Pardon these few words of declaration…but "this feels weird"…I want the comfort of my pencil and lined paper or journal instead of this oddity I decided to try. Do you ever do that…wonder why you decided to do something? Anyway, here I go!
Worship on the Way~
I see this lesson as the focus of approaching my distress honestly and seeing the Psalms as a mirror to the emotions in my life. This does not happen to be an exercise that I choose to forgo…I am comfortable with my emotions and have gotten much practice at unpeeling them in pursuit of the root culprit. The process does not always happen quickly but deep within me is the desire to investigate the thing and determine if it is worthy of uprooting. Miss Beth offers me a tasty little commentary note on The Psalms by John Calvin that I so very much enjoy.
“The varied and resplendent riches which are contained it this treasury it is no easy matter to express in words; so much so, that I well know that whatever I shall be able to say will be far from approaching the excellence of the subject. But as it is better to give to my readers some taste, however small, of the wonderful advantages they will derive from the study of this book, than to be entirely silent on the point, I may be permitted briefly to advert to a matter, the greatness of which does not admit of being fully unfolded. I have been accustomed to call this book, I think not inappropriately, “An Anatomy of all the Parts of the Soul;” for there is not an emotion of which any one can be conscious that is not here represented as in a mirror. Or rather, the Holy Spirit has here drawn to the life all the griefs, sorrows, fears, doubts, hopes, cares, perplexities, in short, all the distracting emotions with which the minds of men are wont to be agitated.”
I loved so much his wording “An anatomy of all the parts of the soul”! I think I will pop over to Google…I want to read more of what he has written. Oh gee...the document is full, that is for sure, too full to address here but this next portion I loved:
“The other parts of Scripture contain the commandments which God enjoined his servants to announce to us. But here the prophets themselves, seeing they are exhibited to us as speaking to God, and laying open all their inmost thoughts and affections, call, or rather draw, each of us to the examination of himself in particulars in order that none of the many infirmities to which we are subject, and of the many vices with which we abound, may remain concealed. It is certainly a rare and singular advantage, when all lurking places are discovered, and the heart is brought into the light, purged from that most baneful infection, hypocrisy. In short, as calling upon God is one of the principal means of securing our safety, and as a better and more unerring rule for guiding us in this exercise cannot be found elsewhere than in The Psalms, it follows, that in proportion to the proficiency which a man shall have attained in understanding them, will be his knowledge of the most important part of celestial doctrine”.
“…purged from the most baneful infection, hypocrisy.” Perfectly stated Mr. Calvin…I know very well how that infection impedes.
Prayer~
Abba I long never to tired of the process of examination to the point of discontinuing it’s “advantage”….”securing my safety” within our relationship. Safety from NOT growing permanently passive and resistant or hard hearted and prideful; from these things you have full permission to access my heart and soul in inventory…I trust you fully so ignore my fears and whining by your mercy. Amen
P.S. That was not as bad as it felt like it would be…we’ll see if I can be faithful to this for the entire 30 days…oops, I forgot to mention the time frame yesterday. J
