Day 27 - Enjoy the Silence

Psalm 34:1-18 ------

¹ I will extol the LORD at all times;

his praise will always be on my lips.

² My soul will boast in the LORD;

let the afflicted hear and rejoice.

³ Glorify the LORD with me;

let us exalt his name together.

⁴ I sought the LORD, and he answered me;

he delivered me from all my fears.

⁵ Those who look to him are radiant;

their faces are never covered with shame.

⁶ This poor man called, and the LORD heard him;

he saved him out of all his troubles.

⁷ The angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear him,

and he delivers them.

⁸ Taste and see that the LORD is good;

blessed is the man who takes refuge in him.

⁹ Fear the LORD, you his saints,

for those who fear him lack nothing.

¹⁰ The lions may grow weak and hungry,

but those who seek the LORD lack no good thing.

¹¹ Come, my children, listen to me;

I will teach you the fear of the LORD.

¹² Whoever of you loves life

and desires to see many good days,

¹³ keep your tongue from evil

and your lips from speaking lies.

¹⁴ Turn from evil and do good;

seek peace and pursue it.

¹⁵ The eyes of the LORD are on the righteous

and his ears are attentive to their cry;

¹⁶ the face of the LORD is against those who do evil,

to cut off the memory of them from the earth.

¹⁷ The righteous cry out, and the LORD hears them;

he delivers them from all their troubles.

¹⁸ The LORD is close to the brokenhearted

and saves those who are crushed in spirit.

Okay, this is cool.

Take a piece of paper, crumple it up, crush it, yah know what... step on it! Then look at what remains. Ever had a day, or week, or maybe even season, when that seemed to be your spirit... broken, misshapen, crushed and creased? Do you feel like that now? Who or what crushes you? Stress? Pressure, tension, change, guilt?

Look at the crushed piece of paper, and think about your own spirit. Maybe you feel frustration, disgust, sadness, rebellion, or emptiness. Whatever it is you feel, allow yourself to feel it fully. Don't hide your emotions. Be honest. Maybe you feel great today, happy! Or maybe your heart is heavy. Worse yet, maybe you've been too busy to let yourself feel anything. Or maybe, you've felt as a Christian, you don't have the right to feel certain things. But, for right now, know that in God's presence you have the freedom to feel anything, whether you feel peaceful, or crushed.

Journal, and write down, HONESTLY, EXACTLY, how you feel today.

David wrote Psalms 34 in a time of dark despair when he was facing grave danger and constant trouble. Even though David was fearful and fragile, he was able to cling to one certainty... "The Lord is close to the brokenhearted."

I know it's long, but read that verses above a few times, let verses 18 really sink in.

Find your trashed piece of paper and spread it out again. Write on it the five key words in this passage - words that offer help and encouragement to us when we are brokenhearted:

-Taste verse 8

-Fear verse 9

-Come verse 11

-Keep verse 13

-Turn verse 14

Keep the paper, let it remind you of the truth in this Psalm.

-Colton