Psalm 32 | Wednesday Bible Study

Welcome back to Bible Study Wednesday! Before we start our Bible study together, I wanted to make a couple of announcements. First of all, today is my baby boy's 15TH birthday! Wow! My brother and I were talking today about where has the time gone! He used to get off work in the wee hours of the morning and take care of Javan so I could sleep for a few hours. It was pretty brutal in the beginning and I am so thankful for his love and care for my newborn. Javan is so much like my brother it is actually a little scary! But I am thankful for my brother and my baby boy, who is not a baby any longer but he will always be my baby!

He loves to go fishing and this summer he did quite a bit of that with his daddy while he recovered from surgery. It was really nice to see him do something fun near the water since he couldn't get in. Paul and I picked out his birthday cake and it was just a lot of fun to surprise him with this particular cake! He loved it!

In other, not so exciting news, I have injured myself. It happened on Saturday and it hurt quite a bit, but I just went on about my day. Sunday I missed church. I could hardly get out of bed, but I figured maybe I had slept wrong. I watched church online and getting out of bed was a chore! I did not put the injury Saturday afternoon together with the Sunday morning aches and pains. I got worse as the day went on. Monday I could hardly walk and I had to cancel my training for Tuesday at my new job. I was really disappointed but I could not even stand up straight.

I made an appointment with my chiropractor and he got me in Tuesday. Paul helped me from the vehicle to the office and then I literally was wheeled out in a wheelchair. The pain has been excruciating. I felt a little better Tuesday afternoon and was able to lay on some ice and take some anti-inflammatory medication and rest. My doctor said no work for me the rest of this week. I was back in there today for more therapy. I was walking a little better, but still require assistance and cannot stand up straight. It is all I can do to walk to the car and then back inside. I have an appointment tomorrow and another on Friday. I am hoping to be back to walking upright and without the pain on Tuesday and throughout the week next week. Please say a prayer for me.
 

If you have been with me on this journey this year, you know God pressed upon my heart to study the book of Psalms. Each Wednesday we take a closer look at a new chapter. Today we are going to chapter 32. If you have not done so, please take the time to read through these 11 verses. I will be sharing some thoughts about today's passage and break down this chapter below. Please pray and ask Holy Spirit to open your spiritual eyes and ears to receive everything He has to teach you in today's passage. Let's begin!

Verses 1-2

Did you ever think of how blessed we are to have our sins forgiven? Our sins are covered by the precious blood of Jesus Christ if we have been saved by His mercy and grace. We have been redeemed by the blood of the Lamb if we have surrendered our lives to Him, confessed our sins, and asked Jesus to be the Lord of our life.

2 CORINTHIANS 5:17-21 Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. And all things are of God, Who hath reconciled us to Himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation; To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto Himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the Word of reconciliation. Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God. For He hath made Him to be sin for us, Who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him.

Friends, we are reconciled to God, our Heavenly Father, through the blood of Jesus and His work on the cross. That is why we are blessed! That is a reason to rejoice. Our sins are wiped away and He will blot them out, never to remember them anymore.

Verses 3-5

David is having a hard time wrestling with his sin that is separating him from God. He has no peace. He has no pleasure. He is miserable. Sin causes us to live in a miserable state. Do you remember what David had done? He used his power and influence to have an affair with another man's wife. He got her pregnant and formed a plan to cover it up and look like it was Uriah's baby. Uriah was an honorable man and would not take the bait. He was a man of war and he would not leave the war and his men behind while he had pleasure with his wife. David ordered Uriah be put on the front lines and have the soldiers pull back which would end Uriah's life in the battle.

Think of all the work David did to hide his sin, but it did not work. He says there was a heaviness on him day and night. He could not sleep it off. He could not busy himself with the affairs of his kingdom. That sin was constantly gnawing at him. He knew he had messed up. He lost his strength. He was not the man he used to be and he could not even look at his own reflection.

