Encounter the Bible

Welcome to Week 4 of Psalms.  I'm always amazed at how relevant the Psalms are today even though they were written a long time ago by so many different authors.  For some, the psalms give voice to what they're feeling about life or about their relationship with God.  For others, the psalms give voice to our praise to God.  Other times, even though they are tied to a particular time in history, it's as if they are speaking directly to our current circumstance.  As we encounter Psalms written by David, Solomon, and Asaph, they all have a singular purpose: to lead us into a deeper relationship with God through Jesus Christ. One of our psalms this week, Psalm 72, is attributed to Solomon and sings the praises of Israel's ideal king.  While some may have come close to checking all the boxes, only Jesus can check ALL the boxes and provide us with forgiveness of our sins and the promise of eternal life.  As you read this week, look for other places in the Psa...

 We enter our third week in the Psalms and are now in Book 2 of the Psalms.  In our readings this week, we encounter a number of different authors of the psalms: t he Sons of Korah (to learn more about the sons of Korah, click here ), Asaph, and David.  Authorship in Scripture is a lot different than how we think about it today.  There were no copyright laws, so sometimes an attribution to, for example, David, might simply mean that it was written in his honor or to remember a certain event in his life.  While some psalms reference a specific time, place, or author, they really are all timeless in their message and application.  As you read (or listen) this week, reflect on how these psalms speak to you in your specific situation.  How do the words of the psalms give voice to what you are feeling and experiencing?  You may also consider finding musical settings to some of the psalms to help them stick with you after you read them. If you go to yo...

This week we conclude Book 1 of the Psalms.  Oftentimes we pay no attention to these different books because we don't often read the psalms sequentially and they are not grouped by author or theme.  Most suggest that the 5 books of the psalms are equated to the 5 books of Torah (Genesis through Deuteronomy).  This week's readings include both familiar psalms and unfamiliar psalms.  As you read the familiar ones, try to find something you haven't noticed before.  As you read the unfamiliar ones, try to find a line or verse that jumps out to you and speaks to you that day. Our guiding questions are these:  What stood out to you in the reading? Was there anything confusing or troubling? Did anything make you think differently about God? How might what you read change the way you live? Please post a comment below with some of your questions, comments, and reflections from this week's reading.

  After readings that included a lot of death and destruction and the frequent sin of idolatry, we're going to enter into the Psalms. The book of Psalms is a compilation of writings from a variety of authors and written over a long period of time.  Most often we associate the Psalms with David, but others such as Moses, Solomon, Asaph, and the sons of Korah are named as authors.  There are different types of psalms; however, the most common types are these: praise, lament (both individual and communal), thanksgiving, royal (about Jerusalem and/or the king), and wisdom.  As you read, try to put each psalm into a category based on the major theme or message.  For us, the psalms have many uses.  We can read them as the testimonies of God's people or as the heartfelt prayers of God's people or as words of praise and thanksgiving to God.  When we find it hard to pray, we can go to the psalms and join with the psalmists as they bring their prayers/songs to G...