Sunday Scripture

 

 It's time for another Sunday Scripture!  This is part of an ongoing series on my simple study of Rachel Wojo's Everything Beautiful.  You can read about the plan here if you are interested in it for yourself: Everything Beautiful Bible reading plan. My answers and input on this series are a combination of what I learned back in 2018, and what I found in looking over the Scriptures now, six years later.  I'm attempting to SOAP the passages too, though some of them are longer. [Quick reminder that S stands for Scripture; O stands for for observation; A stands for application, and P stands for prayer.]  Today's study is from Psalm 119:12-18. 

S= "Blessed art Thou, O LORD; teach me Thy statutes.
"With my lips have I declared all the ordinances of Thy mouth.
"I have rejoiced in the way of Thy testimonies, as much as in all riches.
"I will meditate in Thy precepts, and have respect unto Thy ways.
"I will delight myself in Thy statutes; I will not forget Thy Word.
"Deal bountifully with Thy servant, that I may live, and keep Thy Word.
"Open Thou mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of Thy law."  (Psalm 119:12-18)

O= Psalm 119, as we know, is devoted entirely to the praise of God’s Word and the role of His Word in the life of the believer.  There is so much that can be said about this psalm!

Just for starters, Psalm 119 has been called the golden alphabet of the Bible.  It is divided into 22 sections, one for each letter of the Hebrew alphabet.  Every section contains 8 verses, and every verse in a particular section begins with the corresponding Hebrew letter.  For example, the first section —  verses 1 through 8 — is titled Aleph.  And, in the Hebrew, each verse in this section begins with the letter Aleph.  The second section is titled Beth.  So in the Hebrew, each verse in that section — verses 9-16 — begins with the letter Beth.  And so on.
  
What a work of art this psalm is!  C.S. Lewis described it this way: “The poem is … a pattern, a thing done like embroidery, stitch by stitch, through long, quiet hours, for love of the subject and for the delight in leisurely, disciplined craftsmanship.”

A cross-reference for "teach me" (v. 12) and for "ways" (v.15) -- "Show me Thy ways, O LORD; teach me Thy paths."  (Psalm 25:4)

Cross-references for "declared" (v. 13) -- "I have preached righteousness in the great congregation: lo, I have not refrained my lips, O LORD, Thou knowest."  (Psalm 40:9)

"And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up."  (Deuteronomy 6:7)

"All the ordinances" (v.13) can be read "all the just decrees".   

Cross-references for "riches" (v.14) -- "Happy is the man that findeth wisdom, and the man that getteth understanding.  For the merchandise of it is better than the merchandise of silver, and the gain thereof than fine gold.  She is more precious than rubies: and all the things thou canst desire are not to be compared unto her."  (Proverbs 3:13-15)

"Receive my instruction, and not silver; and knowledge rather than choice gold.  For wisdom is better than rubies; and all the things that may be desired are not to be compared to it."  (Proverbs 8:10-11)

"Testimonies" (v. 14) indicate "God's own declarations concerning His nature and purpose".*

Cross-reference for "meditate" (v. 15) -- "O, how love I Thy law!  It is my meditation all the day."  (Psalm 119:97)

"Precepts" (v.15) -- "Man's moral obligations as enjoined by  God". *

Cross-reference for "delight" (v. 16) -- "Trouble and anguish have taken hold on me: yet Thy commandments are my delights."  (Psalm 119:143)

"Word" (v.16, 17) = "Speech or utterance, a general word for the disclosure of God's will."*

Cross-references for "deal bountifully" (v.17) -- "Return unto thy rest,  O my soul; for the LORD hath dealt bountifully with me." (Psalm 116:7)

"I will sing unto the LORD, because He hath dealt bountifully with me."  (Psalm 13:6)

Cross-reference for "that I may live" (v. 17) -- "The righteousness of Thy testimonies is everlasting: give me understanding, and I shall live."  (Psalm 119:144)

"Law" (v.18) = "Primarily God's instruction or teaching, then all of God's revelation for life."*

* Definitions for testimonies (v.14), precepts (v.15), word (v.16,17) and law (v.18) are from the Scofield Study Bible.

A= The well-known Bible commentator of old, Matthew Henry, said that his father, Philip Henry, “recommended that his children take a verse of [Psalm 119] every morning and meditate upon it, and so go over the Psalm twice in a year, and that will bring you to be in love with all the rest of Scripture.”  I have read through a chapter of the Gospels a day, and a chapter of Proverbs a day, at different times in my life.  But I am thinking seriously of taking Mr. Henry’s advice and meditating on one verse of Psalm 119 per day.

For this Scripture, there were also a number of ways to apply it as prompted in the journal.  

"Center my vision on Your wondrous Word." -- Rachel Wojo

As we've said, the entire 176 verses of Psalm 119 are devoted to the praise of God's Word and to the role of His Word in the life of the believer. 

Rachel also shares a "focus word" in each of the devotional pages.  For this lesson the focus word is "fix". 