2 SAMUEL 12:7-14 And Nathan said to David, Thou art the man. Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, I anointed thee king over Israel, and I delivered thee out of the hand of Saul; And I gave thee thy master's wives into thy bosom, and gave thee the house of Israel and of Judah; and if that had been too little, I would moreover have given unto thee *such and such (much more) things. Wherefore hast thou despised the commandment of the LORD, to do evil in His sight? thou hast killed Uriah the Hittite with the sword, and hast taken his wife to be thy wife, and hast slain him with the sword of the children of Ammon. Now therefore the sword shall never depart from thine house; because thou hast taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be thy wife. Thus saith the LORD, Behold, I will raise up evil against thee out of thine own house, and I will take thy wives before thine eyes, and give them unto thy neighbour, and he shall lie with thy wives in the sight of this sun. For thou didst it secretly: but I will do this thing before Israel, and before the sun. And David said unto Nathan, I have sinned against the LORD. And Nathan said unto David, The LORD also hath put away thy sin; thou shalt not die. Howbeit, because by this deed thou hast given great occasion to the enemies of the LORD to blaspheme, the child also that is born unto thee shall surely die.

Now that we have looked back in time to that instance and we see how David was burdened and disconnected from God, we also see David's quick admittance that he was guilty. He acknowledged the sin without excusing it away. He was repentant and that is why God forgave him. When we admit our guilt and we do not wish to continue in that path, God forgives us, too. 1 JOHN 1:9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. I am so thankful for this promise.

Verses 6-7

David gives us a prayer to pray when we need forgiveness and during a time when we need to find God. He says to pray:

Surely in the floods of great waters they shall not come nigh unto me. You are my hiding place. You preserve me from trouble. You surround me with songs of deliverance.

Then David asks us to Selah, or pause and wonder.

Isn't that fantastic? David is saying though our sins and troubles may seem overwhelming and like a flood of emotions washing over us, we can rest in the hiding place and be safe from trouble. The forgiveness of God will surround us with singing of our deliverance. What a beautiful picture of God's redeeming love, mercy, and grace for you and I.

Verses 8-9

In response to that prayer, God speaks to us as well. He says:

I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go. I will guide you with My eye. Do not be like the horse, or the mule, who have no understanding. Their mouth must be held in with bit and bridle to control them. Do not be like that!

Friends, if we respond to the Lord as He leads us and guides us, we will walk in the paths He has created for us. He has already gone before us and the roads may be hard at times, but they build us and strengthen us to have more faith in Him. If we trust Him we will follow His lead. If we give in to fear or selfish ambitions we are like the stubborn horses and mules who must be forced to go where they would rather not. Let's follow along in obedience.

Verses 10-11

It's hard to disobey God. It may seem easy to follow the crowd and do what we want to do with no regard to what would please the Lord, but the lifestyle is hard. Do you remember the sorrow and torment David went through? Many sorrows will be felt by the wicked. The good news is when we trust and obey the Lord and do what we know is right and pleasing in His sight, we will have mercy surrounding us. That is a wonderful blessing!

David usually gives us instructions, or something to do -- a call to action, perhaps. The last verse of this beautiful chapter is telling us to be glad in the LORD. We are to rejoice and shout for joy. Get excited about what God is doing in your life. Great things are coming your way and it will overtake you! Another verse in Psalms comes to mind along these lines. It is one of my favorite scriptures.

PSALM 68:19 Blessed be the Lord, Who daily loadeth us with benefits, even the God of our salvation. Selah.

What a wonderful time in the Word this has been. I pray it has been a blessing to you. Lord willing, I will have a blog post up tomorrow sharing what I am thankful for, and some Biblical insight to think about throughout your weekend. As always, I hope that something you have read on the blog today has been strength for your journey and light for your way. God bless you!

~Bridgett Owens

Good Report | Thankful Thursday

I am so thankful that Javan got his stitches out today. He did really well. The doctor packed the wound and I will continue that in the time increments he told me. The wound is expected to close in 6-8 weeks. Everything is going right along the time frame we were originally given. He still cannot swim in a pool, lake, or ocean, but he can watch a dirt track race in person with some extra precautions. I know this is not going to be the best summer of his life, but it is the perfect time to have the procedure and heal. We do not have any sports or school schedules to contend with, so it worked out. I am thankful for a good report at the doctor. God is so good!

