Sunday Scripture

 

Time for another Sunday Scripture lesson from Fix Your Focus!

This week's lesson was actually done by me the week of February 16.  Here goes ...

🌿 WEEK-AT-A-GLANCE CHECKLIST is further on in each week's section. But since I am working on Fix Your Focus all week long, I find it works best for me to do this checklist first. This checklist offers us four points:  

* To make a plan for reading our Bibles and praying.

* To add any upcoming events to our calendars.

* To jot down a to-do list of tasks that must be completed this week.

* To make a note of our top three priorities for this week.

This last point is one that I need to pay special attention to every week.  I've been finding it so helpful.  (The other three points are things that I'm consistently doing.) 

For this week, my top three priorities are:

1) Ministry --  phone calls, meal for friends,  blogging, Sunday School lesson preparation; order new Sunday School books; teatime with friends on Wednesday.

2)  Family and homemaking  -- Preparation for our family's visit in March: planning, decluttering, cleaning, and freezer cooking; send off felt food to NV.

3) Etsy/creativity  -- work on cross-stitch, crochet and other crafts; prepare at least 5 Etsy listings. 

[If you are following along with our study, this is the place to make a Week-at-a-Glance checklist and/or priority list for yourself!]

🌿 The first actual prompt for each week is JOURNAL.  We are encouraged to take a few minutes to our fears, joys, worries, desires and stressors concerning the week ahead.  [If you are following along with us, take a moment in a journal or notebook to do just that.]. Here's what I wrote on Monday, breaking it down into the suggested categories:

Fears: No real fears going into this week.   

Joys: It will be a joy to spend time with Jennifer and family at their home.  It's a joy to craft and to write Etsy listings when I have some extra time.  It will be a joy to prepare and share a meal with friends in need of some fellowship.

Worries: No real worries going into this week.  Maybe a  few concerns for things that need to happen before our family's visit.

Desires: That God will be glorified in the events of this week.  That I can be an encouragement to other ladies via Sunday School, blogging, and in-person visits.  That I can accomplish a lot in preparation for our family's visit, carefully thinking through the needs and providing what I can.

Stressors:  Time and energy limitations.  Tiredness.

🌿 The next prompt is PRAYER. It was suggested that we use several prayer prompts to have a conversation with God about the week ahead.  [You can do the same.  Use the very same prompts for your own prayer.]

* Lord, You are ... in complete control of this week and all that it will hold.  You are able to help me order my days and my time in such a way that I can accomplish all that You would have me to.  You are able to give me the needed health and energy for each of these busy days.

* Lord, I feel ...   a little bit overwhelmed with all that there is to do, although this is a relatively easy week.  I feel a bit discouraged that my energy levels are on the low side in spite of my efforts to be as healthy as possible..

* Lord, help me with ... continuing to maintain healthy habits.  Help me to order my days and use my time wisely for maximum effectiveness.  Help me to see what must be done and what can remain undone.  Help me to be an encouragement to others in every way possible.  Help me as I begin a new Sunday School study.

* Lord, forgive me for ... anytime when I give a fleshly response rather than a spiritual one.  Any time when I speak before thinking or use rash, unwise words.  Any time when I act in my own very limited wisdom or strength.

* Make a note of 4 or 5 people you are specifically praying for.  I listed friends dealing with a cancer diagnosis; a granddaughter with physical issues; friends dealing with a heartbreaking family situation.

🌿 The next section in this helpful guide is SCRIPTURE MEDITATION.  I chose to first meditate on this week's Scripture, Psalm 59:16, using the SOAP method, and then answered several suggested questions.   [You can use your own preferred method to meditate on this verse, and answer the questions below for yourself.]

S= "But I will sing of Thy power; yea, I will sing aloud of Thy mercy in the morning; for Thou hast been my defense and refuge in the day of my trouble."  (Psalm 59:16)

O=   In the ESV this verse reads, "But I will sing of Your strength; I will sing aloud of Your steadfast love in the morning.  For You have been to me a fortress and a refuge in the day of my distress."

This verse begins with "But" -- a change of direction from what has gone before.  More about this later!

In the Scofield study Bible, C.I Scofield titles Psalm 59 "The help of the helpless".  My ESV Bible titles the Psalm "Deliver me from my enemies".

As we know, the biblical headings for some psalms are quite informative concerning the circumstances in which the psalms were written.  The biblical heading for this psalm in the KJV is "To the chief musician, Altashith (apparently meaning 'Destroy not'), Michtam of David, when Saul sent, and they watched the house to kill him."

In the ESV the heading reads, "To the choirmaster: According to Do Not Destroy.  A Miktam of David, when Saul sent men to watch his house in order to kill him."

