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Aug 14, 2023 06:00am

The Bible Recap: Days 148-154

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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 148: Read Psalm Chapters 111-118

My Takeaways:

Today, friends, is a great reminder of all the facets of God’s character we have been seeing over the past 5 months. When I get bogged down in all the psalms, God is good to remind me that reminders are a good thing.

He reminds me that our Israelite friends forgot much about God and His instructions upon entering the promised land, and as we will see in future readings, they will lose that blessing because they chose to follow others over following God.

So, let’s choose to look at these days as timely reminders of God and His character.

What did our psalms today show me?

It reminds me to fear God—that my obedience activates blessings like wisdom, insight, and happiness.

It reminds me to trust God. That when I truly trust God, I won’t fear bad news (still working on this one…). That trusting God will give me the confidence and assurance my hearts needs to face uncertain times. That trust says: “Our God is in heaven and does what he pleases.” (Psalm 115:3). It shows me that it’s better to trust in God rather than others. That others will fail us but God will not. (Psalm 118)

It shows me how big my God is. Psalm 113 says that He has to “stoop down to look at the heavens and the earth.” That sure puts it in perspective, doesn’t it?

It shows me that being helpless isn’t always a bad thing. It’s in our weakness that God is strong and saves us out of His kindness and compassion (Psalm 116). That the Lord is our helper, our strength, and our shield. (Psalm 118)

It shows me that the death of His faithful ones is valuable in His sight (Psalm 116).

It shows me the Lord disciplines us in such a way, we give thanks to Him. He intervenes in our lives in such a way it gives us a story to proclaim to others (Psalm 118).

It shows me to give thanks to God, for all these things and more, for He is good. His faithful love endures forever (Psalm 118).

Day 149: Read 1 Kings Chapters 1-2, Psalm Chapters 37, 71, & 94

My Takeaways:

“The salvation of the righteous is from the Lord, their refuge in a time of distress. The lord helps and delivers them; he will deliver them from the wicked and will save them because they take refuge in him.”
Psalm 37:39-40

Today, we saw these verses of David being fulfilled. Perhaps he wrote it before Adonijah tried to usurp the throne. Perhaps it was after Solomon was made king.

It doesn’t matter…because David has experienced this his whole life from God:

God saves those who do what is right—He is their place of safety.

He helps them and saves them.

He saves His people from the wicked because His kids run to Him for shelter.

Do you know what I especially love about today’s reading? God saves Solomon and Bathsheba from from imminent death had Adonijah taken the throne.

Bathsheba was a woman who was wronged so long ago…a woman who lost her husband…a woman who lost her former life….a woman who lost her baby….and in today’s reading, God not only blesses her but makes her the mother of the next king of Israel.

Oh friends, does this not show us the heart of God?! He saw what had happened to her so long ago and brought forth restoration for her through her son Solomon.

And he saves them from the wicked. They saw and experienced the faithfulness of God.

And among David’s last psalms, he spoke words his life lived:

Trust in the Lord and do what is good.
Commit your ways to the Lord, trust in Him, and He will act.
Wait expectantly for the Lord.
Refrain from anger and give up your rage and put your hope in God.
Though you may fall, you will not fail for the Lord will support you with His hand.
Turn away from evil for God is a good of justice—He will not abandon His faithful ones.

And lastly, our verses above (Psalm 37:1-40).

We have seen David live these verses and truths out since he was a teenager—friends, he knew his God and had experienced God time and time again, in different ways!

And Psalm 71. I love this psalm. It comes from an older man who is still seeking his God for help. A man who has proclaimed the goodness of God his whole life. That, friends, is why we need to hear from our more mature friends in life. They know. They have experienced God. They have the best insight in life and living. I love it when they share their stories of God…because He works so beautiful and differently in everyone’s lives and yet, the character He shows in the Bible is the same character we see in our lives! We change, but He does not.