 

In the ESV verse 15 reads: "I will meditate on your precepts and fix my eyes on your ways."  This is really a great thought for believers in any situation they may face.  Fixing our thoughts on God's Word and our eyes on His ways is incredibly helpful every day.

The question was asked: What one thought can I surrender to create room for seeing moments of grace?

My response in 2018:  The erroneous thought that things are never going to get better, that God is not working in my situation.  That's just not true.  He is working, and things are improving.

Answering this same question in 2024: The thought that our country is doomed.  Sure, things do look bad, but God is not bound by the way a situation looks.

This prompt was given, along with a list: Today I will keep my eyes open for God's beauty in one or more of these places.

These are the places I circled: The words I read; places I go; the music I hear; the people I encounter;  the air I breathe; the weather I experience; the rest I receive.

In 2024 I can note that for the words I read, I was struck anew by the amazingly creative and beautiful way Psalm 119 has been structured.

For the music I hear,  there were beautiful, soaring notes as teen musicians practiced a strings piece for our missions conference.

For the rest I receive, I mentioned sleeping so well in this cooler, late-summer weather.

For the air I breathe, there was the blessing of low humidity.

For the weather I experienced, I noted the recent string of perfect, fall-like crisp blue-sky days.

A journaling prompt was this:  Everything God made is beautiful.  Where have I noticed God's beauty in the past 24 hours?

My response in 2018: In brilliant blue skies and warmer temperatures.  In the descriptive words of writers like Hal Borland and Gladys Taber concerning April.  In the glorious profusion of colors in a variegated yarn I was crocheting with.  I believe it's the one shown below.

For my response in 2024, I added: In a yellow maple leaf plastered against white clapboards by the wind.  In the intricately designed flowers of orange jewelweed.  In a gentle rain the other evening.  In the courtesy of two fine grandsons who escorted us from their house to our car with umbrellas.

P=  "Lord,  I pray that You would indeed center my vision on Your wonderful Word.  Help me never to forget that Your Word is truer than any of my own thoughts, and that it is more real and reliable than any of my feelings or emotions.  I praise You that You have indeed dealt bountifully with me.  Help me to be faithful in sharing Your Word with others.  I thank You for all You will do,  in Jesus' name, Amen."

 And there is this week's Sunday Scripture!  I pray it's a blessing to someone.

September archives from 2018 --

 

 Just wanting to put together a quick post for today.  It occurred to me that the last time I wrote archive posts -- featuring posts from the archives for specific months -- was in 2017.  So I decided to quickly pull together one from past Septembers -- 2018 and forward.  Here goes:

First day of fall, from 2018, features a poem from a vintage magazine page.

A few more late-summer scenes  is from 2019, but it shows pretty much how things are looking around here on my walking route right now.

Making some apple coasters was a fun craft tutorial from 2019.

From 2020, A company meal at our little camp was a fun re-read for me and such a great reminder of all that God did in giving us that cottage.  It continues to be a blessing as a getaway place for us and as a frequent location for hospitality! 

 From 2021, a Sunday Scripture post that just might feel very timely right about now ...

And from 2022 this post about my hubby's very special birthday celebration is short -- but as sweet as he is.

That's a span of five years of archive posts ... hope one of them is a fun or interesting read for someone!

Sunday Scripture

  

It's time for another Sunday Scripture!  This is part of an ongoing series on my simple study of Rachel Wojo's Everything Beautiful.  You can read about the plan here if you are interested in it for yourself: Everything Beautiful Bible reading plan. My answers and input on this series are a combination of what I learned back in 2018, and what I found in looking over the Scriptures now, six years later.  I'm attempting to SOAP the passages too, though some of them are longer. [Quick reminder that S stands for Scripture; O stands for for observation; A stands for application, and P stands for prayer.]  Today's study is from Psalm 145:1-9.  

S= "I will extol Thee, my God, O King: and I will bless Thy name forever and ever.
"Every day will I bless Thee, and I will praise Thy name forever and ever.
"Great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised; and His greatness is unsearchable.
"One generation shall praise Thy works to another, and shall declare Thy mighty acts.
"I will speak of the glorious honor of Thy majesty, and of Thy wondrous works.
"And men shall speak of the might of Thy awe-inspiring acts; and I will declare Thy greatness.
"They shall abundantly utter the memory of Thy great goodness, and shall sing of Thy righteousness.
"The LORD is gracious, and full of compassion, slow to anger, and of great mercy.
"The LORD is good to all, and His tender mercies are over all His works."  (Psalm 145:1-9)

O= The Bible titles Psalm 145 "David's psalm of praise".

C.I. Scofield gives this psalm the title "Praise to the gracious God."

Here in these verses 1-9 David seems to alternate between speaking TO God (v.1-2, 4-6) and speaking ABOUT God (v. 3, 8-9).