ISAIAH 12:4-5

And in that day shall ye say,

Praise the LORD,

call upon His name,

declare His doings among the people,

make mention that His name is exalted.

Sing unto the LORD;

for He hath done excellent things:

this is known in all the earth.

I am declaring TODAY that I will praise His Holy name. I have called upon Him this morning and now I am declaring His good deeds to all of you. This Thankful Thursday, I am mentioning God's goodness and exalting His name. I am singing to God because He had done excellent things. What God has done: the good things and wonderful things and excellent things is known throughout the entire earth. We can see what blessings and answered prayers He has given us. What are you thankful for this Thankful Thursday? Exalt His name with me today and praise Him, sing to Him, for all the wonderful ways He has blessed your life.

~Bridgett Owens

God Heals | Thankful Thursday

My son had surgery on Friday. I was unable to get a blog post up and I missed yesterday's post, too, so I went ahead today and shared my Bible study post that should have been shared yesterday. Here are some pictures from Friday. The first picture is Javan on the way to the hospital, and then waiting on surgery, and then going home after surgery. 

Big smiles, but he was a little nervous. He was eager to get it over with, he said.

We were thankful to get to spend a lot of time with Javan before he had surgery.

He said the IV was the part he dreaded the most, hurt the worst, and the thing he was glad to get rid of the most.

Javan was pain free when we left the hospital. I am so thankful everything went well. He felt great all evening and the next day he was able to attend his uncle and aunt's family function with lots of singing and food and yummy desserts.

There were many prayers going up for his surgery and recovery. The Bible says, in James 5:14-15 Is any sick among you? let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord: And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him. Javan is blessed with a wonderful youth pastor and his wife who prayed over Javan and encouraged him about the surgery. 

In Exodus 15:26, God said He is the the LORD that heals us. David says in Psalm 30:2 O LORD my God, I cried unto Thee, and Thou hast healed me. I was concerned for Javan. Tears rolled down my face after they wheeled him back to surgery. I was reminded of the scripture, Psalm 56:3 What time I am afraid, I will trust in Thee. It was comforting to know Javan was safe in the hands of Jesus, the Great Physician. God wants us to trust Him. Psalm 148:11 The LORD taketh pleasure in them that fear Him, in those that hope in His mercy.

So this week, I am thankful that Javan continues to heal, has had minimal discomfort, and has had an opportunity to rest often. I am also thankful that I am off work during this time and can take care of him. It has been a blessing. What are you thankful for today?

~Bridgett Owens

Gift of Sight | Thankful Thursday

 

Today I took my son to pick up his brand new eyeglasses. He tried them on and everything fit well. It was a very rainy day, so he put the glasses in his hoodie front pocket. When he was inside the vehicle, he slipped his new glasses on and said, "Oh wow! I can see!! There's the sign for the mall.... and there's the sign for Chick-Fil-A!" 

I asked him, "Have you not been able to see those signs before?"

He answered, "No," and then kind of laughed in disbelief.

I told him, "You didn't know how much you couldn't see, until you could actually see, huh?" 

Of course that reminds me of our walk with Christ. He reveals His Word to us and we learn more about His character and His goodness the more we spend time with Him. We see how much we know about Him is really not that much in comparison to how great and magnificent we know Him to be!

Having good vision is a blessing. I had Lasic eye surgery a couple of years ago. I now have 20/20 vision. I can see far away with no problem. When it rains, I no longer have to hide my glasses in my pocket and squint into the horizon. I no longer have to wear prescription sunglasses. I can wear any sunglasses I want. No more having to take off my Rx sunglasses and put on my Rx glasses to go into a store or the house. It is the little things that I am so thankful for and what I was looking forward to the most with having this surgery. What I did not expect was to have crisp vision and to see so far! It was a blessing! It still is, and I thought about how much of a gift sight really is.

