PSALM SIX

The psalmist feels desperate. His oppression is physical;-
Psalm 6:2b "my bones are troubled".
His oppression is social and psychological;-
Psalm 6:3   " my soul is greatly troubled".
His oppression is spiritual ;-
Psalm 6:8   "depart from me all you workers of evil"

We need to be delivered/healed in all three areas,
since each can be noticeably limiting.
It is a blessing that help is accessible wherever we find ourselves.
Psalm 139:8 ESV   If I ascend to heaven, you are there!
If I make my bed in Sheol, you are there!
Strained relationships can make us feel unwell.
We are also vulnerable when our relationship with the Lord
is out of kilter .
Psalm 38:3  ESV   "There is no health in my bones because of my sin"
The psalmist does not have a professional counselor or spiritual director
or even a caring house group to pray over him.
In Psalm six the psalmist feels able to "take it to the Lord in prayer"
with most effective results.....

Adonai has heard my cry  !
Adonai has heard my plea  !
Adonai accepts my prayer   !

Such faith,  such conviction,  enables the psalmist
to speak with authority,
Psalm 6:8  ESV  "Depart from me all you workers of evil"

EPHESIANS 6:12 ESV
For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood,
but against rulers, against the authorities,
against the cosmic powers over this present darkness,
against spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.

So the psalmist engages with "principalities and powers" ( KJV )
when he commands with authority;-
Depart from me all you workers of evil.

How did he reach this point?
In verse three he prayed "save my life"
In Hebrew and in Latin this reads "deliver my soul"
In Septuagint Greek "nephesh" reads" life giving breath"
"my nephesh" reads   " myself...my life...my soul ".

When we are desperate   (  as the psalmist was )
When our life giving breath is at risk, or even restricted,
we become aware of our own breath.....our life giving breath.....
before God in prayer.
To come in all our vulnerability before our creator and Lord,
on whom we totally depend.......,
is a helpful disposition for personal prayer.

Allow yourself to become aware of your breath.........
Be aware that you are in the presence of the Living God.

PSALM FIVE

Psalm 5:1-2  ESV,  English Standard Version.

1   Give ear to my words , O LORD;

     consider my groaning.

2   Give attention to the sound of my cry,

     my King and my God,

     for to you do I pray.

"God and king" might have limited significance if you were a peasant living

 in a forest and the king lived in a palace far away and did not know your name.

But if your God is the God of creation and he chose you personally, before

time began, to be His adopted son, that makes a difference.

Then if the same God also reigns in your heart, not as a tyrant king, but as

the most loving Heavenly Father, bestowing paternal direction, paternal 

love and forgiveness, and blessing upon blessing,.....

then what a blessing that is.

Psalm 5:3  ESV

O LORD, in the morning you hear my voice;

in the morning, I prepare a sacrifice for you and watch.

Like the psalmist, Jesus rose early

to pray to his Heavenly Father.

Mark 1:35 ESV

And rising very early in the morning, while it was still dark,

he departed and went out to a desolate place, and there he prayed.

"My God and my king" in verse 2 leads to" my voice," in verse 3

which underlines the personal nature of these attitudes and actions.

The words suggest that the psalmists prayer is spoken aloud;-

"my words"  "my groaning"  "the sound of my cry"

" my voice" and "my prayer". 

It is important that from the beginning of the day

I address God's presence and God's purposes.

I turn up to Him to find out His agenda.

It is not right to get the day started up then decide 

if and when we can fit Him in.

LEVITICUS 20:7-8 New English Bible

Hallow yourselves and be holy,  because I the LORD your God am holy.

You shall keep my rules and obey them: I am the LORD who hallows you.

ESV...Consecrate yourselves          KJV  Sanctify yourselves

In Leviticus 20:7-8 we find, not a text book , but words of direction,

addressed in love by our Heavenly Father.

Psalm 5

7   But I through the abundance of your love
will enter your dwelling place..........
8   Lead me, O LORD in your righteousness.....
12 (13 in the Jewish Study Bible)
For You surely bless the righteous man, O LORD,
encompassing him with favor like a shield.

What a prayer;-   Encompass me with favor like a shield.
What a blessing;-  May the LORD bless you by encompassing you
with favor , like a shield..

