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Thoughts On Psalms
At a certain point, years after having received Christ’s death as payment for my sin, I asked God to make something clear to me. Why do so many people love the book of Psalms while I do not seem to get that much from it?
Over the course of the ensuing months, and maybe years, God answered my question by doing a work in my life. He softened my heart. I wish I could say that it was a painless process, but it was nothing of the sort. However, now that I have come through the other side of that healing process I can sincerely rank the book of Psalms as one of my favorite books of the Bible.
That is why I love the devotional book published by Moody and written by Ray Pritchard, Green Pastures, Quiet Waters, Refreshing Moments from the Psalms. The following is a brief excerpt from Pritchard’s devotional work commenting on Psalm 95:6, “Come, let us bow down in worship, let us kneel before the Lord our Maker” (NIV):
It has been said that we worship our work, we work at our play, and we play at our worship. In many ways this explains the problem with contemporary Christianity. We worship something, but not the right thing. In all of life nothing is as important as learning how to worship. When we learn to worship, whole new vistas open before our eyes. Until that happens, our days will be filled with mere religious activity. We will come to church on Sunday morning, we will give money, and we may be very active, but we will miss the one thing for which we were created . . . Worship means to declare God’s worth. It is to give God the honor that is due Him. It is to render to God the glory that attaches to His position as King of the universe. If you want to say it in a very modern way, it is to pay God the ultimate compliment of treating God as God – and nothing less than God. This is where all worship must begin (pp. 20-21).
The book of Psalms teaches us a lot about worship. Many of the psalms contain the thoughts of a man, David, who understood God’s worth and told of it.
Honestly, do we connect with the worshipful attitude contained in the psalms? If not, what might be keeping us from joining David in joyful acknowledgement that, “The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands” (Psalm 19:1 NIV)
Do not let another sunset go by before you ask God to answer those questions for you. The process might be painful, but the joy will be worth it.
Pastor Sam
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