Wisdom Wednesdays - Flourishing in Old Age

I've read this Psalm many times and this week I noticed a promise for old age in verses 13 - 16:

The righteous will flourish like a palm tree,
they will grow like a cedar in Lebanon. 

 Planted in the house of Adonai,
they will flourish in the courtyards of our God.

Even in old age they will be vigorous,
still full of sap, still bearing fruit,  

proclaiming that Adonai is upright,
my Rock, in whom there is no wrong.

Notice that this promise is for the righteous, which means those who obey ADONAI.

Notice the phrase "planted in the house of ADONAI", which again means obedience.  

Look at the benefits of obeying ADONAI, my friends:

A flourishing life

Vigor (strength)

Full of sap (health)

Bearing fruit

And what are the righteous doing?  (see verses 1 - 12)

they are planted in the house of Adonai

thanking Him 

praising Him

declaring His grace in the morning

declaring His faithfulness at night 

finding happiness and joy in all that He has created

declaring how great His deeds are

meditating on how deep His thoughts are

not allowing resentments or anger against evil people to stay in their minds

leaving revenge to G-d

remembering the people who have been destroyed because of their 

disobedience to G-d

They are also proclaiming that ADONAI is upright.  

They are proclaiming that He is their Rock.  

They are proclaiming that in Him there is no wrong.  

That's a great focus for any life, but especially during the senior years.  Compare spending time with a self-centered, whining, constantly complaining old person to enjoying a visit with one who is Adonai focused,  grateful, and filled with joy.  I've been around both types, and my desire is to be a flourishing senior citizen.
 
Psalm 92:16 says it perfectly -- in Him, there is no wrong.   That's why I wrote this post.  The verse tells me what I'm to do in order to flourish in my old age.  I'm proclaiming --   

ADONAI IS UPRIGHT 

 HE IS MY ROCK 

 IN HIM THERE IS NO WRONG 

In upcoming Wisdom Wednesdays, I will further explore what the Scriptures say about flourishing in the golden years.

You may enjoy Flourishing in Old Age Part 2 and Flourishing in Old Age Part 3
  ~~~~~


I sometimes share my posts with these friends:
Spiritual Sundays        GRAND Social       Modest Mom Monday Link-up     The Art of Homemaking Mondays   BLOGGING GRANDMOTHERS LINK PARTYTitus 2 Tuesday     Share Your Stuff Tuesday    TITUS TUESDAYS @CORNERSTONE CONFESSIONS     Wordless Wednesdays    Classical Homemaking Link-Up      Tune-In Thursday   Favorite Things Home and Garden Thursday at Delightsome Life  Paula's Weekend No Rules Blog Party Friendship Friday

Sabbath Music - It is Good (Tov L'Hodot)

I've been meditating on Psalm 92 this week.  The psalm is subtitled "A Psalm for Shabbat", and is read weekly in some synagogues.  I love the note at the bottom of this Psalm in my Complete Jewish Bible:

"The holiness of Shabbat emerges as the shackles of daily life and the hurriedness of the workweek are set aside for a day.  In loving care, G-d provides Shabbat as a weekly time of restoration between humanity and their Creator." ~~ Rabbi Abraham Heschel


I hope you enjoy your Sabbath and this beautiful song, based on Psalm 92:

Tov L-Hodot - It Is Good by Michael ben David



~~~~~
I sometimes share my posts with these friends:
Spiritual Sundays     Kathy’s Return to Loveliness at A Delightsome Life     GRAND Social       Modest Mom Monday Link-up     The Art of Homemaking Mondays   BLOGGING GRANDMOTHERS LINK PARTYTitus 2 Tuesday     Share Your Stuff Tuesday    TITUS TUESDAYS @CORNERSTONE CONFESSIONS     Wordless Wednesdays    Classical Homemaking Link-Up    Judith’s Wholehearted Wednesday     Favorite Things Home and Garden Thursday at Delightsome Life  Paula's Weekend No Rules Blog Party Friendship Friday 

Wisdom Wednesdays - Morning and Evening

Continuing my series on WORDS:

 This week, I've been meditating on Psalm 92: 1-2, which I wrote about in my last Shabbat post.

  “It is a good thing to give thanks to the L-rd, 

and to sing praises unto thy name, O most High:

 to show forth (declare, tell, proclaim) 

thy lovingkindness in the morning, 

and thy faithfulness every night.”

I love that word, "lovingkindness", don't you?  It calls to mind tenderness and gentleness, and I see ADONAI that way.

My habit over many years has been to do morning devotions that involve reading the Scriptures, meditating on them, praying and journaling. I dearly love to sit on my back porch, weather permitting, and watch the birds, butterflies, and other creatures that stroll through.  I see mostly cats and squirrels, but we sometimes have an armadillo, possum or a raccoon.  I sit there and thank Him for everything I see, and start my day with JOY because I agree with  David's words in Psalm 26:3:

 “Your lovingkindness is before my eyes.”

These are just a few of the ways He shows His lovingkindness:

• by letting me wake up in the morning
• I can see, hear, walk, talk, think, and I have strength
• I have a roof over my head
• food to eat
• water to drink
• my Bible, in my hands, to guide and comfort me
• His precious Holy Spirit that speaks to my heart
• my wonderful husband
• my precious family 
• my friends
• our Ma'gen Da'vid Synagogue family 
• Most of all - His forgiveness and salvation through  the blood of Yeshua, our Messiah

I could go on and on because I am loaded down with the benefits of His lovingkindness.

Over the past year, I have been doing a meditation at night, in bed, that involves listing three things I'm grateful for.  Then I read the Scriptures, and meditate on that passage and my blessings as I go to sleep.  This has been a wonderful ritual that helps me sleep more soundly.  I recommend it to y'all, Gail-Friends.

