Blogging Bible Study: The Heart of the Matter - Psalms, Part 8 (Ps. 71 - 80)

 Posted by Lisa Laree to Beer Lahai Roi

We hit the halfway point in Psalms today, looking at Ps. 71- 80.  I have a note in my Bible that Ps. 71 begins 'Book 3'...the third in the series.  All of the psalms we are looking at today were written by Asaph who,  gleaning from a simple search, was one of the Levites who wrote and performed the psalms during the reigns of both David and Solomon.

The first psalm that mentions Heart/Hearts is Ps. 73...which, according to one of the search results, is Asaph's most famous psalm.  It's certainly something that most folks can identify with.

I'm going to include just a wee bit of context along with the verses, but let's just consider them all together here:

Surely God is good to Israel, to those who are pure in heart.  But as for me, my feet had almost slipped; I had nearly lost my foothold.  For I envied the arrogant when I saw the prosperity of the wicked.  Ps 73: 1-3; 'Heart' is the common Strong's H3824, lebab.

From their callous hearts comes iniquity; the evil conceits of their minds know no limits.  Ps. 73:7; 'Hearts' is H3824 again.

Surely in vain have I kept my heart pure; in vain have I washed my hands in innocence.   Ps. 73:13; 'Heart' is, once more, H3824

When my heart was grieved and my spirit embittered, I was senseless and ignorant; I was a brute beast before you.  Ps. 73:21-22; 'Heart' here is Strong's H3629, kilya , which we have seen a few times and means 'reins' or 'kidneys'...a modern paraphrase could easily be 'guts'.

My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.   Ps. 73:20; both occurrences of  'Heart' are H3824.

Looking at these verses all together...it's a pretty good summary of the whole psalm. After stating that God is good to the pure in heart, he admits that his heart had nearly faltered when he thought about how the wicked seemed to prosper, despite their evil hearts.  He wonders if he has maintained his integrity for nothing, but he did come to realize the ultimate fate of the wicked (vs 17-20, the only point in the narrative that isn't in the above list).  He confessed his failure, and rejoiced that God is good even when he faltered.  And...he uses 'lebab' for the source of morality, behavior, belief...but when he talked about being grieved, his word choice was 'kilya'...which the NIV translated as 'heart' but I think  'guts' would have been a better choice.  The  Hebrew phrase is literally 'pierced in my kidneys'...but I recognized the gut-level distress of emotional upheaval.  It's a description of a physical reaction. Who doesn't know the knotted up feeling that accompanies such times? 

I would love to just hang on that psalm for the whole post, but we need to cover more ground...

The next mention of 'hearts' is in Ps. 74, talking about the enemies of Israel

They said in their hearts, "We will crush them completely!"  They burned every place where God was worshiped in the land, we are given no miraculous signs; no prophets are left, and none of us knows how long this will be. -- Ps 74:8-9; 'heart' is the other frequent word, H3820, leb, which is a variant of H 3824.

Y'all.  There are still folks who look at Israel and say, 'We will crush them completely!'  As it was when Asaph was writing, it's a deep, heart-level hatred.  It was sad then...it's sad now.

Moving on to Ps 77:6:

I remembered my songs in the night, My heart mused and my spirit inquired: "Will the LORD reject forever?  Will he never show his favor again?  Has his unfailing love vanished forever?  Has his promise failed for all time?" : 'Heart' is H3824.

The worry that comes in the night when sleep won't...is a whole 'nuther level.  In the midst of such a night, Asaph begins to ask himself questions...questions to which the answer is 'NO'.  Prompted by his heart, he's reminding himself of the love and the faithfulness and the mercy of God.  He's getting out of his head and into his heart and his spirit,  which is a good example to follow when those night worries come.

Ps. 78, the last one with any references to 'heart/ hearts' in the ten chapters we're considering today, is a review of the history of Israel up to the reign of David.