I cannot imagine being born blind. I have nothing to compare it to. Once when my siblings and I were younger, my mom told us to close our eyes and try to get around the house. Well I bumped into all kinds of things. I knew where the furniture was because I was born seeing and so I had already seen it with my own eyes, but in the darkness, no vision, I miscalculated steps and nearly fell. It gave me a tiny glimpse of what it might feel like. I felt scared and helpless and nervous. Do you remember the man in the Bible who asked Jesus to heal him? You may say, which one? Good question! We are going to look at two encounters, two different men, and two different methods of healing that took place.

It is a private miracle.

Mark 8:22-26

And He cometh to Bethsaida; and they bring a blind man unto Him, and besought Him to touch him. And He took the blind man by the hand, and led him out of the town; and when He had spit on his eyes, and put His hands upon him, He asked him if he saw ought. And he looked up, and said, I see men as trees, walking. After that He put His hands again upon his eyes, and made him look up: and he was restored, and saw every man clearly. And He sent him away to his house, saying, Neither go into the town, nor tell it to any in the town.

Jesus gets into town and as soon as he gets there, they bring this man to Him. They urgently and fervently asked Jesus to heal him. Who is the man? The Bible does not say in this text. We only know that a lot of people cared about him because they took the man to Jesus. The faith in Jesus to cause the man to see again was so great that they were waiting on Him to arrive.

We do not know why Jesus did not heal this man in public. I find it significant that he took the man by the hand and led him outside of town. Maybe it was not far, but Jesus took him by the hand and led him away. See the love there? He did not ask someone to go with them. This was personal. This was private. He took the man so they could be together apart from the crowd's prying eyes, and those who wanted to be entertained with a miracle.

Jesus could have spoken the Word and healed him. He could have made a clay mask like He did for another blind man. He could have used any method He wanted. Jesus spit in the man's eyes. We can all agree that is an unusual way to heal someone. Yet, the man is never recorded as getting upset or questioning Jesus's method. Jesus put His hands on the man and asked if he saw anything. The man's vision has returned. It is not perfectly clear, but he recognizes shapes and things. This lets us know he had sight before because he recognizes people and trees.

Jesus did not leave the man in that condition. He did not say, "Well at least you can see a little better now." Jesus loves this man so much, He wants him to have perfect vision. He put his hands on the man's eyes and made him look up, and the man was restored and saw clearly. Then Jesus gave him strict instructions to not return to that town and not tell anyone in that town what Jesus had done. It was a private miracle.

Maybe the man was wounded in his eyes by someone in the town. Maybe they had been making fun of him. We have no idea but Jesus clearly did not want him to go back to that town. He told him to go home and stay away from that town and the people there. Not everything Jesus heals us and delivers us from needs to be made public. Some things are private miracles and God will still get the glory in those times.

New identity.

Mark 10:46-52

And they came to Jericho: and as He went out of Jericho with His disciples and a great number of people, blind Bartimaeus, the son of Timaeus, sat by the highway side begging. And when he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out, and say Jesus, Thou Son of David, have mercy on me. And many charged him that he should hold his peace: but he cried the more a great deal, Thou Son of David, have mercy on me. And Jesus stood still, and commanded him to be called. And they call the blind man, saying unto him, Be of good comfort, rise; He calleth thee. And he, casting away his garment, rose, and came to Jesus. And Jesus answered and said unto him, What wilt thou that I should do unto thee? The blind man said unto him, Lord, that I might receive my sight. And Jesus answered and said unto him, Go thy way; thy faith hath made thee whole. And immediately he received his sight, and followed Jesus in the way.

I find it interesting that Mark identifies this man as "blind Bartimaeus." Often we read things like the man who was blind, or the woman with the issue of blood. This is indicative that Bartimaeus was born like this. He had a special cloak that he wore to let others know he was blind and he was begging because he could not work for money. He was doing what he could do with his life's circumstances, but Bartimaeus did not want to remain blind. He wanted a new identity.

Bartimaeus sat near a busy road. His hearing was sharp, and from what we know about the human body, it was probably a little sharper with his sense of vision gone. He undoubtedly heard people talking about the miracles of Jesus along the road. He must have had some knowledge of the Scriptures because he connects Jesus as the Son of David. When Bartimaeus finds out that Jesus is going to be walking right past him, hope came alive in his heart, like it never had before. He was desperate for a touch from God.

