Paula Wiseman

Faith and life meet in a story

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Posts that reference the Psalms

God’s Hideout

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Psalm 27

13 I would have lost heart, unless I had believed/ That I would see the goodness of the Lord/ In the land of the living.

Let me rewrite this for myself – I lose heart when I forget that I can see the goodness of the Lord. I get so near-sighted and so focused on the here and now and on myself that I lose sight of GOD, His holiness and His call on my life.

But even when I forget, this is what He does for me…

5 For in the time of trouble
He shall hide me in His pavilion;
In the secret place of His tabernacle
He shall hide me;
He shall set me high upon a rock.

High on a rock- easy to defend, gives a tremendous perspective on things below. He will realign my thinking from a safe place, where not too many others can reach me. His tabernacle is symbolic of His presence. He won’t hide me and leave me, but He will hide with me, and then tell when it’s safe to come out. It’s a place He’s prepared for that purpose.

Thinking about thoughts

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 Some thoughts on Psalm 19- 

Who can understand his errors? Will I, can I ever really understand how and why my heart and mind conspire in sinful presumptions? Is understanding as necessary as it seems to understand how and why?
Cleanse me from secret faults, from the faults I’m unwilling to admit even to myself. To be cleansed, they must be recognized, identified, brought out into the light.
Keep [me] from presumptuous sins – I’m learning that these are some of my favorites. These are the ideas that I have rights and entitlements from God, that He is obligated, owes me things. Let them not have dominion over me – When they do, that’s when I crash. When I am more focused on myself, how I’ve been treated/accepted then I get off track.
I want to be blameless and innocent of great transgression, but am I willing to do the hard work required to achieve it?
the meditation of my heart/ Be acceptable – Even the things I brood over should honor God and not seek to displace Him as Lord.

 

 

One of Those Days

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This is one of those days… it’s cold, gray, rainy, and my mental health index is slipping. This is the kind of day in which I get overwhelmed by all there is to do, all that’s been left undone. If I don’t get a handle on it right away,
then I get pulled in to a hole that takes two or three weeks to get out of.
Here are my tips for dealing with this kind of day-
1. Admit it. Don’t say things are ‘fine’. Lying- even to yourself- makes it worse.
2. Tell a few of your best friends- those people who go their knees for you- let them know this is a shaky day.
3. Go to “the notebook”. I’ve got an ongoing notebook of verses and comments for days like this. Something in there will stick. It always does. God’s word always fulfills its purpose.
4. Go out to eat- or at least for ice cream.
 
Here’s what jumps out of my notebook on this ‘one of those days’- Psalm 94:19. “When my anxious thoughts multiply within me, Your consolations delight my soul.” (NAS) or “When doubts filled my mind, Your comfort gave me renewed hope and cheer.” (NLT)
Renewed hope… it was there all along. I just lose sight of it.
 
  

Unboxing Trust

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I read Psalm 11 this morning. Here’s the gist of it- David begins with an affirmation. I trust God.
Then he goes on- So why do expect me to run around in circles like the sky is falling?
God knows what’s going on here. He knows the true, deep motivations and I trust Him to judge us all.
I’m not worried.
Several of my characters wrestle with trusting God, Bobbi especially. She’s a capable, confident woman, and she figures she can handle almost everything. When her husband cheats on her, she reaches her limit. She struggles with how God could let that happen. Isn’t He supposed to protect His own? It causes her to reevaluate the box she had kept God in.
Do I have God in a box that limits His freedom to work in my life, to use me? Do I trust God to the point of being at complete peace with my situation? Even if that situation is another rejection or another closed door?

Encounters Series

From the opening pages of Scripture, no one who has encountered a holy God has come away unchanged. Adam, Abraham, Hagar, Moses and many, many others realized that God is not distant but a God who … Read More

Covenant of Trust Series

A covenant is a solemn, binding agreement. God chose to unilaterally enter into a covenant with Abraham. No matter what Abraham said or did, God vowed to uphold the terms and bless Abraham. Marriage … Read More...

Foundations Series

Jesus told a parable about a wise builder and a foolish one, underscoring how important it is to have a solid foundation. He declared that obedience to His word was the surest foundation of all. In … Read More...