He opens the song with instructions to teach the children these things so that

They would not be like their forefathers -- a stubborn and rebellious generation, whose hearts were not loyal to God, whose spirits were not faithful to him.  -- Ps. 78:8; 'Hearts' is H3820.

Speaking of the later generations, who turned to God when they were in need, and then did as they pleased once he had delivered them:

their hearts were not loyal to him, they were not faithful to his covenant.  Ps. 78:37; 'Hearts' is, again, H3820

Finally, we see King David leading the nation

And David shepherded them with integrity of heart; with skillful hands he led them. -- Ps 78:72; 'Heart' is H 3824.  

This, of course, is part of the story of David's origin story as a shepherd of sheep...now being a shepherd of God's people. And, while he famously messed up more than once, he also continually sought God's guidance on what to do. Not a perfect king... a human king who sought God.

Hodgepodge for an approaching (maybe?) snowstorm...

 posted by Lisa Laree to Beer Lahai Roi

It's 10:30 PM on Hodgepodge Wednesday and I got a sudden urge to write; just needed someone to ask me to write something...the Weekly Hodgepodge will do!

Click the link to find everyone else's thoughts!

This week's questions (and my answers, lol):

1. At the end of every year (or at least since the mid-1970's) Lake Superior State University posts a list of words they think should be banished from the Queen's English for misuse, overuse, and/or general uselessness. You can read more about the decision making process here, but this year's list includes-cringe, game changer, era, dropped, IFKYK (If you know you know), sorry not sorry,  skibidi, 100%, utilize, and period.  Which of these words/phrases do you use regularly or even just every now and then? How many did you have to look up? Which of these words would you most like to see banished from everyday speech and why? Is there a word/phrase not on the list you'd like to add? If so do share, then tell us why. 

Oy.  I probably use all the words EXCEPT  the slang use of era and dropped (not even sure what the slang application of those might be) and skibidi (which I had to look up and, frankly, would never use it).  But in terms of what words would I like to see dropped...'unpack'  was the first thing that popped into mind.  I thought it was a clever use when I first heard it...oh, around 2012...but it's been WAY overused.  Find another word, folks.

2. Your favorite soup? Do you make this one yourself or is it from a can? 

January is Soup Month around here.  My best home made soups...vegetable beef (which we always eat on New Year's Day, due to the cabbage content), something we call Mexican chicken soup, broccoli cheese soup,  a sausage/spinach/ noodle soup, mushroom chowder, Hurst's bean soup (with ham), and, of course, chili.  We do have canned soup from time to time; cream of chicken and mushroom (made with milk and topped with a bit of parmesan cheese),  homestyle chicken and noodle, good ol' tomato, and split pea with bacon that I puree with the submersible blender, adding a good couple of grinds of black pepper and topping with sour cream.  THAT tastes just like the potage St. Germain soup we used to get at The Magic Pan at Glendale shopping center in Indianapolis when I was a teen on a girl's day out.  Ah, those were the days...

3. How do you feel about winter? What's one winter activity you look forward to? 

Growing up in Indiana in the late 70's...I knew winter as a brutal beast with moments of sparkling fun.  Got married and moved to Alabama, where we have winter...sometimes.  And nobody knows what to do with it when it comes.  The first time it snowed (the second winter after we moved down), I ran over to the local Winn-Dixie to grab a carton of sour cream to make meatballs to celebrate the snow.  I bopped back to the dairy section, got my little carton, and headed to the cash register to pay.  And was shocked to see all the registers were six deep.  I thought it was triple coupon day and I didn't know!  Took me 30 minutes to check out. In that 30 minutes we had accumulated about a half inch of snow; it took me 45 minutes to get back to the apartment...something that normally took just a fuzz over 5 because I had to make two left turns.  Couldn't turn left at all due to traffic; had to make a circle to get home and discovered that no one in the area had a clue about driving on snow.  It was crazy.  Now, when it snows...I stay home.  I don't need nothin' that bad, lol.  But...back to the question...I LIKE staying home.  I am so spoiled now, if I moved back north and actually had to drive in the snow again I'd be a bundle of nerves.  It's a good time to read a book...take a walk and take pictures, 'cause it's likely gonna be another 3 - 5 years before it happens again.  Our last real snow...on this side of town, anyway...was three years ago.  But it came on Jan 2 and the Christmas lights were still up.  Pretty!!

