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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 106: Read Psalm Chapters 56, 120, & 140-142
My Takeaways:
I read these psalms and they remind me so much of a time in my life that I memorized many of these lines because I felt like David: desperate.
When my husband and I got married, we fell out of church…for a long time. When we got invited to another church, we went! And, we fell in love with it. All of a sudden, my heart was on fire listening to the sermons—I ate it up! Months later, I attended my first Bible study and fell in love with God’s Word! It was then that I distinctly remember God calling me into ministry—to teach His Word. But, I was confused because at this point, I only knew Bible stories from growing up in Sunday School and VBS! How in the world would I teach not knowing anything about the Bible?! But, God met me there and months later, I started reading the Bible on my own.
My preacher told me where to start: in the Gospels. So, I read daily.
That is when I fell in love with Jesus.
And a few months after that (a year after attending church at this point), I entered one of the scariest, hardest seasons of my life. God had allowed Satan to get a hold of me and my family in a way I had never known. The spiritual warfare was real. I never knew that Satan targeted Christians—I thought he only targeted the “bad people.”
It was a season I thought I was losing my mind. I questioned God. I cried aloud for help. I lived in fear. I was desperate…just like David in these psalms. I was on my way home one day, begging God for all of this to stop, when I heard in my mind this: “Fight, Amber. You have to fight. Get on your armor and fight.”
Something in me clicked. God wasn’t going to make this all stop until I learned to be brave and trust Him. So, I started my journey of memorizing God’s Word and facing my fears. I taught my kids to do the same (they woke up with vivid and terrifying visions and nightmares of “bad guys” in their rooms).
I memorized these lines we read today:
“I cry to you, Lord, I say, you are my shelter, my portion in the land of the living… Listen to my cry, for I am very weak… rescue me from those that pursue me, for they are too strong for me.” (Psalm 142:5-6)
“But my eyes look to you, Lord, my Lord… I seek refuge in you, do not let me die. Protect me from the trap they have set for me, and from the snares of evil doers.” (Psalm 141:8-9)
“ Lord, I’m calling you, hurry to help me… listen to my voice when I call upon you…” (Psalm 141:1-2)
“Protect me, Lord, from the power of the wicked… keep me safe from those who plan to make me stumble…” (Psalm 140:2)
“When I am afraid, I will trust in you… in God, whose word I praise, in God I trust, I will not be afraid…” (Psalm 56:3-4)
Rescue didn’t come all at once….it was a gradual rescue, something that came day after day of me saying these lines, praying them, and believing them.
After about 3 months, I could tell a difference! After a year, I realized how far God had brought me out of this pit of fear. Now, over 10 years later, I realize that God didn’t allow me to face this intense season because He is a mean God, but because there was something there that needed to be unearthed: a deeper faith and trust I didn’t know was possible.
My faith had to be tested. And though I failed many times, I came out refined. I think that is what God is allowing to happen with David…David knew God from the pasture. He knew God facing a giant. Now, he was going to have to rely upon God alone to help him against a mad man, a man who was like family to him.
David’s desperation drew him closer to the Lord in a way nothing else may have. And God used this season to shape David’s heart for God in such a way, it shaped him as the future king of Israel.
We often get to know God in the valley times of life, don’t you think? It creates a desperation in us. This desperation opens the door to deeper prayer, an opportunity to read and memorize God’s word and live it out. It creates a deeper need for Him in our lives…and I believe this opens the door to experience God in such a way it changes us.
I am willing to bet that David had never loved the Lord more than when God allowed all of this to happen. The same was true for me as well. There were some things that needed to go in my life, like fear…and there were some things that needed to grow, like faith.
It was the hardest time in my life and I am forever grateful for it. It taught me how to fight with faith.
As we read David’s story, you will see how this time molds him into a godly king, who would lead a nation.
Day 107: Read 1 Samuel Chapters 25-27
My Takeaways:
Today, we see David learning and growing as a leader when he refuses to kill Saul when he has a chance. He remembers that feeling he got when he cut off a piece of Saul’s robe and knows he must trust God and God’s timing with Saul.
This is self-restraint! This is fearing the Lord.
But, we also see David struggling in trusting God as well when dealing with Nabal and Saul.
Tara-Leigh said something today that really resonated with me: “Prolonged trials will always lead to despair and sin if we fail to trust God.“
David was headed into bloodshed with Nabal and all the males in his family when the Lord intervened with Abigail.
David leaves Israel and lives among the Philistines. He raids their cities on the outskirts of town but tells King Achish he was raiding Israelite cities when he brings back the spoils. Though he is earning the king’s trust, he failed to trust God to protect him back in Israel.
