Praises

Psalm 46

¹ God is our refuge and strength,
   an ever-present help in trouble.
² Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way
   and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea,
³ though its waters roar and foam
   and the mountains quake with their surging.

Psalm 47

¹ Clap your hands, all you nations;
   shout to God with cries of joy.

 ² For the LORD Most High is awesome,
   the great King over all the earth.

 

Psalm 48

¹⁴ For this God is our God for ever and ever;
   he will be our guide even to the end.

Today I am home from our days of travel. We had a blast, but I NEED my normal schedule back. We are all tired and ready to relax today. Today is a day of praise! Today we rejoice in the gifts we have been given and the good times we've had. The verses above sum up how we feel!

Falling Behind

    Have you ever been in a Lazy River at a waterpark? The current is strong enough to move your raft through. This is simply a man-made version of floating down a real river. If you want to slow down, you have to put your feel on the bottom. If you can't get both feet on the ground, the river can sweep you away.

    I have been swept up in life the past few days. I am visiting my parents and they do not have wireless for me to connect my laptop. Today, we are in a hotel in North Carolina, so I am connected again.

    I could feel myself slipping each day I didn't begin with reading my Bible passages. Now I have some real catching up to do!

    This morning, I read Psalm 44 and several passages in Numbers. David, or whoever wrote this particular Psalm, cries out for God's help against his enemies. Sometimes, especially in my life, I am my own worst enemy. I hold myself back from doing God's business and God's will far more than anyone else does.

    Today I pray to get back on track. I pray that I will not hold myself back from the life I KNOW I should lead.

Celebrating Summer with the Family

    Yesterday we took our son to a waterpark. I wasn't sure what a two-year old would be able to do, but I was surprised at the amount of slides and rides for toddlers. Of course, our child is taller than the average two-year old. He is so tall, he was actually able to go down a few of the adult slides! We had a blast! My husband and I laughed all day at how funny our son was getting off the rides. He wasn't even out of the water before he squealed, " 'gain! Mommy! Daddy! Ride 'gain!"

    When we got home, I immediately started worrying over how much work I needed to accomplish in the upcoming weeks. I sat down and tried to plan out my work schedule, but I felt so overwhelmed I reconsidered this whole writing thing. I was discouraged to say the least!

    This morning Psalm 42:11 told me this,

"¹¹ Why, my soul, are you downcast?
   Why so disturbed within me?
Put your hope in God,
   for I will yet praise him,
   my Savior and my God."

    I have no reason to be discouraged! Our summer is going exactly the way we wanted it to go. I will do the best I can and make that be enough! If God wants me to succeed, I will work hard and He will provide the time to get the work finished. He always has!

Routines

    During the school year, I get up at 5:00am every morning. Last week, the week of my conference, I got up around 6:00am, because we didn't have to leave as early to get to the conference. This week, however, I haven't needed to get up early. I have slept until my son came into the room to wake me up each morning. Some mornings that was as late at 7:30am. Getting up two and half hours later than what I am used to has taken its toll now. I don't feel like I have a good start to my day, I don't have my quiet time in the morning to read without my son running around, and I don't sleep as well at night!

    I recently have spent some time at a website called flylady.net. FLYlady is a woman who decided one day to get organized by setting up routines. From what I have read so far, I am totally buying into it! I love my routines! That is largely why I like teaching. This summer schedule has completely thrown my routines off kilter. I am desperate to return to routine.

    After reading Psalm 40 today, I feel even more justified that I NEED my early morning routine that includes time to read my Bible. That time sets up my day, it calms my spirit, it guides, it leads, it controls the chaos, and I am a happier mother, wife, writer, and summer bum because of it!

Waiting on the Lord part 2???

    Honestly I don't know how many times I have written on this topic. John Waller has a song about this topic. I have copied the lyrics below for you. This morning I read Psalm 38, and this is what it said, "¹⁵ LORD, I wait for you; you will answer, Lord my God." This morning I will wait upon the Lord.