This incident is found in 1 Samuel 19.  Verse 11 tells us, "Saul also sent messengers unto David's house to watch him, and to slay him in the morning: and Michal, David's wife, told him, saying, If thou save not thy life tonight, tomorrow thou shalt be slain."

So the "But" that begins Psalm 59:16 is a change of direction from verses 14-15, which declare: "And at evening let them return, and let them make a noise like a dog, and go round about the city.  Let them wander up and down for food, and keep on looking all night if they are not satisfied."

Back up in verses 2-3 David describes these men who wanted to kill him as "workers of iniquity" and as "bloody men" and in verse 3 says "they lie in wait for my soul."

What David was up against was very alarming.  It was a life-and-death situation.  But he could then say, in spite of this,

🌿 I will sing of Thy power.
🌿 I will sing aloud of Thy mercy in the morning!

FOR

🌿 Thou hast been my defense and my refuge
🌿 In the day of my trouble.

Cross-reference for "defense" -- "Because of His strength I will wait upon Thee; for God is my defense."  (Psalm 59:9)

In the ESV the above verse is amazing: "O my Strength, I will watch for You, for You, God, are my fortress."

Cross-reference for "refuge" -- "And [David] said, The LORD is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer, the God of my rock; in Him will I trust: He is my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my high tower, and my refuge, my savior; Thou savest me from violence."  (2 Samuel 22:2-3)

Cross-reference for "the day of my trouble" -- "In my distress I called upon the LORD, and cried unto my God; He heard my voice out of His temple, and my cry came before Him, even into His ears."  (Psalm 18:6)

A= To help with my application of this verse, I answered the three questions from Fix your Focus:

* Reflect on what this verse tells you about who God is.

God is powerful!  (Although the verse doesn't explicitly state this, we know that God is all-powerful.  There is nothing too hard for Him and that nothing is impossible with Him.  David's words here reflect that he knew this.)  The verse also tells me that God is merciful, and that He is a defense and a refuge for His people in time of trouble.

* Think about what this verse tells you about who you are.

I'm a child of God who is so blessed by God's power and mercy that I can sing of them every morning.  I am a person who has seen trouble and has found God to be my defense and my refuge in the midst of it. 

* Throughout the week, consider how this verse should affect the way you live.

 I can sing of God's power (I'm reminded of the song I Sing the Mighty Power of God!) and of His mercy.  I can remember and praise Him for times of trouble when He has been both my defense and my place of refuge.  I can praise Him that He will be there for me in any future times of trouble as well.

Listen to I Sing the Mighty Power of God here:

 

Charles Spurgeon notes of this song of David: "The song is for God alone, and it is one which none can sing but those who have experienced the lovingkindness of their God. Looking back upon a past all full of mercy, the saints will bless the Lord with their whole hearts, and triumph in him as the high place of their security."

P= "Lord, how thankful I am for all that You are!  What a blessing that I can recall the times You have been my defense and my place of refuge in difficult days.  I know I can count on You to be there for me in the future, as well, and I am so grateful!

    "I praise You for Your mighty power and all that this means to my daily life.  I praise You for Your great mercy extended to me in so many ways.

  "Help me to be faithful in sharing these truths with others,  I pray in Jesus' name, Amen."

🌿 GRATITUDE is the next prompt.  We were to reflect on the way God has shown His faithfulness to you over the past week and list five things we are thankful for.  [If you are following along with us, be sure to make your own list of five things!]. Here is my list:

1) Time to bake treats for a friend's birthday and deliver them to her.

2) A delightful time with friends on the Thursday -- meeting for breakfast, thrifting, an afternoon of outdoor fun, and then ice cream at Kellerhaus!

3) God's help in planning and preparing ahead for our family's visit.

4) Time to make and freeze chili for the upcoming visit in March.

5) Getting to finish a UFO craft project and the feeling of accomplishment that brings.

🌿 SPIRITUAL GROWTH is the next prompt, and this week there's an emphasis on FASTING.  We were to make a plan for what we will fast from and how we will replace our fasted item with the pursuit of God and His Word.    [And again, if you are following along, please think about this for yourself.]

My plan for fasting: We do intermittent fasting every day and it does indeed free up more time to spend with the Lord in the morning.  In addition, I fast from any internet use until my Bible time is complete each day.  I'm also considering fasting from news for a portion of each day as well.

🌿 Lastly is a GOSPEL-CENTERED AFFIRMATION: 

The Lord is my strength and refuge.

This is surely an uplifting, encouraging thought for the week ahead.  No matter what we face in life, as believers we have the assurance that the all-powerful God is our strength and refuge!

And there's the Sunday Scripture for this week!