These two meditation times are important, and a great blessing, but I realized something this week.  I usually do all of this in my mind.  This week, Ive resolved to do as the Psalm says, to speak my praise out loud.  Why? Because spoken words of praise are powerful. The verses says, "It is good".  The words bless me, and they bless those who hear them. 

Growing up, I often heard my grandmother and my Aunt Inez say, "Praise the L-rd!"  I loved hearing them say that, and I wanted to be like them -- to be a G-dly woman who praised the L-rd.   It's such a sweet and blessed memory, and I want to pass that same memory on to my loved ones by being that kind of woman. 

Each Sabbath, we have a praise time where members can thank the L-rd for the good things that have happened over the past week.  It's my favorite part of our worship together.  We're remembering ADONAI'S lovingkindness and His faithfulness to us.


I hope you'll join me in  my new discipline of speaking words of praise to ADONAI in the morning, in the evening, and every time there's a blessing in your life.

Next week, I hope to write on His faithfulness to me.  There is so much to tell!

**************

 I sometimes share my posts  with  friends at: 
Charlotte a Spiritual SundaysSpiritual Sundays     Janis with Sunday Stillness       THE SUNDAY COMMUNITY – #GIVE ME GRACE @SEE SPEAK HEAR MAMA Kathy’s Return to Loveliness at A Delightsome Life     GRAND Social       The Beauty in His Grip Link-Up   

Modest Mom Monday Link-up         Growing Homemakers Link-Up        The Gathering Spot Link-Up 

MOTIVATION MONDAYS – @EMBRACINGHISWILL      SHARING HIS BEAUTY – @THEBEAUTYINHISGRIP

Titus 2 Tuesday     Share Your Stuff Tuesday    TITUS TUESDAYS @CORNERSTONE CONFESSIONS     Wordless Wednesdays    Jennifer Dukes Lee Tell His Story  Teaching What Is Good Link-Up

Classical Homemaking Link-Up    Judith’s Wholehearted Wednesday     Raising Homemakers Wednesday     A Wise Woman Builds       Wake Up Wednesday     A Little R & R Wednesday     Wednesday's Prayer Girls & Link-Up Party Thought Provoking Thursdays at 3D Lessons 4Life     Thursday  Favorite Things 

 Home and Garden Thursday at Delightsome Life 

Friendship Friday 

STILL SATURDAYS @SANDRAHESKAKING     PLAYDATES @LAURABOGGESS  
 My Fresh Brewed Life with Barbie – Weekend Brew

Sabbath Music - It Is Good

On Shabbat, I love to take a trip to the river for the rising or setting of the sun.  It always brings rest to my body and soul.  Meditating on the following song is sure to bring me JOY.

I pray your Sabbath rest is sweet and full of shalom.

A song for Shabbat: 

 PSALM 92

 It is good to give thanks to Adonai
and sing praises to your name, ‘Elyon,

to tell in the morning about your grace
and at night about your faithfulness, 

 to the music of a ten-stringed [harp] and a lute,
with the melody sounding on a lyre.

For, Adonai, what you do makes me happy;
I take joy in what your hands have made.

How great are your deeds, Adonai!
How very deep your thoughts!

Stupid people can’t know,

fools don’t understand,
that when the wicked sprout like grass,
and all who do evil prosper,
it is so that they can be eternally destroyed,
while you, Adonai, are exalted forever.

For your enemies, Adonai,
your enemies will perish;
all evildoers will be scattered. 

But you have given me
the strength of a wild bull;
you anoint me with fresh olive oil.

My eyes have gazed with pleasure on my enemies’ ruin,
my ears have delighted in the fall of my foes.

The righteous will flourish like a palm tree,
they will grow like a cedar in the L’vanon.
Planted in the house of Adonai,
they will flourish in the courtyards of our God.

Even in old age they will be vigorous,
still full of sap, still bearing fruit,

proclaiming that Adonai is upright,
my Rock, in whom there is no wrong.

And here is a video of Paul Wilbur singing his rendition of Psalm 92, called It Is Good.  Enjoy!

*********
 I sometimes share my posts  with  friends at: 
Charlotte a Spiritual SundaysSpiritual Sundays     Janis with Sunday Stillness       THE SUNDAY COMMUNITY – #GIVE ME GRACE @SEE SPEAK HEAR MAMA Kathy’s Return to Loveliness at A Delightsome Life     GRAND Social       The Beauty in His Grip Link-Up   

Modest Mom Monday Link-up         Growing Homemakers Link-Up        The Gathering Spot Link-Up 

MOTIVATION MONDAYS – @EMBRACINGHISWILL      SHARING HIS BEAUTY – @THEBEAUTYINHISGRIP

Titus 2 Tuesday     Share Your Stuff Tuesday    TITUS TUESDAYS @CORNERSTONE CONFESSIONS     Wordless Wednesdays    Jennifer Dukes Lee Tell His Story  Teaching What Is Good Link-Up

Classical Homemaking Link-Up    Judith’s Wholehearted Wednesday     Raising Homemakers Wednesday     A Wise Woman Builds       Wake Up Wednesday     A Little R & R Wednesday     Wednesday's Prayer Girls & Link-Up Party Thought Provoking Thursdays at 3D Lessons 4Life     Thursday  Favorite Things 

 Home and Garden Thursday at Delightsome Life 

Friendship Friday 

STILL SATURDAYS @SANDRAHESKAKING     PLAYDATES @LAURABOGGESS  
 My Fresh Brewed Life with Barbie – Weekend Brew