Lyrics to While I'm Waiting :

I'm waiting
I'm waiting on You, Lord
And I am hopeful
I'm waiting on You, Lord
Though it is painful
But patiently, I will wait

I will move ahead, bold and confident
Takeing every step in obedience
While I'm waiting
I will serve You
While I'm waiting
I will worship
While I'm waiting
I will not faint
I'll be running the race
Even while I wait

I'm waiting
I'm waiting on You, Lord
And I am peaceful
I'm waiting on You, Lord
Though it's not easy
But faithfully, I will wait
Yes, I will wait
I will serve You while I'm waiting
I will worship while I'm waiting
I will serve You while I'm waiting
I will worship while I'm waiting
I will serve you while I'm waiting
I will worship while I'm waiting on You, Lord

I'm waiting
I'm waiting on You, Lord
And I am hopeful
I'm waiting on You, Lord
Though it is painful
But patiently, I will wait

I will move ahead, bold and confident
Takeing every step in obedience
While I'm waiting
I will serve You
While I'm waiting
I will worship
While I'm waiting
I will not faint
I'll be running the race
Even while I wait

I'm waiting
I'm waiting on You, Lord
And I am peaceful
I'm waiting on You, Lord
Though it's not easy
But faithfully, I will wait
Yes, I will wait
I will serve You while I'm waiting
I will worship while I'm waiting
I will serve You while I'm waiting
I will worship while I'm waiting
I will serve you while I'm waiting
I will worship while I'm waiting on You, Lord

Gifts From God

    Psalm 38:4 says, "Take delight in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart."

    There is a trick here though! In order for God to give the gifts we desire, we much desire gifts that God agrees with. I can pray every night to win the lottery, but chances are that God doesn't want that for my life. Instead, I pray for God to reveal his goals for my life. Once I know the direction I am going, I know better what I need.

    Here's an example. I moved to a new school three years ago. When I came, there was an opening for a writing teacher and one for a social studies teacher. I really wanted the social studies spot, but since my Master's degree is Reading Education, my new principal told me to teach writing. I was upset because I knew how much work it would be to grade 70 writing papers each time I gave an assignment. I wasn't even sure I would enjoy teaching writing three times a day each day.

    I prayed to God that my classes would be interesting, and I wanted to feel like teaching writing was a worthy use of my time. Three years later, teaching writing has opened new doors to my own writing. I write every day at school. I finally decided to start finishing these scraps of writing and trying to make some extra money out of them. I haven't gotten rich, but doors have opened.

    It took me seeing God's plan before I knew what to ask for. If we trust God's design for our life, our hearts will know their desires.

Homelessness

    I love my house. Each year I try to update a section of it while I am off during the summer. Last summer I painted a maroon bathroom yellow, steamed carpets, and rearranged furniture to make it flow better. I also painted ceilings and stained the front porch. The summer before, I painted furniture and stained the back deck. I also had a three month old baby and a new puppy, so most of my time went to them!

    This year I am refinishing my cabinets in my kitchen, hauling lots of unused clothing and toys to Goodwill, and possibly tearing up a section of laminate and replacing it with slate tile in our front entryway.

    My house is a source of pride. It is a place of rest. It is where our family gathers and memories are made. I cannot imagine losing my home, but that is exactly what I have been thinking about lately.

    I am in no way in danger of losing my home, but homelessness has taken a front seat focus in our family lately for three reasons. First of all my grandmother needs to move into a 24 hour care facility. She is no longer able to care for herself well enough to live alone. She doesn't want to leave her home, but we are going to have to make her leave.

    I just finished a charity campaign raising money for a local homeless shelter. All I did was raise money for a set of Bibles, but it got me thinking that I should do more for this shelter. I even have a couple of former students living there right now.

