Psalm 119:113-120 Samekh

A Devotional by Margot Cioccio


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zh8fZVfkdxU&feature=share&list=PLAE37DF69613BB3F3

ס Samekh

I hate double-minded people,
    but I love your law.
¹¹⁴ You are my refuge and my shield;
    I have put my hope in your word.
¹¹⁵ Away from me, you evildoers,
    that I may keep the commands of my God!
¹¹⁶ Sustain me, my God, according to your promise, and I will live;
    do not let my hopes be dashed.
¹¹⁷ Uphold me, and I will be delivered;
    I will always have regard for your decrees.
¹¹⁸ You reject all who stray from your decrees,
    for their delusions come to nothing.
¹¹⁹ All the wicked of the earth you discard like dross;
    therefore I love your statutes.
¹²⁰ My flesh trembles in fear of you;
    I stand in awe of your laws.

I hate double-minded people, but I love your law.
James 1:6-8 ^{6 "}But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt,because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. ⁷ That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. ⁸ Such a person is double-minded and unstable in all they do."
There is a decision making process where one may go back and forth trying to determine what the best choice is to make. I think double minded is when we get stuck in that process and can't move forward. At some point one must make a choice and take a step of faith to move in a direction towards a goal. 

You are my refuge and my shield; I have put my hope in your word.
One of the exercises in one of the many books I am presently reading is to draw a shield and to divide it into four quadrants. In each one you put something to represent your talents. The word says that faith is a shield that protects us from the darts of the enemy. I suppose knowing what your talent, gifting are can help you make decisions that keep you on track towards accomplishing your calling and destiny.  What are your gifts or tallent that the Holy Spirit has given you?  

Away from me, you evildoers, that I may keep the commands of my God! Sometimes we must make decisions about the people we are going to spend time with. If you are going to move forward you need to be around people who are positive and who will support and encourage you. We have to watch out for the bullies who don't want us to change or progress. They want to keep everything the same. If you have not read the book the Dream Giver it gives a wonderful parable type story about someone who decided to go after their big dream and the obstacles they faced along the way. 

¹¹⁶ Sustain me, my God, according to your promise, and I will live; do not let my hopes be dashed.
God does not always give us what we think we want the moment we think we want it. Often we must hold on to things by faith trusting in God's promises. 
Love lets go, hope holds on and faith stands between the two. We can't hold those we love in an iron clad grip. Jesus never chased anyone down. You don't see him begging anyone to follow Him. He offers us his love freely.
1 Corinthians 13: ¹³ And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love. These three are really tied together. They are like a chord that is super strong.

Uphold me, and I will be delivered; I will always have regard for your decrees.
118 You reject all who stray from your decrees, for their delusions come to nothing.To decree something is more than just to say a bunch of nice words. A decree generally carries with it the force of law. Rulers, Judges, Kings, Priests make decrees.  God decrees things in His word about his creation, about His purpose and plan. It would be an interesting study to look at more carefully at some point. 

All the wicked of the earth you discard like dross; therefore I love your statutes.
 My flesh trembles in fear of you; I stand in awe of your laws.

Dross is what is skimmed off in the process of refining silver. Its basically the scum that one must remove when melting metal. The Lord needs to remove the scum from our lives before we start pointing fingers at others. I stand in awe when I think how much we have each been forgiven. 

Psalm 119:105-112 The Lamp

A Devotional by Margot Cioccio

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dgSZuko-PT4&feature=share&list=PLAE37DF69613BB3F3

Nun

Psalm 119:105-112  (MSG)

105-112 By your words I can see where I’m going;

they throw a beam of light on my dark path.

I’ve committed myself and I’ll never turn back

from living by your righteous order.

Everything’s falling apart on me, God;

put me together again with your Word.

Festoon me with your finest sayings, God;

teach me your holy rules.

My life is as close as my own hands,

but I don’t forget what you have revealed.

The wicked do their best to throw me off track,

but I don’t swerve an inch from your course.

I inherited your book on living; it’s mine forever—

what a gift! And how happy it makes me!

I concentrate on doing exactly what you say—

I always have and always will.

By your words I can see where I’m going; they throw a beam of light on my dark path. 

When the way seems dark before me I look around to see where is there light. Who is it that brings hope and encouragement. Who see's Gods potential and spark in me. Who affirms the calling of God on my life. I go back to the things that I know to be true. I go back to the word and build upon what I know to be true. Sometimes we need to wait for the fog to clear and the sun to rise with healing in its wings. The fog lifts and I can look around and realize I thought I was lost but I am still moving towards Jesus. 

I’ve committed myself and I’ll never turn back from living by your righteous order.

