Psalm 91

I wonder if the quote on Sept. 15 should have read "by listening empathetically" instead of emphatically? Listening any way is hard, but I don't quite know how to listen emphatically, sigh.

Tonight there was another quote I want to pull out to ponder

"The Lord gives us a spirit of hope and a feeling of comfort and confidence that we can overcome the obstacles we face. He has shown the way to gain strength during our struggles. With His assistance, we have the ability to succeed."

--L. Lionel Kendrick, "Strength During Struggles,", Ensign, Oct 2001, 24

Now, to turn to the title of tonight's entry, Psalm 91. The Old Testament Student Manual gives an assignment to choose 15 psalms to study. I have chosen 91 to be one of my 15 psalms to study.

It is a Messianic Psalm; The Lord shall give his angels charge over Him ...

The choir sang On Eagle's Wings in Sacrament meeting this summer. I had no clue it was adapted from this psalm until I started reading the psalm. I guess this phrase from verse 3, "he shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler," caused the jolt of recognition.

Psalm 91:11–12 is quoted in Luke 4:10–11. The song says, "And He will raise you up on eagle's wings, bear you on the breath of dawn ..." It is a beautiful hymn.

Another 5 point book

5 Point Challenges

• Read a chick lit book
• Read a name with a proper name in the title
• Read a historical fiction book
• Read a book with a one word title
• Read a book made into a movie

I think this is my 2nd 5 point book. Looking back through the entries tagged 5 points, I have only tagged 2 entries. And only one of those entries was for reading a book.

So, in 144 Books in 2010, I marked Jillian Hart's book, A McKaslin Homecoming as a 4 & filed it in "Alpha by Author." I already had an "H" with Joanne Harris, so I entered this as "J" for Jillian. I actually filed it under Favorite Authors.

I read Homecoming by Cynthia Voigt the other night, Sept. 16. I filed it as a Reread in 144 Books in 2010. Again I gave it 5 stars. It is an excellent book. I will add it as another 5 point book as A book made into a movie. It was a 1996 Hallmark movie. My mom & I got it from Netflix & watched it.

The Lord is my Shepherd

Psalm 23, The Lord is My Shepherd, is one of my favorite psalms.

And Psalm 22 is amazing! It is a detailed description of Christ's crucifixion. In Matt. 27:46 Christ quoted Psalm 22:1! In Psalm 22:15-18 it says they will part his clothing among them & cast lots for his vesture (coat). Matt. 27:35 and John 19:23-24 give an account of the fulfilling of this prophecy.

And a quote to share:

"By listening emphatically, we often can help others find their own solutions."

--Marvin J. Ashton, "Straightway", Ensign, May 1983, 30

Working on Psalms

Interesting reading here. There are 150 psalms. That's right 150. Not quite like chapters, it's like hymns in the hymnal, but psalms in the psalter.

I have also discovered the word "selah." Which is Hebrew to tell the reader to pause or as Wikipedia says:

The Amplified Bible states Selah as "pause, and think of that".

I have continued to request reading assignments from readthescriptures.com Tonight's thoughts & quotes are:

"Commandments and covenants of God are like navigational instructions from celestial heights and will lead us safely to our eternal destination. It is one of beauty and glory beyond understanding. It is worth the effort. It is worth making decisive corrections now and then staying on course."

--Dieter F. Uchtdorf, "A Matter of a Few Degrees", Ensign, May 2008, 57–60

I really like this one from President Monson.

"Learn from the past, prepare for the future, live in the present."

--President Thomas S. Monson, Ensign, May 2003, 22

 I have a busy day tomorrow. Six more pages of a 15 page paper & DUP, Daughters of Utah Pioneers.

Finished 2 Samuel

Finished 2 Samuel tonight. The book of 2 Samuel was a study of King David.

King David's life was "a life of greatness, greatness of triumph and greatness of tragedy."

Israel finally controlled the land promised to Abraham's posterity nearly 1,000 years earlier!! They had never been so powerful, nor were they ever again.

It was indeed an interesting study. But I've pondered it here. I'm not going to belabor the subject.

The road less traveled

In the Preface of the (LDS) Institute of Religion's Old Testament Student Manual, 1 Kings-Malachi, it says

The twenty-eight chapters in the manual are organized to correspond with the chronology of events in the Old Testament. This organization does not strictly follow the sequence of books as they appear in the Old Testament. It is not possible to adhere exactly to the chronology because several accounts overlap in the time periods they cover, and sometimes several prophets ministered at the same time in different areas. Also, the time of the writing of some books is not known (Job and Proverbs, for example). This manual does, however, basically follow the chronology of the Old Testament.

So, I will continue to take advantage of the journal from readthescriptures.com & continue to ask for new reading assignments, but will finish Old Testament Student Manual, Genesis-2 Samuel, by reading Psalms. I will probably even read Song of Solomon, although it is not considered holy scripture & not covered in the manual.

I won't be able to have Read the Scriptures track me as to percentage of completion.

Tonight's quotes

I was closing down the computer & found an untitled Notepad document with tonight's quotes that hadn't been saved. I did not plan to save it, I planned to make a blog entry.

"If we daily exercise faith, meekness, charity, and lowliness in heart, confessing that Jesus is the Christ, and accepting His Atonement, we will be blessed with the strength and hope to face and overcome the trials and pains of this life."

--Adhemar Damiani,, "Be of Good Cheer and Faithful in Adversity", Ensign, May 2005, 94

and this one:

"Faith fuels hope. The truth is that our only safety, our only security, our only hope is to hold fast to that which is good."