PSALM FOUR

Belief and faith are fundamental. but if the faith and belief are only academic
then forgiveness and love remain mostly academic. We have to trust  God
in practice in the reality of our own lives.
The God of creation is much more than an academic thought. He is real.
We are his created creatures. He is our Creator.
The transfiguration speaks of power and light, but it was not a rock concert.
The power and the light are amazing and supernatural.
The prompting of the Holy Spirit is supernatural.
Blessing involves supernatural power.
Christian love and Christian forgiveness move mountains
and change the material world.
Christians are more than observers,
We are participators in a much greater reality.

Psalm 4 verse 4 calls us to meditation in awe of the Lord,
in full righteousness won for us by the blood of Christ.
While resting in the Lord we are to meditate in silence i.e.listening.
In verses 6-8 the psalmist shares publicly - very publicly-
his own personal experience of grace!
Amid personal affliction and suffered injustice, the psalmist experiences
Spiritual light, Spiritual joy Spiritual peace and divine kindness !
In faith he is physically, mentally and spiritually engaged.

There is no indication in verse 4 that the meditation called for
should be a humanistic consideration without reference to God,
or an academic study. The meditation called for here must be of a truly
charismatic, spirit filled variety accessible to all faith filled believers.....
free to the  braves, not just the chiefs.
We move from contemplative prayer to charismatic witness
with only one verse in between.
Verse five instructs us to trust in the LORD.

Psalm 119:47-48 NRSV
I find delight in your commandments
     because I love them.
I revere your commandments which I love,
     and I will meditate on your statutes.

Three portions of scripture upon which we might meditate,
which point to the supernatural nature of our faith.

Matthew 17:2 ESV                               Light
And he was transfigured before them, 
and his face shone like the sun,
and his clothes became white as light.

Philippians 4:7 ESV                             Peace
And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding,
will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.

Psalm 38:7                                             Joy
When the morning stars sang together
and the sons of God shouted for joy.

Galations 4:6-7 ESV                             Sons and Heirs
And because you are sons, God has sent the spirit of his son
into your hearts, crying"Abba ! Father !"
So you are no longer a slave, but a son,
and if a son, then an heir through God.

PSALM THREE

Psalm 3:1  KJV
LORD, how are they increased that trouble me!
many are they that rise up against me.

The  media, every hour, reminds us of the darkness
which is creeping into our society.
Bibles may no longer be placed in student accommodation .
Prayers are prohibited in council chambers.
Deviance is approved by the synod.
Christian counsel is restricted in hospitals.
Crosses are removed from court rooms.

While our church buildings are sold because they are empty,
other church buildings are burned down ;-
in Papua New Guinea,South Sudan India, Pakistan, Nigeria,
Syria, Iraq, Lebanon, China, Indonesia..................

We join all these victims when we come to the LORD.
They are already on their knees before Him.

Celebrity naturalists challenge divine creation !!!
Celebrity scientists challenge God's existence.
But God laughs.

Psalm 2:4 KJV
He that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh:
the Lord shall have them in derision.

King David addresses the Lord personally in Psalm 3
but he also speaks for the people of God.
From around the world we are joined in prayer
by "Whomsoever will"

1st Timothy 2:2 NKJ
I exhort therefor, that, first of all,
supplications, prayers, intercessions, and
giving of thanks, be made for all men.;

Denominational names are irrelevant before the Lord.
People in London pray knee by knee with faith filled
believers from many nations and many Christian backgrounds.
But each of us are members of the one body of Christ.
Like the psalmist we sometimes pray on behalf of the
People of God and sometimes we slip into the back row
as one known by name and recognized by our loving Saviour.

Psalm 3:6-8 KJV
6  I will not be afraid of ten thousands of people,
that have set themselves against me round about .
7  Arise, O LORD; save me, O my God;
for thou hast smitten all mine enemies upon the cheek bone.
thou hast broken the teeth of the ungodly.
8  Salvation belongeth unto the LORD;
thy blessing is upon thy people.

