Me? I'm pretty damn dumb most of the time.

Psalms 119: 57-71
The Lord is my portion; I promise to keep your words. I implore your favor with all my heart' be gracious to me according to your promise. When I think of your ways, I turn my feet to your decrees;I hurry and do not delay to keep your commandments. . . . You have dealt with your servant, O Lord, according to your word. Teach me good judgment and knowledge; for I beleieve in your commandments. Before I was humbled I went astray, but now I keep your word. You are good and do good; teach me your statutes. . . . It is good for me that I was humbledl so that I might learn your statutes.

Interesting passage huh?

In reading Psalm 119 there is so much in each and every stanza that it is almost too much to comprehend. But look at this: "The Lord is my portion." In other words, the Lord is all I get, no more, no less. Then the psalmist asks for grace according to God's promise. . . . he says that when he thinks of the lords ways his feet turn to God's decrees. In other words, when he thinks of what God does he does the same things (hold this thought in your mind for a bit, if you would) Then, interstingly enough, he says that the Lord has dealt with the servant according to His will. Now to me, though I admit I may be reading this wrong, it seeems that this must be connected to the next sentence where the servant has been humbled. look at the words "dealt with" and "servant." They seem to imply a reprimand or disciplining of some sort; this idea is only reinforced by the fact that the humbling comes directly afterwards. And THEN, the psalmist says that it is good that he was humbled.

SO jojo what have you learned today? (sorry, inside joke for those who have toddlers and watch the Disney channel)

A. God is all we got folks. When things are good, or bad, we usually first try to do things on our own steam, but the fact of the matter is, we ain't got any steam that is ours. The God who sustains this universe out of his sheer love for it, who gives sustanance to the lion, and bird, and the creatures of the deep from his own hand in his own time, does the same for us. have you ever thought what it would be like if God got REALLY mad at someone and just decided to NOT Love them to not "think" them? Poof! bye-bye. So hey, God really is your portion. He's all you got.

(wow never thought I could write an entire sermon on just one line! Jim, if you ever need a sermon writer I only charge twenty dollars per verse word!)

Now on to being humbled. hmmm maybe I need some of that.

I think I should attempt to remind myself of my humbled nature and the fact that all I have is God though, because frankly, when God humbles us it usually ain't fun or pretty. (been there, done that, got the shirt.)

But it is good to be humbled none-the-less. For in being humbled we learn the statutes of God, we are taught by the great teacher what we should be doing and how we should be acting. We are taught again that our portion is the Lord, and the Lord only. Why? Because God lets us be brought low, in order that he may raise us up again, so that we may learn where our sustanance comes from.

How quick of a learner are you? Me? I'm pretty damn dumb most of the time.