TO God he says:
* I will extol Thee, my God, O King
* Every day I will bless Thee
* I will praise Thy name forever and ever
* One generation shall praise Thy works, and declare Thy mighty acts, to another
* I will speak:
    • of the glorious honor of Thy majesty
    • of Thy wondrous works
* I will declare Thy greatness.

*Men shall speak:
     • of the might of Thy awe-inspiring acts
    • of the memory of Thy great goodness.
* Men shall sing of Thy righteousness.

ABOUT God he says:
* Great is the LORD
* The LORD is greatly to be praised
* His greatness is unsearchable
* The LORD is gracious
* The LORD is full of compassion
* He is slow to anger
* He is of great mercy
* The LORD is good to all
* His tender mercies are over all His works.

Cross-reference for "great is the LORD" (v.3) -- "For the LORD  is great, and greatly to be praised; He is to be feared above all gods."  (Psalm 96:4)

Cross-references for "greatness is unsearchable" (v.3) -- "I would seek unto God, and unto God would I commit my cause, Who doeth great things and unsearchable, marvelous things without number."  (Job 5:8-9)

Who doeth great things past finding out; yea, and wonders without number."  (Job 9:10)

"Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God!  How unsearchable are His judgments, and His ways past finding out."  (Romans 11:33)

Cross-references for "gracious" (v.8) -- "And The LORD passed by before him, and proclaimed, The LORD, the LORD God, merciful and gracious, long-suffering and abundant in goodness and truth, Keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, and who will by no means clear the guilty."  (Exodus 34:6-7)

"The LORD is long-suffering, and of great mercy, forgiving iniquity and transgression, and by no means clearing the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation."  (Numbers 14:18)

"For Thou, Lord, art good; and ready to forgive, and plenteous in mercy unto all those who call upon Thee ... But Thou, O Lord, art a God full of compassion, and gracious, longsuffering, and plenteous in mercy and truth."  (Psalm 86:5, 15)

Lovely graphic by Abby at Little Birdie Blessings

"The LORD is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and plenteous in mercy."  (Psalm 103:8)

Cross-references for "good" (v.9) -- "For the LORD is good; His mercy is everlasting, and His truth endureth to all generations."  (Psalm 100:5)

"The LORD is good, a stronghold in the day of trouble, and He knoweth those who trust in Him."  (Nahum 1:7)

A= For this Scripture, there were also a number of ways to apply it as prompted in the journal.  

"When I think about the Lord's wondrous works, beauty shows up." -- Rachel Wojo

My thoughts about this: Psalm 145:5 says, "I will speak of the glorious honor of Thy majesty, and of Thy wondrous works."

 
Rachel also shares a "focus word" in each of the devotional pages.  For this lesson the focus word is "meditate". 

 

When we meditate on God's wondrous works, His mighty acts, and His glorious character as David has done in this psalm, we can't help but see His beauty.

The question was asked: What season or circumstance in life challenges me to see God's gifts of beauty?

My response in 2018: With me it is very often not feeling well physically that challenges me in this way.  If tired or troubled, I can usually still see and appreciate God's gifts of beauty.  Physical pain or illness is much more challenging.

Answering this same question in 2024: Challenging circumstances or seasons of difficulty or uncertainty in life.  Things seem very uncertain in our world right now.  Probably the most certain thing is that it seems the forces of evil are working very hard to try and control all of us.  It can be challenging to see God's gifts of beauty -- but if we can do it, it will be a great reminder of His sovereignty and power. and will help us to point others to Him.

This prompt was given, along with a list: Today I will keep my eyes open for God's beauty in one or more of these places.

These are the places I circled: The words I read; the music I hear; the food I eat;  the air I breathe; the weather I experience; the rest I receive.

In 2024 for the music I hear,  I recalled singing around a campfire on a recent Wednesday night.

For the words I read, I commented on how all the verses in this psalm that speak of God's character and work are so beautiful.

For the food I eat, I mentioned colorful roasted vegetables.

For the people I encounter, I noted our recent trip to the Canadian Maritimes and its gorgeous scenery.

For the weather I experience, I noticed that we're beginning to feel the crispness of fall approaching.

A journaling prompt was this:  List one or more ideas to remind myself to intentionally look for God's beauty throughout the day.

My response in 2018: Get out in the brilliant sunshine and breathe deeply.  Take a short walk if possible.  Take time to notice the progress of spring bulbs.  Notice the color and texture in everyday objects.

For my response in 2024, I added: Pay attention to the signs of fall approaching.  Look at the night sky and observe the moon and stars.  Really listen to people when they talk!

P= "Lord, like the Psalmist, my intent is to praise and bless you every day.  You are gracious, full of compassion, slow to anger, of great mercy, righteous, great, good to all -- just to name a few of Your majestic qualities.  Help me to see and appreciate Your beauty even when my circumstances are less than ideal.  I thank You for all You will do, in Jesus' name, Amen."

 And there is this week's Sunday Scripture!  I pray it's a blessing to someone.

Friday five

 

 Just a quick Friday five today because I really do intend to post more than once a week!