I wonder…have you ever seen this true in your own life?
Day 108: Read Psalm Chapters 17, 35, 54, & 63
My Takeaways:
Oh, these psalms can be balm to our hearts! If you have ever cried out to God, if you have ever felt like your enemies were too much, if you have ever needed protection, or if you have needed God to fight for you, these verses are your battle cry!
Turning these verses into a prayer is powerful!
“I call on you, God, because you will answer me—listen closely to me; hear what I say. Display the wonders of your faithful love…I seek your refuge…protect me, hide me in the shadow of your wings!” (Psalm 17:6-8)
“Rise up, Lord, confront my enemies; bring them down! With your hand, save me!” (Psalm 17:13-14)
“God, you are my helper! I will praise your name, Lord, because it is good. For you have rescued me from every trouble…” (Psalm 54:6-7)
There’s something special about taking God’s Word, and turning it into a prayer. I love what Isaiah 55:11 says about God’s Words:
“In the same way, my words leave my mouth, and they don’t come back without results. My words make the things happen that I want to happen. They succeed in doing what I send them to do.” (ERV)
If God’s Words brought the world into existence, just imagine what they could do in your life, in your situation, in your heart!
Day 109: Read 1 Samuel 28-31, Psalm 18
My Takeaways:
Oh, friends, what God had promised would happen, happened! Saul and his boys die in battle today. Over the course of years, God has been preparing David’s heart with adversity and tremendous faith tests…some of which he failed and learned from. Some of which he passed and experienced God on a deeper level. And all these hard times would get him ready for this time in his life: stepping into the role of king.
I love how he found strength in God when he and his troops discovered all the women and children had been kidnapped by the Amalekites. The story wasn’t over yet… David trusted God and pursued the Amalekites, not only getting the women and children back, but also getting much plunder as well!!
David knows what it’s like to be pursued and hunted down and he knows what it’s like to trust God and experienced His provision. Psalm 18 is one of my favorite prayers to pray when times are tough!
One time, when I was knee deep in a very dark season, one in which I needed God to fight for me, He gave me this verse:
“I called to the Lord who is worthy of praise and I was saved from my enemies.” (Psalm 18:3)
There’s something special, sacred, and powerful about praising God when you are immersed in a fight and the odds feel against you.
Praising God in the middle of the storm allowed me to experience Him on a deeper level. David experienced it as well.
If you want a good prayer, try out Psalm 18:1-3:
“I love you, Lord; you are my strength.
The Lord is my rock, my fortress, and my savior; my God is my rock, in whom I find protection. He is my shield, the power that saves me, and my place of safety.
I called on the Lord, who is worthy of praise, and he saved me from my enemies.”
It’s beautiful, isn’t it?
Day 110: Read Psalm Chapters 121, 123-125, & 128-130
My Takeaways:
What psalm of ascent is your favorite? Or, do you have some favorite lines from these?
Here are a few of my favourite lines:
“I lift my eyes toward the mountains. Where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, the maker of heaven and earth .” (Psalm 121:1-2)
Oh, anytime I hear this, I sing it because it reminds me of all the songs we sing in church using these lines!
“Blessed be the Lord, who has not let us be ripped apart by their teeth. We have escaped like a bird from the hunter’s net, our net is torn, and we have escaped. Our help is in the name of the Lord, the maker of heaven and earth.” (Psalm 124:6-8)
Thank God for His supernatural interventions to save us and protect us!
“How happy is everyone who fears the Lord, who walks in his ways… The man who fears, the lord, will be blessed.” (Psalm 128:1)
Yes! We have learned this so much in reading the Bible! Fearing God isn’t being scared of Him…it’s being scared of doing life without Him. It’s living life God’s way and obeying Him, even when it’s hard.
“I will wait for the Lord. I wait and put my hope and his word…” (Psalm 130:5)
I hope that reading His word daily has given you more hope than ever! It reminds us each and every day that He is where the hope is and He is where the joy is!
Day 111: Read Read 2 Samuel 1-4
My Takeaways:
What God promises, He fulfills.
These passages in 2 Samuel 1-4 are bloody and full of betrayals and fighting for one’s house. And God uses every bit of it to advance His plan of making David the king of Israel.
Over the course of 15 years, God prepared David and his character. God molded David to follow Him and fear Him. God allowed David to experience betrayal, loss, homelessness, and deceit in order to grow his heart and dependence upon God.
