Text: Psalm 139:1-24
In this 2-week reading plan, we are assuming a posture of thanksgiving before the Lord by meditating on ten Psalms of Gratitude. Rather than provide a written response to each Psalm, we have offered a simple yet meaningful activity designed to help us recall God’s mercies to us and through time. So grab a journal, and let’s create our own songs of thanksgiving to God.
Psalm 139
The All-Knowing, Ever-Present God
For the choir director. A Davidic psalm.
Lord, You have searched me and known me.
You know when I sit down and when I stand up;
You understand my thoughts from far away.
You observe my travels and my rest;
You are aware of all my ways.
Before a word is on my tongue,
You know all about it, Lord.
You have encircled me;
You have placed Your hand on me.
This extraordinary knowledge is beyond me.
It is lofty; I am unable to reach it.
Where can I go to escape Your Spirit?
Where can I flee from Your presence?
If I go up to heaven, You are there;
if I make my bed in Sheol, You are there.
If I live at the eastern horizon
or settle at the western limits,
even there Your hand will lead me;
Your right hand will hold on to me.
If I say, “Surely the darkness will hide me,
and the light around me will be night”—
even the darkness is not dark to You.
The night shines like the day;
darkness and light are alike to You.
For it was You who created my inward parts;
You knit me together in my mother’s womb.
I will praise You
because I have been remarkably and wonderfully made.
Your works are wonderful,
and I know this very well.
My bones were not hidden from You
when I was made in secret,
when I was formed in the depths of the earth.
Your eyes saw me when I was formless;
all my days were written in Your book and planned
before a single one of them began.
God, how difficult Your thoughts are
for me to comprehend;
how vast their sum is!
If I counted them,
they would outnumber the grains of sand;
when I wake up, I am still with You.
God, if only You would kill the wicked—
you bloodthirsty men, stay away from me—
who invoke You deceitfully.
Your enemies swear by You falsely.
Lord, don’t I hate those who hate You,
and detest those who rebel against You?
I hate them with extreme hatred;
I consider them my enemies.
Search me, God, and know my heart;
test me and know my concerns.
See if there is any offensive way in me;
lead me in the everlasting way.
Dig Deeper:
What a privilege to know the God who knows us! Use the questions below to meditate on Psalm 139, giving thanks for the Almighty God who knows His children through and through.
1. How does God know us? (verses 1-6)
2. How does God go with us? (verses 7-12)
3. How does God create us? (verses 13-16)
4. Does God’s knowledge of us require any action on our part? (verses 17-24)
5. What does this teach me about the character of God?
6. Notice how verse 23 parallels verse 1. Why does David ask God to do what he knows God has already done?
Today is it! My last day to get alllll the things done… I have until 12:59am eastern time (the school operates on central time which gives me an extra hour.. lol!) I was up til 4am, got things done; this morning I have gotten a couple quick things done/turned in, now I have 1 more final and a bunch of writing stuff to do. Thank you all.. thank you thank you… I NEED your encouragement and covet your prayers …. you have been there. What a picture of the body of Christ you all are… literally. You’re making a difference in the life of someone you’ve never met… ❤️
CEE-GEE & SEARCHING- ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️
RHONDA J- I have requested you a couple of times but you don’t accept me… lol :) :) I’m TIUgrlHeidi .. it started as my fitness account and has merged… ANYWAY- yet another book recommendation that is insane amazing and easy to read and comprehend esp. for someone who doesn’t have a lot of “god talk” in their life… Tim Keller: The Reason For God. IT is so spot. on. accurate. It gives arguments/reasons for the purpose, existence, and reason for needing God in an intellectual way that is not over people’s heads. I really think it could be impactful either for YOU to read and be able to speak from, or your nephew to read and get hopeful clarity from… It’s so good.
ALL – IF YOU GAVE ME YOUR IG NAME, I’VE FOLLOWED OR REQUESTED :) tiuGRLheidi – is me :)
Michelle I forgot to add that my former pastor (miss him dearly) posts the recordings of his sermons to Spotify under “Chapel in the Pines Podcast” and his sermons are probably longer than most (35-40mins) if you’re looking for something!
@RHONDA J Prayers that the timing of the Holy Spirit’s words spoken thru you were just at the right time to find an opening in a hardened heart.
Thank you God, that your right hand holds me fast! Lifting up your prayer requests and winged hugs your way today, you all hold a special place in my life.❤️
Oh Rhonda thank you for sharing! That is the worst feeling! Maybe this conversation was divine timing for him ❤️ I’ll be praying he hears and remembers the parts of your conversation that God will use for His glory. You are doing your part to share the Good News and I firmly believe the Lord will use that!
Michelle – thank you for the song recommendation! Always looking for more Christian/Indie artists and that song fits our reading today so well! Hope you got some sleep last night ❤️
*MARANATHA SINGERS! Spellchecker error!
RHONDA J – I meant to mention Lee Strobel’s book, A Case for Christ. He is a former atheist and has written several books since becoming a Christian. Praying with you for God’s Hand and timing for Collin’s heart and for the friends and family of that young man.
What a blessing these 2 weeks in “gratitude” with you precious sisters has been. RHONDA J – I, too, feel the smaller group has grown intimacy here. I love how you are all sharing your IG handles. I hate that I am missing out, but don’t want to start with more social media. I do have FB so I will look for you, RHONDA J. I am not on there much either unless doing a Bible study in group.
HEIDI – continued prayers through your big finish! Agreeing with SEARCHING’s prayer in today’s comment (almost word for word what I have been praying).
MICHELLE PATIRE – that is so sweet of you! I am going to check out that song if I can find it. My son and grandson know the good sites besides YouTube.
KELLY NEO – The Marana the Singers – way back in the 80’s had a song ” You are My Hiding Place.” So beautiful.
I will have to finish on the laptop since I can’t copy everything on here. Hope you all have a wonderful weekend and will be back here for the REST. Thanks again, HEIDI, for setting this up!
@Searching praying for your neighbors and their health.