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The Word of God says:

Psalms 128:1-4 (NASB)
¹ How blessed is everyone who fears the Lord, Who walks in His ways.
² When you shall eat of the fruit of your hands, You will be happy and it will be well with you.
³ Your wife shall be like a fruitful vine Within your house, Your children like olive plants Around your table.
⁴ Behold, for thus shall the man be blessed Who fears the Lord.

My reflections on the Word of God:

Today our focus moves to verses three and four. These verses speak of the family. In this song of degrees you can see the growth of the children.

Psalms 127:3-5 (NASB)
³ Behold, children are a gift of the Lord, The fruit of the womb is a reward.
⁴ Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, So are the children of one’s youth.
⁵ How blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them; They will not be ashamed When they speak with their enemies in the gate.

The image of the vine and olive plant suggest growth and fruitfulness. You can see the growth in the children from Psalm 127 to Psalm 128. Notice the references in Psalm 128:3 to the wife as being within the house, and the children being around the table.

 What a delightful picture of the family of the Godly man who trusts in the Lord and who fears the Lord. Both his wife and his children are blessings from the Lord. And all these blessings accrue to the man who fears the Lord.

Psalms 128:4 (AMP)
⁴ Behold, thus shall the man be blessed who reverently and worshipfully fears the Lord.

My prayer in response to the Word of God:

Father God, my dear Father, I thank You for all of Your blessings that You bestow upon Your people. Father, I thank You for the blessings that You give to those who fear You reverently and worshipfully. Father God, I pray that You will give us more Christian homes that will be pictures to the world of how You want to bless those who trust in You, and who fear You.

Blest the Man That Fears Jehovah (Click on link below for lyrics and midi):

http://www.cyberhymnal.org/htm/b/l/blestman.htm

The Word of God says:

Psalms 128:1-2 (NASB)
¹ How blessed is everyone who fears the Lord, Who walks in His ways.
² When you shall eat of the fruit of your hands, You will be happy and it will be well with you.

My reflections on the Word of God:

Yesterday our focus was on verse one and today our focus will be on verse two of this Psalm.  We can see from these two verses that character and conduct matters. The Psalmist shows us the results for the person who has reverence for God and respect for God’s word. The Proverbs show us the importance of having wisdom.

Proverbs 1:7 (NASB)
⁷ The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; Fools despise wisdom and instruction.

Proverbs 14:2 (NASB)
² He who walks in his uprightness fears the Lord, But he who is devious in his ways despises Him.

In verse two of our focal passage the Psalmist rejoices over the blessings that flow from the heart and hand of the Lord for those who reverence Him and respect His Word.

Psalms 128:2 (AMP)
² For you shall eat [the fruit] of the labor of your hands; happy (blessed, fortunate, enviable) shall you be, and it shall be well with you.

Whatever good things come to us comes from the hand of the Lord. This is the teaching of the Old and the New Testament.

Deuteronomy 8:18 (NASB)
¹⁸ “But you shall remember the Lord your God, for it is He who is giving you power to make wealth, that He may confirm His covenant which He swore to your fathers, as it is this day.

James 1:17 (NASB)
¹⁷ Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow.

My prayer in response to the Word of God:

Our Father in heaven, my dear Father, I praise and thank You for the blessings that flow to those who reverence God, and who respect God’s Word. Lord, I pray that when You look at my heart You are able to say, “It shall be well with you”.

It is Well With My Soul (Click on link below to watch and listen to this song):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KYP–c2LTfg

The Word of God says:

Psalms 128:1-6 (NASB)
¹ How blessed is everyone who fears the Lord, Who walks in His ways.
² When you shall eat of the fruit of your hands, You will be happy and it will be well with you.
³ Your wife shall be like a fruitful vine Within your house, Your children like olive plants Around your table.
⁴ Behold, for thus shall the man be blessed Who fears the Lord.
⁵ The Lord bless you from Zion, And may you see the prosperity of Jerusalem all the days of your life.
⁶ Indeed, may you see your children’s children. Peace be upon Israel!

My reflections on the Word of God:

This is a song of ascents that speaks of the blessings for those who fear God. The opening verse of this Psalm reminds me of another Psalm. It sounds and feels like an explanation and interpretation of Psalm 111:10.

Psalms 111:10 (NASB)
¹⁰ The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; A good understanding have all those who do His commandments; His praise endures forever.