Day 150: Read Psalm Chapter 119

My Takeaways:

THIS PSALM IS LONG! 176 verses long! According to Tara-Leigh, it’s the longest chapter in the Bible. It took me a bit to get through it…but it was so rich with meaning, because friends, the author of this psalm flat-out loved the Lord and His Word!

God, and His Word, saved him.

It seemed to be the theme and passion of his life: “Your statutes are the theme of my song during my earthly life.” (Verse 54)

He speaks to all the good God’s Word does for him:

It’s his comfort in his affliction (verse 50).
It purifies him and keeps him pure (verse 9).
It revives him and gives him life (verse 25, 50, 92).
It strengthens him (verse 28).
It gives him hope (verse 43, 81).
It kept him anchored to God and obedience (verse 67).
It makes him wise and gives him insight (verses 98-100).
It kept him from sinning (verse 101).
It sustains him (verse 103).
It guides him, step by step, and keeps his steps steady (verse 105, 133).
It protects him (verse 114).

You know what, friends? God’s Word does that for all of us today. That is what this study is doing to me and my heart.

It is my passion.

It gives me direction.

It is balm to my heart when life is hard.

It sustains me in the hardest of seasons.

It changes my thinking and my desires.

It keeps me going when I want to give up.

It rewires my wrong thoughts.

It speaks life into me, giving me identity and purpose.

It has saved me…and continues to save me.

Oh friends, I hope you too are experiencing the riches of God’s Word throughout this study. I hope you experience the joy that comes from not just reading it, but living it. I hope you have turned God’s Word into prayers and have seen how it truly is the game changer in our perspective and our situations!

I hope it’s the honey that sustains you daily.

Day 151: Read 1 Kings Chapters 3-4

My Takeaways:

A wise and discerning heart.

That friends is the heart of today’s lesson.

But from the very beginning, I so want to shake Solomon and say, “Dude! If you love God, why sacrifice to other gods?! What’s the deal with women? Haven’t you read God’s Word where it warns against marrying pagan women? Didn’t you see your dad’s mistakes? Come on, man—Wake up!”

And yet.

I am guilty of similar sins as well. You see, though I love the Lord, I can look to other things to save me when I feel God is taking too long. Like Solomon, I have weak areas that tempt me to sin. Though I read God’s word, I can do what it warns me to not do.

Me too, Solomon. Me too.

I needed Tara-Leigh’s reminder that we need to focus on God’s heart, not Solomon’s heart. So, friends, I had to readjust my thinking…and today’s reading reechoed so much of Psalm 119 themes:

God and His Word give us wisdom!

They make us smarter and give us insight!

Oh, I need that so much! And this reading shows us that when we ask for the right things, God blesses that and loves to give us more because our heart is aligned with His.

Solomon, amid his sins and disobedience, asked for a discerning heart.

And because of that, God gave him what he asked for…and more.

Friends, if we could pray a prayer for us and our kids/grandkids/great-grandkids, may it be this:

“Give _____ an undivided heart to follow God and His Word so that ____ can follow His ways.”

It’s short but powerful!

And if today’s reading shows you anything else about God and His heart, it’s this: we don’t have to be perfect for God…we just have to have a heart to want to follow Him. It’s all about the heart. We learned this from the beginning of our study—it’s always about the heart!

Like Solomon, we are laden with sin, but if we are men and women after God’s own heart, we will experience Him more and more in our lives…because He loves to bless those with a willing heart.

Day 152: Read 2 Chronicles Chapter 1 & Psalm Chapter 72

My Takeaways:

The prayers of a father.

I noticed something beautiful about this story of God granting Solomon wisdom and discernment that grabbed my heart!

Before David died, he met with all of his people and commissioned his son Solomon as the future king of Israel. After that, he explains his plans for the temple to his people and asks for their freewill offering for the construction of this temple…and then people gave willingly and wholeheartedly. King David rejoiced!

