Music Blog 10-10-2024
MUSIC BLOG
10-10-2024
Praise the Lord
Psalm 111
111 Praise the Lord!
I will give thanks to the Lord with all my heart, In the company of the upright and in the assembly.
2 Great are the works of the Lord; They are studied by all who delight in them.
3 Splendid and majestic is His work, And His righteousness endures forever.
4 He has caused His wonders to be remembered; The Lord is gracious and compassionate.
5 He has given food to those who fear Him; He will remember His covenant forever.
6 He has made known to His people the power of His works, In giving them the inheritance of the nations.
7 The works of His hands are truth and justice; All His precepts are trustworthy.
8 They are upheld forever and ever; They are performed in truth and uprightness.
9 He has sent redemption to His people; He has ordained His covenant forever; Holy and awesome is His name.
10 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; All those who follow His commandments have a good understanding; His praise endures forever.
When I was in seminary, over 40 years ago, I had several part-time jobs to make ends meet. One of them was to park cars at the bank/Petroleum Club in downtown Ft. Worth. There were many interesting anecdotes that I could talk about but one that has been brought to my attention this week was my desire to absorb scripture. Seminary is a unique environment. There are so many spiritually strong people as teachers and professors, but also in the student body. Although I felt prepared as a musician to engage in graduate studies, I felt very small as a Christian beginning seminary. I knew that one of the things I was weak in was the knowledge of the Bible. One day in the bookstore on campus I noticed a rack of scripture memory cards. They were cheap enough for me as a seminary student, so I purchased several. I think they had 25 or 30 cards in a little pack and the pack of cards easily fit in the palm of your hand. As I recall, each pack had a different theme: comfort, healing, guidance, faith, spiritual warfare, etc. I bought a couple and began to memorize. I tried to memorize one a week and to keep them fresh I’d review them daily. Our garage was several stories high. There was an open lift to carry the drivers from floor to floor. I was like a moving step that you hopped on and a rope to hold onto. (I don’t think OSHA ever came around) However, I remember using my time on the lift to review my Bible verses.
What drew my attention to that time in my life this week was a renewed challenge to memorize scripture. As part of our First-Place discipleship group, we memorize a scripture a week. This week is Psalm 111:10, The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, all who follow His precepts have good understanding, His Name is praised eternally. (the version I’m learning is different than the one I shared.) This verse reminds me that ALL who follow His precepts or His ways or His commandments or laws have good understanding. I counsel people all the time and invariably they ask, “How did you know that” or “I don’t understand!” To be truthful, I never considered the fact that God has given me knowledge and understanding based on my willingness to learn and apply His Word. When I look back in my life, the times that I have devoted times to memorizing scripture have been times of real break-through. In seminary the Lord sent me Ronda. When I was in South Florida, the Lord was getting me ready to move to North Carolina. I spent time memorizing scripture at Village and I stayed there for 17 years. Sad to say, I don’t always emphasize the memorization of God’s Word. Now at the age of 67, I wonder what God has next for me. There are things in my life that need to change and one of them is my complacency with my life. I’m going back to basics and this week has been the start of a renewed interest in God’s word. The Apostle Paul admonished Timothy,: “Be diligent in these matters, Give yourself wholly to them, so that everyone will see your progress!” I Tim 4:15. I want that progress to be evident to my Lord and to the world, I bet you do too!
Blessings,
Marty