Ps 119:1-8 ¶ ALEPH. Blessed are the undefiled
in the way, who walk in the law of the LORD. Blessed are they that keep
his testimonies, and that seek him with the whole heart. They also do no
iniquity: they walk in his ways. ¶ Thou hast commanded us to keep thy
precepts diligently. O that my ways were directed to keep thy statutes! Then
shall I not be ashamed, when I have respect unto all thy commandments. ¶ I will
praise thee with uprightness of heart, when I shall have learned thy righteous
judgments. I will keep thy statutes: O forsake me not utterly.”
As stated in Wednesday’s blog, I do not want to be known as
someone who takes God’s Word lightly. Matter of fact, I want to be remembered
while alive and after death to life, as one who took God’s
Word seriously as the very Words from His lips….not words of man. Also, I need
to reiterate that our God does not need me or anyone He has created to play
magic or havoc with His Word. HE IS GOD! His Words are perfect and does not need Word Perfect or spell check!!!
I have to admit that I have fun listening to God and hearing
Him teach me. I am not in your brain and thank goodness you are not in mine. I
have shared this little plan with other women and have watched them use it
while making it fit for them, certainly not for me. When a student in our school is caught
stealing or lying, we give them the Word of God along with whatever punishment is
necessary because we desire to see the Word make a permanent mark of importance and change
in their heart. If that child is born-again, the Holy Spirit will bring to
remembrance the portion of scripture that was memorized thus keeping them
or at least helping them to NOT make the same mistake.
God promises in Psalm 119:1 to bless the undefiled in the
way, who walk in the law of the Lord. So why would we not take these words
literally right at the beginning! This
acrostic poem of Psalm 119 is powerful, energetic, exciting and challenging.
Several different words are used for “God’s Word.” There are twenty-two letters
in the Hebrew alphabet. Don’t worry, you don’t have to memorize them but you
should read them to become familiar with the sound as we take this little
journey together. There are 22 stanzas,
one for each letter of the Hebrew alphabet.
This Psalm is the longest chapter of the Bible with 176 verses.
I took the 22 stanzas and divided them up into 22 days. I
chose the days to fit my schedule. A woman’s cycle varies and could be more or
less of those days but for lack of explanation, think of those days as needing
to walk through this plan. On the
week-ends I took a break from Psalm 119 but not from the Word of God. During
the week with Psalm 119 I read other chapters but my main focus for a period of
“a long time” was this Psalm. Several things happened in my life because of
this decision. I will share some with you, but again, this is not about me, but
about a Living, True, Real God who is ready to make Himself known to you that
only He can do, not me. Don’t forget that. I will disappoint you. Men will
disappoint you. Your husband and children may at times disappoint you,
therefore, always keep your eyes on God and your ears open to Him, and His
Word.
Choose a verse in Aleph, the first stanza, and memorize it. Look for it; rehearse it in
your brain while you read the eight verses, talking to God out loud if possible.
For example: Verse 1:
“Blessed are the
undefiled in the way, (I am blessed of thee, Oh God and will keep
myself from being defiled today) who walk in the law of the Lord.” (Show
me Father how to walk in your law today. Keep my feet close to you. I need you,
Father. Thank you for blessing me. I don’t feel very blessed today. I feel
rotten, but I know your Word is true and right now, I accept that truth.)
Verse 2: “Blessed are they that keep his testimonies, and that seek him with the
whole heart. (Lord, I am going to memorize this verse today. Help me to say it out loud
when I want to scream or my patience runs thin with the children. I can’t do
this alone, Father. I need you. I need you. Sometimes, Lord, I feel like I’m
losing my mind but your Word is telling me to seek you anyway. Therefore,
Father, here is my whole heart. I place my heart, my guts, Lord, out before you.
I feel worthless, useless and cannot cope right now, but Father I need your
blessings and I WILL say this verse several times today believing you will not
only deliver me, but bless me. Thank you Father for helping me to do this.)
Verse 3: “They also do no iniquity: they walk in his ways.” (Lord,
I don’t have to sin. I don’t have to get mad, sling things around, throw stuff,
and say hateful words to those around me. That is sin and I know I have you
right beside me walking with me. Help me God to not fall down, fall off the
wagon, and go backwards. I feel like running again. Keep my feet stable,
walking in your steps. Make your steps deep as clay….take my hand and pull me
forward….I promise to slip my foot in the print just ahead. Move in front of me
Lord. I am scared to death. I can’t do this alone. I just CAN’T!)
Friend, buy a journal just for this journey. Write your thoughts out
even if you cry while writing. Just do it! Copy the verse to be memorized and start memorizing, saying it several
times a day. I will continue this blog next week. If you don’t need this, PRAISE
GOD, be thankful and know that your day may be tomorrow!
Until next time, Lord willing,
Sharon
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