I have committed myself to Seek ye first the kingdom of God and all these things shall be added unto you. I can hold my life up to the lives of others who may appear to me have been more successful with their lives. Then I look at my day yesterday. I had finished the things I needed to do at the church and I had not decided if I would go home or stay and help with the homeless feed. So I was kind of waiting to see if I was needed. About that time a friend shows up in my office and says I need your help. This couple who are homeless friends of ours miscarried their baby yesterday. He wanted to see if the church would help put them up for a night in a hotel so they could rest and catch their breath from this loss. I said well lets go and talk to them. So I spent the next 45 minutes talking to them and encouraging. They were not married and were living in the shelters, trying to find work and a place to be able to raise their baby. Everything had been progressing fine as of the last doctor's visit when suddenly they miscarried. The baby was so tiny and the mom got to hold it for a moment before she was told by the medics to place it in a plastic bag. She was horrified that her tiny precious dead infant was tossed like garbage into the ambulance. The next day motivated by their grief and loss they went to church. The first time they had been to church since his mom had died. They shared their story and asked if that church would put them up in a hotel for a night. They were told no you are not married and you are sinners. The man told me he just wanted a safe place to be able to comfort his girlfriend who's whole body ached, who was exhausted from grief. I was able to share their story with our board and we put them up for the night in a near by hotel. I told them one night is not going to get you through the grieving process and I assured them that I and others would walk beside them if they wanted support. I think that sometimes we as Christians get hung up in our religion and self righteous and want to point out the failures in others rather than extend to them grace, love, comfort. They already knew they were sinners a lot in their lives was a mess. He shared that he had been sober for a month now and the he had thought about drinking in light of this tragedy but decided his girlfriend needed him to be strong. Sometimes we think evangelism is getting folks to say a sinners prayer. It is so much more we need to walk with people, making sure they are grounded in the word and supported by a family of believers. It is a process and we may not be able to help everyone but we each could help someone. We are sent out to make disciples not just converts. To disciple someones means walking along side of them. Teaching them what you know. Modeling and mentoring them. Helping them to resist the enemy and to stand firm on the truth of the Word. 

Everything’s falling apart on me, God; put me together again with your Word.
For this grieving couple everything has fallen apart and they need to be put back together with the Word. Maybe your world is falling apart, Jesus desires to put you back together according to his wonderful design. He knew us in the secret place before we were born. He has seen how we have made a mess of things trying to live life on our own terms. I'm sure you can all quote John 3:16 but here is the part that many Christians miss. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. 18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son. If you have a grieving couple come to you - you should comfort and love them not wag your finger at them and point out what horrible sinners they are. Broken people don't need our condemnation, they need to see God's mercy and love demonstrated in real ways.  Will a hotel room change this couples life. Probably not, but that someone bothered to care for them and love them in their grief and speak hope into their life that might become a turning point in their life. We don't know when God will bring people across our path. There have been plenty of people who have taken advantage of us. Honestly I can't even fault that other church for saying no to them. There have been times in my own compassion fatigue that I am sure I have made some less than gracious calls in dealing with homeless and poor people. ( If you are new to this blog, I work with homeless and poor people through the ministries of our small urban church in Spokane.)

Festoon me with your finest sayings, God; teach me your holy rules.  Some of our finest sayings are "People accepted, lives changed." We accept people where they are but we know that God will begin a transforming work and their lives over time will be changes. We say "love them till they ask you why?" Why would you spend time caring for drunks, addicts, mentally ill, homeless, poor people each week. Let me tell you it is not for the big offerings. Some of the folks that attend my church go out and pan handle so they can be part of the $2.00 a week giving club. We did an offering to help people in other places in the world recently. What was amazing was to see homeless people coming forward to give the change in their pockets to help a child in a foreign land have a chicken or a goat, or a the supplies to plant a family garden. We serve a God who transforms us through His kindness and mercy.

My life is as close as my own hands, but I don’t forget what you have revealed.
The wicked do their best to throw me off track, but I don’t swerve an inch from your course. 

Hold on to the things that God has revealed to you. Hold on to the dreams and the visions, the confirming words. Sometimes we can get so close to what God has for us and then give up and turn back when the finish line was around the next bend. 

I inherited your book on living; it’s mine forever— what a gift! And how happy it makes me!
I concentrate on doing exactly what you say— I always have and always will.

You may not have everything figured out. There may yet be big areas of sin and brokenness in your life but you should celebrate the little victories along the way. If you have had a month with out a drink that is a victory. If you have walked in hope and joy rather than depression and guilt for the week or a month that is a victory. If you are moving towards the things of God even if you are still a mess, at least you are moving in the right direction. Don't loose hope. Keep taking those steps of faith. You may not know everything the bible says but do the stuff that you do know. 

Prayer: 

Lord I lift up this homeless couple who has lost their precious baby in miscarriage on Saturday. I pray that your kindness would lead them to want to know you. I pray that they would be loved to wholeness in you and that you would surround them with believers who would believe for God's best in their lives. I pray for people who will help them up when they fall down and encourage them when they are overcoming the old dead life and putting on your new life.  I pray Lord, that you would comfort them both in their grief. That out of this sadness and grief that you would do a incredible transforming work in both of their lives. 

Want to Help?

Here is our church website http://www.fccspokane.org/ if you would like to help us minister to homeless and hurting people. I have no idea who is reading and who might be moved to help. It would mean a lot to me if you would put in the memo that you heard about this from Margot's blog. 