It makes me think about Saul—how God listened to His people and gave them what they wanted: a king. So, He took Saul, an insecure guy hiding among the suitcases, and anointed him King. Within a few days, Saul’s world changed…but his heart hadn’t. He didn’t have a heart for God. He didn’t fear God. And he lost this life-changing opportunity God had given to him.
With David, the wait of his kingship made him hunger for God. He had messed up, lied, and caused 85 priests’ deaths. His mistakes crafted a heart that made him crave God and His plan.
Maybe that is why he wrote this psalm (not part of our reading today):
“Taste and see that the Lord is good.” (Psalm 34:8)
We can be so busy in our lives, that we can take bite-size pieces of God and run with it thinking that’s all there is to Him…when we miss out on so much more!
God calls us to “taste” Him—that is to experience Him! You see, I can tell you all about how amazing a fruit or dessert is, but until you actually taste it, you don’t know. God calls for us to experience Him and “see” He is good. In Hebrew, “see” means to look at, observe, to gaze, to look intently.
Why do we need to gaze intently at God?
Because when we keep our eyes upon the Lord, that’s when we truly experience His strength and His power. That’s when we experience Him!
It reminds me of a time in Scripture when a young man named Peter lived this out during a stormy night on the sea. Peter, who was so prone to impulsiveness and putting his foot in his mouth, saw Jesus walking on the water to the disciples in the boat. He called out to Jesus and asked Jesus to command him to get out of the boat! (I am thinking he needed Jesus to command him because then he would obey Him!) He actually got out of the boat and walked to Jesus on the water! As long as his eyes fixed upon Jesus, he did the impossible! But, the moment that he took his eyes off of Jesus and looked at the lightning around him and the surging waves, he gave way to his fears and he began to sink.
And even then, Jesus rescued Peter immediately.
That is the type of “fixing our eyes” upon Jesus we are called to do in this verse! We can do that through Scripture and prayer, through trust and dependence.
And when we take the time to taste God, keep our eyes upon Him, we too will experience Him in a life-changing way, a way that can totally change our hearts to face whatever situation that we are in.
David tasted God and found that He was good.
We are called to do the same…and we will find that He can prepare us for whatever God is calling us to do.
Another cool thing about this taste-testing that God challenges us to do is this: tasting leads to fearing Him.
And a heart that fears God is blessed by God.
It’s a heart that God is after. It’s a heart that follows God and obeys Him even when life doesn’t make sense. Even when it’s hard. Even when it hurts.
David had it. May we be men and women who always have it as well.
“Taste and see that the Lord is good.”
The best part is this: we are tasting Him every day through His Word! But, don’t just leave it at that—let’s be people who live it out as well. Let’s be people after God’s own heart.
Day 112: Read Psalm Chapters 6, 8-10, 14, 16, 19, & 21
My Takeaways:
There were a lot of psalms today! And, many seem to echo the same theme of David’s life:
“Rise up, Lord! Save me! Protect me! Fight for me! Defend me against the lies!”
I have used many of these psalms during the testing times of my life—they helped me through some of the darkest times, for sure.
Many of these psalms have the best verses that can become prayers:
“Be gracious to me, Lord; consider my affliction at the hands of those who hate me. Lift me up from the gates of death so that I may declare all your praises.” (Psalms 9:13-14)
“Protect me as the pupil of your eye; hide me in the shadow of your wings.” (Psalm 17:8)
David acknowledges something we all have found out:
“In your presence is abundant joy.” (Psalm 16:11)
He knows it’s the heart that matters to God:
“You have tested my heart: you have examined me at night.” (Psalm 17:3a)
He has confidence in God:
“I call on you, God, because you will answer me.” (Psalm 17:6a)
He confesses God’s presence is enough:
“When I awake, I will be satisfied with your presence.” (Psalm 17:15b)
And, like many of us at testing times in life, David even questions God when God seems silent:
“Lord, why do you stand so far away? Why do you hide in times of trouble?” (Psalm 10:1)
What I love about this is that David doesn’t turn away from God in these times of silence…if anything, he turns to God more.
But, my favorite part is he acknowledges that God’s Word (the Torah for David) was perfect, trustworthy, right, radiant, reliable, and more desirable than gold! He is thankful that he is warned by God’s law.
What about you, friends? Have you found this to be true in 112 days of reading the Bible?
Have you found that His words are more in your mouth than ever? Have you found that you think about His Word more than ever?
Maybe this is why David wrote these verses:
“May the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart be acceptable to you, Lord, my rock, and my redeemer.” (Psalm 19:14)
I hope you have found hope in our journey of reading God’s Word, friends! It has shown me now more than ever how good God is to us sinners.
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