And then he prays a beautiful prayer—one that praises God:

“Riches and honor come from you, and you are the ruler of everything. Power and might are in your hand, and it is in your hand to make great and give strength to all.” (1 Chronicles 29:12)

And then he prays a very specific prayer for his son: “Give my son Solomon an undivided heart to keep and carry out all your commands, your decrees, and your statutes, and to build the building for which I have made provision.” (1 Chronicles 29:19)

Oh, friends, does that sound familiar?! God listened to the prayers of a father praying for his son and He answered them in our reading the last two days!

When God posed the question to Solomon: “Ask. What should I give you?”

David’s prayer was answered in Solomon’s response: “Grant me wisdom and knowledge so that I may lead these people, for who can judge this great people of yours?” (Verse 10)

In 1 Kings 3:9, Solomon asked for an “understanding heart” for his people. A discerning heart.

God shows us the power of a praying parent here, friends! I have often heard that as parents, we can pray prophecy into our kids/grandkids’ lives by praying God’s word over them.

And I think David’s prayer for an undivided heart is a great place to start. All of us can struggle with divided hearts, our kids especially! They can naturally divide their hearts to friends, school, Social Media, sports, and so on. It’s hard for them to figure out how faith can be lived out in each area, rather than just at church.

Your prayer matters. Your prayer over your kids matters. God hears them. He doesn’t always answer them with a “yes”…but something special happens when we don’t give up….He aligns our heart with His, He changes our perspective, and He deepens our trust. I think we want to save our kids from the hard things of life….but that is when faith is found, refined, and strengthened. That’s when relationship between our kids and God can happen. That’s when they discover the God their parents have been talking about.

Oh, your prayer matters! There’s so much more going on than what we realize. It’s in the process of trusting God with that child—that’s when God can do the impossible in us, in them, in the whole situation.

Day 153: Read Song of Solomon Chapters 1-8

My Takeaways:

“I belong to my beloved, and his desire is for me.”

THIS VERSE! God has been taking me on a journey to learn this verse in such a way, it has changed me forever.

First of all, this was a different pace and type of reading today! First, we had 8 chapters. Second, it was romantic poetry. Third, it was metaphorical poetry. So, we had to readjust our perspectives a little to go beyond the relationship between a man and a woman and look at it with spiritual eyes: What if we took that same passion and longing we have for our guy (husband, boyfriend) and applied it to God?

Weird, I know. But, stick with me.

Let me share my story and see if that helps. Growing up, the first three relationships I had with the men in my life were dysfunctional. Boundaries were crossed and these men left the dregs of this deep trauma behind.

I put my identity in men and yet, I couldn’t trust them either.

God opened my eyes to this cycle and helped me get out of it in my early twenties…but my heart hadn’t changed. So, when I met my now-husband, I feel like it was like the Shulammite woman: “He is mine and I am his.” You see, he was totally different than the guys I dated—and this was a good thing!

So, my thinking went like this: If I could tighten my grip on him, we would be good…right?!?!

In other words, I was possessive. And not only that, I put my identity in him. My damage from growing up completely skewed my idea of relationship and identity.

Can I tell you something? This is a recipe for strife. I was suspicious. I was jealous. I was insecure.

Those foxes were ruining our vineyard (Song of Solomon 2:15). Though I knew it, I couldn’t stop it. They seemed too strong and too fast for me to stop them. And, friends, let me tell you that any fights we had went back to those areas. He was mine and I was going to be a vigilante to protect what was mine.

And about 10 years into our marriage (oh yes, I lived with this mentality for a long time…), God began opening my eyes. He wooed me into a deeper relationship. Though I had broken the cycle of trauma on the outside, it was still going full steam ahead on the inside.

You see, my husband had first place in my heart, and I had allowed him to define me (a role he didn’t ask for or want). Over the years (and it took years), God, day by day in my quiet time, spoke faithful love into my heart through His Word. I did Bible studies that really had me examine my past and my thinking and my actions. It was hard to look back into damaging years…but that is when He began to loosen my grip on the past and began rewriting the wrong thoughts I had.

