Morningview Family Worship Week of June 6, 2010
Psalm for Prayer and Praise: Psalm 119:137-152 (NASB)
137 Righteous are You, O LORD, And upright are Your judgments.
138 You have commanded Your testimonies in righteousness And exceeding faithfulness.
139 My zeal has consumed me, Because my adversaries have forgotten Your words.
140 Your word is very pure, Therefore Your servant loves it.
141 I am small and despised, Yet I do not forget Your precepts.
142 Your righteousness is an everlasting righteousness, And Your law is truth.
143 Trouble and anguish have come upon me, Yet Your commandments are my delight.
144 Your testimonies are righteous forever; Give me understanding that I may live.
145 I cried with all my heart; answer me, O LORD! I will observe Your statutes.
146 I cried to You; save me And I shall keep Your testimonies.
147 I rise before dawn and cry for help; I wait for Your words.
148 My eyes anticipate the night watches, That I may meditate on Your word.
149 Hear my voice according to Your lovingkindness; Revive me, O LORD, according to Your ordinances.
150 Those who follow after wickedness draw near; They are far from Your law.
151 You are near, O LORD, And all Your commandments are truth.
152 Of old I have known from Your testimonies That You have founded them forever.
Scripture Memory for the Week: Psalm 119:151
You are near, O LORD, And all Your commandments are truth.
Praying through the Psalms
Day 1 ~ The Word and Its Author
Read: Psalm 119:137-140
Consider:
For Adults: Read these verses today and consider how God’s word and His character are tied together. What can we learn about God’s word when we consider it in light of His character and nature?
Older Children: Look at verse 140 again and read it together with Psalm 12:6. What does it mean that God’s word is “Pure.”
Younger Children: Can you think of a person that you know that always tells you the truth? How is God like that? What does “Who God is” say about “What God says?” (v.137)
Family Application: Talk together about some of the attributes of God like His eternality, His omniscience, and omnipotence. After talking about each of His attributes, consider how each one is borne out in some way in His word.
Pray: Thank God for the wonder of who He is and how He has communicated the glory of His person and nature to us in His word. Thank Him that His word is secured by His person and for how we can rest surely upon all His promises as resting in Him.
Meditate: Write this week’s memory verses on a white board in your home and/or on index cards that each family member can carry with them during the week.
Day 2 ~ The Word, That We May Live
Read: Psalm 119:141-144
Consider:
For Adults: Notice how the writer of the psalm portrays himself as “small,” “despised” and as one with trouble and anguish. How does he comfort himself in these moments? How could memorized scripture help you is such moments?
Older Children: Look at verse 144 again. What is the “understanding” that God’s word can give you that makes you to “live?”
Younger Children: Do you ever wish that you were bigger or taller? Did you know that everyone feels “small” or “little” sometimes? (v.141) How does it make you feel to know that God is greater and “bigger” than anything or anyone who might want to harm us? Isn’t it good to serve such a “Big” God?
Family Application: Consider together how the word of God as “Truth,” “Righteousness,” and the “delight of soul” were the hope of the psalmist. Consider how God’s word can help your family this week and consider how it leads us ultimately to Christ, that in understanding the Gospel, we can live.
Pray: Thank God for how His word is an anchor to our souls in times of trial and how it leads us to Jesus. Pray that you would delight in His word this week and that it would do it’s healing work in your soul as you read and memorize it together.
Meditate: See if anyone in the family can quote this week’s memory verse. Make new note cards of any of the cards from day 1 that may have been lost.
Day 3 ~ The Word, Eternal Truth
Read: Psalm 119:145-152
Consider:
For Adults: As you read this subset of Psalm 119, notice that it takes the form of a prayer for deliverance. What is the hope in which the psalmist rests that we see articulated in verses 149, 151, and 152? What is your hope when things look impossible for you today and where is your trust? Consider the generations who have gone before and found God’s word to be well tried (ESV v.140) and completely true. Remind yourself today of the sure foundation that God has laid for us in His eternal word and resolved to know it better that it would be a rock to your soul in times of trial as it has been to so many who have gone before.
Older Children: Read verse 150 again. In this verse, what is the only description of the “wicked” who are pursuing the psalmist? What does this suggest to you about the fundamental nature of wickedness?
Younger Children: How old is God’s word? Do you think that it is older than Moses or Noah? Ask your parents to read John 1:1. Are you surprised? Since God’s word has lasted so long and it comes from God, how long do you think it will last in the future? (v.152)
Family Application: Talk together about how God’s word is eternal and a sure foundation for our souls. Consider how it strengthens the believer to memorize God’s word and how God’s word ministers to the Christian’s soul in every hardship and circumstance.
Pray: Thank God for how His word is a an anchor for our souls and though Heaven and Earth should pass away, His word stands firm and unshakable. Ask God to help you build your life on His word and to likewise build your family on His word. Thank Him for revealing His truth to sinners in His word and thank Him most of all for sending Jesus, the word incarnate, to win salvation for all who would repent and believe according to His word.
Meditate: See again if anyone in the family can quote this week’s memory verse. Talk about any ways that this verse has encouraged or taught you this week.
Hymn of the Week
http://www.cyberhymnal.org/htm/c/h/chofound.htm
