Reading the Psalms is better than therapy.
Each psalm is a treasure of wisdom, knowledge, and understanding. Occasionally, it’s a window into our soul and at other times it’s a door into the heart of God. We learn that nothing is more pressing than our need for God and our need to know Him intimately.
Only the Lord, can meet our physical, spiritually, mental and intellectual needs sufficiently. When we take His tender outstretched hand, He faithfully leads us safely through the storms, troubles, and difficulties of life.
I don’t know what the future holds, but I know who holds the future.
A Lesson from Tozer
I learned and am still learning much from my most treasured mentor, A.W. Tozer. We’ve never really met. Aiden Wilson Tozer was born on April 21, 1897, and entered eternity on May 12, 1963. He is defined, online, as an American Christian pastor, author, magazine editor, and spiritual mentor.
His mentorship, through His books, have taught me the value of knowing God firsthand, not second hand, but firsthand. He’s the one who pushed me to step into the unknown of knowing God intimately. Note the treasured knowledge of this quote.
“What comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us”. A.W. Tozer
As we remember Tozer’s advice, let’s take a deep dive into Psalm 104.
- What will we discover about God’s character?
- What will we learn about His heart to provide for us and His creation?
- How will this knowledge influence the way you live, how you think, and what you do?
Psalm 104 is a thanksgiving prayer. God is God — Creator and Provider as well. See how much our view of God changes from impersonal to personal as we read this psalm.
Psalm 104
Bless the LORD, O my soul! O LORD my God, you are very great! You are clothed with splendor and majesty, covering yourself with light as with a garment, stretching out the heavens like a tent. He lays the beams of His chambers on the waters; He makes the clouds His chariot; He rides on the wings of the wind; He makes His messengers winds, His ministers a flaming fire. He set the earth on its foundations so that it should never be moved. You covered it with the deep as with a garment; the waters stood above the mountains. At your rebuke they fled; at the sound of your thunder, they took to flight. The mountains rose, the valleys sank down to the place You appointed for them. You set a boundary that they may not pass so that they might not again cover the earth. You make springs gush forth in the valleys; they flow between the hills; they give drink to every beast of the field; and wild donkeys quench their thirst. Beside them, the birds of the heavens dwell; they sing among the branches. From your lofty abode, you water the mountains; the earth is satisfied with the fruit of your work. You cause the grass to grow for the livestock and plants for man to cultivate, that he may bring forth food from the earth and wine to gladden the heart of man, oil to make his face shine and bread to strengthen man’s heart. The trees of the LORD are watered abundantly, the cedars of Lebanon that He planted. In them, the birds build their nests; the stork has her home in the fir trees. The high mountains are for the wild goats; the rocks are a refuge for the rock badgers. He made the moon to mark the seasons; the sun knows it’s time for setting. You make darkness, and it is night, when all the beasts of the forest creep about. The young lions roar for their prey, seeking their food from God. When the sun rises, they steal away and lie down in their dens. Man goes out to work and to his labor until the evening. O LORD, how manifold are Your works! In wisdom have You made them all; the earth if full of Your creatures. Here is the sea, great and wide, which teems with creatures innumerable, living things both small and great. There go the ships and Leviathan, which you formed to play in it. Those all look to You, to give them their food in due season. When You give it to them, they gather it up; when You open Your hand, they are filled with good things. When you hide Your face, they are dismayed; when You take away their breath, they die and return to their dust. When you sent forth Your Spirit, they are created, and You renew the face of the ground. May the glory of the LORD endure forever; may the LORD rejoice in His works, who looks on the earth, and it trembles, who touches the mountains, and they smoke! I will sing to the LORD as long as I live; I will sing praise to my God while I have being. May my meditation be pleasing to Him, for I rejoice in the LORD. Let sinners be consumed from the earth and let the wicked be not more! Bless the LORD, O my soul! Praise the LORD!
The greatest takeaway from this psalm is: God is the One who created the heavens and the earth and adapted the earth for the needs of all living creatures.
What a blessing!
It’s a blessing. While reading this Psalm all I could think about is this blessing:
The LORD bless you and keep you; the LORD make His face to shine upon you and be gracious to you; the LORD lift up His countenance upon you and give you peace. Numbers 6:24-26
You may have noticed that I conclude most of my articles with a form of this prayer. May the Lord bless and keep you until we meet again. The truth is that the closer we are to the LORD, the greater our blessing.
While we run here and there with our everyday demands, may God keep you safe. May He find you at peace with Him and delight in your presence. True peace comes only in His gracious presence.
You’re in right standing with Him because He made it so. He has provided for all your needs and given you the ability to provide for yourself. More than your Creator, He is your provider.
I will conclude this deep dive with gleaning of II Peter 1:3-2 (NIV), Philippians 4:19 and Psalm 23:1 (NIV) below – enjoy.
May the Lord bless and keep you!
I Shall Not Want
His divine power has given us everything
We need for life – through
our knowledge of Him who calls us
By His own glory and goodnessGrace and peace be yours
In abundance through
The knowledge of God
And of Jesus our LordMy God shall supply all
Your needs according
To His riches in glory
In Christ JesusThe LORD is my
Shepherd
I shall not want!
Your worst days are never so bad that you are beyond the reach of God’s grace. And your best days are never so good that you are beyond the need of God’s grace.Jerry Bridges
Republished with permission from Blogs.crossmap.com, featuring inspiring Bible verses about Who is God? Psalm 104.
