God Speaks
A psalm of David.
1 Let all that I am praise the Lord;
with my whole heart, I will praise his holy name.
2 Let all that I am praise the Lord;
may I never forget the good things he does for me.
3 He forgives all my sins
and heals all my diseases.
4 He redeems me from death
and crowns me with love and tender mercies.
5 He fills my life with good things.
My youth is renewed like the eagle’s!
6 The Lord gives righteousness
and justice to all who are treated unfairly.
7 He revealed his character to Moses
and his deeds to the people of Israel.
8 The Lord is compassionate and merciful,
slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love.
9 He will not constantly accuse us,
nor remain angry forever.
10 He does not punish us for all our sins;
he does not deal harshly with us, as we deserve.
11 For his unfailing love toward those who fear him
is as great as the height of the heavens above the earth.
12 He has removed our sins as far from us
as the east is from the west.
13 The Lord is like a father to his children,
tender and compassionate to those who fear him.
14 For he knows how weak we are;
he remembers we are only dust.
15 Our days on earth are like grass;
like wildflowers, we bloom and die.
16 The wind blows, and we are gone—
as though we had never been here.
17 But the love of the Lord remains forever
with those who fear him.
His salvation extends to the children’s children
18 of those who are faithful to his covenant,
of those who obey his commandments!
19 The Lord has made the heavens his throne;
from there he rules over everything.
20 Praise the Lord, you angels,
you mighty ones who carry out his plans,
listening for each of his commands.
21 Yes, praise the Lord, you armies of angels
who serve him and do his will!
22 Praise the Lord, everything he has created,
everything in all his kingdom.
Let all that I am praise the Lord.
Source: New Living Translation: BibleGateway.com
We Respond
Reflection: Psalm 103 is one of this blogger’s favorites. It covers such a wide range of ways we can interact with God. There’s praising Him with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength. There’s remembering all the good things He has done for us; thanking Him for the benefits He bestows; accepting His pardon for all our iniquities; receiving His healing for all our diseases; believing that He has redeemed our lives from the pit of hell and placed the crowns of lovingkindness and righteousness on our heads in the heavenly realms. The rest of Psalm 103 bears this out.
Prayer: Dear LORD God, I do instruct my soul to praise You and Your holy name. You have forgiven all my sins and healed me of disease. You have rescued me from both physical and spiritual death. You do show me loving compassion and satisfy all my needs and many of my wants. You have often given me what I don’t deserve and far more than I could have imagined. When You must, You do not discipline in anger or as my sinful rebellion deserved. Your unending love toward me and others who fear You has completely removed the weight of our sin. Your compassion never fails. You know how fragile and fallible humans are; after all, You made us from the dust of the earth. We are as finite as the flowers. It is only by Your lovingkindness and righteousness that we exist to trust and obey You. Please help me to remember Your precepts and to be faithful to fulfill them. Your sovereignty is established in Heaven. May all the beings in all of Your dominion (including me) continually bless You, LORD. AMEN
Action: (Ask God, the Holy Spirit, if He wants you to work on one of the suggestions below or something else more personal that He points out.)
- I will read Psalm 103 aloud, applying it to my situation as I pray it back to the LORD.
- I will make a list of ways God has shown me who He is: compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in lovingkindness.
- I will strive to display these Godly characteristics in my interactions with other people this week.
- I will ask the LORD to speak to me through His word so that I can obey it.
Share: I plan to share what I’ve learned with __________.