TGFABT – Psalm 14
The fool says in his heart, “There is no God.”
Psalm 14:1a
Fool
- A person who lacks judgment or sense
- A person who has been tricked or deceived into appearing or acting silly or stupid
- An person who cannot resist an opportunity to indulge
- A weak-minded
Living like there is a God means
Having and using good judgment-(Psalm 119:66)
Avoid being tricked or deceived– (James 1:22)
Resisting self-indulgence– (Galatians 5:13)
Being strong minded-(Romans 12:2)
Truth
The Lord is looking for those who are seeking Him. What does He see when He looks at me?
Word Study
“The LORD looks down from heaven on the sons of men to see if there are any who understand, any who seek God.”
Psalm 14:2
Any who understand -sakal-(saw-kal’) consider
Any who seek God– Darash (daw-rash) seek, seek with care, enquire
Seek– to go in search or quest of, to try to find or discover by searching or questioning
Inquire– to make investigation
The Lord looked for anyone.
2 Chronicles 16:9a
“For the eyes of the LORD range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him.”
The Lord looked for anyone.
What does the Lord see when He sees me? Does He see me considering and seeking Him? Oh, that He would find me seeking, considering, and fully committed to Him.
Thankful
“I praise You because I (she is) am fearfully and wonderfully made; Your works are wonderful, I know that full well.”
Psalm 139:14
Today I am thankful for the purity of new life. Two of my dearest friends became grandparents yesterday. This my friend Kristi who taught me of the importance of a daily quiet time with God.
Faith Stretching/Strengthening
My faith is being stretched/strengthened as practice what God is teaching me.
I know how many times I have been a fool and did what I wanted because it was easy or it was fun. As Wendy states, we learn from our mistakes. I know I am a fool doing things I want even as I am getting older. This is a great Psalm to reflect on this week.
Great lesson Wendy! This one in particular really spoke to be on several levels. My foolish ways and those of others. Realizing that being a “fool” is truly a sin.
However is there a scale of sinful behavior? Does God measure my sins to those of sex traffickers, murderers, molesters, etc. Is all sin the same regardless of the severity? Hmmm
We are instructed to pray for those sin. However my prayers are usually not for their redemption but for God’s rath.
I am going to focus on not giving in to self indulgence and let God fill my voids!
A lot to consider this week. Thanks again Wendy and ladies for providing wonderful insight!
Two things stood out to me this week in the Psalm even before I got to the video. My Bible notes say this in regard to verses 1-3: We become atheists in practice when we rely more on ourselves than on God. Wendy elaborated on that as well. So often I respond my way instead of God’s way to difficult situations and people in my life. How I need to be reminded to seek God’s help to honor Him with my words, actions and thoughts. I also noticed in verses 2-3 how God is looking for believers and he finds none. The Psalmist is describing his world but this verse so describes our world as well. Again we are reminded that it is so easy to become such a part of our culture that it is hard to distinguish the Christian from the non Christian. I want others to see God in me and I especially want God to find me when He is looking down from Heaven for His faithful ones. I want Him to be able to find me being faithful!
My truth is in over indulgence. I pray will see me improving. My truth is starting the day with good intentions and ignoring what I know I should be doing instead.
Truth is that I have been a fool many times filled with anger and resentment. Reviewing the Proverb verses given in our lesson today I see myself in those attributes, not a pretty picture. Over recent years I have strived very hard to have more God thoughts and have improved greatly. I am not where I want to be but thank you God that I am not where I was! Enjoy your day and hopefully a warming trend!!!
The line in scripture that spoke to me today is ” for God is with those who obey him”. I am going in for medical tests today. Bob and Reann are also having health issues. It is comforting to know that God is with us. We may not always obey like we should, but I know He is always there.
My truth today from the end of the Psalm in the amplified version:
“The Lord is our safe refuge”. We can take refuge in a lot of things but only the Lord is our one true safe refuge.
I am grateful that I can study God’s Word and find peace in it every day.
Good Evening, Ladies! I am so glad to be studying the word tonight after a very hectic two days at work. The message today really hit home. I always looked at this verse and thought, “I am glad I am not a fool.” Well after Wendy gave the example of a practical atheist, I am rethinking that statement. There have definitely been times in my live where I lived the way I wanted to live instead of following God’s leading. I have also been a person who has lacked judgement. Good thing we have God’s GRACE!! Praise the Lord for that!
My truth is that sometimes the scriptures that “don’t seem to apply to me” are really written just for me. I pray that God gives me the opportunity to exercise good judgement and that my eyes would be open while reading the word.
Seek and you shall find. I will not stop seeking God as I need to find him in all circumstances and I don’t want him to ever wonder where I am.
The word I focused on this morning was in verse 3 “together”. They have all turned aside; together they have become corrupt. It is a good reminder that who we surround ourselves with is important because people can influence our decisions and behavior . It is important to have friends who stand on God’s Word and the truth so we can stand together in Him instead of standing together against HIm. Taking a stand for Him and His truth is getting increasingly difficult in our world that is tolerant of every thought and opinion.
So I struggled with 14:6 and its application to my current behaviors. How am I encouraging the plans of the poor- am I an evildoer frustrating their plans? While I am not intentionally “defeating or destroying”, how am I being faithful to God’s commands and showing love to others and overcoming my own selfishness or “focus” on my self, my worries, my TO DO LIST, my need to complete the say I set forth vs the day God has set forth. I am rereading these Proverbs and reflecting on James 4:3. When I ask/seek God, am I truly loving others or are my motives for God’s direction on my life to fit neatly into today’s itinerary?? This is definitely an area for my growth in trusting God’s perfect timing and perfect planning. Shockingly, I do not have all the answers but I DO HAVE GOD and the freedom to seek him with all my heart, soul, mind and strength. Just do it- be in His timeless Word, slow down to notice His presence, shush up to hear Him and pray – trust the truth of the godly people who challenge me to be different in His likeness.
Thankful for being able to sell my father’s house after 3 days on the market and we are closing today at 3. Such a burden God lifted from me and my sister today. Being married to a real estate agent was a true blessing! Thank you God for both of these things in my life!!!
So very thankful for getting to spend today with 3 wonderful women whom I love so much! My mom, my sister, my daughter! Oh yeah….my dad, grandson and granddaughter will be there too!
Especially thankful that God gave His Son for me. A variety of reminders recently of His incredible sacrifice. Asking Him to remind me to be continually mindful and grateful for that.