The Psalms Speak to our Hearts

This year, I am reminded of how relevant the Psalms are for life today. They keep cropping up in my devotional. At church, Pastor Dan presented a series called “Summer in the Psalms.” Then last week I received notice that “Psalms Alive” is the theme set for the upcoming Java Joy gatherings.

Although I first became familiar with the Psalms when I was a young girl, I still learned a couple things from the sermon series and also from a peek at the Java Joy website.

When I was growing up, we lived a mile down the road from Cottonwood Church. From our place, it looked like a white dot on the wheat-covered prairie. Although the church closed many years ago, it has continued to inspire me in writing “By the Banks of Cottonwood Creek” and also the historical novel I hope to publish soon.

The church had two main rooms. Church services were held in the green room, while the primary Sunday school class met in the pink room, which also held supplies and an oil burning stove. The women managed to function in a minute-sized kitchen with no running water. A hole in the ground beneath the building was majestically called the basement.

Sunday school was a highlight of my week. The family Bible still holds a bookmark that I made for my mother back then. One time we made a dough of salt and flour and fashioned objects from the time of Christ, such as an oil lamp and a bowl. Those objects were put in the bookcase in the pink room and were still there years later. One steamy summer Sunday, we trooped down the outside steps to the basement and tried to hold class there. That ended quickly when we found some lizards.

Perhaps my single best experience at Cottonwood Church took place when I was nine. I was very surprised to be called to the front of the church during the morning service and presented a black Bible with my name printed on the front in gold; I was graduating to the class that met in the green room!

It was only as an adult that God’s message became real to me.

It was in Sunday school that I learned my way around the Bible. We memorized the books in order and had a new memory verse every week. I  still remember, open it in the middle and you are in Psalm 119, and the New Testament begins three quarters of the way through.

Still, it was only as an adult, when I began searching for the meaning of life, that God’s message became real to me. Even so, I couldn’t particularly relate to the Psalms. Only after I’d been matured by the birth of children, the death of loved ones, and the struggles of life did the Psalms begin speaking to my heart. These 150 songs now console and encourage me. The promises are as trustworthy today as they were when they were written.

These 150 songs now console and encourage me.

When I read through Psalms every year, I always find a wonder. Sometimes it’s a special verse, such as when I began my career in a statewide organization, I underlined Psalm 18: 19: “He also brought me out into a broad place; He delivered me because He delighted in me.” Note to readers: He delights in you, also!

Some psalms have been set to today’s music. Reading the words may remind me of a song that will then play in my head for the rest of the day. One of those is Psalm 27: 14: “Wait on the Lord, be of good courage, and He shall strengthen your heart; Wait, I say, on the Lord!” That message of waiting isn’t one I always want to receive, but it is wisdom to the core.

Sometimes I come upon a verse that I’ve read many times, but it suddenly makes my heart leap as I see it in a new light. “They shall still bear fruit in old age; They shall be fresh and flourishing.” That’s Psalm 92: 14 and it’s a promise that I rest in as I sit at the computer every day.

Have you considered reading through the Psalms? Try reading one Psalm a day using a modern language edition, such as the New International Version or the New King James or The Message. To take a peek at the “Summer in the Psalms” series by Pastor Dan, go to www.cccc.bismarck.com and look under Messages. Get further inspired at the Java Joy and Joy International website at www.joyintl.org.