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Jul 17, 2023 06:00am

The Bible Recap: Days 120-126

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(The following are reflections from the writer’s personal journey through The Bible Recap by Tara-Leigh Cobble – a Bible reading plan to read the Bible chronologically in one year. To learn more about The Bible Recap, visit thebiblerecap.com. Find more posts from this series at lifeword.org/thebiblerecap.)

Day 120: Read Psalm Chapters 102-104

My Takeaways:

We had 3 long psalms for today!

Here are a few of my favorite lines from today’s reading:

“This will be written for a later generation, and a people who have not yet been created will praise the Lord; He looked down on his holy heights—the Lord gazed out from heaven to earth—to hear a prisoners groaning, to set free those condemned to die, so that they might declare the name of the Lord in Zion and his praise in Jerusalem.”
Psalm 102:18-21

The psalmist is suffering—emotionally and physically—and yet, he praises the Lord. And he recognizes that others will read his words (his groanings), his praises of the Lord amid his suffering, and be encouraged by them. Not only that, but people will praise God as a result!

That is perspective, friends! To praise God, amid much suffering, takes a deeper faith. It reminds me of Job—his tragedies and his declarations of who God is amid those tragedies.

I sure do love Psalm 103, all of it! But, the lines that grab my heart are these:

“My soul, bless the Lord, and all that is within me, bless his holy name.

My soul, bless the Lord, and do not forget his benefits.

He forgives all of your iniquity. He heals your diseases.

He redeems your life from the pit. He crowns you with faithful love and compassion.

He satisfies you with good things; your youth is renewed like the eagle.”
Psalm 103:1-5

I don’t know if you have ever had to preach to yourself, but to me, if you did, this would be it. I would think David would have to have preached to himself a lot throughout his life and remind himself of these things:

God forgives us when we mess up, rebel, or wander away into sin.
He is our healer.
He is our Redeemer, the one who saves us from ourselves and our flesh. And not just once, but many times throughout our lives.
He is love. He is compassion. These are His trademarks—these are who He is! And when our hearts are hurting, these are what we need to remember and cling to. He is faithful!!
He is the God who can satisfy us. Only He can fill that hole in our hearts – only He can turn circumstances around for us. Not only that, He is a God who loves to give His kids good things!
One of the good things God gives to us is renewed strength! Hallelujah! I feel like I need that every day!

Psalm 104 was just a beautiful psalm praising God for His creation.

“How countless are your works, Lord! In your wisdom, you have made them all.”
Psalm 104:24a

Day 121: Read 2 Samuel Chapter 5 & 1 Chronicles Chapters 11-12

My Takeaways:

After 15 years, David is finally king of Israel! Today is all about him transitioning from ruling Hebron to ruling Israel and capturing Zion (which becomes Jerusalem, the City of David).

Like any king, he amasses a mighty army, with an inner circle of warriors who are loyal to him.

Like Tara-Leigh said, David isn’t perfect and when it comes to women, he doesn’t seem to have any boundaries. He also acquires more women and has more children. Like all of us who may struggle with a certain temptation, this is David’s. When it comes to going to battle, David inquires of the Lord. When it comes to women, he doesn’t. It’s something he either doesn’t want to surrender or perhaps feels entitled to because he is a king. Whatever the reason, it will ultimately cause him much turmoil in his house as we read his story.

Today’s reading about David taking over makes me think about the times in life God promises us something, but it’s not fulfilled until many years later.

It’s the wait. The process of waiting for something near and dear to our hearts is the point. During that time, David talked to God, leaned upon Him, and grew in his dependency on Him.

He questioned God.

He cried out to God.

He praised God.

He sought God.

He was a man after God’s own heart. It wasn’t easy. It slayed his heart at times, and maybe that was the point…because God helped put it back together, molding it to be stronger, yet more reliant upon Him, than ever.

A heart that would lead a nation.

