An authentic anthropology of the Psalms

 Just to be clear I am still reading the bible. I am just deciding not to always write something or not always share what I write.  These past few days have been incredibly busy and a filled with challenges.  Prayer is needed.

  Feeling and thinking in Psalm 20: What God gives versus what you thought you wanted. 7 Some nations boast of their chariots and horses, but we boast in the name of the Lord our God. 4 May he grant your heart’s desires and make all your plans succeed. 5c May the Lord answer all your prayers. Psalm 20 Victory obviously comes to the guy with the biggest guns, or the largest army or the stealthiest planes. If we are talking about war machines, then big deterrents are the name of the game. The leader with the biggest club and the biggest guy to wield said club is obviously going to win. So Lord, give me please a very very big club and a very very very big warrior to swing it at the baddies. We reopened a Christian bookstore/coffee shop/post office/meeting place on the edge of the city of Leuven, Belgium. The store is part of a registered charity. So the name of the game is meet your expenses and don’t lose money. Create cash flow and income with sales to support the cause. That’s w...

Feeling and thinking in Psalm 20: Feelings flowing outward "For the choir director: A psalm of David.  In times of trouble,  may the LORD answer your cry.  May the name of the God of Jacob keep you safe from all harm." " May he send you help from his sanctuary and strengthen you from Jerusalem." " May he remember all your gifts and look favorably on your burnt offerings. Interlude" " May he grant your heart's desires and make all your plans succeed." " May we shout for joy when we hear of your victory and raise a victory banner in the name of our God.  May the LORD answer all your prayers." "Now I know that the LORD rescues his anointed king. He will answer him from his holy heaven and rescue him by his great power." "Some nations boast of their chariots and horses, but we boast in the name of the LORD our God." "Those nations will fall down and collapse, but we will rise up and stand firm." ...

  Feeling and thinking in Psalms 18 and 19: A tale of two revivals Prayer is often the topic of the Psalms. There is hardly a Psalm that is not a prayer or a praise or a cry to God. Whether it is a jubilant exultation of victory and celebration of the wonders of God's creation, power and glory or it is a desperate cry for help, all the Psalms in one way or another are testimonies of relationship with God. God has been talking to me my whole life. There is not a time in my life where I can’t remember God talking to me. I am not saying I was listening, obeying or following my whole life. But I can see, looking back, that God has always been present.  Psalms 18 and 19 are two of the most important Psalms in God’s voice in my head. God used Psalm 19 to speak to me of His power, grandeur, holiness and requirement of obedience. I love walking at night and I love looking at the stars. It is no surprise to me that my own father’s testimony begins with a prayer under the stars sitting ...

  Feeling and thinking in Psalm 17: I need a hero. The need to be saved by a hero seems to be universal in culture and time. The stories of someone with superhuman power, extraordinary self sacrifice or a heart for the oppressed and downtrodden coming to save the day are in all our imaginations. I think this is so deep in our psyche because we are made in the image of God and He is by nature a saviour. He is the ultimate hero, so we, being made in His image, know deep down there is such a thing as a hero and that we should long for it. 8 Guard me as you would guard your own eyes. Hide me in the shadow of your wings. 9 Protect me from wicked people who attack me, from murderous enemies who surround me. Psalm 17:8-9 I think our thoughts and hopes fall into a few different traps because we have this inbuilt longing and need for a hero. One trap is that we can be vulnerable to a person of influence. We can be deceived. Could it have been this inherent weakness that led Eve to believe t...

Feeling and thinking in Psalm 16: Joy in being together (Maybe it could make you sad?) It's Monday morning again and I have found a new favourite Psalm. I said I would explore humanity in all its emotions and mental struggles, and surely one of those must be knowing how good life can be. Whether you have observed it from afar, imagined it in your dreams or once experienced it yourself, it is the joy of life that often plagues us with sadness. That is not the case for me today but, when I see the pure bliss of this Psalm, I am floored with hope, love and longing for the presence of God. Maybe even moreso, thankful. Today I feel like I can see this blessing. I know I have been blind to it before. I know that the cares of life have hidden from view the lofty highs of rapture from walking with God. But today I am filled with thanksgiving, and so this Psalm resonates a pure tone on the strings of my heart as God reveals His promises to me. I have not forgotten those dark days of struggl...