In The Word
Read: Psalm 127-129
127 Unless the Lord builds a house,
They who build it labor in vain;
Unless the Lord guards a city,
The watchman stays awake in vain.
2 It is futile for you to rise up early,
To stay up late,
To eat the bread of painful labor;
This is how He gives to His beloved sleep.
3 Behold, children are a gift of the Lord,
The fruit of the womb is a reward.
4 Like arrows in the hand of a warrior,
So are the children of one’s youth.
5 Blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them;
They will not be ashamed
When they speak with their enemies in the gate.
128 Blessed is everyone who fears the Lord,
Who walks in His ways.
2 When you eat the fruit of the labor of your hands,
You will be happy and it will go well for you.
3 Your wife will be like a fruitful vine
Within your house,
Your children like olive plants
Around your table.
4 Behold, for so shall a man
Who fears the Lord be blessed.
5 The Lord bless you from Zion,
And may you see the prosperity of Jerusalem all the days of your life.
6 Indeed, may you see your children’s children.
Peace be upon Israel!
129 “Many times they have attacked me from my youth up,”
Let Israel say,
2 “Many times they have attacked me from my youth up;
Yet they have not prevailed against me.
3 The plowers plowed upon my back;
They lengthened their furrows.”
4 The Lord is righteous;
He has cut up the ropes of the wicked.
5 May all who hate Zion
Be put to shame and turned backward;
6 May they be like grass upon the housetops,
Which withers before it grows up;
7 With which the harvester does not fill his hand,
Or the binder of sheaves his arms;
8 Nor do those who pass by say,
“The blessing of the Lord be upon you;
We bless you in the name of the Lord.”
New American Standard Bible (NASB) Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation
Walking In The Word
In Psalm 127, Solomon addressed three important things to us all: our home, our security, and our dreams of a family. In each situation, we find that all three come from the Lord. We wouldn’t have any of these unless the Lord builds the house (Psalm 127:1) and unless the Lord guards the house (Psalm 127:1); children are also a gift of the Lord (Psalm 127:3). My favorite verse is, “For He gives to His beloved even in his sleep” (Psalm 127:2). This tells me that when you are in a position like this, God can be working on your behalf and you can be totally unaware of it!
Is this your situation right now? Are you living in the blessing shared in this psalm? In Psalm 128, we find the secret of having it all. “How blessed is everyone who fears the Lord, who walks in His ways…You will be happy and it will be well with you” (Psalm 128:1-2). So what are “fear” and His “ways”? This “fear” is a moral reverence and acknowledges God’s good intentions and relationship to us; it is a positive quality. This “fear” makes one receptive to God’s wisdom and knowledge and is produced by God’s Word. His “ways” are the path or journey He has given to you through His Word. Learning God’s path or ways can only be done by learning His Word. I have found that when I spend time with the Father, reading His Word, or journaling my thoughts and prayers, that I have this life that makes me happy and content in return. Yes, there are disappointments and hurts, but they are insignificant when compared to the blessings of the Lord. I choose His way!