I love the Psalms - that book actually gets the designation of my favorite book of the Bible. It’s all good, of course, but there’s something about the emotional nature of the Psalms that I relate to particularly. Perhaps it’s that I’m an emotional person, myself. Anyway, although I suggest you just go read all 150 Psalms (they’re all so rich), I thought I’d put together a list of my top 10 favorites...the ones I go back and read over and over again, I find myself praying through, or just grip my heart in a special way. Psalm 23
It’s a classic, I know, but if you just read it like you’ve never read it before...there is such richness to it. It’s about God’s love, kindness, and care...despite our tendency to be...well...sheep. That analogy is a pretty spot-on one! Although we often hear it read at funerals, the ending is so much more than just about the afterlife. It’s about life right NOW... we’re dwelling in God’s house in the here and now. Especially when I’m in the midst of a battle, this psalm is a comfort to me. “You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies...” When we’re faced with spiritual war, sometimes, we’ve got to learn that feasting in the midst of it is the best thing we can do. There’s nothing that annoys the devil more is us rejoicing even when all hell breaks loose against us. I wrote a song from Psalm 23 and Jeremiah 31 (click here) a few years back...enjoy! Psalm 91 I don’t know of a more powerful passage of Scripture than this psalm. It’s one I’ve prayed daily at times in my life, personalizing it to say “I shall...” It’s a declaration of the truth. “I dwell in the shelter of the Most High, I rest in the shadow of the Almighty...I will say of the Lord, You are my refuge, my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.” And on from there. I highly recommend!! Psalm 33 As a musician, this psalm has always held a special place in my heart. “Make music to Him.” It’s not so much a command as it is a joyful call to worship. As Psalm 100:1 states, “Make a joyful noise to the Lord.” Even if you can’t sing like an angel, it says nothing about sounding good. “It is fitting for the upright to praise Him.” There’s nothing more fitting than for an upright person to praise the Lord. David calls us to praise numerous times throughout the Psalms, with frequent bursts of “Hallelu Yah!” which is usually translated as “Praise the Lord.” That’s what those Hebrew words mean in English. Praise is a powerful weapon, and there’s something about music that amplifies the worship that begins in our hearts. Psalm 19 I love this psalm as much for its poeticness as the message. The word pictures are second to none. “Like a champion rejoicing to run its course...” I never thought of the sun quite that way before. I think the thing I really love about the psalm is that there’s a sense of the awe of God in its words - you can almost feel David’s desperate love for his Creator. I think that’s what draws me in. I especially like the last verse (v 14), which says “May these words of my mouth and this meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer.” These are words I pray often - I long for my thoughts and the things I think and say and do to be pleasing to God. I’m not sure I have a greater desire in my heart than that. Psalm 139 Whenever the doubts begin to swirl, this is one of my go-to psalms. The words are a comfort and an encouragement through both mountaintop and valley. It contains the promises of God’s watchcare over us, the inevitability of being found by God no matter where we go, and the reassurance that He was the One who knit us together, and He who holds the future in His hands. Isn’t that amazing?! Psalm 67 Sometimes, the short psalms are the ones that pack the most punch. This one is only 7 verses long, but there is so much gold hidden within the words that it’s worth a lifetime of study. It’s like the writer took the Aaronic blessing (“The Lord bless you and keep you, etc.) and personalized it. “Lord bless us and keep us...” Then, he veers away from his original and starts expounding on being blessed so that the nations will see... Blessing isn’t just a personal gratification thing. It’s there to be a sign and a wonder to reveal a loving, holy Father (those two are not mutually exclusive, by the way). I recommend praying through this psalm as well. Psalm 46 Although you may not know that they come from Psalm 46, this psalm contains a lot of popular memory verses. Those include verse 1 (“God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble”), verse 4 (“There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy place where the Most High dwell”), verse 5a (“God is within her, she will not fall”), and verse 10a (“He says, “Be still, and know that I am God”). I actually have 5a engraved on the bracelet my parents gave me when I was twenty-one - it is exceedingly meaningful to women the world over, and me specifically. But taken as a whole, this psalm is worth a good, careful study. Psalm 8 “Let the little children come to Me and do not hinder them, for the Kingdom of Heaven belongs to such as these.” - Matt 19:14 I always think of that verse when I think of Psalm 8 because of a minute little verse that states, “On the lips of children and infants You have ordained praise because of Your enemies, to silence the foe and the avenger.” (v. 2). There is nothing like the praise of the children to topple the enemy’s stronghold. It’s so pure, so radical, so abandoned. Jesus said, “Unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.” (Matt 18:2). We all need to understand that we are like little children in the Kingdom, learning from Papa God, leaning into Papa God, running to Papa God to be comforted, played with (yes, really!), to receive adoration from even as we adore. Childlikeness is maturity in God’s eyes. Psalm 96 Once again, my love of worship is finding its way through! This psalm begins, “Sing to the Lord a new song,” which is super encouraging as a songwriter. We’re literally commanded to sing new songs, whether they eventually become ones we remember and sing for years or if it’s one moment of simple adoration to God. Either way, this psalm is a call to give to the Lord the worship He is due – and one great way to do that is to sing to Him a new song. Psalm 1 I think the thing that grabs me about this song is the description of the righteous person. Not standing in the way of sinners. Not sitting in the seat of mockers. When I’ve been tempted to mock something, this verse has an uncanny way of making its way into my mind. I’m not to sit in the seat of mockers – that’s both unfitting for and uncharacteristic of a righteous person’s life. We are to be like trees planted by streams of water, who yield our fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither. Spoiler alert: Not so the wicked! Don’t be the wicked person. This psalm makes it very clear that they don’t come to a good end. What are your favorite psalms? Let me know in the comments below!
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Sarah GraceHi! I'm Sarah Grace, and I'm so glad you stopped by the Wings of Heaven blog! You can find short posts for easy reading or longer, more in-depth musings! I hope you're blessed! Archives
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