• If you would like to help us feed the homeless use the tab that says Streetwise and you will find a link to donate. We feed a hot meal on Sunday afternoons. 

• If you would like to donate to help us as a mission church to minister to the spiritual needs of homeless and very low income people you can use the About tab and give an offering to help the church.  

• If you would like to give to help me keep writing you can use the donate button on the right side of my blog page. http://devotionals-margot.blogspot.com/ I don't get paid for the work with the homeless or the writing that I do. God is my supply. 

Psalm 119:97-104 Sweeter Than Honey

A Devotional by Margot Cioccio
Psalm 119:97-104

We are continuing through the longest Psalm in the bible. It will take us all of May to get through it. It is written as an acrostic poem in which each section the words start with a letter of the Hebrew alphabet. I've included someone reading this portion in Hebrew if you are interested.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tg4RxRiPX2w&feature=share&list=PLAE37DF69613BB3F3

The Message (MSG) 97-104
Oh, how I love all you’ve revealed; I reverently ponder it all the day long.
Your commands give me an edge on my enemies; they never become obsolete.
I’ve even become smarter than my teachers since I’ve pondered and absorbed your counsel.
I’ve become wiser than the wise old sages simply by doing what you tell me.
I watch my step, avoiding the ditches and ruts of evil so I can spend all my time keeping your Word.
I never make detours from the route you laid out; you gave me such good directions.
Your words are so choice, so tasty; I prefer them to the best home cooking.
With your instruction, I understand life; that’s why I hate false propaganda

MEM mām (ם). The thirteenth letter of the Heb. alphabet. It is used to introduce the thirteenth part of the acrostic psalm, Psalm 119, in which section every v. begins with this letter. It also was used for the number 40  ~ The Encyclopedia of the Bible

Oh, how I love Your law! I fix my mind on it all day long.
I actually like the translation of this in the Message "Oh, how I love all you’ve revealed; I reverently ponder it all the day long. Your commands give me an edge on my enemies; they never become obsolete." I guess the word 'Law" sounds too much like court rooms and a thousand rules enforce by government official. If you take that word and make it to mean all that God has revealed I can grab ahold of it. You would be hard pressed to get me to sit down and read a stack of law books on old laws and cases. I would sit down and read the revelations and the wisdom of God. Maybe the word law does not translate funny for you but for me it is a word that I find off putting. Granted David would have had the first five books of the Bible to read and that section is called the torah. "most scholars are now agreed that torah originally meant “direction” or “guidance” The Encyclopedia of the Bible

I’ve even become smarter than my teachers since I’ve pondered and absorbed your counsel.
I’ve become wiser than the wise old sages simply by doing what you tell me.
The Lord promises that the Holy Spirit will teach us in John 14:26
But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you. There is much to be learned from the Word.

I watch my step, avoiding the ditches and ruts of evil so I can spend all my time keeping your Word. I never make detours from the route you laid out; you gave me such good directions.
We do need to avoid those ditches and the ruts that we can so easily get ourselves stuck in. I'd like to say I've never taken any detours but I have gotten side tracked. Generally its when you let bitterness grow up. It must be rooted out or it will choke you and trip you and tangle you up in some messy knots. God does give us good directions. He says forgive like He has forgiven each of us. We are not forgiven because we deserve forgiveness. We are forgiven because we believe in and serve a God who is merciful. We don't get what we deserve. What we deserve is punishment for our many sins. What we get is forgiveness, mercy, and love that sets us free.

Your words are so choice, so tasty; I prefer them to the best home cooking.
With your instruction, I understand life; that’s why I hate false propaganda.
I like this section better in the Voice "Your words are sweet to my taste! Yes, they are sweeter than honey in my mouth! I gain understanding from Your instructions; that’s why I hate every deceitful path" Sweeter than Honey, yes you are Lord. Which reminds me of this song
http://youtu.be/olBnC2nxCNw

Psalm 119:89-96 Bigger Than The Boogie Man

A Devotional by Margot Cioccio

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K5s3QKV1beA&feature=share&list=PLAE37DF69613BB3F3\


For anyone just joining this study we are looking at the longest Psalm in the Bible. Psalm 119. It is an acrostic poem divided into 22 sections with each section starting with a letter of the Hebrew alphabet.
One can't really see the beauty of the acrostic construction because of translations but it would be as if I  were to write a poem each day praising God. On the first day the letter would be "A"
Always Lord I will seek you.
Already I have put my hope and faith in you.
Answer me when I call for you are faithful.
Arise in your splender and might

The acrostic would then continue through the letters of the alphabet. I've included a video of the verses being read in Hebrew. For me hearing it in Hebrew is much like smelling the ancient, earthy, old leather smell of Nard, the fragrance poured on Jesus prior to the crucifixion. It smells to me of Jesus and these words carry that ancient sound, and although I don't directly understand the language they are like the music of the Lord's language being spoken in my presence. The resonate with a beauty and a reminder that the things of God are much richer and fuller than my limited understanding is often able to conceive. For me it is a nice touch that grounds me to an ancient past that contains a beautiful and rich story that you and I have been invited to partake.

