Praise Theme

Psalm 22

I really love the vulnerability of this psalm. David is the composer and it is another psalm of lament. The theme of the psalm is "Why have you forsaken me?" As I read it, I get the idea that David is saying, "I have many enemies and I can understand why they might oppose me but I can't understand why you, Lord, have also forsaken me." There is a lot of strong imagery in this psalm, revealing David's artistic heart: I am a worm; you made me feel secure on my mother's breast; many bulls surround me; roaring lions... open their mouths wide against me; I am poured out like water; my heart has turned to wax. The imagery also serves to increase the level of vulnerability. David is completely vulnerable before the Lord. If God has truly forsaken him, then he has no hope and is stripped of all defenses.
There have been a few times when I have felt this way also. Usually it is in a time of trial when I've come to the end of all my strategies, strength and wisdom. It is then that I realize how completely dependent I am on the Lord. I realize that my strength is weakness, my wisdom is foolishness and my strategies are worthless. It is a terrifyingly wonderful place to be. I know that people often say that they are just trusting the Lord and wherever he leads or however he provides will be good. I have often said that myself. The reality of my own heart is that usually those are just words because while I might appear calm and trusting, I am depending on my own abilities to come up with a plan and a direction. The issue is that the theme of my praise then can only be me: look what I have done, see how I have rescued myself, see how I have provided. The theme of David's praise comes from God because David is completely dependent on God.
So, what is the theme of my praise? When I ask myself these questions, I sense the sinful and the redeemed self struggling against itself because there is the redeemed part of me that wants the theme of my praise to be the Lord and his wisdom, strength, provision and glory. However, the sinful self really likes the spotlight. My pride rears its ugly head and the lie of Satan is terribly appealing: "You don't need God. You can do it on your own. Then all the glory will be yours." It becomes an issue of trust. Do I trust God enough to pray, "Father, bring to the place where I depend solely on you"? Or do I trust myself more.
I know what my praise theme will be when I stand before the throne of Christ. I pray that I would learn the tune and words to that theme while I am still here on earth.

Eternal Pleasures

Psalm 16

What joy and light is contained in this psalm! This is another psalm of David. It is a psalm of praise that focuses on the Lord's character and David's response to his character. It covers everything from the nobility of the godly to the sufficiency of God's provision. The overall tone looks to the future: a delightful inheritance (v. 6), the assurance of life after death (v. 10) and the pleasures that David experiences now and will for all eternity (v. 11).
I think part of the pleasure that we experience now is the anticipation of the greater pleasure that is yet to come. As my wedding approached I anticipated being married and all that I thought it entailed and that brought me joy. That joy was fulfilled in many ways on my wedding day, and continues to be more fully fulfilled today, but part of the joy I experienced was the anticipation of the joy that was to come. I think this is true of the joy we experience now. We know who God was and is and ever will be. We know who we are in Christ and we have some idea of what joys await us. The anticipation of that joy brings us pleasure in the present. It is certainly what David is experiencing in this psalm: present joy that is at least partially the anticipation of future joy and eternal pleasures.
More than the pleasure and the joy itself, this psalm constantly calls me back to the source of pleasure and joy. The Lord is my refuge. The Lord is my King. The Lord is my provider of all that is good. The Lord is my portion. The Lord is my security. The Lord is my inheritance. The Lord is my counsellor. The Lord is my strength. The Lord is my hope. I worry that I love God's gifts more than I love God at times. This psalm reminds me that the Lord is my gift. There is no greater blessing that the Lord himself. With David, I will praise him!

stronghold of infants' praise

Psalm 8

This is another psalm written by David. The occassion for the psalm in not noted although v. 3 indicates that he has just spent some time outside at night, looking up at the stars. It is a psalm of praise, beginning and ending with the same phrase: LORD, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth! The evidence of the Lord's majesty is that his glory is above the heavens, that he has established a stronghold against his enemies through the praise of children and infants and that he cares for and given authority to humans.
The section on humanity is the main focus of the psalm. David can't get over the fact that in light of all that God has created, he has given such attention to humans. He's even given them authority over the earth and all the animals. I picture David laying on a hill, looking up into the sky at night and just thinking: that's so big and I'm so small! It's amazing that God even knows I'm here and blows my mind that he cares so much for me.
I like the balance David strikes in this psalm: God is majestic, we are small. His creation is amazing and we are nothing in comparison except for the fact that God created us, cares for us and gave us authority over creation. Our position and authority is given to us not because of our merit but because of God's sovreign authority.
I also like the picture of God's power and majesty in verse 2. It is the verse that stands out to me: God is so majestic and strong that he can build a stronghold against his enemies out of the praise of the weakest and most vulnerable humans. It not only speaks to the power of God but the position God has granted humans: humans have been given such authority and power by God that their weakest and most vulnerable members can created a stronghold merely by their voices. The image of a stronghold made of infants' praise is a very vivid one and fires my imagination! It brings incredible peace and security. It also motivates me to add my voice to the stronghold of praise.

Apostolic Authourity

Galatians 1:10-12

Observation:
The repeated words are: humans/people, approval. The key words are: gospel, revelation.

Interpretation:
Paul is saying that he doesn't preach the gospel to gain approval from humans, nor did he receive the gospel from any human source. He makes it clear that the one that he is trying to please is God and that the source of revelation for the gospel he preaches is Jesus Christ.

Application:
The key question from this passage for me is the first one that Paul asks: "Am I now trying to win human approval or God's approval? If I am honest, much of what I do is for the approval of people. I love the affirmations and applause of people. I am addicted to their praise. I depserately want to be free from what people think, I desperately want to "perform" only for God. The sick think is that I project human relationships onto God: in this world you are valued for what you do. If you perform well, you get praise and people value and like you. In God's view, I know that I m valued for who I am in and because of Christ. But I wil still live like I have to perform i order to receive God's approval. The message of the gospel is that there is nothing I could do to make God love me but he loves me anyway. I know this in my head; God, pleas mak ei treal in my heart and life.