Wherever you are in life, God is growing and stretching you. And yes, He might even allow your heart to be broken.

Because it’s not the destination that is the point…but it’s the process. The process of breaking our dependency upon ourselves and the process of us growing stronger in Him.

He’s training us, preparing us to step into that dream. He’s setting us up for success, not failure.

He’s a good, good Father.

Day 122: Read Psalm Chapter 133

My Takeaways:

Friends, note this day – we had 3 verses to read! There are some days when we have 5 different psalms, and then there are days, not often, like today when the reading is super short. (I had to double check myself when I saw the psalm!)

It really makes me wonder if the topic was so beautiful and lovely, it deserved a day of its own: unity, peace, blessing.

Brotherhood.

God’s presence.

It’s something all of us God’s kids want.

Day 123: Read Psalm Chapters 106-107

My Takeaways:

We need reminders. We just do. Reminders of where we have been. Reminders of God’s love. Reminders of times in which He has saved us. Reminders that we matter.

That is why these psalms mattered to the Israelites! Psalm 106 reminded the Israelites of their history with God—and it served as a reminder that while they were unfaithful to Him, He was faithful to them, out of His great love.

But what I really loved was Psalm 107. In this psalm, the psalmist reminds us to “Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his faithful love endures forever” (Psalm 107:1).

And then, the psalmist gives 4 scenarios of God’s deliverance.

God delivers us when we wander…and in that wandering, we grow hungry and weak. And when we cry out to God, He rescues us from our distress and leads us in the right direction, to a place of safety and sustenance.

God delivers us when we rebel against Him and suffer the consequences of our sin. He rescues us from the traps we have fallen victim to. And my favorite part: “He sent his word and healed them” (Psalm 106:20).

God’s Word creates. God’s Word sustains. God’s Word protects. God’s Word reveals. And God’s Word heals.

God’s Word can do anything in our lives, friends! That is what this journey is all about.

God delivers us when the storm is too much and our courage fails. He stills the storm to a whisper (Jesus reference!).

God does the impossible in our lives, like turning dry land into springs for His people to live and thrive.

And because God does all these things for us, even amid our unfaithfulness, amid our sin, amid our life situations, we are to give thanks to Him, for He is good.

Yes, He is. That is what this Bible Recap is revealing to me everyday.

We need reminders of God’s goodness and faithfulness. We need reminders to thank Him. Let’s spend a few minutes today doing just that, friends.

Day 124: Read 1 Chronicles Chapters 13-16

My Takeaways:

David settles down into his reign. As he does, he makes a wiser decision: bring the ark back home!

But, in doing this, he doesn’t obey God’s Word about how to bring it back and a man dies by touching it. (By the way, Tara-Leigh does a great job explaining this!) In the meanwhile, he takes more wives and has more children. These are sneaky areas of sin…because God’s Word was clear on this topic, but perhaps because he is the king, he feels entitled?

But, he does consult God when it comes to war and battles. And, after some time and prep, he brings the ark home, properly.

So, can a man after God’s own heart still fall into sin?

We know this answer. We all are susceptible to sin. We all have weaknesses. We have made rash decisions. We have partially obeyed God.

David isn’t any different than the rest of us here. But, what makes him a man after God’s own heart is that he treasures his relationship with God. He doesn’t turn away from God in these moments. If anything, he cried out to God during these times of confusion and questions.

When the ark was brought back to the City of David, this called for a big celebration, one in which sparks David to dance and leap in the streets! Friends, when is the last time we have leaped and celebrated God’s intervention in our lives?! David wrote a psalm of thanksgiving! To him and the Israelites, God’s presence was back home. When was the last time we penned a journal of thanks to God?

We can be men and women after God’s own heart and not fully surrender those sneaky areas of sin in our lives, just like David. Let’s let this Bible study do the sanctification in our hearts and minds so that we can face them with bravery and confidence that God can help us overcome them…so that they don’t rear their ugly heads later on.