4. The Pantone color of the year for 2025 is mocha mousse (sample pictured here). What say you? The website describes it as 'a warming, brown hue imbued with richness. It nourishes us with its suggestion of the delectable qualities of chocolate and coffee, answering our desire for comfort'.  Is this a color I might find in your home or wardrobe? Is it one you might add in some big or small way in the year ahead? In a similar, but not really vein...if I were to offer you a choice right now of either a cup of mocha or a cup of mousse which would you say yes to? 

Brown is not one of my better colors, although I can wear a rich chocolate brown.  That's close.  I just have a beef against the whole idea of corporate somebody telling us what our New Best Color will be.  I know what works for me, lol.    I won't make a point to purchase something in Mocha Mousse.  But if you were to offer me a cup of mousse I'd gladly eat it slowly and enjoy every bit.

5. Which of the following winter related idioms can best be applied to your life in some way right now? Choose one, then tell us why you chose it.  snowed under, on thin ice, tip of the iceberg, chill out, break the ice, snowball effect, not a snowball's chance in hell, get cold feet, the cold shoulder 

Oh, definitely snowed under.  Well, maybe almost.  I have more to do than I have do in me, I think, lol.

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

We have a rare snow event forecast...but even as the weather pages are waving maps showing us with significant snowfall, a few forecasters are talking about a 'warm nose' that might turn it all to rain.  We had a 'warm nose'  two years ago that turned everything south of a very discernable line across the county to rain, while the northern side got very pretty snow.  I have a dread that we'll see that repeat and despite all the hype with this storm...we either won't get any, or we'll get a bit that the rain will dissolve and turn to ice.  Crossing my fingers that line stays south of us, but it's going to be close.

Blogging Bible Study - the Heart of the Matter: Psalms, Part 7; Ps. 61-70

 Posted to Beer Lahai Roi by Lisa Laree

A happy 2025 to all, and a blessed 10th day of Christmas!  The holiday season is winding down and it's time to get back into our cruise through the Bible, looking at the verses containing 'Heart' or 'Hearts', as translated by the New International Version, 1984 edition (the Exhaustive Concordance we own, lol).  We are nearly  halfway through the Psalms, looking today at verses in the 61st  - the 70th  psalms.

And we hit a verse right off the bat in Ps. 61 -- one of David's:

From the ends of the earth I call to you, I call as my heart grows faint; lead me to the rock that is higher than I.  Ps. 61:2 - 'Heart' is the familiar Strong's H3820 - Leb -  inner man, mind, will, heart, understanding. 

The word 'heart' is used to describe David's mental/ emotional state; David's heart 'grows faint'...his inner man; his spirit.  Dude was seriously discouraged and his drive, his ability to keep going, was waning fast.  And his request...take me to the rock that is higher than I...is a beautiful recognition of the strength and steadfastness of the Lord.  Think about 'rock'; it's solid, fixed, not moving.  "Higher than I"  ...bigger than I am, stronger than I am, able to see farther that I can, with deeper understanding than I have.  The theme of God as a refuge is repeated in both this psalm and the next, which  David also penned.

He describes the evil intent of those around him in Ps. 62:4; 'him', in this case, is the king...David:

They fully intend to topple him from his lofty place; they take delight in lies.  With their mouths they bless, but in their hearts they curse. Selah.  'Hearts' is a (pauses for a two hour dive in past posts to see what words we have seen so far) Hebrew word that we have encountered once before, H 7130, qereb: midst, among, inner part, middle. 

In their inward parts, they curse....'hearts' does make sense, at least to modern western-thinkers.  The point is that there are folks who behave one way outwardly but have entirely different thoughts/attitudes than they exhibit.  But David has a response to these folks

Trust in him at all times, O people; pour out your hearts to him, for God is our refuge. Selah.  - Ps. 62:8; 'Heart' is the familiar H 3824, Lebab.  

