Today’s Reading: Psalm 120-121; 140; 143-144

I’m sure you don’t have this problem, but I sometimes find myself reading the Psalms and just applying them directly to my life. Worse, I sometimes skip over parts of the psalm I don’t like, that don’t seem to apply to me, or aren’t easily figured out. For example, if you could see Psalm 121 the way I sometimes read it, it would look like this:

I lift up my eyes to the hills—
where does my help come from?

My help comes from the LORD,
     the Maker of heaven and earth.

He will not let your foot slip—
     he who watches over you will not slumber;
indeed, he who watches over you (Israel)
     will neither slumber nor sleep.

The LORD watches over you—
the LORD is your shade at your right hand;
the sun will not harm you by day,
nor the moon by night.

The LORD will keep you from all harm—
     he will watch over your life;
the LORD will watch over your coming and going
     both now and forevermore.

This reading causes me to apply it like this: I can rest assured that I won’t have many big problems in life because God is my helper and He’s watching out for me.

See the trouble in this? I’ve totally skipped over the step of interpretation! I’ve glossed over the figurative language used here to express to ISRAEL (not me) that their security does not come from any geographical, political, or personal strength or advantage, rather it comes from God alone. That’s the interpretation for Israel and for me.

My application will be different, of course, from Israel’s and even yours. In light of this passage, I will persevere through difficult times, knowing that by the time I bring the circumstances to Him in prayer, the Lord already knows my situation and is already acting on my behalf.