Sing With Joy

Reading through the Bible chronologically has really changed my perspective as I read the Psalms that David wrote. I’ve known for some time that each Psalm was written during certain periods of David’s life. Some during good times, and others not so good. They are a journal of sorts of David’s response to God during these periods in his life. It’s a great to read them alongside the history of what was occurring in the kingdom at the same time. 

Psalm 59 was written during a time when Saul was after David, and Saul had sent soldiers to David’s house to try to kill David.

Hmmm. Wonder what my reaction would’ve been? “Ahhhhh...I’m going to die! The end is near! God, where are you?” Is our first thought to react...or respond...when troubles come upon us?

Let’s take a look at David’s response. In verses nine and ten, David proclaims that God is his strength and that he would wait for God to rescue him! 

What was David thinking? He had soldiers at his house ready to kill him and instead of panicking, He instead says “God’s got it...no need to worry!” (my paraphrase)

David goes on in the next few verses to tell about the enemy scavenging about at night and prowling the streets. I don’t know about you, but the night time is where I have a hard time turning off my head and worrying mind. It seems that during the quiet is when the enemy screams the loudest.

We have a choice. To listen to the enemy, or rest in the peace that only God can bring. Here, David made the choice to rest in the quiet hush of the Lord and to sing the Lord’s praises. 

Verse 16 tells us that David will sing of the Lord’s power and in the morning he will “sing for joy” of the Lord’s love...His unfailing love!!
He goes on to boldly say that the lord has been his refuge and his place of safety.

It wasn’t anything David did himself, or even his mighty men. It was God alone who was David’s refuge!!

I encourage you friends to let God be your strength and your refuge. You’ll be singing for joy about His unfailing love! 

“You are my strength; I wait for you to rescue me, for you, O God, are my fortress. In his unfailing love, my God will stand with me. He will let me look down in triumph on all my enemies.

But as for me, I will sing about your power. Each morning I will sing with joy about your unfailing love. For you have been my refuge, a place of safety when I am in distress.”
‭‭Psalms‬ ‭59:9-10, 16‬ ‭NLT‬‬

showing some of the added texture

Art behind the story:

For this mixed media entry, I used my interleaved Bible which has a blank page in between each page of text.  For the background, I started with a piece of printed scrapbook paper and added ephemera for decorations.  Using Sweet 'n Sassy Stamps sets, I stamped the words "Sing for Joy" with Sunshine Girl Alpha and  the Life In Jesus set.  To add more visual interest, I added some texture with the Texture Tiles 1 set.

Have a great time in Creative Worship as you spend time with the Lord stamping and creating in His Word!

Hugs,

Gayle
Patio Ponderings

God Did It!

Hi friends! I’m still enjoying the chronological reading through the Bible. I hope many

of you are still reading along too. Seeing it all as one big story really helps with putting all the pieces together. 

Reading through the stories of David as he establishes his kingdom is quite an adventure. 

One of my favorites here of late is found in 1 Chronicles 14. We have the scene where the Philistines come to attack David because they aren’t too happy that David has been anointed king over all of Israel. The suspense is mounting. How was David going to handle this?

If I were David I would have gathered up my troops and my armor and marched right out there and shown them who was king. But not David. He did something very important first!

He prayed and asked God if he should go. 

Imagine that! How many times do we just make decisions without consulting God first? How often do I just run feet first into the situation without stopping and pondering and praying? 

Not only did David pray, he waited for God to answer. After receiving God’s answer to go and that God would make them successful, David and his troops went out and defeated the Philistines. 

Immediately, David responded in praise: “God did it!” When I get through a tough spot and have a victory in my life, do I give God the praise? When we are on the other side of a trial, do we say “whew, we made it?” or do we say “whew, thank you, Lord?" 

David and his men were so full of joy for what God had done there they even gave the place a name giving the Lord all the glory: Baal-Perazim. Do I give God all the glory? Do I record and journal those moments...those triumphs...those victories? Do I take a picture so I can remember that moment?

What about you? Do you pray before making a decision? Do you give God praise on the other side of the situation? Do you shout it out on social media? Do you write it down so it can be a legacy of God’s faithfulness? 

Definitely a few things to ponder. 

“So David asked God, “Should I go out to fight the Philistines? Will you hand them over to me?” The Lord replied, “Yes, go ahead. I will hand them over to you.” So David and his troops went up to Baal-perazim and defeated the Philistines there. “God did it!” David exclaimed. “He used me to burst through my enemies like a raging flood!” So they named that place Baal-perazim (which means “the Lord who bursts through”).”

‭‭1 Chronicles‬ ‭14:10-11‬ ‭NLT

Art behind the story:

As I was reading this passage, I immediately thought of these verses as a checklist of sorts. 

1. Pray
2. Praise
3. Document it

The new May release stamps from Sweet ‘n Sassy Stamps were perfect to use. First of all, I used the words “pray” and “praise” from the Let’s Do This set. Next, I used the tag and the alphas from Bitty Minnie to make the “God did it!” tag. Lastly I used some squiggles from Itty Bitty Blossoms to provide some detailing. The cameras are fussy cuts and a sticker that I had in my stash. 

Take a look at this month’s new releases. They are all just a-MAY-zing! 

Until next time,

Gayle 

IG: patioponderings