    Finally, a family in my church just foreclosed and is temporarily living in a hotel. The parents and two teenage girls are hoping to move into a small rental home soon. Another family in our church is about to lose their home. This will leave the parents and four boys, ages ranging from 1-10, homeless.

    I read Numbers chapter 2 today and realized that God didn't design us to be homeless. This chapter outlines exactly who should live where based on which tribe they are from. Everyone has a home and place to "belong." This makes me even sadder for those I know who are losing that place in their lives.

    The good thing is that this world is only a temporary home. One day we will all have a beautiful home to live in with all of those we love.

Numbers

    Today I began the Book of Numbers. I love starting new books of the Bible. It makes me feel like I am accomplishing something. As with any book, I looked up some background on Numbers.

    Most agree that Numbers was also written by Moses. This Book is a record of the people for most of the forty years the Israelites wandered in the wilderness. It begins with a census of the people.

    Numbers can be laborious, or they can be fascinating. I know there are math concepts I dread trying to teach, because so many are abstract. Numbers in the billions or numbers to the hundred thousandths places don't make sense to a fifth grader. They cannot relate the number to anything concrete. Then in social studies, hearing the number of people killed in a battle of the Civil War blow their minds.

    The facts in the Book of Numbers are fascinating, but it doesn't seem to be great reading material. I am not yet sure if I will enjoy reading this book or not.

Giving Back To God

    One of my good friends is the wife of a minister. Because of my friendship with his wife, he and I have had a few candid discussions about his career. Often I believe that he has one of the most frustrating and difficult jobs in the world.

    I have heard him say that there are some subjects he knows he should do sermons about, but he avoids them because they are such touchy topics. One of them is giving back to God.

    Leviticus 27 tells us the rules God gave to Moses about dedicating people, animals, homes, and land to God. It gives the guidelines on how the priest should judge the value of these things. This chapter makes very clear that one tenth of everything we own should be given to God.

    At that point the many interpretations come into play. What does it mean to "Give" to God? Does it only mean giving to a church? What about charities? What about giving of your time?

    I don't have many answers to these questions, and I have asked them of enough people to get a wide variety of answers. Here, then, are my thoughts and my beliefs.

    My husband and I do not give ten percent of our income to our church. We give a percentage, but it is smaller than a tenth. However, we have never turned away a friend that was in need. In the past eight years of knowing each other, we have given cash to several different families that we knew needed money and would never pay us back.

We also send monetary donations to charitable organizations. We send canned goods to food banks. We volunteer our time to our church, and we even ran a campaign last month to raise money to buy children's Bibles for a local homeless shelter.

This topic doesn't have an easy formula or an easy answer. If we truly gave a tenth of our earnings to our church, the church would be the only benefactor. If we split our giving, we feel like we have the freedom to give when someone approaches us with a need. Many would not agree with this method, but it is the method that works for our family.

Father’s Day

    It seems like the past few years have redefined Father's Day in our house. Several years ago, my husband and I focused on our own fathers. We would travel, each our separate way, to see our Dads on their special day. Then we had our son.

    The first year we tried to see both of our Dads so our little baby boy could celebrate with both Grandfathers and his own Dad. We quickly realized that we too crazy of a plan. The travel was just too much!

    We decided that Father's Day would be celebrated in our home. We would try to get together with our own fathers another time around the holiday.

    So this year, as Father's Day approaches, I have found a new meaning to the holiday. Because our son is now two, he spends the first part of his morning watching cartoons while I get things together to breakfast. This morning, several of his favorite shows were advertising their Father's Day episode. From a child's perspective, the fathers on the show were caring, loving, and always watching, even from a distance.

    As Devon watched TV, I was reading Psalm 32 and realized just how "father-like" God is to me. I always know he is watching over me. He is always hoping for the best for me. He guides me when I am lost, and he comforts me when I am down.

    This year, perhaps our family will focus more on our relationships with our Heavenly Father on Father's Day.