We start today by reading the Psalm in its entirety. However, we will meditate upon it in bite size pieces ever seeking for those truths that we can apply to our lives today. Therefore, we start with verse one.

Psalms 128:1 (NIV)
¹ Blessed are all who fear the Lord, who walk in his ways.

The first thing I noticed in this verse is that the blessings are for everyone and as the NIV says that means “all” of God’s people. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. However, wisdom leads those who stand in awe of God to also walk in God’s ways.

Psalms 112:1 (NASB)
¹ Praise the Lord! How blessed is the man who fears the Lord, Who greatly delights in His commandments.

Luke 1:50 (NASB)
⁵⁰ “And His mercy is upon generation after generation Toward those who fear Him.

My prayer in response to the Word of God:

Father God, my dear Father, I stand in awe of You, in the depths of my heart I praise You. Lord, I kneel before You in praise and adoration of You because You are God alone and there is none like You. Lord, I pray for the wisdom to walk wisely in this world, to love You and obey You.

John 14:15 (NASB)
¹⁵ “If you love Me, you will keep My commandments.

Let My Words Be Few (Click on link below to watch and listen to this song):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=12z4dvc2kjo

The Word of God says:

Psalms 127:1-5 (NASB)
¹ Unless the Lord builds the house, They labor in vain who build it; Unless the Lord guards the city, The watchman keeps awake in vain.
² It is vain for you to rise up early, To retire late, To eat the bread of painful labors; For He gives to His beloved even in his sleep.
³ Behold, children are a gift of the Lord, The fruit of the womb is a reward.
⁴ Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, So are the children of one’s youth.
⁵ How blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them; They will not be ashamed When they speak with their enemies in the gate.

My reflections on the Word of God:

Today we conclude our meditation on Psalm 127. Our focus is on verses three through five. In these verses the Psalmist speaks of children being a heritage of the Lord. The heading of this Psalm in my bibles says, “A Song of Ascents, of Solomon”.

There is some evidence that David was the author of this Psalm, and that when he writes he is speaking about his son Solomon being a gift from the Lord.  Notice what the following verses say about Solomon. In them you will see how Solomon was a blessing of the Lord and from the Lord.

1 Chronicles 22:9-10 (NASB)
⁹ ‘Behold, a son will be born to you, who shall be a man of rest; and I will give him rest from all his enemies on every side; for his name shall be Solomon, and I will give peace and quiet to Israel in his days.
¹⁰ ‘He shall build a house for My name, and he shall be My son and I will be his father; and I will establish the throne of his kingdom over Israel forever.’

2 Samuel 12:24-25 (NASB)
²⁴ Then David comforted his wife Bathsheba, and went in to her and lay with her; and she gave birth to a son, and he named him Solomon. Now the Lord loved him
²⁵ and sent word through Nathan the prophet, and he named him Jedidiah for the Lord’s sake.

Notice in this latter passage that this son, which was born to David and Bathsheba had two names, and both of them were significant. David named the son Solomon, which means peace. Then through word from the prophet Nathan the son was named Jedidiah, which means the beloved of God.

One of the important lessons that I will get from this Psalm is that the Lord is the builder of houses and homes. As parents we need to see our children as blessings from the Lord. We should be mindful that they belong to the Lord, and that he gives them to us as a blessing. Our responsibility is to teach them and train them in the ways of God.

My prayer in response to the Word of God:

Our Father in heaven, my dear Father, I praise and thank You that You are the builder of both houses and homes. Father God, I praise and thank You for Godly parents who raise Godly children. Lord, I pray that parents will look to You to provide from the needs of their children. Lord, I pray that children will be obedient to their parents, and be a blessing to their parents, which is their God ordained purpose.

A Child of the King (Click on link below for lyrics and midi):

http://www.biblestudycharts.com/SH_A_Child_of_the_King.html

The Word of God says:

Psalms 127:1-2 (NASB)
¹ Unless the Lord builds the house, They labor in vain who build it; Unless the Lord guards the city, The watchman keeps awake in vain.
² It is vain for you to rise up early, To retire late, To eat the bread of painful labors; For He gives to His beloved even in his sleep.

My reflections on the Word of God:

Yesterday our focus was on verse one, and today our focus is on verse two.  In verse two the Psalmist continues the theme that work is vain without the Lord being in it. There is an old saying that I don’t know who said it originally that expresses what our attitude about work should be. It says, “Work as though all depends upon you, and pray as if all depends upon God”.