1.  Getting out for a walk with a friend three times this week.  What a blessing!

A scene from our walking route -- in a previous year

2.  Having our neighbors come over to our cottage for a campfire and dessert.  So good to get to know them a little better.  I served this S'mores Pizza from Five Heart Home.

 

 

3.  Being able to spend part of last Saturday with our dear friends Syd and Cyndy, plus a visiting friend of theirs.  Christian friendship and fellowship is such a rich blessing!

4.  So looking forward to a ladies retreat at The Wilds of New England this weekend!  Getting to attend this with friends from church and learning from Denise Cunningham will be a huge blessing.

 

5. Our local daughter's family has been wondering where their cat disappeared to.  He has been gone for eight days, and there's been a large bobcat in their yard.  Early this morning the kitty woke them up by yowling under a window.  I'm no cat lover, but am so thankful he is safe!

I told you it would be quick!  But I'm thankful I could take a few minutes to post!

Sunday Scripture

  It's time for another Sunday Scripture!  This is part of an ongoing series on my simple study of Rachel Wojo's Everything Beautiful.  You can read about the plan here if you are interested in it for yourself: Everything Beautiful Bible reading plan. My answers and input on this series are a combination of what I learned back in 2018, and what I found in looking over the Scriptures now, six years later.  I'm attempting to SOAP the passages too, though some of them are longer. [Quick reminder that S stands for Scripture; O stands for for observation; A stands for application, and P stands for prayer.]  Today's study is from Job 12:7-13.  

S= "But ask, now, the beasts; and they shall teach thee; and the fowls of the air, and they shall tell thee.
"Or speak to the earth, and it shall teach thee; and the fishes of the sea shall declare unto thee.
"Who knoweth in all these that the hand of the LORD hath wrought this?
"In whose hand is the soul of every living thing, and the breath of all mankind.
"Doth not the ear try words?  and the mouth taste his meat?
"With the ancient is wisdom; and in length of days understanding.
"With Him is wisdom and strength; He hath counsel and understanding."  (Job 12:7-13)

O= These verses are part of Job's rebuttal to Zophar's charge: How can Job claim innocence?

Back in verses 2-3, Job responds to his critics: "No doubt but ye are the people, and wisdom shall die with you.  But I have understanding as well as you; I am not inferior to you; yea, who knoweth not such things as these?"

Believer's Bible Commentary notes:  "Anyone knows that God is wise and powerful, but how do they explain the excruciating sufferings of a man who once received answers to his prayers, and the contrasting prosperity of the ungodly?"

This is what Job is saying in verse 5: "I am as one mocked of his neighbor, who calleth upon God, and He answereth him:  the just upright man is laughed to scorn."  He goes on to point out that his accusers are attacking him when he is about to fall: "He that is ready to slip is ... despised in the thought of him that is at ease."

The commentary summarizes verses 7-12: "Even the world of nature -- the beasts and the birds and the fish -- shows God's arbitrariness in destroying some and protecting others.  If Job's critics tested words as carefully as they tasted food, they would agree with the ancients, who uniformly agreed with what Job had said."

Cross-references for "whose hand" (v.10) --  "And they fell upon their faces, and said, O God, the God of the spirits of all flesh, shall one man sin, and will Thou be wroth with all the congregation?"  (Numbers 16:22)

"And thou hast lifted thyself up against the Lord of heaven ... and thou hast praised the gods of silver, and gold, of brass, iron, wood, and stone, which see not, nor hear, nor know, and the God in whose hand thy breath is, and whose are all thy ways, hast thou not glorified."  (Daniel 5:23)

"For in Him we live, and move, and have our being; as certain also of your own poets have said, For we are also His offspring."  (Acts 17:28)

"Soul" (v.10) could be read "life".

"Mankind" (v.10) can be read "flesh of man".

"Mouth" (v.11) can be read "palate."

Warren Wiersbe writes in With the Word: "Job replied to all three friends and reminded them that he had wisdom as well as they.  In fact, all creation knew the things that they said to him.  God is great.  His hand made everything (v.6) and His hand keeps everything alive (v.10).  Job wanted to die and escape his suffering, but God held his life in His hand."

A= For this Scripture, there were also a number of ways to apply it as prompted in the journal.  

"God woke you up this morning because He has a meaningful plan for you." -- Rachel Wojo

My thoughts about this: This statement obviously fits with the words of verse 10 -- "In the hand of the LORD ... is the breath of all mankind."

 

"If your life is in God's hand, have you anything to fear?" -- Warren Wiersbe

 
Rachel also shares a "focus word" in each of the devotional pages.  For this lesson the focus word is "breathe". 

 

The question was asked: How can I realign the eyes of my heart to see the Father's present of everyday elegance?

My response in 2018:Even the fact that He gives us breath should make us stop and think.  He does indeed have a meaningful plan.  If He were finished with us, we would be in heaven.

