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| May 23, 2018
This song of celebration, Psalm 149, is like a rallying cry, urging all of God's people to praise the Lord regardless of their circumstances. That includes times when people aren't naturally inclined to boast on God.
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| May 22, 2018
Psalm 149 is one of five "praise the Lord" psalms that conclude the Hebrews' ancient hymnal. Like the other four, it begins with the command "Hallelujah!" leading to a time of exalting God's goodness.
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| May 21, 2018
There are times when the hardest words in the world to utter are "Praise the Lord!" (also translated "Hallelujah!"). These words just don't flow from our lips. In fact, there are times we are turned off even when others use the words!
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| May 20, 2018
In Psalm 142:5–6, David asked the Lord to change his circumstances: to deal justly with his persecutors and to honor His promise to make David king. But he also recognized the greater need for God to change his state of mind.
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| May 19, 2018
David feels enveloped or wrapped up in his depression, so much so his spirit feels faint and feeble. In the middle of confessing his darkest feelings of hopelessness, he acknowledges that God knows everything.
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| May 18, 2018
The raw emotion of David's prayer in Psalm 142 comes through clearly in his choice of words. In his Cave of Adullam, the beleaguered future king struggled with depression and shrieked heavenward.
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| May 17, 2018
David's depression most likely resulted from an unusually long period of stress. The superscript for Psalm 142, identifying David's circumstances as "in the cave," probably refers to the cave of Adullam.
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| May 16, 2018
Who hasn't struggled with those demoralizing seasons of dark sadness? Everyone suffers from grief and sorrow from time to time. But depression is a different matter. Like a disease, it's very common, but it's not "normal."
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| May 15, 2018
David no longer looks up (as in verses 1–18) nor around (as in verses 19–22); he now looks within. He wants to be God's man at any cost, so he invites the Lord to make a thorough examination of him down deep inside.
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| May 14, 2018
As David thought about God's intricate design of humanity in Psalm 139, and he pondered the Lord's loyal love for each individual He took such care to fashion and endow with purpose, the king grew angry at the enemies of God.
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| May 13, 2018
David's song about God paid close attention to His design of the human body and the individual care He gives to each conception. No individual life escapes His care, and He endows each person with a purpose.
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| May 12, 2018
We are a species of wonder. No one would argue that the human body is a phenomenal combination of strength, beauty, coordination, grace, and balance on the outside. But if you think the outside is remarkable, just glance inside.
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| May 11, 2018
Psalm 139 links us with God. This song, like few other passages of Scripture, connects us with our Creator. It answers four of the most frequently asked questions that come to our minds about God.
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| May 10, 2018
There were times in my childhood when I would become fearful at night. (You may recall having similar feelings.) At those times I would grab the covers and snatch them over my head.
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| May 09, 2018
All right, so God knows me and controls me; He can do that at a distance, through millions and millions of light years of space. But is He near? According to Psalm 139, David's song about the amazing attributes of God, yes.
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| May 08, 2018
The Lord remains in complete control of the smallest details of His creation; He is all-knowing and all-powerful. Knowing us as He does, He puts the necessary controls upon us. The fact that He "encloses" us could be misunderstood.
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| May 07, 2018
If you've ever been a part of a large organization, such as a multibillion-dollar corporation or a governmental agency or a university, it's unlikely you've ever met the people at the top of the leadership chain.
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| May 06, 2018
Most folks struggle with feelings of insignificance from time to time . . . For some, feeling insignificant is not simply a periodic battle; it is a daily grind! We know deep down inside we're valuable.
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| May 05, 2018
Did God respond to the plea of Psalm 137? Absolutely! After seventy years in exile, every Jew who wanted to return to rebuild the city of Jerusalem and restore the temple was allowed to do so. And the Jews learned their lesson.
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| May 04, 2018
The composer of Psalm 137 acknowledged the sorrow of his situation, recognizing that Judah had brought this chastisement upon themselves. But he didn't stay in the doldrums.
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