Let’s be men and women who celebrate the Lord and surrender to sanctification. Let’s learn from our mistakes and grow from them. And when God answers a prayer, let’s celebrate in the streets.

Day 125: Read Psalm Chapters 1-2, 15, 22-24, 47, & 68

My Takeaways:

Oh friends, I wished I had the time to write more about all the verses that grabbed my heart in these psalms—they are chock full of beauty, pain, deliverance, faith, and prophecy.

But, the one I hope you are experiencing right now is Psalm 1: your delight is in the Lord’s instruction.

The more and more we read the Bible, the more and more it’s on my mind. It reminds me. It guides me. It opens my eyes to my own sin. It comforts me. And haven’t you opened your Bible up to a reading that you needed just at that moment?

Only God and His Word can sustain us when life is hard, when betrayal can slice and dice our hearts, or when the enemy seems to be working extra hard in our lives. It is our strength and hope that can keep us going when everything else seems to say “give up“.

It keeps us rooted to the source of life. It is our daily bread. The more we partake in God’s Word, the more we grow. And just like a tree planted near a stream, the more we grow in our hearts and minds, the more we will show signs of growth by bearing fruit.

The fruit is evidence of what is going on inside of us.

I hope you have seen your perspective change. I hope you have seen your thinking change. I hope you are seeing your actions and reactions change. I hope you are noticing God’s presence in your lives more. I hope you are praising Him more. I hope you are praying more. I hope you are remembering more. And I hope we all can feel free to dance in the streets like David more.

Because God is good, friends. The Bible not only tells us this, but it also shows us this. And the more we read it, the more we can see it in our lives as well.

It keeps us growing in our spiritual lives. It grows our roots of faith. That way, when those storms come, they won’t take us down. They won’t take us out of the game. We will stay grounded and growing, rooted to our Creator.

Oh friends, God’s Word can rewrite all of our faulty thoughts we have accumulated in life!

And as a result, we are happy…not because life is happy but because we know the One who can change any circumstance and bring good from it. Because we have experienced it and because we know God isn’t a one-time god—He will continue to do it time and time again in our lives.

God is so, so good, friends.

Day 126: Read Psalm Chapters 89, 96, 100-101, 105, & 132

My Takeaways:

Chosen.

These psalms aren’t full of despair and woe like they were earlier when David was being hunted by Saul. These psalms are full of remembrance and praise. The psalmist reminds his fellow people that they, the Israelites, are chosen by God.

And that goes for us as well-He chooses us!

“Acknowledge that the Lord is God. He made us, and we are his—his people, the sheep of his pasture.”
Psalm 100:3

God chooses us to be His people. He chooses us to be His kids. And, though we can wander away from Him, He still chooses to show us His faithful love.

He chooses to disciple us when we sin.

He chooses to rescue us when we need it.

He chooses to distance Himself when we must grow our faith muscles.

He chooses to reveal Himself and His wondrous works in the world around us.

And all of this happens so that we might know Him, love Him, and yearn for Him.

That we would know Him personally as our God and praise Him.

And because of this, we would live with a heart of integrity, a heart that seeks God. It’s a heart that is purified through the seeking of God, a heart that experiences God’s pure love in such a way, it hates sin and shuns it. (Psalm 101:2-4)

And here is my favorite part of these psalms:

“Happy are the people who know the joyful shout; Lord, they walk in the light from your face.”
Psalm 89:15

Friends, I hope you have experienced God from this study in such a way, we shout His praises, we shout for our Father’s name. We shout because He has chosen us. We shout because He is a promise keeper. We shout because we are loved.

And as a result, we are happy, walking in the light from God’s face. (Psalm 89:15)

You see, this study allows us to “Taste and see that the Lord is good” (Psalm 34:8) in such a way, we are looking Him full on in the face each day through His Word. And like Moses, we are soaking in the light from God’s presence and radiating that light wherever we go because we are walking in His light.

Isn’t that beautiful?