Answering this same question in 2024: Life feels a little uncertain right now with our national circumstances.  But I must look to all that I know about God and not to the circumstances.  And there is so much truth about God just in these few verses from Job!

This prompt was given, along with a list: Today I will keep my eyes open for God's beauty in one or more of these places.

These are the places I circled: The words I read; the music I hear; the people I encounter; the food I eat;  the air I breathe; the weather I experience; the rest I receive.

In 2024 I can note that for the people I encounter, we recently reunited with old friends in Canada.  What a blessing to see them still growing, still walking with God through every circumstance of life.

For the food I eat, I recalled the carefully planned and prepared, delicious food our friends made for us.  They work full time (though they took vacation time the week we were with them) so they prepared much ahead of time.  So much thought and care was beautiful!

For the rest I receive, I mentioned how well we slept during our visit, even though we were in a different time zone and were getting to bed later than usual.

A journaling prompt was this:  Everything God made is beautiful.  Where have I noticed God's beauty in the last 24 hours?

My response in 2018: In the gorgeous profusion of colors and designs in the Easter flowers at church.  In glorious blue sky and sunshine.  In words from the Bible and also those penned by hymn writers concerning Christ's resurrection.

For my response in 2024, I added: In the beauty of ocean and dunes.  In the color and form of shells.  In the gracefulness of a great blue heron.

P= "Lord,  I thank and praise You that You give breath to all mankind.  I praise You that in Your wisdom and understanding you have a plan for each of our lives.  I pray that You will help me to get serious about living out that plan each and every day of my life.  I thank and praise You for how You will help me to do this, in Jesus' name, Amen."

 And there is this week's Sunday Scripture!  I pray it's a blessing to someone.

Hodgepodge for September 11

 

Better late than never,  I'm joining in with Joyce and the gang for the Wednesday Hodgepodge at From This Side of the Pond.  Here we go ...

 1. When the Hodgepodge lands on September 11th I want to acknowledge that. Will you purposely pause to remember, pray, or attend any sort of ceremony on 9/11? Share any thoughts or memories you'd like to share about this day. 

I often post a link to A Prayer on Patriot Day -- a prayer for hope and healing -- which is really good, but I see it's been a few years since I did that.  So click one of the links if you'd like to read it.  

A takeaway for me from that day as I spent time in prayer for the terrifying situation: 

"At that moment I just remember being overwhelmingly thankful that I know the God of the universe, and that all events are under His sovereign control -- even when they appear out of control. I remember thanking God that even though these events were a terrible shock to us, that they were no surprise to Him, and that somehow, in some way, He would bring good out of this national tragedy. I found that He increased my faith during those dark days, and I trust that others experienced this also."

We are in dark times again.  Yet as His children we understand that God is with us in dark times and chaos, as He is in each moment of our lives. And just as Paige pointed out so beautifully in her prayer for hope and healing, "He goes before us; He can be trusted with every detail; and He is our safe place today, and for all eternity." 

Graphic by Abby at Little Birdie Blessings

 
2. Growing up, did you spend a lot of time with your grandparents? What's something you learned from a grandparent? 

I spent quite a bit of time at my maternal grandmother's house as she lived next door.  My grandfather died when I was four, so I didn't know him well at all.  I've written about my grandmother in the past.  Here's a snippet: 

"Her big farmhouse was spotlessly neat and clean, even the guest rooms, and she was also a wonderful cook and baker.  She was a homemaker par excellence (and her aprons always matched or coordinated with her dresses!)  but she was also an astute businesswoman and always dressed up to go to town. "

She also adored all twenty of her grandchildren and wanted life's very best for each of us.

Here are some things I learned from her:  

How to make doughnuts -- I really did very little cooking in my grandmother’s kitchen, but the one time I remember clearly was when she taught me to make her famous doughnuts.  These were cake doughnuts and were so scrumptious!  I remember her teaching me to mix up the dough, which was not really too different from other doughs I had made.  She had a special board for rolling out the dough on. 

In past years Gram always had used lard to fry her doughnuts, but by the time she was teaching me, she had switched to Crisco.  She used an electric skillet for frying, which worked so well for keeping the fat at a constant temperature.  She preferred to fry the doughnuts on her enclosed front porch, so as not to fill the kitchen with the aroma of frying doughnuts. 

My doughnuts turned out okay for a first try, and at the end of the session, Gram gave me her doughnut jar.  This was a large glass jar that had once been used for churning butter.  It held a lot of doughnuts, and she made me promise to fill it often.  

Some other things she also taught me:

Lessons in hospitality

Advice for cookie baking

3. What's your go-to breakfast? 

Coffee with cream only.  We do intermittent fasting.

4. Tell us the story behind one of your favorite photos. 

Oh, that's a hard one, but since my hubby's birthday was September 7, I will go with this one from September 2022.

Our Nevada family was out here visiting.  I had made Cornish Pasties to take along for a picnic in Franconia Notch State Park.  A lighted candle and a round of "Happy Birthday" from the assembled crew (which included eleven of our grandchildren" made it special!

