I recently walked around Geneva Lake. The 22-mile walk is a fun, refreshing, and challenging effort. The goal helps me to push myself and the extended time takes me away from my demanding schedule. The effort also allows me to raise awareness for causes I care about. This year I asked people to donate towards the translation of Bible studies for Community Bible Study, a 50-year-old ministry that helps groups of believers study God's Word together in a deep and meaningful way. I was blessed to have 28 people give towards the cause!
It was a rich experience. Have you ever listened to or read the entire book of Psalms in one day? That was a first for me.
Experiencing that amazing curation of song, poetry and authentic emotion took me on a roller coaster of feelings. I commented to a friend who lives along the lake that listening to the Psalms reminded me of an hour or two inside my head! As we chatted over a cup of lemonade (which tasted so good on the home stretch of the walk!), I shared that my own thoughts are all over the place. I am full of joy one minute, frustrated the next, thankful for a special blessing, and then feeling hurt by a harsh word. All those emotions could happen before I even have the time to reflect on them and consider why my feelings went in all those directions.
The incredible insight I take from that observation is that God can handle whatever we feel and however we respond. He is bigger than our greatest joy and deepest sorrow. He held King David in His arms and walked with him through the highs and lows of life.
When our hearts are full of anger and we seek revenge, God calms us. When we are moved to tears by the beauty of the world around us, God glories in us. He takes in all of our responses and speaks truth and hope back to us. What is even more amazing is that He does this faithfully every day. It doesn't matter how we respond. He is there hear us and hold us.
As I walked around Geneva Lake, God gave me this picture of the shore path next to the swirling waves. God is that stable shore in the midst of my messy waves. What a joy. What a reminder. What a grace to everyone who will believe.
Throughout the day, I stopped to rest. On several of those occasions, I updated my fundraising page with a specific portion of the Psalms that I had just finished listening to. These Psalms are reflective of my entire day and the lessons God was teaching me.
I hope these Psalms are an encouragement to you:
“Praise the Lord! Praise God in his sanctuary; praise him in his mighty heaven! Praise him for his mighty works; praise his unequaled greatness!” - Psalms 150:1-2
“Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good! His faithful love endures forever.” - Psalms 107:1
“Turn us again to yourself, O God. Make your face shine down upon us. Only then will we be saved.” - Psalms 80:3
“But as for me, I will sing about your power. Each morning I will sing with joy about your unfailing love. For you have been my refuge, a place of safety when I am in distress.”
Psalms 59:16
“We put our hope in the Lord. He is our help and our shield. In him our hearts rejoice, for we trust in his holy name. Let your unfailing love surround us, Lord, for our hope is in you alone.”
Psalms 33:20-22
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