God is our refuge.  That's pretty much the theme we're working with now.  

And, if God is our refuge, 

Do not trust in extortion or take pride in stolen goods; though your riches increase, do not set your heart on them.  -- Ps. 62:10;  H3820 again. 

The next mention of Heart/Hearts is Ps. 64, another one of David's:

At the end of a 5-verse description of his enemies, David writes

They plot injustice and say, "We have devised a perfect plan!"  Surely the mind and heart of man are cunning.  -- Ps. 64:6; 'Heart' is H3820.

'Mind' and 'Heart' here seem to be source of the evil these folks are plotting.  However, verse seven begins with 'But God...' and then David describes how God will move to defeat those folks.  He ends the psalm with

Let the righteous rejoice in the LORD and take refuge in him; let all the upright in heart praise him! -- Ps. 64:10; 'Heart' is 3820 again.

Still talking about God as a refuge for the righteous, who should praise him for his works and his protection.  Contrasting the last two verses...there is cunning and malice in the heart of the evil, but praise in the heart of the upright.  Pretty sharp distinction.

Psalm 66 is an unattributed praise song that contains one caveat

If I had cherished sin in my heart, the LORD would not have listened; but God has surely listened and heard my voice in prayer.  -- Ps. 66: 18-19; 'Heart' is, once more,  H 3820.

That's a pretty extreme thing if it results in God not listening to our prayer.  What does it mean to 'cherish sin in the heart'?  The word translated 'cherish' is Strong's H7200, ra'a:  verb: to see, literally or figuratively, -- advise self, appear, approve, behold, ...consider, ...(make to) enjoy, have experience, gaze, take heed, ...look (on, one another, one on another, out up, upon), mark, meet...perceive, present, provide, regard, (have) respect, show (self)...

I am going to jump back to a topic from Joshua 6, something I've written about before, more than once...what I call the 'sin progression'...as summarized by Achan, in his confession of taking the 'things under the ban':  I saw, I coveted, I took, I hid.   Somewhere between physically seeing the plunder and actually taking it, there was an unknown span of time in which he actually considered his actions.  It may have been very brief, but it was there.  He had the opportunity to turn away from the thing he knew was wrong...but he didn't.  The moment he shifted his thinking from 'I shouldn't' to 'I could....'  to 'I will...' matches what I think 'cherished sin in my heart' could mean.  

The last references to 'Heart/ Hearts' in this set of ten psalms are in Psalm 69...another one of David's.

Scorn has broken my heart and has left me helpless; I looked for sympathy, but there was none, for comforters, but I found none.  -- Ps. 69:20. 'Heart' is H 3820 again.

This verse is SO RELATEABLE.  I actually have the last half of that verse underlined; I'm pretty sure that's from a time when I found myself excluded...from a thing...and found no (or very little) sympathy or comfort or understanding or even acknowledgement.  It was rough, y'all.  And it has happened more than once over the years.  King James has the phrase 'I am full of heaviness'...and that's a great description of those times.  It was hard to deal with, basically on my own.  But I found, like David, that God is good.  I remember the heaviness but have moved on.

The poor will see and be glad-- you who seek God, may your hearts live! Ps 69:32; 'Hearts' is H3824 again.

Just for completion of that thought, I'm going to list the next verse (69:33) as well...to get the whole promise.

The LORD hears the needy and does not despise his captive people.

HE hears the needy...even if no one else does.  And being heard makes all the difference.

Disclaimer:  I know these posts are kind of all over the place; it's because there's such a wide variety of topics/situations that are covered in ten consecutive Psalms.  It would probably be better to do a study of 'heart/ hearts' just in the Psalms, but since it's part of the larger whole we're kinda stuck jumping around.  