Psalm 119:89-96 (The Voice)
The Hebrew letter "Lamedh"
89 Forever, O Eternal One, Your word stands in heaven, firm and resolute.
90 Your faithfulness endures to every generation; You founded the earth, and it remains.
91 Everything remains today in keeping with Your laws, for all things exist to serve You.
92 If I had not found joy in Your guidance, then I would have died from my misery.
93 I will never forget Your precepts, for through them You have given me life.
94 I belong to You, Lord; save me because I have taken care to live by Your principles.
95 The wicked lie in wait, anxious to kill me; I will set my mind on Your statutes.
96 I have seen the limit of all perfection, but Your commands are all-encompassing.


Forever, O Eternal One, Your word stands in heaven, firm and resolute.
God spoke and created.... and we are made in His image. We are to declare the praises of Him who called us out of darkness and into His glorious light. His word stands firm and resolute, our God is not wishy washy. He is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow. We are to proclaim His truths to this generation but that does not mean we need to be all stuffy. We are to be alive in Him. Full of life that is abundant because He knows us intimately and loves us each beyond measure. His word gives us foundations and boundaries to joyously create and live full lives for His glory and pleasure. As an artist I like some structure, it gives me a frame work that helps me understand how I fit into the creative process. Boundaries and guidelines are not limiting but allow me the freedom to explore, imagine, to create. It is like the child who plays freely and happily in their own yard. The boundaries are not to limit their fun and creativity but to keep them safe and protected. As my children have gotten older their boundaries have increased as they have become more responsible and able to handle more. When they were little and started to get anxious and fussy I knew that their world had gotten too big too fast for them. So we would move back to those familiar and safe surroundings and they would toddle off happily to play. I am thankful that the Word of God stands firm and resolute giving me a wonderful environment to explore and enjoy.  

Your faithfulness endures to every generation; You founded the earth, and it remains.
Christianity did not start with my generation. There have been many generations of faithful people who loved and served the Lord before I even drew my first breath. He has been faithful to them and I hear their stories and I am encouraged that as He was faithful to them He will be faithful to you and I.

Everything remains today in keeping with Your laws, for all things exist to serve You.
I read this and I am reminded of Job 38 where God questions Job and his understanding of creation. I've just shared verses 22-30 but the rest of it is equally inspiring.

“Have you entered the storehouses of the snow
    or seen the storehouses of the hail,
²³ which I reserve for times of trouble,
    for days of war and battle?
²⁴ What is the way to the place where the lightning is dispersed,
    or the place where the east winds are scattered over the earth?
²⁵ Who cuts a channel for the torrents of rain,
    and a path for the thunderstorm,
²⁶ to water a land where no one lives,
    an uninhabited desert,
²⁷ to satisfy a desolate wasteland
    and make it sprout with grass?
²⁸ Does the rain have a father?
    Who fathers the drops of dew?
²⁹ From whose womb comes the ice?
    Who gives birth to the frost from the heavens
³⁰ when the waters become hard as stone,
    when the surface of the deep is frozen?

If I had not found joy in Your guidance, then I would have died from my misery.
 I will never forget Your precepts, for through them You have given me life.
There is joy and peace in His guidance but you have to seek Him and you have to step out of the crazy rat race and the ternary of the urgent to pause, to meet with the Lord, to listen to His voice. We have filled our lives with so many distractions it is a wonder that we can hear our own flesh and blood family members. They too often are shoved aside in our busyness and the Lord is often pushed even further back in the mix. He leads me beside still waters, He restores my soul... Sadly if you are just off doing your own thing you may not be hearing the shepherd who would love to lead you. 

I belong to You, Lord; save me because I have taken care to live by Your principles.
The wicked lie in wait, anxious to kill me; I will set my mind on Your statutes. 
I belong to You. Acts 17:28 says  ‘For in him we live and move and have our being.
Yes there are bad and wicked things that seem at times to lie in wait to get us. I love the choice the psalmist makes at this point. He says I will set my mind on Your statutes. We have to decide what we will focus on. Will it be on fear that paralyzes and sucks the life out of us, or will we turn our eyes to Jesus the author and finisher of our faith. I could break out into Vegi tales chorus "God is bigger than the boogy man, He's bigger than Godzilla or the monsters on TV - Yes God is bigger than the boogy man and He's watching over you and me." So here it is for those of you who might have missed this little gem. http://youtu.be/3Jd4qnxj7D0 

I have seen the limit of all perfection, but Your commands are all-encompassing.
I like this verse from the Amplified Bible.

Psalm 119:96 (AMP)
96 I have seen that everything [human] has its limits and end [no matter how extensive, noble, and excellent]; but Your commandment is exceedingly broad and extends without limits [into eternity].

What ever you are facing it is not to big for God. The other side of the coin is that you may feel your concerns are not big enough to bother God with. What God wants is for you to know His love. To see that no matter how big or small your concern my be, that you don't have to handle it on your own. He won't just barge in and take over, He waits to be invited to share life with you. 