--David S. Baxter, "Faith, Service, Constancy", Ensign, Nov 2006, 13–15

Old Testament reading:
21 days behind.
36.6 %

A dilemma

I have a dilemma. According to the reading schedule I set up on readthescriptures.com, I will finish 2 Samuel & begin 1 Kings. However, the Old Testament Student Manual, Genesis-2 Samuel, includes a chapter on the Psalms. It seems appropriate to read the Psalms of David AFTER his reign.

Then, as I look at the next Old Testament Student Manual, 1 Kings-Malachi, the books of the Bible are not followed in order. So, what to do? What to do? Song of Solomon is not even included in the manual.

( Note: Joseph Smith indicated that “the Song of Solomon is not inspired scripture”; Bible Dictionary, s.v. “Song of Solomon.” It will therefore not be treated in this manual.)

I started just reading the Old Testament. I have learned so much more by studying the Institute manual along with my scriptures. I really don't think I would've stuck with it this long without the additional insight.

So, do I follow the reading schedule & read the scriptures in order or do I now take the road less traveled & follow the Institute manual where it leads me? I do like the journal from readthescriptures.com

Good thing I looked at it now. I can think on it for a couple of days without making a quick decision.

We must study the scriptures

I started a new chapter in the Old Testament Student Manual tonight & read 109 scriptures. The quote I chose to share is:

"We must study the scriptures to the Lord's commandment (3 Ne. 23:1-5) and we must let them govern our lives and the lives of our children ... So I ask all to begin now to study the scriptures in earnest, if you have not already done so"

--President Spencer W. Kimball, 1976

It was given a year after I came home from my mission. I am still 21 days behind, but 36.2% completed

The Fall of King David

I finished Chapter 26 of the Old Testament Student Manual, Genesis to 2 Samuel. I have 2 more chapters to go before I finish the manual. I've learned a lot reading the Old Testament by studying the OTSM.

I've always thought of King David as a failure. Yet, here is a thought-provoking question raised in the first part of chapter 26:

Do we emphasize the David who killed Goliath, or the David who killed Uriah? Should we view him as the servant who refused to lift his hand against the Lord’s anointed, or as the Lord’s anointed who lifted his hand against a faithful and loyal servant? Was his life a tragedy, or a triumph? 

It made me think of "great men of history."

Ask anybody: “Who are the great men in human history?” Likely you will hear names such as Alexander the Great, Julius Caesar, Napoleon, George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt, John F. Kennedy, or perhaps even Ronald Reagan. What do these men have in common? What made them great? They were successful because they were powerful, and with this power they changed the course of history by their heroic actions, or by ruling countries or even whole continents.

Read more: http://www.articlesbase.com/religion-articles/the-great-men-of-history-322731.html#ixzz0yolQdZu3
Under Creative Commons License: Attribution

So, if looked at in this way, yes, King David was successful.

For the first time, under his direction the chosen people controlled the whole land promised to Abraham’s seed nearly a thousand years earlier. Israel had not achieved such heights before, nor did they ever again.

But, he caused the murder of Uriah & so therefore committed an unpardonable sin, he did not reach the celestial kingdom. He did not "endure to the end."

Today's quotes

Today's Reading Completed quote from readthescriptures.com was:

"While we cannot agree with others on certain matters, we must never be disagreeable. We must be friendly, soft-spoken, neighborly, and understanding."

--President Gordon B. Hinckley, Ensign, Nov. 2003, 83

and Request Next Reading

"In our search to obtain relief from the stresses of life, may we earnestly seek ways to simplify our lives. May we comply with the inspired counsel and direction the Lord has given us in the great plan of happiness. May we be worthy to have the companionship of the Holy Ghost and follow the guidance of the Spirit as we navigate this mortal journey. May we prepare ourselves to accomplish the ultimate purpose of this mortal test—to return and live with our Heavenly Father."

--L. Tom Perry, "Let Him Do It with Simplicity", Ensign, Nov 2008, 7–10

I am 35.2% complete and 21 days behind.

Finished 1 Samuel

I finished 1 Samuel. For some reason, this was a hard book to read. I am a third of the way through the Old Testament.

I didn't do very well on secular reading in August either. I'm hoping I can do better in September & that we can get the foreclosure cleared up.

Behind on my scripture reading

I am 21 days behind on the reading schedule I set up for the Old Testament. Unless I do a reading marathon, I will not be finished by Dec. 31.

I love the quotes that readthescriptures.com send with the Reading Completed and Request Next Reading notifications. Today Reading Completed was:

"Because of Christ there is hope smiling brightly before you, and you need not worry too much about sickness, death, poverty, or other afflictions. The Lord will take care of you. Your responsibility is to keep the commandments, feast upon the words of Christ, and stay in the path to your heavenly home."

--Julie B. Beck, "There Is Hope Smiling Brightly before Us", Ensign, May 2003, 103

and from Request Next Reading:

"Please don't nag yourself with thoughts of failure. Do not set goals far beyond your capacity to achieve. Simply do what you can do, in the best way you know, and the Lord will accept of your effort."

--Gordon B. Hinckley, "Rise to the Stature of the Divine within You," Ensign, Nov. 1989, 94

 Today I had 3 legals at work. One was a foreclosure. I translated the document, opened it & scanned down through it to find the name of who was being foreclosed on so I could write it on the form. Mine & Don's name literally jumped out on me. Interesting how most of the time I have to search for those names, but not today. It was like I'd been kicked in the gut.

I'd been thinking of the scripture in the Gospels where Christ says "Consider the lilies of the field" & here were these 2 quotes. Kind of cool, huh?