PSALM TWO

When we deliberately give our attention to the LORD
in a quiet time of prayer, we try to lay aside the day to day
concerns which usually occupy our mind.
We intend to give the Lord our best attention in prayer.
Most of the nation have the same things in mind.........
whatever the media has been producing that day.
Psalm two reminds us that exploitation, injustice, discrimination
and persecution are not  new things for God's people to experience.
Psalm 2:1-2  NCV
1  Why do the nations rage
             and the peoples devise futile plots ?
2  The kings of the earth rise up and princes conspire together
             against the LORD and his Anointed.
Today news from around the world informs us of discrimination,
persecution and violence against Christians and Jews
Bribery and corruption are not limited to developing countries.
Our media incites its programmers to push the boundaries of common decency.
Abortion, adultery and blasphemy, have been legalized, and caused
to be socially acceptable, by leaders who have turned away from
our Sovereign Lord and His precepts.
But as we enter our prayer time, we do so in the knowledge that
"the desires of the wicked will be fruitless"  Psalm 112:10 NCV.
And as we continue our ongoing relationship in prayer, we are aware
 that Christ's victorious reign in our own hearts is a sign of His final victory,
Our attention is not on those who challenge God's sovereignty.
Our full attention is on our Sovereign Lord  Himself.
Blessed are those who take refuge in Him   Psalm 2:11 NCV
THE MESSAGE//REMIX puts Psalm 2 in a contemporary context.
Why the big noise, nations?
Why the mean plots, peoples?
Earth-leaders push for position,
Demagogues and delegates meet for summit talks,
The God-deniers, the Messiah-defiers:
Let's get free of God!
Cast loose from Messiah!
Heaven-throned God breaks out laughing.
At first he's amused at their presumption,
Then he gets good and angry.
Furiously, he shuts them up:
"Don't you know there's a King in Zion?
A coronation banquet is spread for him on the holy summit"
Let me tell you what God said next.
He said "You're my son,
and today is your birthday
What do you want? Name it:
Nations as a present? continents as a prize?
You can command them to dance for you,
or throw them out with tomorrow's trash,"
So. rebel kings, use your heads,
Upstart judges learn your lesson:
Worship God in adoring embrace,
Celebrate in trembling awe. Kiss Messiah!
Your very lives are in danger, you know,
His anger is about to explode,
But if you make a run for God---you won't regret it!

         

PSALM ONE

A SECOND LOOK AT THE PSALMS
Awareness of God with us in the present
and the mind of Christ in our present awareness.

In verse 4 of Psalm 23,
"for you are with me"

We sing Psalm 23 in which we acknowledge the good leading and
good shepherding of the one who guides us personally in paths of
righteousness.
The Lord is with us every moment .
We could choose to acknowledge, more often, that we are aware
that we are in the presence of The Triune God.
When we are open to the influences of the living God,
we let the love and wisdom of His mind seep into our own mind
and soak into our heart.
The first psalm offers us six verses of divine guidance.
.
Psalm 1 King James Version
1 Blessed is the man
That walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly.
Nor standeth in the way of sinners,
Nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful.
2 But his delight is in the law of the LORD;
And in his law doth he meditate day and night.
3 And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water.
That bring forth fruit in his season;
His leaf also shall not wither;
And whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.
4 The ungodly are not so;
But are like the chaff which the wind driveth away.
5 Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgement.
Nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous.
6 For the LORD knoweth the way of the righteous:
But the way of the ungodly shall perish.

May the life of Christ within us
animate our days and direct our ways.
May we sidestep self gratification, self interest and self indulgence....
May we avoid the humanistic temptation to do things all in our own strength,
without reference to God.......
But may we have the grace to choose,
(in divine friendship)
(in the present moment)
(in the Love of the Father)
(in the fellowship of the Holy Spirit)
to have the life of Christ in us personally.

Over the years, hymn writers have expressed such thoughts for believers;-
     O that the Comforter would come!
     Nor visit as a transient guest
     But fix in me His constant home,
     And take possession of my chest         Charles Wesley   1707-1788

     In nearness shall Thy voice be heard;
     Spirit to spirit Thou dost speak.           Alfred Henry Vine, 1845-1917

Breathe on me, Breath of God; Fill me with life anew,
That I may love what Thou dost love, And do what Thou wouldst do.
                                                                   Edwin Hatch, 1835-89
Paul's prayer for us in Ephesians 3:17  is that
Christ may dwell in our hearts through faith.   

PSALM 150 We Come

PSALM 150  KJV
Praise ye the LORD.
Praise God in his sanctuary:
Praise him in the firmament of his power.
Praise him in his mighty acts:
Praise him according to his excellent greatness.
Praise him with the sound of the trumpet:
Praise him with the psaltery and harp.
Praise him with the timbrel and dance:
Praise him with stringed instruments and organs
Praise him upon the loud cymbals:
Praise him upon the high sounding cymbals.
Let every thing that hath breath praise the LORD.
Praise ye the LORD.