Trust

    Busy! Busy! Busy! My week is crazy! I am participating in an Enrichment conference this week, luckily my big presentation was opening keynote address. I don't have to work on it anymore at night. I have also taken on two writing jobs. Then I still have to be Mommy and wife-extraordinaire!

    Times like this week remind me to trust in the Lord. Psalms tells us over and over to put our faith in God, but do we really trust him? I catch myself thinking I have to do it all and be good at everything all the time. If I put that much pressure on myself then I am NOT putting enough trust in God. I find that I have to keep reminding myself that He is in control, not me.

    My prayer for you today is that you are able to put your trust in God and enjoy your busy times for what they are!

Joy

    Saturday was a day of celebration. I spent my afternoon with a great group of ladies touring wineries just north of Charlottesville, Va. We rode a minibus provided by a limousine company as we celebrated my friend Bernadette's 30^th birthday. It was so much fun to ditch the kids and husbands for the day and enjoy ourselves as who we are when we take off the "Mommy/Wife Hat." Did I feel guilty? Yep, sure did…until I read today's Bible passages.

    Today's assigned readings were Psalm 30 and Leviticus 23. Psalm 30 has one of my favorite lines of the Bible. Psalm 30:5 weeping may stay for the night,
   but rejoicing comes in the morning.

I sang a song one Easter, with the choir at a previous church, called Joy in the Morning. It was a beautiful reminder that we need to celebrate God's wonder, even in tough times.

    The second passage, Leviticus 23, is all about celebrations! This is the list and brief explanation of the God ordered festival the Israelites were to celebrate. Wandering in the wilderness, escaping slavery, fighting other tribes, and other hardships were no excuse to not party!

    God wants us to celebrate His grace, love, and joy. He wants us to enjoy this life and endure the hardships, while knowing this is not our permanent home.

The Voice of the Lord

    I write about this topic often. Perhaps it is because I have learned that the easiest way to make God laugh is to try to plan my life for myself. I am a planner. I have refrigerator calendars, planners, a household notebook, Devon's curriculum, my writing plans, and my husband's softball and work schedule. I feel the need to plan so I can keep it all straight.

    I am not organized by nature. I have learned tricks to create organization in my home because I don't do it naturally. Sometimes I do this to a point that drives my husband crazy.

    But over the past few years, we have had some disruption to our plans. If you had asked me four years ago, the spring before I married my husband, I would not have said I would live here, in this house, with a two-year old son. My husband would have a different career, and I would not be a writer. I didn't know I wanted to be one! Why am I here now? The Voice of God!

    Psalm 29 is all about the power of the Voice of God. It can, with a whisper, shake us to our core. We can try to ignore it, but it will speak louder than our objections. I am blessed to hear His voice as my guidance through this life.

Waiting…

    My least favorite days are the ones when I rush around so I can sit and wait later. Let me explain what I mean. Some mornings I rush around to get everyone out the door so I can get to a meeting, only to have to wait for others when the meeting is supposed to start. Another example is rushing to get an assignment finished, and then having to wait for someone else's part. I feel angry that I work so hard to have to wait for other people. These instances put a bad taste in my mouth for waiting.

    Having said that, we are asked to wait on the Lord. What does this mean? Here are two of my interpretations. First of all, waiting on the Lord could mean serving the Lord. The word wait is, after all, the root of waitress. Secondly, we must wait for God's timing. Rushing around doesn't get us anywhere if we are not aligned with God's timing.

    Both commands are difficult. We must humble ourselves to serve God, not always an easy feat. We must be patient and listen to God's instructions, also not easy.

The Bible makes several points clear to us. God's love and grace will never fail. God never promised us an easy life. As impatient as we are, we don't have a choice. So what do we do while we wait?

