The fear of the LORD - Psalm 34

What I learned from the Word today...

In truth, I learned a lot. I had really sweet time with the LORD this morning, for several hours. I love it when I get hour(s) PLURAL with God! I love it!

I'm preparing to take the Precept Ministries advanced leader training this weekend, and boy do I have my work cut out for me! (Pray, people! Pray for me!) :)

Today they had me studying 1 Samuel 21 and 22, and several Psalms that correspond with 1 Samuel, because these Psalms were were written by David during the time of
1 Samuel 21 & 22.

There's so much that the LORD showed me today, but I'll have to save some of it for tomorrow, because we have study tonight, and I've got to get ready!!! Oooh! I see a bad hair night tonight!

Here is one thing that God really pressed upon my heart today, and I just had to share it.

It's based upon this Psalm:

Psalm 34:11
Come, you children, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of the LORD.
Psalm 34:12
Who is the man who desires life And loves {length of} days that he may see good?
Psalm 34:13
Keep your tongue from evil And your lips from speaking deceit.
Psalm 34:14
Depart from evil and do good; Seek peace and pursue it.

Today was the first time I think I realized that the fear of the LORD can be taught. And if it can be taught, then the implication is that it can be what?

That's right, it can be learned! How cool is that?!

There's hope for all of us, if we'll just choose to learn from God's Word.

Then, it seems, in this Psalm, David describes (at least in part) what it looks like to fear the LORD.

Study note: This is the perfect time to make a list of what you see from Scripture, and a great time to use the tool of structuring so that you can really "see" what the Word is telling you.
( For more about structuring, call Precept Ministries to inquire of their next training. It's such a great tool!)

v.13 Keep your tongue from evil
AND
your lips from speaking deceit

v. 14 Depart from evil
AND
do good

v.14 Seek peace
AND
pursue it (peace)

So, the LORD showed me today that I have a great responsibility before Him to teach my children the fear of the LORD. I suppose that goes for anyone whom He brings into my life to teach or disciple.

And, He is gracious enough to tell us what walking in a fear of Him requires of us. Great list there..great definitive direction is found in those 2 verses above.

Keep your tongue from WHAT?
Keep your lips from WHAT?
Depart from WHAT?
After you depart from it, what are you to do?
What are we to seek?
What are we to pursue?

Through WHOM do we find peace?
Who is the Prince of Peace?
In WHOM is there no guile found?
After WHOM are we to model our lives?
How would it be possible to remain (as opposed to departing from) with evil and accomplish what David is telling us to do in this Psalm?

Is it possible to live with words of evil and lips of deceit, and still learn the fear of the LORD? What from the above Scriptures supports your reason for believing as you do?

Are you allowing Scripture to define your worldview, or are you allowing a lost world to do that for you?

Remember, the flesh wages war against the Spirit!

OH, there's so much truth to be found in just these few verses...I could stay here all day and write out Who, What, When, Where, Why and How questions for us to reason through..but I gotta go study some more. :)

Here is another amazing verse about the fear of the Lord. Think about it, according to this verse, there is no true wisdom apart from the fear of the LORD.

Proverbs 9:10
The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, And the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.

Quite the defining statement for a homeschooling mom..for any mom, for that matter. The LORD made it clear to me today that if I want my children to be wise, I MUST teach them the fear of the LORD.

The fear of mom or dad is not sufficient. We won't always be there. They must know and fear the LORD.

What does the Bible mean by "fear"?

Tune in, we'll see that tomorrow or the next day. :)

Gotta keep 'ya coming back, right?! :)

OK...I gotta go get ready...I'm looking scary right now!

Have a super week!

Much love!
Jesica

Please PRAY for YWAM and the Murray Family

Dear Friends,

As I write this, tears are filling my eyes. I am sure that by now you have heard about the tragedy that happened at Youth With A Mission in Colorado this week.

Four young people, who have committed their lives to share the Good News of Jesus Christ, and salvation, were gunned down at the YWAM offices. Two died, and their memorial services were held today.

Ironically, Shane and I had just placed an order for the set of biographies they publish, written about faithful saints that have gone before us. This ministry is dear to our hearts. They have a booth each year at our homeschooling convention, and their hearts for the Lord are so evident.

Last year at the convention, they gave us a copy of the biography about Gladys Alyward, and we spent weeks reading it to our children as their bedtime story. The story of her life impacted all of us so much that we bought the set for Christmas this year. (shhh....the kids don't know yet!)

I called headquarters in Colorado today, just to tell them how very sorry we are, and to let them know that there are brothers and sisters all over the world who love them, and are praying for them.

I spoke with a kind man whose heart is obviously so heavy right now. I told him that I too, have given my life to serve Christ, and that I know that often, as a footsoldier in the field, one can feel so alone. It's easy to forget that we're part of a huge army, when we're on post in our given area of the world.

So, I explained, "I just want you to know that you're NOT alone....and that there are so many people who are blessed by your work for the Kingdom, and that we're praying fervently for you and for each hurting family right now."

He was quiet for a minute and then said, "Thank you so much. With our type of ministry, being that we are spread out all over the world, it can be easy to feel alone. Thank you for the reminder that we aren't, and thank you for your prayers."

He then went on to tell me that YWAM Latvia also just lost their director. He died in his sleep. He was a husband, and father of 5, with a brand new grand-daughter. His life has been used by God to share the Good News with many, many people. You can read about him on the YWAM site, and you can also read about the lives of the young people who were hurt and killed.

Here is the link to YWAM if you'd like to read more...would you please keep these brothers and sisters in your prayers? I can only imagine how much they are hurting right now!http://www.ywam.org/articles/article.asp?AID=499

Also, please keep the family of the shooter in your prayers. Their last name is Murray. They've not only lost their son, but also are having to deal with the unbelievable pain of knowing how many people he hurt before he took his own life.

Thank you for taking a minute (or more) to stop and lift these fellow believers up before our Father. When you pray for them, would you pray God's Word back to Him on their behalf?
I believe He loves it when we do that.

This is the verse I'm praying for them, knowing that God is always faithful to His promises. This verse has held me through many a painful time in my life. I cherish it.

Psalm 34:18
The Lord is close to the brokenhearted
and saves those who are crushed in spirit.

In His Love,
Jesica