In Psalm 150 we each come to love the LORD our God
with all our heart and with all our soul and with all our mind.

It is wonderful that, in prayer, although we come as members
of God,s covenant community and as members of the body of Christ,
we come as individuals before our personal compassionate God,
who lays his hands on each remembered head.

Across His mighty firmament, His divine touch  gives life
and purpose to each beautiful created being.

Hallelujah,  means   Praise ye the LORD.
Ye, means you personally.

We come in awe before the mystery of God
who formed us on the palm of His hand.
In this holy place we are sanctified by His presence.

Music sometimes helps us to express ourselves more deeply
and with more feeling than with words alone.
Psalm 150 invites us to come before the Lord
united in song, accompanied by gifted, inspired musicians,
to express our heartfelt praise.
One in the Spirit and in harmony with heavenly choirs,
our praise is inhabited by the presence of God.

Psalm 150  NAB
Alleluia
Praise the LORD in his sanctuary,
   praise him in the firmament of his strength
Praise him for his mighty deeds,
   praise him for his sovereign majesty.
Praise him with the blast of the trumpet,
   praise him with lyre and harp,
Praise him with timbrel and dance,
   praise him with strings and pipe.
Praise him with sounding cymbals,
   praise him with clanging cymbals.
Let everything that has breath
   praise the LORD! Alleluia.

PSALM 149 God Invites

Zephaniah 3:7   NAB
The LORD , your God, is in your midst, a mighty savior;
He will rejoice over you with gladness
and renew you in his love.
He will sing joyfully because of you
as one sings at festivals.

Psalm 149:4  ESV
For the LORD takes pleasure in his people
he adorns the humble with salvation.

Psalm 149:4  NAB
For the LORD loves his people
and adorns the lowly with victory.

The salvation to which we are invited
is victory over sin and death.
We are invited to the victory celebration.

When there was some good news, which was so good
that we had to share it, we shared it with people
who would understand and share our joy.
We can share joy with people who love us.

Psalm 47:1 ESV
Clap your hands, all you peoples !
Shout to God with loud songs of joy.

Psalm 149:3  ESV
Let them praise his name with dancing
making melody to him with tambourine and lyre.

The victory is a victory over evil and wickedness.
It is God's sovereign purpose to defeat wickedness.
The victory over hunger, injustice and suffering
is either our victory or we are on the wrong side !
Those who will have joy in this victory are those
who truely love Jesus and belong to Him !

Those who have no interest in this victory over
wickedness may have time to double their pension,
but their time is short.

There is something in store for those who are committed
to implementing the will of God, the word of God, and
love of God in their own lives and society.

Psalm 136   concludes each verse with
"for his steadfast love endures forever"

God's people are invited ( called ) to mirror
His love for them and for others,
so they are called;-    hasidim.....faithful ones.

PSALM 148 We Believe

1 JOHN 5 verse 1 and 2  Revised English Bible
1  Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ,
    is a child of God.
2  It follows that when we love God and obey
    his commandments, we love his children too.

"Believing" has a transforming effect on us.
One of the characteristics of New Testament prayer
is union with God's will.!
Believers singing psalm 148 find themselves in a
global spirituality of love and union
as we join in heavenly worship with ;-
                          all his angels,     verse 2  ESV   and
                          all his saints,      verse 14  ESV

We believe, and when we do ,we become aware of
our membership of, the community of God's love,
which is creation , since all things were created in love.

When the psalmist mentions
fire and hail, snow and ice
gales of wind that obey his voice         Psalm 148:8
we are to know that these things happen
according to the will of God.
It is the same God who says
I will give you understanding and 
set you in the way you must go.           Psalm 32:8

God's will is carried out in the hail and snow
and our own lives unfold according to the same will.
When we have an awareness of our own life being
an integral part of God's will and purpose
let's not resist, but go fully with it in His perfect love
for we believe His love is perfect.

John 3:16  KJV
For God so loved the world,
that he gave his only begotten Son,
that whosoever believeth in him
should not perish,
but have everlasting life.

John 20:29 NRSV
Blessed are those who have not seen
and yet have come to believe.

John 7:38 REB
Whoever believes in me , as scripture says,
" Streams of  living water shall flow from within him."
Jesus was speaking of the Holy Spirit
which believers in Him would later receive.,
because He had not yet been glorified.

PSALM 147 God Cares

Our Creator, the LORD our God
       who made heaven and earth
       the sea and all that is in them...........Psalm 146:6
created us to be much more than;-
" a bag of bones".... " 90% water"
or sixty cents worth of chemicals .