He has no idea where Jesus is in relation to where he is sitting, so he lifts his voice as loud as he can, and he starts begging Jesus for mercy. He is getting on the nerves of everyone around him. They start saying things like, "Blind Bartimaeus, be quiet!" They keep labeling him what he does not want to be. He refuses to hold his peace. This is his chance, his opportunity, and he is not going to miss it. He refuses to be hushed by those around him.

Jesus stops. Sometimes we can cry out with great faith and need and it will stop Jesus in His tracks. He tells them to call the blind man to Him. Now the annoyed people who once were shouting at him to shut up are the very ones who are comforting him. "Be of good comfort. Rise because Jesus is calling for you." They don't call him blind Bartimaeus now. He has the attention of the Master so they are starting to look at him differently.

Bartimaeus immediately shed his identity as a blind beggar. He removed what told the onlookers that he was a blind man. He threw that robe from his shoulders in eager anticipation to see. He stood up, no longer in a posture of begging. He was about to get an answer to his prayer. He came to Jesus. Can you imagine the intensity of this moment? He is in the final moments of being without sight.

Jesus knew Bartimaeus was blind. It was no secret. He saw him at the side of the highway begging. He knew the man's need but Jesus asked Bartimaeus, "What do you want Me to do for you?" And this is finally the moment he had been waiting on. "Lord, that I might receive my sight." What is your need that Jesus knows you have? He is asking you, "What do you want Me to do for you?" This is your moment. Ask him for what you need.

Jesus does not use any of the other methods of healing blind eyes. He says to Bartimaeus, "Go thy way; thy faith hath made thee whole." Bartimaeus did not have to wait for the healing to come. He immediately received his sight and followed Jesus in the way. He was made whole and another translation says he was saved. He followed Jesus. What will you do when Jesus gives you what you have been praying for? Will you follow Jesus in the Way?

I am so thankful for the gift of sight. I am grateful for glasses so my son can see clear, sharp images and words. I am thankful that not only can I see in the natural but I can see in the spiritual. My eyes are open to the truth of God's Word. I once was blind, but now I see. What an awesome God we serve!

What are some things you are thanking God for today? I pray something I shared today has been strength for your journey and light for your way. God bless you!

~Bridgett Owens

Graduation Milestone | Thankful Thursday

What a wonderful, blessed day! My baby boy graduated from 8th grade and this is a wonderful milestone in his life. He has been in a really great school environment for the past two years and we are truly blessed. It has been the stability and consistency Javan has needed. We have moved so much in his little life span and when God called us to move back up here, in Indiana, stability was one thing I prayed for and God granted it.

Javan received an AB Honor Roll award and a Citizenship award. His teacher chose a boy and a girl from each class and Javan was honored. Such a proud Mom moment. I do not think it is because of me, but I do know it is all because of Jesus. Javan loves Jesus with all of his heart and he makes decisions based on what would honor God. I am grateful because we can pour things into our children and hope it sticks, but we cannot always predict if they will take hold of those things. We must train them up in the way they should go because the Bible tells us when they get older it will not leave them. They will remember the mother or father who prayed, who encouraged with Scripture, and who read the Word of God to them.

PROVERBS 22:6 Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.

EPHESIANS 6:4 And, ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath: but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord.

Javan is in a great youth group, learning a lot, and has only missed a few times, mostly due to sports schedule conflicts. He does S.O.A.P. Bible studies and even shares them here on his blog. He has been studying the Bible like this since he was 6 or 7 years old.

We had a special breakfast for the 8th graders today. They had scrambled eggs, pancakes, sausage, biscuits and gravy, doughnuts, and fresh fruit. They had chocolate milk, white milk, orange juice and bottled water to drink. They all enjoyed it!

I am so thankful that God worked things out for me to be at his graduation today. Paul and Kadesia had to work and could not be there. I was able to share photos and videos with them though and they sent messages to him of how proud of him they are. My sister, niece, and nephew came and that meant a lot to him. They took us to eat at a local Chinese restaurant and that was so nice to get to talk to them and spend some time laughing and sharing together.

