This is our last week of Come, Follow Me study of the book of Psalms. The traditional Jewish name for this book is Tehillim, a Hebrew word that means praises. And that word is related to our modern exclamation of praise, “hallelujah” which means praise Jehovah or praise the Lord. Remembering that expression seems like a good way to round out this book full of songs and praise.
Interacting with music, poetry, and scriptures can bring up deeply personal feelings. And the writers of the Psalms shared deeply in their writing. In our study of Psalms 49-86 we are going to look for the personal connection in the writing. And how that will help us set our hope in God.
There is a word that comes up in the Psalms that is designed to make you stop and reflect. It is saleh and, while it could mean a musical rest in these early hymns, it can also just mean to rest. Take a moment, slow down in your scripture study and in your day, and rest in the Lord. The Come, Follow Me schedule gives us three weeks to study the Psalms and our emphasis this week in Psalm 1-46 is to saleh.
Life lessons from the Book of Job. Before studying this book of poetry that may be the oldest book written in the bible, it’s important to know a few things. We’re not sure who wrote it, we don’t exactly know what Job’s name means, and there’s no way to verify if the events in it even happened. So, what can 42 chapters, 1,070 verses and 10,102 words teach us about Jesus Christ? Now we begin our week-long study of Job and discuss life lessons that are contained in what we believe to be an inspired and poetic book.
This is an insight we simply don’t get with the English version of the story.
2 Min Read
Esther was a woman of great faith who was an example of the believers. Although the Lord’s name is not explicitly in the pages of her book, His influence and mercy is evident. She was ready to testify when the moment arose, and that is a takeaway we can all bring with us from her story.
In a 1997 regional conference, President Hinckley said “It isn’t as bad as you sometimes think it is. It all works out.” That is the message of this week’s discussion of Ezra and Nehemiah. As bad as things were for the Israelites, things worked out with God’s help and with God’s help things will work out for us too.
In your desperate moment of need who do you turn to? And what has worked? Today’s discussion talks about the desperate moments during the time of kings in the Old Testament books of Chronicles. We’ll find some remarkable stories about what works and some unexpected ways the people received help from the Lord.
Who could use some good advice? 2 Kings 16–25 has advice from the Lord to the Southern Kingdom of Israel. And the good news for us is that praying, going to the temple, seeking counsel from the prophet, and more advice found in these chapters are timeless wisdoms. Whatever you are going through we can find solace in the words of the scriptures.
“The more we know these prophecies, the more we can step forward with courage and strength and do hard things and help gather Israel.”
1 Min Read
The Book of Mormon prophet Mormon asked the question, “Has the day of miracles ceased?” President Oaks answered in our day, “Many miracles happen every day in the work of our Church and in the lives of our members. Many of you have witnessed miracles, perhaps more than you realize.” If miracles are happening today then maybe in order to see them, we need to seek the faith that Elisha had when he prayed on behalf of his fearful young servant: “Lord, I pray thee, open his eyes, that he may see”
The House of Israel is in total disarray. This week’s discussion of 1 Kings 12–22 will teach us what the Lord did for His people living on both sides of a conflict. Miracles didn’t cease and God proved it to whoever would listen to both the boasting of confident faith and a still small voice.
Would you say that with age comes wisdom? What about with experience comes wisdom? How about with the imperfections of others, comes wisdom? The Book of Mormon prophet Moroni said, “Give thanks unto God that he hath made manifest unto you our imperfections, that ye may learn to be more wise than we have been” (Mormon 9:31). Today’s discussion of 2 Samuel 11–12 and 1 Kings 1–11 contain stories of the imperfection and contrition which when combined, can definitely make us all “more wise than we have been.”
This week’s Come Follow Me lesson ends with David becoming king, being favored of the Lord, wanting to build the Lord a temple, and some dancing. To find out how he got there, we have to go back and discover who the young boy David was before becoming a young king. 1 Samuel 17–31 and 2 Samuel 1–7 show the heart of young David and the story he’d like to be remembered for.
David and Saul came from different backgrounds and appeared different at first glance. But both led Israel, were favored of the Lord, and also had secrets they tried to hide. But as we learn in 1 Samuel 8–16, God looks past our outward appearance and sees our heart.
Ruth and Hannah were strong figures in the Old Testament who demonstrated faith and established a righteous lineage. This week we are paying special attention to what we can learn about God’s pattern of revelation in Ruth and 1 Samuel 1-7. Sometimes the Lord asks hard things, but when we know it comes from God, it makes it worth it to obey.