Yesterday was my first true day off from school for the summer. During my time of waiting I took my son to the pool. I spent time discussing vacation plans with my husband. I grilled kebobs for dinner. Finally, I sat down and SAVORED my strawberry cheesecake after dinner. While I wait for my next goal and my next set of directions, I will enjoy my summer!

Psalm 25:4-5

⁴ Show me your ways, LORD,
   teach me your paths.
⁵ Guide me in your truth and teach me,
   for you are God my Savior,
   and my hope is in you all day long.

    I love reading the Psalms for several reasons. First of all, it amazes me how I can read exactly what I need to hear when I turn to them. Second, I can easily copy short passages into blog posts and show you, the reader, what I am talking about each day.

    School's out. I finished my classroom. I finished my files. I sign my summer leave forms. I locked my classroom door, not to return until at least July. I have to work three days over the summer, but there is no point in going until my classroom floor has been waxed. That won't happen for a few weeks. So what is a teacher to do that has no work to do??? (I am secretly laughing at that statement!) The list goes on and on.

    This is my time to turn my attention to my house and my family. I have trips planned and kitchen cabinets to paint, closets to clean out and furniture to move. I also have a child that needs to be potty-trained! I wish that we all I needed to do, but I feel God knocking on my heart with this whole write-for-money idea. In addition to all my summer plans, I will also write. I am working on a job now, and I am in negotiations with clients for two more. At times like this I pray the two verses above. I ask God to show me the path I should take.

    Enjoy your summer, friends! But also check to see if God has summer plans for you!

The Lord Is My Shepherd

    Folks, yesterday was a BAD day. I was "attacked" by a very upset parent. Not physically, she wrote a scathing email. Actually, she wrote several. The list of issues dates back months. I know I am a good teacher. I try to do what is fair for my students. I try to please parents, but that is a secondary goal only. The kids are put first in my decisions and my actions. As grade level leader, many of the decisions we made this year as a team were mine, or I will take blame for them. I despise being asked to justify my decisions and actions, especially once the school year is over.

    I had a hard time sleeping last night, because I knew I was walking back into a storm today. I got up feeling angry and full of anxiety. I prayed, before I opened my book, that God would send comfort. I prayed for strength today and grace to say helpful and not hurtful words.

    I turned to my sheet of readings for today and saw Psalm 23. My heart skipped a beat, and I opened to the following beautiful passage that brings comfort to so many.

Psalm 23

New International Version (NIV)

A psalm of David.

 ¹ The LORD is my shepherd, I lack nothing.
 ² He makes me lie down in green pastures,
he leads me beside quiet waters,
 ³ he refreshes my soul.
He guides me along the right paths
   for his name's sake.
⁴ Even though I walk
   through the darkest valley,^[a]

I will fear no evil,
   for you are with me;
your rod and your staff,
   they comfort me.

 ⁵ You prepare a table before me
   in the presence of my enemies.
You anoint my head with oil;
   my cup overflows.
⁶ Surely your goodness and love will follow me
   all the days of my life,
and I will dwell in the house of the LORD
   forever.

    I don't have a choice but to go to work today and sort through the lists of allegations. I will have to work with my principal to settle matters and leave this angry mother something that makes her feel as if she won because we still have another child of hers in our school. I know I will be attacked further today. BUT! I know have words to hold in my heart. The knowledge that MY Lord will give me rest, that he guides my heart and my words, that he refreshes my soul, is all I need to know!

Cleanliness

    My grandmother once told me that, "Cleanliness was next to Godliness." She probably said it when I was terribly dirty, which was often as a kid growing up on a farm. If she were living today, she would probably say it about my house. As the school year closes, my house takes backseat to my classroom.

    The past few chapters of Leviticus have been laws regarding how to stay clean. It is easy to forget, when reading, that this was the voice of God speaking to Moses. It sounds more like a modern day doctor explaining how to prevent illness. Without modern medicine, these laws are probably what sustained the Israelites in the desert for so long. Otherwise, disease and plague may have overtaken them.