5. This week Friday lands on the 13th. Are you superstitious in any way? Do you like scary movies, and if so what's your favorite? 

Nope, not superstitious in any way, and I don't like scary movies even a little bit.  There's enough scary stuff going on in real life right now.

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

Should I even admit that I'm seriously considering Write31Days for October?  Almost certainly I shouldn't.  So let's say instead for a random thought that we have had a string of incredibly beautiful fall days recently.

And there's the Hodgepodge for this week...

Sunday Scripture

 

Graphic from Scripture Images

 Yes, it's time for another Sunday Scripture!  This is part of an ongoing series on my simple study of Rachel Wojo's Everything Beautiful.  You can read about the plan here if you are interested in it for yourself: Everything Beautiful Bible reading plan. My answers and input on this series are a combination of what I learned back in 2018, and what I found in looking over the Scriptures now, six years later.  I'm attempting to SOAP the passages too, though some of them are longer. [Quick reminder that S stands for Scripture; O stands for observation; A stands for application, and P stands for prayer.]  Today's study is from Psalm 72:12-18. 

S= "For He shall deliver the needy when he crieth; the poor also, and him that hath no helper.
"He shall spare the poor and needy, and shall save the souls of the needy.
"He shall redeem their soul from deceit and violence: and precious shall their blood be in His sight.
"And He shall live, and to Him shall be given of the gold of Sheba; prayer also shall be made for Him continually, and daily shall He be praised.
"There shall be an handful of grain in the earth upon the top of the mountains; the fruit thereof shall shake like Lebanon, and they of the city shall flourish like the grass of the earth.
"His name shall endure forever; His name shall be continued as long as the sun, and men shall be blessed ih Him.  All nations shall call Him blessed.
"Blessed be the LORD God, the God of Israel, who only doeth wondrous things."  (Psalm 72:12-18)

O= My Bible titles Psalm 72 "A Psalm for Solomon".

C.I. Scofield gives it this additional title: "Messiah's glorious kingdom".

Scofield adds this note: "The 72nd Psalm forms a complete vision of Messiah's kingdom insofar as the OT revelation extended.  David's prayers will find their fruition in the Kingdom (v.20, which says, 'The prayers of David, the son of Jesse, are ended.') Verse 1 refers to the investiture of the king's son with the kingdom ... Verses 2, 7, 12-14 give the character of the kingdom.  The emphatic word is 'righteousness'."

Cross-references for "redeem" (v.14) -- "For God is my King of old, working salvation in the midst of the earth."  (Psalm 74:12)

"And the Redeemer shall come to Zion, and unto those who turn from transgression in Jacob, saith the LORD."  (Isaiah 59:20)  

Scofield says, "The time when 'the Redeemer shall come to Zion' is fixed, relatively, by Romans 11:23-29 following the completion of the church."  

Cross-reference for "Sheba" (v. 15) -- "The multitude of camels shall cover thee; the dromedaries of Midian and Ephah; they all from Sheba shall come, they shall bring gold and incense, and they shall show forth the praises of the LORD."  (Isaiah 60:6)

Cross-reference comparison for "and they of the city shall flourish" (v.16) -- "Judah and Israel were many, as the sand which is by the sea in multitude, eating and drinking and making merry."  (1 Kings 4:20)

"Shall endure" (v.17) literally means "shall be."

Cross-reference for "endure" (v.17) -- "His seed shall endure forever, and His throne as the sun before me."  (Psalm 89:36)

Cross-reference for "in Him" (v.17) -- "And I will bless them that bless thee; and curse him that curseth thee; and in thee shall all the families of the earth be blessed."  (Genesis 12:3)  

Scofield notes that the above is "the great evangelistic promise fulfilled in Abraham's seed, Christ, and in all the spiritual seed of Abraham who, like Abraham, are justified by faith.  The Abrahamic covenant reveals the sovereign purpose of God to fulfill through Abraham His program for Israel, and to provide in Christ the Savior for all who believe."

Cross-references for "Him" (v.17) -- "But as truly as I live, all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the LORD."  (Numbers 14:21)

"For the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea."  (Habakkuk 2:14)

A= For this Scripture, there were also a number of ways to apply it as prompted in the journal.  

"In a world still saturated by trouble, God still does wondrous things." -- Rachel Wojo

This thought of course fits with verse 18, which exults: "Blessed be the LORD God, the God of Israel, who only doeth wondrous things."  Our world is surely saturated by trouble, even more so now than when this study was written, but God does only wondrous things.  What a wonderful reminder!

 
Rachel also shares a "focus word" in each of the devotional pages.  For this lesson the focus word is "glimpse". 

 

Yes, our world indeed seems saturated by trouble.  Yet even in the midst of trouble,  even with all of the strident voices trying to convince us that lies are true, we see glimpses of God and the incredible things only He is able to do.  A friend of mine wrote: "Every time I start to get anxious, God shows that he’s in control!"  I have absolutely found this to be the case. 