The Lord wants His children to learn to live by faith. The Lord wants His people to learn to depend upon Him for all of their needs. Long days and sleepless nights can be avoided if we get our priorities right, and if we learn to trust in the Lord to provide all of our needs.

At a critical point in my life when I was having a difficult time managing the working for the Lord and working to make a living, a mature Christian man shared with me the following passage. This passage help me to get my priorities right, and reduce the distress that was adversely affecting my life.

Matthew 6:25-34 (NASB)
²⁵ “For this reason I say to you, do not be worried about your life, as to what you will eat or what you will drink; nor for your body, as to what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing?
²⁶ “Look at the birds of the air, that they do not sow, nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not worth much more than they?
²⁷ “And who of you by being worried can add a single hour to his life?
²⁸ “And why are you worried about clothing? Observe how the lilies of the field grow; they do not toil nor do they spin,
²⁹ yet I say to you that not even Solomon in all his glory clothed himself like one of these.
³⁰ “But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the furnace, will He not much more clothe you? You of little faith!
³¹ “Do not worry then, saying, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear for clothing?’
³² “For the Gentiles eagerly seek all these things; for your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things.
³³ “But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.
³⁴ “So do not worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will care for itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

My prayer in response to the Word of God:

Our Father in heaven, my dear Father, I praise and thank You for Your abundant provisions, and for all of Your lovingkindness that You shower upon Your people. Father God, I pray that I will learn to trust in You for all of my needs.

Philippians 4:19 (NASB)
¹⁹ And my God will supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus.

Seek Ye First (Click on link below to listen to this song):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xbAtSP-CFQg

The Word of God says:

Psalms 127:1 (NASB)
¹ Unless the Lord builds the house, They labor in vain who build it; Unless the Lord guards the city, The watchman keeps awake in vain.

My reflections on the Word of God:

This Psalm is about working, watching, and praying. There is a man ward part and there is a God ward part to work.

I am on the mailing list of the church that we visit when we go to Maui, Hawaii for our winter vacation. The pastor of that church was in retirement when the church called him to be their interim pastor. Pastor Glenn Armstrong sees his purpose for being in Kihei is to build a church building, and to build a church that has a solid foundation of local people.

How timely it was to get his email. It came at a perfect time because his opening statement pointed to our focal verse for today. The following is what he wrote:

“MOMENTUM:  Work in the will of God and according to the Word of God. What we do for the Lord must be conditioned by how we do it. Unless God’s work is done in God’s way, He will reject the finished project.”

Psalms 127:1 (KJV)
¹ Except the LORD build the house, they labour in vain that build it: except the LORD keep the city, the watchman waketh but in vain.

“This includes great and impressive Christian activities.”

Matthew 7:22-23 (KJV)
²² Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?
²³ And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.

How fortunate it is to know that we can expect God to help us to accomplish every task that He calls us to do. There is never a time when we do God’s work that we need to do it in our own strength alone. I am so glad that when I work for the Lord that He is always there to help. Rather, He is the builder and I am the helper.

Hebrews 3:4 (NASB)
⁴ For every house is built by someone, but the builder of all things is God.

Psalms 121:1 (NASB)
¹ I will lift up my eyes to the mountains; From where shall my help come?

Psalms 121:3-4 (NASB)
³ He will not allow your foot to slip; He who keeps you will not slumber.
⁴ Behold, He who keeps Israel Will neither slumber nor sleep.

My prayer in response to the Word of God:

Our Father in heaven, my dear Father, I praise and thank You that You are always present with Your people when they are doing the work of God, in the will of God, and according to the Word of God. Father God, there is no greater blessing than being able to have a part in the work that You are doing in Your world.

All the Way My Savior Leads Me (Click on link below for lyrics and music):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b4EvY5lbWSo&feature=related

The Word of God says:

Psalms 127:1-5 (NASB)
¹ Unless the Lord builds the house, They labor in vain who build it; Unless the Lord guards the city, The watchman keeps awake in vain.
² It is vain for you to rise up early, To retire late, To eat the bread of painful labors; For He gives to His beloved even in his sleep.
³ Behold, children are a gift of the Lord, The fruit of the womb is a reward.
⁴ Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, So are the children of one’s youth.
⁵ How blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them; They will not be ashamed When they speak with their enemies in the gate.