It was long, hard, and challenging. I had to force myself to change my habits and my perspective. When you spend years automatically engaging in a bad habit and then you try to change that bad habit, there will always be a fight. I had to teach myself to think differently and act differently. It was a daily battle, a battle I lost often.

But, I finally came to this realization: God was enough. Only He could sustain my marriage, not me. And if it didn’t work out, He would take care of me. I learned to put God above my husband. Slowly, very slowly, I started to give God my heart—my whole heart. And not only that, I put my trust in Him, and Him alone.

He became first place in my heart.

And He began to define me. He gave me the security and confidence I had been looking for and yearning for my whole life.

So, I grew from my perspective of looking at my husband and thinking, “I am my love’s and my love is mine” to looking at God and saying “I am His and His desire is for me.”

This was my the game changer I needed my whole life, friends! Oh, had I learned this years ago, I could have saved myself from much strife and trauma!

I put my hope in God. He is over my husband. What He joined together, He can sustain. I trusted God with my marriage. Come what may, He would be with me every step of the way. He was for me, not against me. He would help me, no matter what.

That was the comfort and security I needed. He would take care of me no matter what.

And once I readjusted my perspective, friends, the cycle was broken. Like the Shulammite woman, her love for her man grew throughout their relationship and her security.

She went from: “He is mine” to “I am his and his desire is for me.”

And I did too.

If I were to ever get a tattoo one day, that would be one of my phrases I would want engraved upon my skin as a reminder: “I am His.” And the second part of this verse is even more beautiful: “…and His desire is for me.” (Song of Solomon 7:10).

I still have to defend myself against those sneaky little foxes, but the fight is worth it.

The fight for our faith and our identity is always worth it, friends! Because if we trust God with our whole hearts, He can be trusted with everything else.

He is enough…and because He is enough, we are enough with Him.

We are His…and ladies, He desires us. He woos us. He chases us down with His faithful love. He rewrites the wrong thoughts with His Word, and He is the bondage breaker.

This I know. And I am forever grateful for it.

Day 154: Read Proverbs Chapters 1-3

My Takeaways:

How does a man become wise? The first step is to trust and revere the Lord! (Proverbs 1:7)

Today’s reading reminds us of a few themes God has been showing to us so far in the Bible:

Fearing the Lord is a good thing, a blessed thing.
And trusting God leads us to His path and His purpose for our lives.

Think of our people who have learned this already: Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, and David. Sprinkle in Gideon, Hannah, Ruth, and Samuel.

Today, Solomon reminds us that true wisdom comes from God.

He ought to know…his father David prayed he would rule in wisdom and Solomon asked God for wisdom. He ruled his people with wisdom and discernment.

And he tells us what I shared in the beginning: you get wisdom by trusting and living in deep reverence to God.

I love how in Chapter 2, he adds to this. He says when we live in wisdom, we will reap its benefits: it will give us success (v. 7), it will protect us (v. 7-8), and it will rescue us from evil (v. 12).

I love what Tara-Leigh said about this: “wisdom doesn’t bring us peace, it’s the nearness to the God of wisdom” that does! God and His wisdom opens the door to these benefits.

And that famous verse we love to reference and memorize—Proverbs 3:5-6–is all about surrendering to the Lord.

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart,

and do not rely on your own understanding;

in all your ways know him,

and he will make your paths straight.”

We can’t trust our hearts. We can’t trust our thoughts. We can’t trust our understanding. We don’t want to do our own thing.

Trusting God is surrendering to your heart to Him, relying upon His direction for our lives and path for our lives, and obeying Him. It’s growing so close to Him that you trust Him to lead you, even when it’s hard, even when it doesn’t make sense, and even when it’s opposite of what you would do.

“Happy is the man who finds wisdom and who acquires understanding” (Proverbs 3:13) because he or she is following the giver of wisdom, God, and trusting Him.

In fact, trusting Him allows us to “lie down and not be afraid” that we will “sleep in peace” (verse 24).

That is what fearing God and trusting God looks like, friends.