If we heard news of friends being subject to frightening pain,
we would not react like bags of bones or packs of chemicals
Our hearts are not made of stone..
A miner once refused to be rescued from a mine until his
pit pony was dug out and rescued too.
He cared. We care. God cares.
Memories of kindness ripple across the pool of time.
Christian mysticism is part of the life of basic Christianity.
That which is hidden
is also part of our ongoing experience.
Our caring God who made us in his own image
calls us to participate in trinitarian caring
in everyday life.
We can be caring , creative, and imaginative .
We experience inspiration and insight.
We can both think and dream.
On the day when God created human beings
he made them in his own likeness     Genesis 5:1 REB

He sends his command over the earth         
and his word runs swiftly.                             147:15 REB

As messages fly from our brain to our eyelid,
and as messages fly from our  finger tips to our brain, ( often subconsciously)
we who are made in the image of God, receive his command !
God sends his word verse 15, and verse 18,
We respond in spirit and truth and in his love
He reveals his word.     Psalm 147:18

His word is sustaining emotionally and spiritually.

It is he who heals the broken in spirit
and binds up their wounds.                     Psalm 147:3 REB

The LORD gives support to the humble    Psalm 147:6 REB

To care is Godly
To care is Christlike.
God's love has been poured into our hearts
through the Holy Spirit which has been given to us.
                                                                        Romans 5:5
Love dissolves bitterness, selfishness, unforgiveness,
 arrogance, jealousy and  envy.
Those who walk in the Spirit walk always in the Spirit of Love
and their lives exude the love of Christ
Heavenly Father,
May we spontaneously care
and let love be our aim.       AMEN.

PSALM 146 GOD OUR HELP

Psalm 146 ESV
3    Put not your trust in princes......
5    Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob
      whose hope is the LORD his God
6    who made the heaven and earth.

This is not a theory.
this is a facet of the dynamic in which we choose to live.
Our hope is in God, our divine Helper.
Those who experience the enabling power of the Spirit of Christ
are aware that God's help can be physical, spiritual,  political,
military, personal, emotional, medical, even nutritional,
educational, and financial !
From the cradle to the grave our choices have consequences.
Verse 3 is a warning not to depend on people or leaders
who have little interest in us personally. Our Creator and Saviour
 has the very best intentions for our future and
for our lives now.
The testimony of the psalmist is often explicit.

Psalm 28:7 KJV
The LORD is my strength and my shield.
my heart trusteth in him, and I am helped:
therefore my heart rejoiceth;
and with  my song will I praise him.
Psalm 40:17 KJV
.....the Lord thinketh upon me,
thou art my help and my deliverer.

God's word to Isaiah speaks to us
Isaiah 41:10 KJV
Fear not for I am with thee, be not dismayed, for I am God:
I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee ;
yea I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.
Psalm 71:5-6 ESV
5 For you, O Lord are my hope,
        my trust, O LORD , from my youth.
6 Upon you have I leaned from before my birth;

The testimony of Isaac Watts ( 1674-1748 )
is in the same Spirit......from the first verse of a hymn he wrote.
     O God our help in ages past, Our hope for years to come,
  Our shelter from the stormy blast, And our eternal home.

Psalm 71:17 NRSV
     You have taught me from childhood , God.
Psalm 147:4  ESV
He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wouinds.
Psalm 147:14 ESV
he fills you with the finest of the wheat.
Psalm 23:5 ESV
You prepare a table for me, in the presence of my enemies,
you anoint my head with oil : my cup overflows.

We are enabled by the Creator and Sustainer of life.
Our ongoing relationship with Him , in constant prayer,
leads to reflective living,
and our everyday lives are lived out in the courts of His presence.

PSALM 145 PRAISE GOD

Psalm 145:1-2  NRSV
I will extol you, my God and King
   and bless your name forever and ever.
Every day I will bless you
   and praise your name for ever and ever.

Lord may we always have a heart and mind to praise you,
to be in harmony with your will by praising you
to be in harmony with the choirs of heaven in our praise
and to be in harmony with the whole community of faith
by praising you in Spirit and truth.

Psalm 9:11 NRSV
Sing praises to the LORD, who dwells in Zion
Declare his deeds among the peoples.

Heavenly Father we pray for glad hearts and cheerful voices
to sing our praise to you.
May our sung praises be a beautiful and honouring
witness to You.