Psalm 119:81-88 The Pity Party

A Devotional by Margot Cioccio

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DwpkGKfotyw&feature=share&list=PLAE37DF69613BB3F3

This video is this portion of Psalm 119 in Hebrew. I think much of the amazing structure of this acrostic poem that follows the letters of the Hebrew alphabet are lost to us in translation. Granted most of us don't understand Hebrew but I think it is good to hear these words in the language that they were originally written. 

I long for you to rescue me! Your word is my only hope.
82 I am worn out from waiting for you to keep your word. When will you have mercy?
83 My life is wasting away like a dried-up wineskin, but I have not forgotten your teachings.
84 I am your servant! How long must I suffer? When will you punish those troublemakers?
85 Those proud people reject your teachings, and they dig pits for me to fall in.
86 Your laws can be trusted! Protect me from cruel liars.
87 They have almost killed me, but I have been faithful to your teachings.
88 Show that you love me and let me live, so that I may obey all of your commands.

I long for you to rescue me! Your word is my only hope

This section of Psalm 119 makes me want to break out the wine and cheese and to send out invitations to a pity party. Some of you may be having a pity party, we can get stuck feeling sorry for our selves and thinking that God needs to come in and give us a new life for us to be happy. Some of you are spiritual babies who refuse to grow up and refuse to feed yourself. You want others to stroke and comfort you, the whole world including God is supposed to cater to you and make you happy. 

Seriously its time to grow up. The word is your only hope but you have to do more than hang it on your walls or your refrigerator. You have to apply it to your life. You have to take faith and act upon it. I long for you to rescue me... I think God longs for you to stop your complaining. He longs for you to grow in your relationship with Him to see him as more than your genie in a bottle that you take out at your connivence to grant all your wishes and desires. 

I am worn out from waiting for you to keep your word. When will you have mercy?

Some of you are worn out from waiting for God to fix your problem, your addiction, your depression, your finances, your health. Honestly I think God must get weary of waiting on us to take action and make a difference in the world around us. We are waiting on mercy when perhaps God is waiting for us to be His mercy to others. It might be time to take our focus of our own blight and misfortune and do something to help someone else. You want mercy then you should sow mercy into the lives of others. I'm in a bit of a tough love stance today. I realize some of you have difficult things on your plate and you are doing your best to be courageous in spite of seemingly dire circumstances. Are there anythings that God has instructed you to do that you have neglected to follow through with? Often the log jam is created because you have not followed through on a previous instruction that God has given you to do. You are waiting for Him to keep His word while he is waiting for you to keep yours. Be a meta thinker today and look at your situation from a different direction and see if you can see something that you missed. Then turn it again and look at it from another angle believing that God wants to help you. That He does have the answers that you need. Those who seek Him will find Him. I believe that goes for His answers as well. Some of you are just waiting to win the lottery but you have not even purchased a ticket. You just want God to hand you everything on a silver platter. In my mind there is a store room filled with wonderful gifts and tools that would help us. Only the gifts are wrapped up in things that make us question God's gift to us. For example you want wisdom, and God says He will give it liberally with out holding back. Wisdom however often comes in difficult packages in the form of things we have to figure out and overcome. Patience is another example - ask for that and God will give you opportunities to learn to be patient in the form of difficult people and situations.  

Maybe the gift you've asked for is joy and you find you are having to fight your way through discouragement and depression. You are having to learn to put on the garments of praise for the spirit of heaviness. You are having to learn to count your blessings and not just wallow in your doubt, regrets and pain. In all of these things Jesus stands ready to walk with us every step of the way but too often our pride and self sufficiency says "I can do by myself"

My life is wasting away like a dried-up wineskin, but I have not forgotten your teachings.

Oh woe is me.... Ok so, dried up wine skin, may indeed be your starting place. The question is are you going to stay there wasting away or are you going to grab hold of a vision of a better future and move by faith towards it. Proverbs 29:18 King James Bible "Where there is no vision, the people perish: but he that keepeth the law, happy is he." It might be time to seek God for a new vision and a fresh wine skin to hold it. Here's another from Hosea 4:6 My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge: because you have rejected knowledge, I will also reject you... Maybe you are suffering from the kind of famine spoken of in Amos 8:11 "The days are coming," declares the Sovereign LORD, "when I will send a famine through the land-- not a famine of food or a thirst for water, but a famine of hearing the words of the LORD. I think too often we claim to have not forgotten the Lord's teaching but we approach His word more like dinner at the Smorgasbord. We want to only pick and choose the tasty morsels rather than eat a balanced and healthy meal. Stop right now if you are reading this and thinking "Oh _____ needs to hear this message" They might need to hear it but God has you reading it and there is likely something that you see lacking in others lives that needs to be first dealt with in your own life. Take the log out of your own eye first - then help your neighbor with the little splinter in theirs. 

I am your servant! How long must I suffer? When will you punish those troublemakers?
Those proud people reject your teachings, and they dig pits for me to fall in.
Your laws can be trusted! Protect me from cruel liars.
They have almost killed me, but I have been faithful to your teachings.

So my quick response to this portion is to simply say geesh more whining. Instead I am going to paste a portion of links from the Dictionary of Bible Themes regarding how we are to respond to persecution as believers. Maybe you will dig in and study it out for yourself. 