    Today, while I clean away the papers and dust accumulated throughout this school year, I will wipe away any trace of this year's class except their class picture added to my board. I will prepare my classroom for the custodial staff to wax the floor by boxing up my belongings until August. Today's purging helps clear the room and lets it lie dormant until a new year begins.

    My cleaning may not be as dire as the cleanliness of the Israelites, but still necessary for life to move on.

Encouragement

Psalm 20

¹ May the LORD answer you when you are in distress;
   may the name of the God of Jacob protect you.
² May he send you help from the sanctuary
   and grant you support from Zion.
³ May he remember all your sacrifices
   and accept your burnt offerings.<sup>[b]

4</sup> May he give you the desire of your heart
   and make all your plans succeed.
⁵ May we shout for joy over your victory
   and lift up our banners in the name of our God.

   May the LORD grant all your requests.

Wouldn't it be nice to wake up to that every day? I did today. I am getting ready to go to work on the biggest day of the fifth grade year, graduation. Today I say goodbye to my students. Most I will never see again. That also means all the cleaning and packing of my room begins today. A lot of work lies ahead in the next three days. I also picked up a small writing job, and I have a conference next week at which I am the opening keynote speaker. I love to be busy, but sometimes it is just a lot of stress.

    I pray that the direction I am going with my career is the direction God wishes for me also. I love verse 4, "May he give you the desire of your heart and make all your plans succeed." I pray that for all of you today.

Hear My Prayer

    We teachers often say that as long as we are giving tests, children will be praying in our classrooms. Some pray to remember what they studied. Others pray because they didn't study. As a mother, I pray more now than ever before! I pray for my son many times throughout the day. I pray for my safety and the safety of my husband for the sake of my son. Sometimes we pray so much, it becomes routine and loses its power.

    I read Psalm 19 today. This reads as a beautiful prayer. It begins by praising God for his glory and all he does for us. In the end, the writer prays for two things related to his sins. He prays for God to forgive his hidden faults and to forgive his willing sins. This struck me as interesting because I am not sure I ever prayed for forgive of any sin unless it was a willing sin. God is fair but holds us accountable for all of his laws, whether we know them or not. We are responsible for knowing the entire Bible, whether or not we read it is our choice.

    Today, when I am saying my silent prayers, I will be more mindful of praying for my unknown sins.

Graduation

    My brother-in-law graduated from high school today. The day could not come soon enough for him, and my in-laws were in dismay that it came so quickly. The eleven year age difference between my husband and his youngest brother created an indestructible bond making my husband fit somewhere between a brother and father figure. We were talking tonight after the party about how quickly the past few years have gone by. As my brother-in-law sets out in his journey and begins a career in the Air Force, we debated what our prayer for him will be tonight. What do you say about a person just beginning?

    As I sat down, finally, tonight to read my Bible for the day, I found my prayer for my brother-in-law in Psalm 17. Everything in these four verses, I wish for him. I hope that he seeks God for answers and for guidance. If God leads his way, no decision will be wrong.

 ⁶ I call on you, my God, for you will answer me;
   turn your ear to me and hear my prayer.
⁷ Show me the wonders of your great love,
   you who save by your right hand
   those who take refuge in you from their foes.
⁸ Keep me as the apple of your eye;
   hide me in the shadow of your wings
⁹ from the wicked who are out to destroy me,
   from my mortal enemies who surround me.

 

 

Anxiety Relief

    Today's Bible readings are Psalm 15-16 and Leviticus 13, but let me give you another verse that is in my heart today. "When anxiety was great within me, your consolation brought joy to my soul." Psalm 94:19

    Around 4:45 this morning my two year old woke me up with his cries for me and for a "wipee." Usually this means he needs to wipe his nose or something is stuck in his nose. I walked into his room, and in my sleepy fog and his dim light, I saw blood all over his face, smeared on his sheets, and all up and down his arms and chest. He was crying and asking me to wipe his nose, which was dripping blood.