My reflections on the Word of God:

Today we begin our reflection on the 127th Psalm. There is a focus that we should not miss as we mediate on these Psalms of Ascent.  As these Psalmists wrote about the journey up to Jerusalem they never lost sight of fixing their eyes and their hearts upon the Lord.

This focus was good for the Psalmist and the people of God in their day, and it is good for the people of God in our day.

Psalms 120:1 (NASB)
¹ In my trouble I cried to the Lord, And He answered me.

Psalms 121:1 (NASB)
¹ I will lift up my eyes to the mountains; From where shall my help come?

Psalms 122:1 (NASB)
¹ I was glad when they said to me, “Let us go to the house of the Lord.”

Psalms 123:1 (NASB)
¹ To You I lift up my eyes, O You who are enthroned in the heavens!

Psalms 124:1 (NASB)
¹ “Had it not been the Lord who was on our side,” Let Israel now say,

Psalms 125:1 (NASB)
¹ Those who trust in the Lord Are as Mount Zion, which cannot be moved but abides forever.

Psalms 126:1 (NASB)
¹ When the Lord brought back the captive ones of Zion, We were like those who dream.

Psalms 127:1 (NASB)
¹ Unless the Lord builds the house, They labor in vain who build it; Unless the Lord guards the city, The watchman keeps awake in vain.

Whatever we do in this life there is one thing that we should never forget, and that is that without the Lord we can do nothing.

John 15:5 (NASB)
⁵ “I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing.

My prayer in response to the Word of God:

Our Father in heaven, my dear Father, I praise and thank You that the Sovereign God in heaven is available for me as I make the pilgrimage from my earthly home to my heavenly home. Lord, our featured song for today is my daily prayer.

I Can’t Even Walk (Click on link below to view and listen to this song):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bv6rLqdNDBc&feature=related

The Word of God says:

Psalms 126:1-6 (NASB)
¹ When the Lord brought back the captive ones of Zion, We were like those who dream.
² Then our mouth was filled with laughter And our tongue with joyful shouting; Then they said among the nations, “The Lord has done great things for them.”
³ The Lord has done great things for us; We are glad.
⁴ Restore our captivity, O Lord, As the streams in the South.
⁵ Those who sow in tears shall reap with joyful shouting.
⁶ He who goes to and fro weeping, carrying his bag of seed, Shall indeed come again with a shout of joy, bringing his sheaves with him.

My reflections on the Word of God:

Today we complete our meditation on Psalm 126. Our focal passage for today is verses five and six. There are some blessings that the Lord provides suddenly. That was the case in the first three verses of this Psalm.

However, in our focal passage the blessings come after the servant of God has put in some work. In this passage we see the elements of going, weeping, sowing, and reaping.

Psalms 126:5-6 (NASB)
⁵ Those who sow in tears shall reap with joyful shouting.
⁶ He who goes to and fro weeping, carrying his bag of seed, Shall indeed come again with a shout of joy, bringing his sheaves with him.

This passage is a lovely prayer. I have had the privilege of coming across this passage during a time when I was teaching a unit on prayer many years ago. Many years later I saw what I asked in faith become a reality. There are some blessings that are worth waiting patiently for the harvest.

James 5:7 (NASB)
⁷ Therefore be patient, brethren, until the coming of the Lord. The farmer waits for the precious produce of the soil, being patient about it, until it gets the early and late rains.

Galatians 6:9 (NASB)
⁹ Let us not lose heart in doing good, for in due time we will reap if we do not grow weary.

If you are going to be a farmer you have to be patient. He had no control over the rain. He could do the sowing and the weeping, but it was God who would provide the harvest. We can endure the waiting and the hardships that may happen to us as we go about sowing seed if we have the hope for future blessings.

Isaiah 35:10 (NASB)
¹⁰ And the ransomed of the Lord will return And come with joyful shouting to Zion, With everlasting joy upon their heads. They will find gladness and joy, And sorrow and sighing will flee away.

My prayer in response to the Word of God:

Our Father in heaven, my dear Father, I pray that I will learn to have patience, and like the farmer, I will not worry about things over which I have no control. Father God, when You look down from Your throne in the heavens I pray that You will find me going, weeping, sowing, and reaping. Lord, whatever my  part turns out to be, I pray that You will find me being a servant who trust in the Lord, and is faithful in whatever I am called and led to do.