Psalm 51:15 NRSV
O Lord , open my lips
and my mouth will declare your praise.

Psalm 145:21 NRSV
My mouth will speak the praise of the LORD
and all flesh will bless his holy name forever and ever.

Psalm 34:1 NRSV
I will bless the LORD at all times
his name shall be continually in my mouth.

Psalm 48:1 NRSV
Great is the LORD and greatly to be praised.

Hebrews 13:15 NRSV
Through him (JESUS) then, let us continually
offer a sacrifice of praise to God.
That is the fruit of lips which confess his name.

Right from the start of Psalm 145,
the praise in which we participate
is continuous and unending
"and I will praise your name for ever and ever"  (verse 1)

The Lord our God is the object and the subject of our praise.
We take delight in expressing our praise.
The Spirit leaps within us when we recognize
the same Spirit of praise in those around us.
There is joy in being "one in the Lord" together in praise.
And since the Lord inhabits the praises of His people,
our joint praise draws us into the love and union of the Trinity.

Psalm 22:3 AV
But thou art holy
O thou that inhabitest the praises of ISRAEL.

PSALM 145 GOD IS GREAT

Psalm 145:3  NLT 1966
Great is the LORD ! He is most worthy of praise.
His greatness is beyond discovery!
(no one can measure his greatness)   NLT 2004 2nd edition.

`We need to consider Psalm 145:3
to be sure in our mind and heart
that Psalm 145:3 describes our own attitude in faith.
Our confidence in Psalm 145:3 helps us to realize
the truth of Malachi 3:6 and Hebrews 13:8
Malachi 3:6 NLT
I am the LORD, and I do not change.
Hebrews 13:8 NLT
Jesus Christ is the same, yesterday, today, and forever.

 James 1:17 assures us that our God
will not vary from being  good and great.
James 1:17 KJV
Every good and every perfect gift is from above,
and cometh from the Father of lights, with whom is 
no variableness, neither shadow of turning.

We can depend that our God is constant, and that
the thoughts of his heart are consistent .
Psalm 33:11 KJV
The counsel of the LORD stands forever
The thoughts of his heart to all generations.

Psalm 145:9 ESV
The LORD is good to all,
and his mercy is over all that he has made.
Matthew 5:45b  & 48 ESV
He makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good,
and sends rain on the just and the unjust.
48  You therefore must be perfect
as your heavenly Father is perfect.

Psalm 8:1 TLV
O LORD, our Lord, your majestic name fills the earth !
Your glory is higher than the heavens.
What a gift , to realize this!
The hedgerows are glistening with the presence of God
and the wildflowers radiant with his life.
Psalm 111:3 TLV
Everything he does reveals his glory and majesty.
Psalm 145:13b TLV
he is gracious in all he does.

All that we see and smell, touch and taste and appreciate to be
very good, is made by one God and created from nothing..
In the light of the beauty and wonder of every detail of God's creation
we desire God's will for our own life and community,
and for our life and community  to be in perfect harmony
with His purposes and in His perfect plan for all creation.

PSALM 144 Divine Instruments

Psalm 144:14b  
 .......may there be no cry of distress in our streets !
Who would not unite with the psalmist in this prayer ?
Psalm 149:1  NCV
Sing to the LORD a new song
his praise in the assembly of the saints.
The new song needs to express our new gratitude for
our new experiences of deliverance, of restoration,
and for our awareness of the blessings which freshly
fill our streets.
Psalm 40;4 NCV   He put a new song in my mouth
                                a hymn of praise to our God.
Psalm 144:9     I will sing a new song to you , my God
We will sing a new song out of gratitude in our own
 awareness of the blessings we experience fresh every morning.

to proclaim your kindness in the morning
and your faithfulness during the night,    Psalm 92:3
Psalm 98:1    I sing a new song to the LORD
for he has accomplished marvelous deeds.
Psalm 144 ;1   NLT
Praise the LORD, who is my rock
He trains my hands for war
and gives my fingers skill for battle.

We are being equipped in the battle.
The training which we receive is to proclaim truth.
That will help to enable us to defeat the power of those
mouths which utter lies and pervert the truth.
That is;-those who make themselves
foes of the will of God.
As people of God, we become instruments of God's  will
in upholding all that is wholesome and in harmony with
the purposes of The Lord.

PSALM 144 A NEW SONG

Psalm 144:9  English Standard Version
I will sing a new song to you , O God
upon a ten stringed harp I will play to you.

