Tag: motherhood

Psalm 121- Part II

~ Mom Morsels
Photo by WoodysMedia: on Pexels.com

God our Watchman

Psalm 121 provides so much comfort to me. I just love this psalm! Let’s look at Psalm 121 together in the New American Standard Bible (italics mine):

I will lift up my eyes to the mountains;
From where shall my help come?
My help comes from the Lord,
Who made heaven and earth.
He will not allow your foot to slip;
He who keeps you will not slumber.
Behold, He who keeps Israel
Will neither slumber nor sleep.

The Lord is your keeper;
The Lord is your shade on your right hand.
The sun will not smite you by day,
Nor the moon by night.
The Lord will protect you from all evil;
He will keep your soul.
The Lord will guard your going out and your coming in
From this time forth and forever.

We’re going to look at each verse in this psalm together through this series, but first, there is something very important that I want to point out. Throughout this psalm a single Hebrew word is used no less than six times- each use of this word is italicized in the verses above. I have said this before, that if I want to make a point to our children, I might say the same thing twice. If they aren’t listening, I might say it a third time. If something is said to us SIX TIMES, I think we should notice what God is highlighting to us! Don’t you agree?

The Hebrew word that appears six times in this psalm is H8104. This word H8104 is translated several ways in this psalm and in the Hebrew it means “to hedge about (as with thorns), that is guard; generally to protect, attend to, take heed (to self), keep, preserve, regard, watch(-man), keep watch, take care.” There is a lot of meaning in that word! It’s clear that our GOOD SHEPHERD is pointing out the importance to us that HE IS OUR WATCHMAN. I know at times it doesn’t feel that way, though. Perhaps you are going through some difficulty or trial. When we are passing through those hard times, it can make us doubt that God is our watchman, but you will see through our study that He truly is!

In the New American Standard Bible version, in verses 3, 4, 5 and 7b of Psalm 121, this word for watchman is translated KEEP or KEEPER. Yes, God is also our KEEPER. You can be reassured that He will not let you go. As we see in Isaiah 41:10 NASB:

Do not fear, for I am with you;
Do not anxiously look about you, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you, surely I will help you,
Surely I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.

God is keeping you; He is upholding you with His righteous right hand. That word “uphold” H8551 gives us even more insight into just how God holds onto us. It means ” to grasp, keep fast, help, follow close, retain, lay hold of, to be seized.” Seizing is forceful! It sounds like He holds onto us pretty tightly!

He keeps us, but we also must make a choice to faithfully hold onto Him. Despite your circumstances, HOLD ONTO JESUS AND DON’T LET GO! In Jesus’ love song to the church and to us, Song of Solomon 3:4 NASB, the bride (the church and us) speaks to the Bridegroom (Jesus), encouraging us to hold on like she does:

When I found him whom my soul loves;
I held on to him and would not let him go.

Going back to that Hebrew word “to keep” H8104, farther down in our psalm, it is interpreted in verse 7a as “protect” and verse 8 as “guard”. Doesn’t it provide so much comfort to know that God is protecting and guarding you? And as we saw above, that He is your watchman? Watchmen in the Bible times, stood on the wall that surrounded the city to protect it. They warned the people of approaching danger and could see trouble coming from far off. God does this for us also, if we choose to listen to Him. To us, it may seem that at times, He is not watching over us, but we will see as we study further that He truly is our WATCHMAN and we can trust Him. We do have to choose to believe Him, though.

So moms, you can rest in the knowledge that

GOD IS OUR WATCHMAN, WATCHING OVER US, UPHOLDING US AND KEEPING US CLOSE TO HIM.

In His Love,

Suzanne

He Understands Your Mama Heart

~ Mom Morsels
Photo by Keira Burton on Pexels.com

Your Mothering Heart

My happiest moments are when our entire family is together-children, spouses, grandchildren-everyone! Our immediate family is growing and we are up to 9 people now with kids, their spouses and grands! It’s always crazy when we are altogether, but it’s also wonderful! Most moms are like mother hens and love to gather their chicks around them and keep them close-even when they are grown. Jesus seemed to understand this feeling that us mom’s have as He expressed in Luke 13:34-35 New American Standard Bible (italics mine):

Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who have been sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, just as a hen gathers her young under her wings, and you were unwilling! Behold, your house is left to you desolate; and I say to you, you will not see Me until you say, ‘Blessed is the One who comes in the name of the Lord!’”

He specifically said that He wanted to gather His children Israel like a hen gathers its chicks. Mama, I think this shows that He gets your heart for your kids!

And all those long nights you spent up with your babies. Long nights nursing and feeding them. Those tiring long nights. Those multiple feedings through the night when they were newborns. Those nights you spent comforting your babies when they were sick. Those nights you went into their room to reassure them there is no monster in their closet. Those nights you waited up for them to make sure they arrived safely home. He understands those compassionate mama feelings too as He explains in Isaiah 49:14 that His love for us is even stronger than a nursing mom’s love:

Can a woman forget her nursing child, that she should have no compassion for the son of her womb? Even these may forget, yet I will not forget you

And there’s nothing like a mother’s comfort. Have you ever experienced this, where your child got hurt at school and the school nurse said they seemed fine but then when they got home and saw you, they completely fell apart crying hysterically in your mama lap. That’s what the comfort of a mom does-it makes us lean into it, seek solace in it, it gives comfort. He understands your mama’s heart to comfort. In fact, He compares His own comfort of the Israelites to this mother’s comfort in Isaiah 66:13:

As one whom his mother comforts, so I will comfort you: you shall be comforted in Jerusalem.

So mom’s, next time you are having all the mom feels and don’t think anyone understands you, please know that God does. He understands those mom feelings that you have, the yearnings you have to be surrounded by all your chicks, the compassion of a nurturing mom that you have for your children, the comfort you long to bring them. And please remember that

HE GETS YOU AND HE GETS YOUR MOM FEELINGS.

In His Love,

Suzanne