laundry list that needs to be finished? I'll admit that I did just that this morning. It was out of vain that I did not go to God this morning before trying to indulge in the day. I am not saying that having a Quiet Time at night is wrong, but be sure to talk and thank God for the beautiful morning that He made not in vain. 

Psalm 127

"Unless the Lord builds the house,
    the builders labor in vain.
Unless the Lord watches over the city,
    the guards stand watch in vain.
² In vain you rise early
    and stay up late,
toiling for food to eat—
    for he grants sleep to those he loves.

³ Children are a heritage from the Lord,
    offspring a reward from him.
⁴ Like arrows in the hands of a warrior
    are children born in one’s youth.
⁵ Blessed is the man
    whose quiver is full of them.
They will not be put to shame
    when they contend with their opponents in court."

Psalm Challenge: Day One Hundred and Twenty-Six!

(Video credit: I do not owe this video)

Psalm 126

"When the Lord restored the fortunes of Zion,
    we were like those who dreamed.
² Our mouths were filled with laughter,
    our tongues with songs of joy.
Then it was said among the nations,
    “The Lord has done great things for them.”
³ The Lord has done great things for us,
    and we are filled with joy.

⁴ Restore our fortunes, Lord,
    like streams in the Negev.
⁵ Those who sow with tears
    will reap with songs of joy.
⁶ Those who go out weeping,
    carrying seed to sow,
will return with songs of joy,
    carrying sheaves with them."

Psalm Challenge: Day One Hundred and Twenty-Five!

Ever wonder about where God is in your life? Do you feel like He left you with a huge mess in your life to clean up? Has He really left? God says He will "surround His people both now and fovermore." Praise God!

Psalm 125

"Those who trust in the Lord are like Mount Zion,
    which cannot be shaken but endures forever.
² As the mountains surround Jerusalem,
    so the Lord surrounds his people
    both now and forevermore.

³ The scepter of the wicked will not remain
    over the land allotted to the righteous,
for then the righteous might use
    their hands to do evil.

⁴ Lord, do good to those who are good,
    to those who are upright in heart.
⁵ But those who turn to crooked ways
    the Lord will banish with the evildoers.

Peace be on Israel."

Psalm Challenge: Day One Hundred and Twenty-Four!

God is our help in times of trouble. 

God is our help in the good and bad times. 

Nothing is too big for Him!

Psalm 124

"If the Lord had not been on our side—
    let Israel say—
² if the Lord had not been on our side
    when people attacked us,
³ they would have swallowed us alive
    when their anger flared against us;
⁴ the flood would have engulfed us,
    the torrent would have swept over us,
⁵ the raging waters
    would have swept us away.

⁶ Praise be to the Lord,
    who has not let us be torn by their teeth.
⁷ We have escaped like a bird
    from the fowler’s snare;
the snare has been broken,
    and we have escaped.
⁸ Our help is in the name of the Lord,
    the Maker of heaven and earth."

Psalm Challenge: Day One Hundred and Twenty-Three!

Our eyes give us clarity but our faith can move mountains. Look to the Heavens and remember that even though we cannot see our Father, He still gives us clarity of who He is through our personal relationship with Him.

Psalm 123

" I lift up my eyes to you,
    to you who sit enthroned in heaven.
² As the eyes of slaves look to the hand of their master,
    as the eyes of a female slave look to the hand of her mistress,
so our eyes look to the Lord our God,
    till he shows us his mercy.

³ Have mercy on us, Lord, have mercy on us,
    for we have endured no end of contempt.
⁴ We have endured no end
    of ridicule from the arrogant,
    of contempt from the proud."

Psalm Challenge: Day One Hundred and Twenty-Two!

Jerusalem is a very important city filled with the peace of God. Jerusalem is where they went to worship the King of Kings. It is filled with love and life for all generations. 

Psalm 122

"I rejoiced with those who said to me,
    “Let us go to the house of the Lord.”
² Our feet are standing
    in your gates, Jerusalem.

³ Jerusalem is built like a city
    that is closely compacted together.
⁴ That is where the tribes go up—
    the tribes of the Lord—
to praise the name of the Lord
    according to the statute given to Israel.
⁵ There stand the thrones for judgment,
    the thrones of the house of David.

⁶ Pray for the peace of Jerusalem:
    “May those who love you be secure.
⁷ May there be peace within your walls
    and security within your citadels.”
⁸ For the sake of my family and friends,
    I will say, “Peace be within you.”
⁹ For the sake of the house of the Lord our God,
    I will seek your prosperity."