I am very grateful for the two dozen or so of you (based on the blog stats) who are hanging with me on this journey!  :-D

Blogging Bible Study: The Heart of the Matter - Psalms, part 6; Ps 51 - 60

 Posted by Lisa Laree to Beer Lahai Roi

It feels like it's been a month since we last had a look at Heart/ Hearts...but it's only been two weeks.   We had a great visit with family last week  and we're starting off this week with one of the most poignant of all the psalms...number 51.  The psalm David wrote after Nathan confronted him about the worst series of choices he'd made in his life...which resulted in adultery, betrayal, murder, cover- up...

David didn't back pedal or try to justify himself, as his predecessor Saul had done when Samuel confronted him about HIS errors.  No, he owned his sin and repented, and penned Ps. 51.  Two verses, both often quoted, mention 'Heart'

Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.  (Ps. 51:10; 'Heart' is the common Strong's H3820, leb)

The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise. (Ps. 51:17; 'heart' is, once more, H3820).

Ps. 51 is a wonderful example of repentance...which is something of a lost art among moderns, I fear.  We have forgotten how to own our errors...both honest mistakes and deliberate acts of disobedience.  There's always a reason, always someone or something to blame.  But, at the very core of it, there is a choice made.  David made the choice because he wanted something that was forbidden to him...his friend's wife.  But he wanted it!  Why shouldn't he have it?  ...and thus the same temptation, albeit in different form, trips us all up, from Eve right up to you and I.  Never mind that the all-knowing, benevolent Father of us all, who knows us to the number of hairs on our head and knows what giftings, talents, passions and callings he has given each of us, has given us commandments for our good, that contain, horror of horrors, Forbidden Things.  Things under the ban.   The enemy twists those bans around to make it seem that God is deliberately keeping us from being our best selves, when, in fact, those commandments are there so, by following them, with his grace to empower us, we can become the man or woman he intended...our very best self.   But we WANT...so we TAKE...and horrible things happen.  Things...both tangible and intangible... are broken.  

The ONLY way to move back to restoration is repentance.  Read Ps. 51 slowly and carefully and see how David completely admitted to his fault and threw himself on the mercy of God.  

Also notice, from the two verses quoted, the importance of this being done from the very core of one's being.  This is not just a prescribed prayer to recite when one falls into error; this is an expression of true remorse and repentance.  It's also worth noting that, while David certainly wasn't without error and sin in the rest of his life...he never fell into that one again.

The next verse containing 'Heart/ Hearts' is Ps. 53:1, which is a repeat of Ps. 14:1 - 

The fool says in his heart, "There is no God."  They are corrupt, and their ways are vile; there is no one who does good. ('Heart' is H3820 again). 

 I won't repeat all of what I said on the post that included the discussion of Ps. 14:1, but I will point out again that 'fool' here doesn't mean one lacking intelligence...it means someone who is morally deficient.  And I will also repeat that this is not something spoken out loud...it is an inner belief.

I'll let the reader contemplate the significance of those two things and move on....

Ps 55 is a lament from David concerning friends who had betrayed him

My heart is in anguish within me; the terrors of death assail me.   - Ps. 55:4;  'Heart' is H3820 agin.

There is nothing that stings and cuts like betrayal, misunderstanding, or other falling out between folks who were once friends, whatever the cause of the dispute might be.  Sometimes it's just a parting of ways, with pain and hurt...and sometimes that person who had such intimate knowledge uses it as a weapon, which appears to be the case here.  Not only is David grieving, but the damage that can be done from a friend - turned - opponent or rival can be deep and devastating.

His speech is smooth as butter, yet war is in his heart; his words are more soothing than oil, yet they are drawn swords. -- Ps. 55:21; 'heart' is H3820 once more.

David recognizes the ulterior motive of his once-friend...and, if you read the rest of the psalm, declares his trust in God to deliver him.  At this point, he's wise to the plotting and can take appropriate action but he knows that, ultimately, God will deal with the situation.