Bringing in the Sheaves (Click on link below for lyrics and midi):

http://www.my.homewithgod.com/heavenlymidis2/sheaves.html

The Word of God says:

Psalms 126:1-4 (NASB)
¹ When the Lord brought back the captive ones of Zion, We were like those who dream.
² Then our mouth was filled with laughter And our tongue with joyful shouting; Then they said among the nations, “The Lord has done great things for them.”
³ The Lord has done great things for us; We are glad.
⁴ Restore our captivity, O Lord, As the streams in the South.

My reflections on the Word of God:

Today we continue our meditation on Psalm 126. Yesterday we reflected on the first three verses, and our focus today will be on verse four.

Psalms 126:4 (AMP)
⁴ Turn to freedom our captivity and restore our fortunes, O Lord, as the streams in the South (the Negeb) [are restored by the torrents].

In verse four the Psalmist prays by making a comparison of the return of the Jews from exile with the streams in the Negev, which is the desert south of Judah. In the dry season these streams have little water, but in the rainy season the streams overflow their banks.

The Psalmist asked the Lord to complete the restoration. The word used for captivity could also mean fortunes.  The Psalmist asked for the complete restoration of the exiles and their fortunes.

God is always good to His people, and what the Jews received from God in their return from exile is an example of His goodness.  When we pray for God’s blessings, we need to be prepared to receive them.

Ezekiel 34:26 (NASB)
²⁶ “I will make them and the places around My hill a blessing. And I will cause showers to come down in their season; they will be showers of blessing.

John 7:37-38 (NASB)
³⁷ Now on the last day, the great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink.
³⁸ “He who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, ‘From his innermost being will flow rivers of living water.’ ”

My prayer in response to the Word of God:

Our Father in heaven, my dear Father, I praise and thank You that You are a God who not only delivers Your people from bondage, but that You also desire to do exceedingly more. Father God, I desire the exceedingly more that You want to give Your people. Lord, prepare my heart to receive the rivers of blessings that You want to give us.

Showers of Blessing (Click on link below for lyrics and midi):

http://www.digitalhymnal.org/dhymn.cfm?hymnNumber=195

The Word of God says:

Psalms 126:1-3 (NASB)
¹ When the Lord brought back the captive ones of Zion, We were like those who dream.
² Then our mouth was filled with laughter And our tongue with joyful shouting; Then they said among the nations, “The Lord has done great things for them.”
³ The Lord has done great things for us; We are glad.

My reflections on the Word of God:

Today we come to another of the Songs of Ascent that indicates another step in the march to Jerusalem. At each step of the journey and at each pause along the way the Psalmist and the people of God took the time to sing to the Lord.

The first three verses of this Psalm express the joy of a people who have known the sorrows of captivity, and suddenly they have experienced the joys of deliverance. Notice the contrast of how they felt in captivity, and how they felt after deliverance. In captivity they had no desire to sing.

Psalms 137:1-4 (NASB)
¹ By the rivers of Babylon, There we sat down and wept, When we remembered Zion.
² Upon the willows in the midst of it We hung our harps.
³ For there our captors demanded of us songs, And our tormentors mirth, saying, “Sing us one of the songs of Zion.”
⁴ How can we sing the Lord’s song In a foreign land?

As our focal passage indicates, the people were so happy when they returned from captivity; it was like a dream because it happened so suddenly.

Psalms 126:1 (AMP)
¹ A Song of Ascents. WHEN THE Lord brought back the captives [who returned] to Zion, we were like those who dream [it seemed so unreal].

The deliverance was not a dream, it was the real thing. The event was so remarkable that the surrounding nations took notice. Some of these nations were even enemies of Israel. They were so impressed that they had to confess that God had done something special for Israel. This is what the surrounding nations said:

Psalms 126:2 (NLT)
² We were filled with laughter, and we sang for joy. And the other nations said, “What amazing things the Lord has done for them.”

My prayer in response to the Word of God:

Dear God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, as we read these Songs of Ascent, our heart are thrilled as we rejoice for the things that You did for Your people in the days spoken of in the scriptures. However, our cause for rejoicing goes further than what you did then.

Dear God, our hearts rejoice today for all of the great and mighty things that You continue to do in the lives of Your people today. I am so happy and thankful that You are still in the business of returning blessings to those who trust in You.

Like A Rive Glorious (Click on link below for lyrics and midi):

http://www.biblestudycharts.com/SH_Like_A_River_Glorious.html