"Attitudes believers are to adopt in facing persecution

Living holy and forgiving lives 1Pe 2:12 See also Mt 5:44; Ro 12:19-20;1Pe 2:15,23; 1Pe 3:16

Rejoicing in suffering Ro 5:3-5 See also Ps 30:5; Mt 5:11-12 pp Lk 6:22-23; Ac 5:41; Ac 16:22-25; Ro 12:15; Col 1:24; 1Pe 1:6,8;1Pe 4:12,16

Relying on the promise of God’s grace to endure La 3:22-23 See also Ps 18:17-19; Na 1:7-8; Ro 8:18,35-39; 2Ti 3:10-11; Heb 13:6;Rev 3:10

Trusting in the promise of God’s presence Heb 13:5 See also Ps 23:4;Isa 43:2,5; Mt 28:20; 2Co 4:9

Praying always Eph 6:18 See also Ps 35:24; Ps 38:15-16; Ps 129:5; Ps 143:9; Mic 7:7-8; Lk 6:28; Lk 18:7-8;1Pe 4:7"

Show that you love me and let me live, so that I may obey all of your commands. Well hopefully you will dig into the word and do a bit of your own mining for treasures. There are things God wants you to see. Some of you want college level answers but are only in kindergarden in you spiritual growth. Its time you learn to pick up your own spoon and fork and learn to feed yourself on the word. One is not expected to remain in kindergarden forever but to move on to the next grade and the next. Start where you are today but grab ahold of God's bigger vision for your life and future and start moving towards it. Stop and celebrate the little victories along the way. Keep in mind it is a journey and sometimes you need to stop and rest. Rests in music are only temporary pauses that add to the beauty of music. Let Jesus be your guide because He knows the plans he has for you and they are good. 

Heads Up:

So anyway a bit of a heads up - I am going to finish up the rest of Psalm 119 this month, but then I am planning to take much of the month of June off from posting. I feel like the Lord's direction is to shut pretty much, everything down and re-boot. I have written and posted Monday-Friday for what will soon be, in July two full years. As of this post I have 496 published posts for you to choose from. Honestly the number of posts amazes even me. When I first started writing I really did not think I had much of value to say. Nor could I even imagine doing something every day for two years. I am grateful for the encouragement of a few friends who saw something in me and in a sense, prophetically spoke belief and courage into my life that has propelled my faith to write all that I have written thus far. Also I am thankful for others who have come along and cheered me on and commented or let me know when they see me how much they enjoy this blog. Truly I am much stronger and greatly healed by your prayers, love and encouragement on this journey.

So I hope that during June you will take the time to check out some of those posts that you may have missed out on. As always I appreciate your prayers, I'm not sure what the next chapter holds for me but I feel strongly that I need to pause and allow the Lord to refresh and give me His fresh revelation and vision and not just do things because they are there to be done or because I have been doing them. I need to be about doing the specific things that God intends and has designed me to do for His glory. I'm still sorting that all out. I want to thank those of you who are praying for me regularly - your support, belief and prayers mean more to me than you realize. I look forward to being back with you for our July blog birthday month to let you know where the next leg of the journey will be heading.
We still have the rest of this month to finish up Psalm 119 so I will see you back here tomorrow with more encouragement and at times a kick in the pants from the Word of God.
~ Margot

  

Psalm 119: 73-80 Unfailing Love

A Devotional by Margot Cioccio

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WDAQy9PSHwU&feature=share&list=PLAE37DF69613BB3F3

Yodh

73 Your strong hands formed me and established me;
give me understanding so I can learn Your commands.
74 Let those who fear You see me and rejoice
because I hope in Your word.
75 I know, O Eternal One, Your rulings are right,
and when You humbled me, You did so out of faithfulness.
76 Now let Your unfailing love be my comfort,
in keeping with Your promise to Your servant.
77 Shower me with Your compassion so that I may live
because I find great joy in Your law.
78 Let the proud be humiliated,
for they sabotage me with a lie;
still I will fix my mind on Your directives.
79 Let those who fear You and know Your testimonies
come back and find me.
80 Let my heart be whole, my record according to what You require
so that I will not be humiliated.

Your strong hands formed me and established me;
give me understanding so I can learn Your commands.

Well I started my morning with the words from Psalm 139 about God having fearfully and wonderfully made me. I suppose even when I don't fully understand myself that He does. He knows what he created me to be and to do. He understands all my quirky ways. He knows the things that push my buttons and where my tender and damaged places are even if others can no longer see them. He knows....
I then felt specifically led to read Day 2 Jehovah-Rophe in Sylvia Gunter's book Blessing Your Spirit. I got to the second paragraph and it was as if it had been written just for me. It said " Margot, God has called you to be highly creative, to color outside the the lines of your secular and religious culture. Your gifting, your specific anointing is t see new principles in God's word, to understand new facets of the nature of God, and to find new applications of the nature of God in the contemporary culture. I bless that in you. I release you from the limitations of a culture that will bind you to something smaller than that which God has called you to. We celebrate your creativity and your ability to color outside the lines of your culture." I have been doing a lot of soul searching and spending time sitting quietly with the Lord as He helps me sort it all out. I can get a wee bit introspective but its probably long over due. For so long I just kept running from the past and afraid that it might catch up to me and I'd have to deal with it. I was able to deal with some deeply buried things a few years ago and since then I have been able to stop running. I discovered that when you allow Jesus into those secret places, He does not come in with a wagging finger and an "I told you so kind of attitude". He little by little loves you back to health and life. We are upheld by the strong hands that formed us and He is happy to give us understanding.