    As a teacher, I am no stranger to kids with nose bleeds, but it took my breath to see my son covered in blood. I yelled for my husband to help, and we began to clean up our son and his bed. The bleeding lasted only a few minutes. Our son asked to go back to bed. My husband went back to our bed, but I was left shaken. This verse popped into my mind.

    More than an hour later, I sat down to read today's passages. Leviticus 13 made me laugh! It is all about defiling skin disorders and defiling mold! I thought to myself, "If Moses could see have seen my son this morning, he would have written a chapter about bloody little boys making the camp unclean instead!"

    For all of you parents out there, I hope you have consolation in your soul today!

Back Tracking to Leviticus 10

    There are times in our lives that we hear a whisper telling us something is right or wrong. Some call this your conscience; some call it the Holy Spirit. Movies and cartoons depict an angel or demon sitting upon our shoulders giving advice. The trick is to listen.

    There is a young man coming to fifth grade next year who is autistic. When we think of children with autism, the spectrum is so large the label can just about encompass any behavior under the sun. This particular child has a problem with stealing. If he sees something he wants, he doesn't have a part of him that tells him he can't have it. He doesn't understand that it belongs to someone else and stealing is wrong. Instead, he has perfectly rational reasons for taking things. To him, his excuses make perfect sense.

    He stole money off of a teacher's desk because he wanted to buy something at the book fair. He said he NEEDED the money. Then he stole rubber bands and said the teacher never used them so it didn't matter. He also has stolen simply because he saw something he wanted, and since he wanted it, he should have it.

    Without understanding this child and his disability, you may just think the kid is a brat who doesn't want to listen to guidance. Actually, he doesn't have the angel or demon on his shoulders. There isn't a functioning part of his brain that tells him stealing is wrong, at least not like ours.

    The reason for this rambling? Leviticus 10! Aaron has four sons. Two didn't follow the guidelines of God. They were burned to death as a result. It sounds extreme, especially given that the guidelines they didn't follow are not followed by us today either. We like to rationalize our reasons for not following God's will. Sometimes we have reasons that others agree with, sometimes we are just making excuses for ourselves. The fact of the matter is, though, if God gives an order, we better do it! He may not burn us to death on the spot, but judgment day won't be for the faint of heart.

Lament and Rejoice: More from the Psalms

    I don't know for sure who wrote Psalm 13, but whoever it was, David or a team of songwriters, they must have been in pain. They begin by crying out to God for relief and for God's presence to be felt. Then it ends with thanksgiving for all the blessings they have in their life. The Psalms are beginning to read like a rollercoaster of emotion!

    Psalm 14 takes a different angle. It sounds almost angry! The author, probably David or it was written for David, is protesting the evil around him. He is upset the evil-doers are overtaking his men. He writes that God is with the righteous and will be a safe haven for those that are good. Basically, one day the evil ones will get what's coming to them.

    Not too far from here a police officer killed his ex-wife. During the chase that ensued, he shot a State Trooper. My husband and I were discussing what it would take to make one of us want to kill someone. I can't imagine that much anger welling up inside of me. Anger like that is all-consuming. We agreed that he COULD get the death penalty for this, but a stay in prison may be hellacious torture because he was a police officer.

    It isn't my job to judge others here on Earth. I know that the Day of Judgment is coming soon enough. I imagine David felt this way too. Psalm 14 ends by saying that one day God will restore the people of Israel. It doesn't matter what good or what evil dwells here on Earth. One day the lamenting will end, and only rejoicing will be heard.

 

****I also read Leviticus 11-12 this morning. I find it fascinating that God delivered such detailed regulations about what animals could or could not be eaten. I would love to know why God made these rules and why they are not followed so much anymore. I know very little about Kosher cooking, but I know not all Jewish people follow these beliefs. Perhaps this is another topic I need to research!