The question was asked: Which of my own words have blocked the beauty of God's Word?

My response in 2018: I try not to do this, but at times I lose sight of the fact that God is still doing amazing things.  May I not ever forget that God, and God alone, does wondrous things!

Answering this same question in 2024:  Any words of unbelief or doubt.  Any words that question the indisputable fact of God being sovereign over all things.

This prompt was given, along with a list: Today I will keep my eyes open for God's beauty in one or more of these places.

These are the places I circled: The words I read; the music I hear; the people I encounter;  the air I breathe; the weather I experience; the rest I receive.

In 2024 I can note that for the music I hear,  I had the blessing of hearing a loon on the lake near our cottage, and the haunting cry of Canada geese passing overhead.

For the people I encounter, I recalled hosting our monthly Ladies of Grace meeting at our cottage recently.  Such sweet fellowship and testimonies!

A journaling prompt was this:  List one or more ideas to remind myself to intentionally look for God's beauty throughout the day.

My response in 2018: Walk outside on the porch.  Breathe deep and listen for birdsong.  Soak up any available sunshine.  Notice the beautiful color and form of foods and in everyday items.

For my response in 2024, I added: Pay attention to the glorious colors of late-summer flowers.  Listen for loons, Canada geese, and owls at our cottage.

P=

"Lord,  I pray that You will help me always to remember that You, and You alone, do wondrous things.  Your glorious, blessed name will endure forever.  We celebrate Your wondrous work in rising from the grave in victory over sin and death.  You still have that same mighty power and You are my Helper!  You are indisputably sovereign over all things and You will work wondrously in our lives and in our world.  I praise You for all of this in Jesus' name, Amen."

 And there is this week's Sunday Scripture!  I pray it's a blessing to someone.

 

How my word for the year -- "Continue" has looked so far

 

 Back in March I wrote a post about how I hoped that my word for the year would be looking.  Here's the link: How my word for 2024 will look.  

So it's probably high time I report in on how the year is going in that regard.  I'll say up front that there is good news and bad news.  I will put the updates in a different font.

As you may remember, this was the definition:

And, as I mentioned, in choosing the word continue for this year, I was mostly thinking about continuing on faithfully with a number of things, most (but not all) of them related to my spiritual life. Let's look at the various parts of the definition and how they might look in everyday life.

First, "persist in an activity or process".  I'd relate this to Bible study and blogging.   I intend to persist in both of these. 

 Bible study is a given.  There is so much more I want (and need) to learn about God's Word!

And I can report that now, at the end of summer, I've continued with Bible study as I planned.  I'm currently working on the study of Habakkuk pictured below.  I want to study Hosea next -- not a formal study like this one, but something simpler.  That said, I love the Daily Grace studies!

Blogging might be considered much more of an option, a personal choice.  But is it really?  I don't think so, at least not for me.  Blogging, I've come to believe, is an integral part of living out God's purposes for me.  It's a way to use the talents, skills, and even some of the spiritual gifts God has given me, to bless others.  So, as I said at the outset,  this is an activity I'll be persisting in for sure.  It's looking fairly consistent, and I did manage to post every day in July for Christmas in July at my Christmas blog.

Recently, too, we were visiting with old friends in Canada who hadn't been familiar with my blogs.  When the wife realized how many of my recipes were located therein, she declared, "I'll never use Goo*gle to search for a recipe again!"  So I see another reason for continuing to blog.

Then, "carry on with something that one has begun".  I had been hoping we could get back to getting together regularly with a younger couple we had been informally mentoring.  I had been chatting with the wife weekly by phone, and that has been wonderful, but in-person time is important as well. However, some changes in their living situation may have brought that hope to a halt for now.  We will see.

I had been hoping and planning, too, to get back more faithfully to decluttering and downsizing.  I've started that; have done some closets and dressers and have continued going through our many bookshelves.  We've made a good start on the attic and my craft closet, but oh, there is still so much more to do!

In another instance in carrying on with something I've begun -- I had gifted six of my teen grandchildren the Stand Firm Bible study from The Daily Grace Co.  I've finished my own study of the book, and found it a great blessing.  My intent had been to have a group chat with them weekly via email, but so far that's only happened once. 🙄.   Obviously I want to carry on with encouraging them to study their Bibles for themselves.

I have learned that two of them have completed the study.  I'm pretty sure at least one hasn't even started, and I'm not sure about the other three.

I do have some ideas for Christmas and birthday gifts along this line that I hope will get them meditating on God's Word for themselves.

I failed to mention this in my first post, but another thing I'll be carrying on with is my volunteer work at The Wilds of New England.  I imagine my hubby and I will be spending a good bit of time helping  with maintenance projects there in the late fall and likely some in the winter too.

Another thing to carry on with (unless or until God shows me differently) is listing and selling small vintage items from my childhood home on Etsy.  There is so much more to go!  I have shelves, a half dozen boxes, and even an entire dresser full of these small treasures.  It could take me years just to list all the paper items, so I'm thinking I may need to zero in on the children's books and see if I can get some of those out of the way.