" New formula" ,   "New fragrance" or "New flavour"
are labels we often see in the supermarket,
because "new" indicates something fresh and
perhaps something better.
Since we were created "in the image of God"
we have within us the imagination and creativity
to think up and create something new.
So, to sing a "new" song to the Lord
is to demonstrate the divine gift within us to be creative.

PSALM 144 Covenant of Love

Job 7:17-18 Tanakh Translation JPS
17  What is man, that you make much of him,
      That You fix Your attention upon him ?
18  You inspect him every morning
      Examine him every minute.

Psalm8:4-6 ESV
4    What is man that you are mindful of him,
      and the son of man that you care for him?
5    Yet you have made him a little lower
      than heavenly beings
      and crowned him with glory and honour.
6    You have given him dominion over the 
      works of your hands;
      you have put all things under his feet....

Psalm 144:3 (143 LXX)   Orthodox SAAS
3    O Lord, what is man, that You are 
           made known to him
      or the son of man, that You consider him ?

from Donald Sheehan's translation of the Septuagint
Psalm 144  ( LXX 143 )    
     Lord, what is man that thou hast revealed thyself to him
     or the son of man that thou hast bent thy thought to him ?

Psalm 144:5  ESV
    Bow your heavens, O LORD, and come down !

Psalm 18:9 RSV
     He bowed the heavens and came down.

Psalm 144:2 ESV
2   He is my steadfast love and my fortress,
     my stronghold and my deliverer,
     my shield and he in whom I take refuge....

The psalmist boasts of his past experiences
of God's protection and deliverance.
But the psalmist is not addressing a political ally
or a military ally.
He is addressing " my steadfast love ".....
 "in whom I take refuge".
This verse expresses personal affection.
Of course an ally is someone in whom you have
 a relationship by treaty or friendship.
The psalmist relates to the Lord by covenant and by love.

PSALM 143 In Our Need

We turn to God in our need--in all our need.
The psalmist addressed God
"I stretch out my hands to you"                      Psalm 143 v6

The psalmist expects God to respond;
" In Your faithfulness " and
"With Your righteousness"                             Psalm 143 v1

The psalmist is disadvantaged in his circumstances
which include persecution, oppression and injustice.
still the psalmist puts his trust in the Lord,
for deliverance    Psalm 143 v9
and guidance       Psalm 143v8

The psalmist takes refuge in God                       Psalm 143 v9
expecting to experience His guidance                Psalm 143 v9

He seeks the active presence of the Spirit of God   Psalm 143 v10
to preserve his life and deliver him from distress    Psalm 143 v1

The expectations of the psalmist
are exceeded by our hope in Jesus Christ
in the wonder of the Trinity.
Where the Psalmist could discern the working of the Spirit of God,
we are aware of the love and dynamic presence of the Trinity
in all our circumstances

The psalmist prays directly to God.                           Psalm 143 v1

He remembers what God has previously done.         Psalm 143 v5
His request is that God be his teacher

to teach him the will of God                                      Psalm 143 v10
and give him personal direction

to make him know the way he should go.                 Psalm 143 v8

We have no righteousness of our own
but we can count on God's righteousness.
In our need we turn to the benevolence and
love of the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob,
David's God, revealed in Jesus Christ.

Following the psalmist's example we may pray;-
Deliver me from my enemies.                  Psalm 59:1  and Psalm 143:9
Save me from persecutors                        Psalm 142:6
Bring me out of prison                              Psalm 142:7 and Psalm 25:17
Redeem me from human oppression        Psalm 119:134
Deliver me from aliens                                Psalm 144:7

People who take an interest in the persecution of Christians worldwide
are aware that all the above prayers are appropriate today .

PSALM 143 His Active Presence

The Active Presence of Our Triune God 
Genesis 41:38 NRSV
Pharaoh said to his servants, " Can you find anyone
like this--one in whom is the spirit of God? "
Joseph was enabled by the Holy Spirit to interpret Pharaoh's dream.

When the Spirit rested on the seventy elders,
they prophesied . (Numbers 11:25)
Joshua, son of Nun was full of the Spirit of wisdom because
Moses had laid hands on him (Deuteronomy 34:9.
When the temple was to be re-built, the angel said;-
"This is the word of the LORD to Zerrubbabel:
Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit
says the Lord of hosts.