Let those who fear You see me and rejoice
because I hope in Your word. I actually like this next bit from the Message "When they see me waiting, expecting your Word, those who fear you will take heart and be glad." How we live and walk before others is a powerful thing. I have seen some believers go through some really difficult things. I have watched their grace and courage and have seen them model faith, hope and love. I have seen patience and long-suffering and it has helped me in my own walk. We never know who is watching. We are often influencing people we had no idea were even watching. It is good when you see others modeling the character of Jesus and the fruit Spirit and the Love of the Father, that we should take heart and be glad. 

I know, O Eternal One, Your rulings are right,
and when You humbled me, You did so out of faithfulness.
Sometimes we have to humble ourselves and take a look around and admit that God has not fallen of the throne of heaven astonished by our little difficulty. Nothing that is happening to us has taken Him by surprise.

I can hear some indignantly saying "Harrumph! We how could He have stood by and let ______ happen." It is in those things that you need to go humbly before Him and ask that He to show you where He was. I think you will be astonished by his tender mercy.

Now let Your unfailing love be my comfort, in keeping with Your promise to Your servant.
Shower me with Your compassion so that I may live because I find great joy in Your law.

To know His unfailing love and to allow that to be our comfort. To walk in the assurance that no matter what He loves us. Not because of what we can do or could do. He does not love us less because of the things we did do. He simply love us with unfailing love. Then He also showers us with compassion. There is great joy to be found in God's way of doing things. Its not that He is some kill joy who wants to take away all your fun and leave you with a long list of do's and don'ts. He wants us to be fully alive and to become all He intends us to become in Him. His love is more than warm fuzzy feelings it is a commitment to walk side by side with us and to help us to become our very best in Him. 

Sometimes we hit some uncomfortable places on that journey. Places where we have to decide to stay broken and crippled by fear and doubt or to trust Him and face those terrifying changes. Sometimes I have to tell Him that I need to stop for a bit, knowing that I will go on but also knowing that sometimes I need to processes things before I can go further on the journey. I have found that He is gracious and patient.   

Let the proud be humiliated, for they sabotage me with a lie;
still I will fix my mind on Your directives. All these lofty thoughts and then we get a jab at the proud. I am glad that it goes on with "stil I will fix my mind on Your directives. Sometimes we are upset and need to vent. God hears it all and He knows we are venting and that we will settle down and fix our mind on His directives. You know things like "love your neighbor as yourself" Some times loving those difficult people in our lives can be pretty challenging. Lord help us to taste like you when people bite into us they would find we are genuine fruit and not that fake wax kind that is used for decoration. 

Let those who fear You and know Your testimonies come back and find me.
Let my heart be whole, my record according to what You require so that I will not be humiliated. I have had some wonderful people come back and find me and those it is amazing to me that those friendships pick right back up even though there has been a long span of time that you had lost touch with one another. I think that sometimes He brings back people at just the right time and we are able to encourage one another and marvel at what God has done in each ones lives. So Lord let my heart be whole. We can in our pride and self-sufficiency go a long time like those cowboys in the old westerns. They have been shot with a bullet and yet they go on fighting or traveling. "Its just a little scratch" they say as they stuff a wad of dirty cloth in the wound. Even little wounds can become infected and can make you sick and if left untreated cause you to die. Spiritual wounds are important to tend to because they fester and and bitterness and other nastiness can poison your spirit. Sometimes we are so driven by our unmet needs that we try to take things into our own hands and end up with a big mess along with a still un met need. It is better to take your unmet needs to God and allow Him to work them out for you in His timing. 

Prayer: I pray that the Lord will help you to push past your fears. To turn to Him and not from Him during times of difficulty and stress. Come Lord make our hearts whole. Shower us with your compassion and let us be aware of your unfailing love. 

Psalm 119:65-72 The Well Handled Servant

A Devotional by Margot Cioccio

http://youtu.be/HPq_fA__w8A

Teth

65 You have handled Your servant well, O Eternal One, as You promised.

66 Help me to learn good judgment and knowledge because I believe Your commandments.

67 Before I had trouble, I strayed from the true path, the path of righteousness,

but now I live according to Your word.

68 You are truly good, and Your acts are too; teach me what You require.

69 The proud smear me with their lies; I will keep Your instructions wholeheartedly.

70 Their hearts are dull and callous; I am delighted to study Your teaching.

71 It is a good thing that I was humbled because it helped me learn Your limits.

72 Your teachings are more valuable to me than a fortune in gold and silver. 

~ Psalm 119:65-72 The Voice (VOICE)

You have handled Your servant well, O Eternal One, as You promised.