God worked it out so I could help serve breakfast to him and his classmates. Some of the sweet boys from the track team he was on said hello to me and that was special. One of Javan's teachers wrote a touching letter to the students and gave it to them in their envelopes. She read it aloud to them and it definitely had me choking back tears.

Here he is, so grown up! He is 14 years old, but will be 15 in August. He is a sweet boy, a kind and compassionate person. He came out of his shell a little and one of the guys on his track team took him under his wing and taught him about Shot Put and Discus. It helped Javan much more than his friend realizes. We watched Javan bloom where God planted him and that is so awesome. This evening that same friend had Javan over and they went fishing. Javan said he caught six fish!

Please say a prayer for Javan. While kids are swimming, running, playing, doing all the things this summer, Javan will have a different experience. He is scheduled for surgery May 27 and he will spend his summer recovering. We have prayed and trust God to help Javan through this tough transition. We know we can do all things through Christ who strengthens us. Amen?

PHILIPPIANS 4:13 I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.

As you can see, there is so much we are thanking God for. What about you? Have you counted your blessings today? If you want to share what God is doing in your life, feel free to leave a comment below. We would love to count our blessings with you! God bless you!

~Bridgett Owens

Thankful For Javan | Thankful Thursday

 

Welcome back to another weekly blog post where we count our blessings together. I may never stop counting my blessings for God allowing me to be a mother. I cherish both of my children. I want to give a big shout-out to my son, Javan. He is 14 years old and he has such a big heart for God! He wanted to create a blog and I said, "Okay!" I gave him a few tips on how to start a free blog using Blogger and he did the rest! I am so impressed. Yesterday was his first blog post and I love it. He uses the S.O.A.P. Bible study method and every blog post he will share is his SOAP Bible studies! I am so here for it!

PSALM 127:3 Lo, children are an heritage of the LORD: and the fruit of the womb is His reward.

I love that both my children are saved and in a real relationship with Jesus Christ. They do not just believe because we want them to, or because we do, but they sought it out for themselves. Javan is a teenage boy and the first thing he wants to do with his blog is use it to share SOAP Bible studies with the world. I love that! Wow!

So, if you want to support Javan with this new adventure, please visit him HERE. He is going to post every Wednesday and Friday! I am so thankful!!! Hope you enjoy the SOAP Bible study and be sure to leave him a comment to encourage him to keep going!

What are you thankful for this week? I love when you share what you are thanking God for. Thanks for joining me. God bless you!

~Bridgett Owens

God's Word | Thankful Thursday

The LORD impressed on my heart to carve out a section of my blog to share what I am thankful for. I started it on a Thursday and decided to call it "Thankful Thursday." Each week I will share what I am thankful for. Be sure to come back each week so we can count our blessings together.

There are so many things to be thankful for that it is really hard to pick just one. I have two things in particular that I really want to share today. I am thankful for God's Word. It is our spiritual sword to fight the enemy. I am also thankful for my teenage son who loves God and listens to Holy Spirit when He speaks. 

I asked Javan to help me come up with a scripture for my blog post today. He paused for a minute and then he said, "I think God is telling me Psalms 27." I read through the entire chapter and as usual, God's Word is fantastic! I love this chapter because God is speaking to me in every single verse of this chapter. I have been in a spiritual war zone for a while now and God is always found faithful and the devil is always defeated!

PSALMS 27:13-14 I had fainted, unless I had believed to see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living. Wait on the LORD: be of good courage, and He shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the LORD.

Friends I am rejoicing because I have been in a long season of waiting and expectancy. I had been waiting for God to bring to pass the things He promised me and there were times I could have fainted because of the battles and the lengthy wait, but God always proves Himself to be faithful. He would show me His handiwork all around me. If you are waiting on a miracle, an answer to prayer, a word from the Lord, just hold on. Be of good courage and He will strengthen your heart! Hold on to this promise and wait!

God bless you!

~Bridgett Owens