The active presence of our Triune God in everyday life.
Joel 2:28-29 RSV
I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh;
your sons and your daughters shall prophesy ,
your old men shall dream dreams, and your young men
shall see visions. Even upon the manservants and
 maidservants in those days, I will pour out my Spirit.

The psalmists prayer is for the presence and working of the
 Holy Spirit in his own personal experience in ongoing daily life.
Psalm 143:10 NRSV
Teach me to do your will, for you are my God.
Let your good spirit lead me on a level path.

This is also the prayer of the psalmist in
 Psalm 51:10-12 NRSV
Create in me a clean heart, O God,
and put a new and right spirit within me,
do not cast me away from your presence
and do not take your Holy Spirit from me
Restore to me the joy of your salvation
and sustain in me a willing spirit.

Ezekel 36:26-27 NRSV
A new heart I will give you, and a new spirit I will put within you;
and I will remove from your body the heart of stone and give you 
a heart of flesh. I will put my Spirit within you, and make you
follow my statutes and be careful to observe my ordinances.

1st Corinthians 12:3-4 +6 NRSV
....no one can say "Jesus is Lord"  except by the Holy Spirit.
Now there are varieties of gifts but the same spirit.
6 it is the same God who activates all of them, in everyone.
7 to each is given the manifestation of the Spirit
for the common good.

1st corinthians 14:1 NLT
Let love be your highest goal,
but also desire the special abilities
the Spirit gives...........

PSALM 143 Look to God

Psalm 143:2 NCV
for no one living is righteous before you.

Psalm 130:3 NCV
If you ,O LORD kept a record of our sins
O Lord, who could stand upright.

Romans 3:23 KJV
All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.

Isaiah 53:6 KJV
All we like sheep have gone astray.

When we look to God,
when we consider what he does,
he will show us what we should be doing.

Psalm 143:8 and 10  NASB
8  Teach me the way in which I should walk
10 Teach me to do Your will
      for You are my God;
Let Your good Spirit lead me
                                         on level ground                  NAS
                                 forward on a firm footing         NLT
                              into the land of uprightness         KJV

Psalm 143:5 RSV
I think about all your deeds,
I meditate on the works of your hands.

Psalm 119:27  
Make me understand the way of your precepts, 
and I will meditate on your wondrous works.

When we bring to mind all the people we know and love,
we recognize that every one of them are the work of
the hands of our Creator.

John 5:17 NIV
My Father is always at his work to this very day.
John 5:19 NIV  Jesus gave them this answer;
I tell you the truth, the Son can do nothing by himself;
he can do only what he sees the Father doing.

So how Christlike and how necessary is it to meditate
 on the works and deeds of our Heavenly Father ?

Psalm 143:6 NASB
I stretch out my hands to You
My soul longs for You, as a parched land.

Psalm 77:12 ESV
I will ponder all your work,
and meditate on your mighty deeds.
Your way , O God, is holy.

PSALM 142 God of my life

MY CRY TO THE GOD OF MY LIFE

Psalm 142:1 NIV
I cry aloud to the LORD;
I lift up my voice to the LORD for mercy.

Psalm 143:1 NRSV
Hear my prayer , O LORD;
give ear to my supplications
in your faithfulness ;
answer me in your righteousness.

Psalm 141:1-2  NRSV
I call upon you, O LORD, come quickly to me
Let my prayer be counted as incense before you
and the lifting up of my hands  as an evening sacrifice.

Psalm 69:13 NRSV
But as for me , my prayer is to You O  LORD,
............answer me.

The psalmist was completely aware that he stood
before the Lord, as a member of God's covenant community.
But  the verses quoted here illustrate just how personal,
how one to one is his relationship with the God of Abraham.

Psalm 42:8  NRSV
....a prayer  to the God of my life.

Psalm 17:1
Hear a just cause, O LORD, attend to my cry ,
give ear to my prayer, 
from lips free from deceit.

Psalm 142: 3 NRSV
When my spirit is faint,
you know my way.

Psalm 142:5 NRSV
I cry to you,  O LORD;
I say , " You are my refuge ,
my portion in the land of the living.

Psalm 23: 6 from THE MESSAGE, is beautiful ,and points to
 our own ongoing personal relationship
with the living God.
"Your beauty and love chase after me
every day of my life.
I'm back home in the house of God
for the rest of my life."

We share the experience which the psalmist expresses
in Psalm 41: 12  ESV
You have upheld me.........................
     and set me in your presence forever.