The next verse is from Psalms 57, which was written when David had fled from Saul into the cave.  I'm not sure if this is the cave at En Gedi, or the cave of Adullam, although I suspect it was the latter becuause he used that cave as a base for a bit....and I doubt he was in the cave at En Gedi long enough to write poetry.

But David does describe his situation, then as in other psalms, declares his absolute trust that God will deliver him.

My heart is steadfast, O God, my heart is steadfast;   I will sing and make music.  -- Ps. 57:7; 'Heart' is, once again, H3820.  

Another reason I don't think this was En Gedi...David certainly didn't have any opportunity to sing while the events passed there. And the song of the rest of the psalm is a glorious praise to God.  Evidence of a heart that is steadfast even in trial.

One more verse in this week's list...Ps. 58:2...but it needs verse 1a for context.  This is also one of David's psalms:

Do you rulers indeed speak justly?  Do you judge uprightly among men? No, in your heart you devise injustice, and your hands mete out violence on the earth. ('Heart' is, yet again, H3820)

The research tool I uses is based off the King James, which renders 'rulers' in verse 1 as 'congregation'.  Whoa, I thought, that's a pretty big difference.  So I looked up the reference there and found that it is H482 - elem, which appears nowhere else in the Bible and actually is a singular masculine noun for 'silence'

So I went down the list of words and...here's what I came up with for that bit of verse 1, with 'silence' being the subject of the first sentence:

[does] Silence truly speak righteously?  Do you judge uprightly, sons of men?

Y'all.  That is staring me down.  For whatever reason (and maybe there is an idiomatic thing happening here that Hebrew scholars recognize but of which I am ignorant), the NIV translators threw the focus on rulers.  Now, I don't know if that means rulers of nations, rulers of the tribes/ clans/ families/ local assemblies/ cities/ whatever,  so lil' ol' plebian me is, like, yeah, you tell those rulers, David.  BUT.  No. It doesn't look like that verse is focused on rulers at all...but all of us. 

 Do we speak righteously by keeping silent?

Are we assessing things from a pure heart when we hold our peace?

Now, I am not saying That Is What That Verse Means.  I am saying that it's one aspect of that verse I wouldn't have considered had I not looked up the original language.

But...if the silence of the people is the issue, then verse 2 also reads a bit differently... as in, your silence is from selfish motives, and it is increasing the violence on the earth.

Whoa.  That's worth a selah.  Gonna chew on that for a while...

A Thanksgiving Hodgepodge....

 Posted by Lisa Laree to Beer Lahai Roi

Thanksgiving is probably my favorite family holiday; so, yeah, I'll do this week's hodgepodge. Click the link to find the party!

1. Talking turkey...are you cooking the turkey this year? Does ham belong on a Thanksgiving day menu? When it comes to gravy do you pour it over your whole plate, skip it altogether, or land somewhere in between? Cranberries-homemade or jelled right out of the can? Do you look forward more to the main course, the savory sides, or the desserts? 

We have a set menu that changes not from year to year, lol. My grandmother's method for slow-roasting a turkey (done the day before), also her (yankee style...no cornbread) dressing; mashed potatoes and gravy,  my mother's candied sweet potatoes, my mother-in-law's green bean casserole, corn I brought back from the August trip to Indiana and put in the freezer, my Aunt Judy's apple salad, plus a cheese tray, a relish tray, yeast rolls (my other grandma's recipe if I'm ambitious, Sister Shubert's if I'm not), and...don't judge me...Ocean Spray jellied cranberry sauce.  Sometime after dinner has digested enough, we'll cut the pies...pumpkin (The Princess is doing that this year) and my aunt Ruth's pecan pie.  And I have to say...the whole is greater than the sum of the parts.  It's a package deal and I look forward to the full plate.

2.Holiday movies...tell us your favorite and what it is about the film that makes you love it. Is it the film itself or a memory it stirs? 