I am so glad that the Eternal God handles me well. Cause there are days when I am pretty clueless and need to be handled by someone who can see the bigger picture. There are many days when I feel like I am a drift in a vast ocean of directional possibilities and I look around in a full circle and have no idea which way land might even be. I am thankful in those times, when I feel that way that I can hold on to the truth of the word. That He knows the plans for me and they are good plans. That the steps of the righteous are ordered by the Lord. A man’s heart plans his way, but the Lord directs his steps. 

Help me to learn good judgment and knowledge because I believe Your commandments.

So when I feel confused and don't know what to do I go back to the beginning. I look at the foundations of truth that I have built my life on. I remember, and I recall what things I know to be true. I remember how God has helped me in the past. He has helped me to learn good judgement. He has trained me to be led by the Holy Spirit and to yield to those little nudges to go this way or that. As I build upon the foundations of things I have learned to be true my problems tend to sort them self our in light of God's faithfulness to me.  What ever you are facing today, you are not alone. He promises that He will never leave or forsake you. It says that nothing can snatch you out of his hand. He does wait for you to invite him to come in and help you to set things right. He does not just barge in and take over uninvited. 

Before I had trouble, I strayed from the true path, the path of righteousness,

but now I live according to Your word. Sometimes it is the difficulties that we face that finally bring us to our knees. Up to those watershed moments when we cry out to God, we were convinced that we could handle things on our own. God is to often the last resort, when we have exhausted every other possible solution. Just humble yourself and let go of your stubborn pride and turn to Him now. 

Admit to Him and to yourself that you are in over your head and you need His help. 

You are truly good, and Your acts are too; teach me what You require.

God and the things He does are truly good. It is His kindness that leads us to repentance. We taste and see that He is good. We realize that we are hungry for more of what He has to offer. I remember being a young 20 year old, my grandmother had just died. My aunt and her family and I had gone to a missionary bible camp for the weekend. I figured I could tune out the preachers and just enjoy the nature. I was not prepared for the family sining group that was there. They shared songs about a loving God. As I watched them that weekend I was convinced that they indeed had something that I did not have and did not understand. I got just a tiny little taste of God's goodness and that tiny taste got my attention and started me on the journey to find out what this Jesus guy was all about. 

The proud smear me with their lies; I will keep Your instructions wholeheartedly.

 Their hearts are dull and callous; I am delighted to study Your teaching.

There have been a couple of times in my life when I have been smeared by the lies and half truths of well meaning but mis informed people. In those instances I felt the Lord's instruction was not to try and defend myself. I was to be silent and I was blessed to see people who knew and loved me rise up to my accusers and set them strait. There is a bit of truth in every lie, thats what makes them believable. There were certainly things in hind site that I could have done better but what blessed me is that even though those situations were horrible I got to see that there were a lot of people standing for me. I suppose when we sow the seeds of believing the best of others that we reap a harvest of people believing the best of us. Lord help our hearts to be soft towards you and not dull and calloused. 

I show my new guitar students the callous that have built up on my left hand fingers from playing guitar. One needs those callouses to develop to be able to play the guitar other wise pressing on the strings is very painful. I tell my new students to make sure to push on the strings every day for 15 minutes so that they will build the needed callouses. Our hearts do the same thing when presented with painful things. Little by little we grow callouss on our heart.  In the case of our heart we don't just avoid the pain we miss out on being able to feel the pleasures and the joy. Those same callouses that protect us from pain also block our ability to feel God's presence and love. 

It is a good thing that I was humbled because it helped me learn Your limits.

Think back on the things that have brought about the most growth in your life. Generally it is the trials and difficulties that we have had to face and overcome. If everything was just peachy all the time we might have never discovered some of what God has called us to do. We might not have discovered what it is like to depend and lean on God. We might not have experienced the joy of answered prayer or rejoiced with songs of deliverance.  

Your teachings are more valuable to me than a fortune in gold and silver.  I suppose I have to remind myself who my source is. It is not my employer, or my mate, or my parents, or my insurance, or the government. My source is the Eternal God of the Universe. My source is that God who was able to raise the son he sent to us from the dead. My source is the God who parted the read sea and gave sight to blind men and caused the lame to walk. I won't lie to you there are times when I do worry about how to make ends meet. There are times when I can feel quite anxious about the things I am facing. I have to stop like you do, I have to remind myself of what is true. Nothing compares to Jesus and His great love. There is no fortune that is more valuable than He. No kingdom better able to provide for its people than the Kingdom of God. I stop and I recount the many times when God has helped me. There have been so many times when things looked hopeless and seemed impossible yet God came through. 

Prayer: I pray the Lord will remind you of His great value. It is more than the sum of all of the answered prayers and is rooted firmly in who He is. I pray that you would grow beyond a long list of wants and needs and get to know Him as your most intimate, trusted friend who will walk with you every step of the journey through this life. I pray that you will learn to trust Him as your provider, who cares about your every need.