From: Beverly French [frenchb@adelphia.net]
Sent: Sunday, May 22, 2005 2:14 PM
To: Peg Meier; Theodore Enke
Subject: May 22, 2005 Greetings

Subject: May 22, 2005 Greetings

 "Bless the Lord , O my soul;
 And all that is within me, bless His holy name!
 Bless The Lord, O my soul,
 And forget not all His benefits." Psalm103: 1-2

 As I thought of the message for this week my heart was filled with joy as I  was remained of the grace of God, of His love, kindness and goodness, that  ever keeps us in this world which is so perverted. In my preparation I was  led to Psalm 34.  This is a praise song of David and he is praising the 
Lord
 as his provider and deliverer. The margin of the NASB refers to the time of  the Psalm to when David fled from Saul and went to Achish king of Gath.  Here he was recognized and in great danger, but the Lord delivered him.  You can read the account in 1 Samuel 21: 10-15

 In Verses 1-3 David resolves and fixes on praising the Lord -- "I will" and  he invites the praises of others,  "I will bless the Lord at all times;  His praise shall continually be in my mouth.  My soul shall make its boast in the Lord;  The humble shall; hear it and rejoice.  Oh magnify the Lord with me,  And let us exalt His name together."

 David appealed to the Lord and He responded,
 "I sought the Lord.He answered, and delivered me." Vs. 4
 "This poor man cried.the Lord heard and saved him." Vs. 6

 From his experiences David can, with all assurance, state,  "The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear Him,  And rescues them." Vs. 7 (Those who fear the Lord are 'those who revere and  worship Him with awe.' The Amplified Bible)

 Then he goes on to encourage those who fear the Lord down through the ages  and tells of the wondrous benefits,  "O taste and see that the Lord is good;  How blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him!  O fear the Lord, you His saints;  For to those who fear Him, there is no want.They who seek the Lord shall 
not
 be in want of any good thing." Vs. 8-10

 Now David exhorts us to fear the Lord, child and man alike, who desires  life. (See verses 11-12). And he then says,  "Keep your tongue from evil,  And your lips from speaking deceit.  Depart from evil, and do good;  Seek peace, and pursue it." Vs. 13-14

 David goes on to teach us of the Lord's watchfulness and protection over  those who revere and worship Him,  "The eyes of the Lord are toward the righteous,  And His ears are open to their cry.  The face of the Lord is against evildoers,  To cut off the memory of them from the earth.  The righteous cry and the Lord hears,  And delivers them out of all their troubles.  The Lord is near to the broken hearted,  And saves those who are crushed in spirit." Vs. 15-18

 There is more, but I encourage you to read the whole Psalm, I will end with  verse 22 which tells of the glorious assurance the one has who takes refuge  in the Lord,  "The Lord redeems the soul of His servants;  And none of those who take refuge in Him will be condemned."

 All praise and thanks to Jesus Christ the Lord!!
 As the song says, "Let's just praise the Lord, praise the Lord, let's just  lift our hearts toward heaven and praise the Lord!" Amen.