We always watch 'Miracle on 34th Street'...the original black and white version...while we eat our pie; it's a great transition since it starts with (an actual...they really filmed a parade!) Macy's parade.  The whole family rattles off the dialogue and it gets quoted year 'round.  But my FAVORITE Christmas movie, hands down, is 'A Muppet Christmas Carol'. I love the Christmas Carol story...have since I was a kid...but the Muppets just add a whole 'nuther level.  And, except for the fact that Scrooge goes to Bob Cratchet's on Christmas day in the finale, it is one of the most faithful-to-the-text renditions.  And, y'all might not notice, but the costuming is superb. (If you are curious, Abby Cox has a whole video pointing out the details in a true fangirl style).  Another movie that we all recite the dialog in real time and quote throughout the year. So. Much. Fun.  The holiday isn't complete until we eat pizza and watch  it.

3. A favorite way to give back and help others?

Church theater. Sounds kinda 'not helping' ...but it is my favorite ministry area.  We have a couple of showings of our Christmas production this year that are purely outreaches...tickets reserved for a particular group...and we will have food and fun along with the performance.  (We also do a number of other outreaches...this is just the one that I am the most involved in).  Dorothy Sayers, via her character Lord Peter Wimsey, points out that when people come to be entertained, the guard is lowered, and truth that would be rejected if it were just spoken can be slipped in via entertainment.

4. Name a place or setting you encountered this month that made you feel grateful. 

We had an AWESOME church service Sunday, and I was very thankful to have been there.

5. Knowing what you know today, if you could redo yesterday what would you do differently? 

Literally yesterday?  Or...something in the past?  I think if I had known more about...life...I would have had much less angst as a teenager.   If I had known that I would have nasty leg cramps Monday, I'd've made sure to drink more liquids the day before, lol.

6. Spill your own random thought here. 

The color has been late and sporadic this year.  Too little rain, too warm, lots of wind...trees lost their leaves before all of them changed...but we finally have a bit of color on the hill up the street.  Not as amazing as it has been in other years, but still pretty enough to know it's fall.  The heavy rain that had been predicted for Thursday is not in the forecast anymore, so mayhap this will stay around for the holiday.

Blogging Bible Study: the Heart of the Matter - Psalms, part 5 Ps. 41 - 50

 Posted by Lisa Laree to Beer Lahai Roi

Oy.  Y'all, I am struggling with the demands of the season.  Got a bit convicted this morning about not putting a priority on the Scripture digging.  So I'm repenting and...putting it at the top of my list today, lol.

Anyway, we are cruising through the Bible on a long slow journey looking at the use of 'Heart/ Hearts' as listed in the NIV Exhaustive concordance (Zondervan, 1990), and we are now in the Psalms.

Ps. 41 is one of David's, and he is relating how his enemies...and some of his friends... have gossiped about him:

Whenever one comes to see me, he speaks falsely, while his heart gathers slander; then he goes out and spreads it abroad. -- Ps. 41:6; 'Heart' is Strong's H3820, which we've seen frequently.

David is describing an individual who comes and speaks kindly to him, whilst looking for dirt to spread around about the king once he leaves.  We are familiar with the idea of hiding God's word in the heart (we'll get there when we hit Ps 119) ...but it is apparent that other things can be hidden in one's heart as well.  Like details of another's hardship...which sometimes get masked as 'prayer requests'.

Of course, David's trust is in God, who vindicates him, but it is a good moment to mention...checking one's motives.

I have a notation in my Bible that Ps. 42 begins 'Book II'.  I suppose I could chase that down and learn about the structure of Psalms and all, but that's not my purpose here, so cruising on to the next mention of 'heart/hearts' brings us to Ps. 44, written by 'the sons of Korah'. This is a lament of those who do not perceive why God is letting them go through hardship.

Our hearts had not turned back; our feet had not strayed from your path.  -- Ps. 44:18; 'Hearts' is once more H3820.

If we had forgotten the name of our God or spread our hands to a foreign god, would not God have discovered it, since he know the secrets of the heart? -- Ps 44:20-21; H3820 again.