I have listed a few more books and cards, but it's been slow going.

And then, "remain in a specified position or state".  I'll continue teaching Sunday School to ladies, at least for the foreseeable future. We are going to be doing a video series next (starting in a couple weeks) which will be watched as a group with all of the adult Sunday School class, then we will divide up as men and ladies to discuss.  That way the ladies will still get to keep their class and teacher.  I've been praying about what to do when that series finishes, and I do believe God has given me direction on that.

  I'll also continue with writing Sunday Scripture blog posts.  And with other things like writing notes and doing other things to encourage friends and family.  I've been keeping up with all that, and am praying about what to do next when I finish my Everything Beautiful Scripture series.

And "carry on traveling in the same direction".  To me this zeroes in on spiritual growth.  I've said before how our former pastor who retired after decades often reminded us that there is no standing still in the Christian life.  If you're not moving forward you're moving backward.  Period.  So very obviously, I had purposed to carry on with traveling forward in my pursuit of spiritual growth.  And I've been doing that.  I've even changed up a little bit in my devotional life to keep it fresh and varied.  It helps so much.  You can read about it here: Variety -- the spice of my devotional life.

Finally, "extend farther in the same direction".  For me, this speaks to my prayer life. I'd been hoping for some time to update some of my prayer journal pages to make it even more of an effective tool.

And at last this is an area where I can report progress!  If you read my "variety" post above, you'll see that I'm incorporating prayer journal pages into my quiet time one day a week.  I only have a few pages left to update in my own prayer journal, but I'm trying to make one for my husband as well.  That is going to take some time to complete.

This "extending farther in the same direction" also applies to my memorization of the book of James, which my younger friend Jennifer and I had been working on together.  We finished chapter 2 and that's where it seems to be stalled.  I do need to get back into it.  Gayle, a lady in my Sunday School class this summer, has shared with us how she has memorized entire books of the Bible and it really has been an encouragement to me to jump back into it.

And, I see now that some of the things on my list really fit with definition 2 of continue at this point -- "to recommence or resume after interruption."  My James memorization, my checking up on the teens with their study of Stand Firm, our in-person time with our younger friends -- all of these have been somewhat interrupted or stalled, so it's time to face that fact and see about resuming the ones I can.

What about you, friends? If you chose a word for 2024, how is that playing out for you?

Working on the hodgepodge

 

 After a little break, I'm joining in with Joyce and the gang for the Wednesday Hodgepodge at From This Side of the Pond.   Today's questions have a Labor Day connection.  And ... here we go!

1. Something you're working on currently?

Confederation Bridge, PEI

Getting back into real life following a short but wonderful vacation in the Canadian Maritimes.  Trying to catch up with housework and other tasks.  I'm also working as part of a team trying to pull together a missions conference at church for early October.

Bouctouche, NB

Bouctouche, NB

2. Tell us something about your first job? Was it a positive or negative experience for you? 

 It was a summer job washing dishes in a busy restaurant.  In general I guess it was a positive experience, but there wasn't much I enjoyed about it at the time.  Particularly terrifying to me was the necessity to light (with a match) the propane burner for the dishwasher.  I nearly always got someone else to do it for me.

Did your parents insist you work while in school (either high school or college) or did you work because you wanted to? 

They didn't insist I work during the school year, only during the summers.

3. Have you ever had a job that required overnight travel? How did you feel about that? 

No, thankfully. I would have hated it.

Have you ever had a job that required you to wear a uniform? 

Yes.  I waitressed at a quaint New England inn where the girls wore flowered dirndl-type dresses.  I also had a "second cook" job at that inn where I subbed for the chef on his day off and the pastry cook on her day off.  You can read about it here: Memories of a summer place.  For that job I wore a white dress similar to a nurse's uniform.  There was a dress shop in our town that also sold uniforms, and that is where I purchased the ones that I had.

Do you work better in the morning or at night? 

In the morning.

4. What's something you bake or cook that is labor intensive? Is it worth it? 

A few Christmas cookies including these:  Eggnog Logs; Sacher Torte Cookies; Mint Chocolate Spritz Trees; and these special-occasion cookies: Spritz Chocolate Sandwiches.

 
The Eggnog Logs in particular are very labor-intensive, but so many people love them that we just have to make them.  I think all of these cookies are worth the trouble it takes to make them.

Sacher Torte Cookies

Mint Chocolate Spritz Trees

Chocolate Spritz Sandwiches

5. One thing you're looking forward to in the month of September? 

A ladies' retreat at The Wilds of New England!   The sunrise photo below was taken at The Wilds of New England during a ladies' retreat one year.

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

I am absolutely astounded that it's already September and also astounded at how fast our calendar for the month is already filling up.

And there's the Hodgepodge for this week!  Why not head over to From this Side of the Pond and join in?