Not unlike Job, the psalmist(s?) struggles with understanding what has happened, although this is on a national, not a personal, level.  However, there is no questioning 'Why'...just a plea for God to rise up and deliver his people.  This isn't a 'God knows my heart despite my actions' situation...this is a genuine 'my heart is clear and God can see it all' mystification...but still resting on the assurance that God cares and does redeem.

Ps. 45 is another by the sons of Korah, and it is labeled  'a wedding song', extoling the qualities of the groom and the bride.

My heart is stirred by a noble theme as I recite my verses for the king; my tongue is the pen of a skillful writer. -- Ps. 45:1; 'heart' is, again, H3820.  The psalmist is introducing the poem, moved in his heart by the occasion.

For a poem about love, it's kind of odd that the only other reference to heart is a verse celebrating the king's military might

Let your sharp arrows pierce the hearts of the king's enemies; let the nations fall beneath your feet. -- Ps. 45:5; H3820 once more.

Literally, the vital organ of the heart here;  the psalmist is declaring victory over the enemies of the king.

Psalms 46 is also written by the sons of Korah; I'm going to quote two verses for context:

God is our refuge and our strength, an ever-present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea -- Ps. 46:1-2; keeping the string going, that's H3820 again...the midst, center. A description of a true natural disaster.

Cataclysmic events should not spark fear.  Interesting and timely, given the cataclysmic events (storms, earthquakes, volcanoes, floods) that have happened of late.  The earth is groaning...which is pretty far afield from my topic but worth a mention.

One more verse today; in the 49th psalm, also from the sons of Korah.

My mouth will speak words of wisdom; the utterance from my heart will give understanding. - Ps. 49:3  Batting a thousand today; that's H3820 again.

The psalmist is pretty confident that the revelation in his heart is something worth sharing.  The first two verses are actually encouraging folks to pay attention as he shares what he has seen/heard/ understood.

I suddenly feel like I have something in common with this unknown poet, lol.  Maybe he would have been a blogger...if blogging had been a thing...

A Blast from the Past...

 Posted by Lisa Laree to Beer Lahai Roi

Just a little story about my writing process...or not, lol.

Last week I had a chat with a friend who is a published author and a supporter of new writers.  Something came up in our conversation that hit a nerve and I suddenly remembered A Thing I had started writing back when my kids were small.

I gave her a quick -ish- synopsis of the story and she strongly encouraged me to pull it out and finish it.

She asked me how many words I'd written and.. I had no idea.  I was, however, pretty sure everything I've ever written was somewhere in my writing folder under my documents.  I'd been pretty careful to make sure to move stuff over.

So the next day, whilst My Sweet Babboo was on a camping trip, I sat down to the computer and pulled up the writing folder.

Nothing.

I poked around a while in some other folders.

Still nothing.

I ran searches on key words and...still nothing.

I looked on our backup drive. More nothing.

Somehow, that file didn't get transferred over to this computer.  It may not even have been on the previous one.

Rats.  Could I re-write it?  

As I was heading to bed that night, I suddenly remembered that there is a physical folder in the filing cabinet with some of my old writing in it.  Maybe...

The next day, I looked and, lo and behold, there it was.

Y'all.  That is CONTIUNOUS FEED paper from a DOT MATRIX printer.  I knew it was old, but I didn't know it was THAT old.  And the backup is apparently on that old floppy disc.  I'd written it on the very first computer we owned... a hand-me-down Apple IIc.  I suspect the files weren't compatible with the Windows machine we replaced it with.

Only about half of what I wrote is on the printout, but what is there is a hoot.

Nobody has a cell phone.  The protagonist checks her phone messages.  They rent a movie from Blockbuster.   She made coffee from those little single-serving tea-bag thingies (remember those?).

I am going to see if a local Old Computer Tech company can extract the files from the floppy disc...but, wow, there's a LOT of work that needs doing, lol. The basic plot is not affected by the time period but all those details...

Or maybe I'll just leave it set in the 90's and call it a creative choice, lol.  

But first to see if the files can be salvaged.