Loved

Today we celebrated February birthdays and Valentine’s Day with our neighbors. Steve was the only birthday person who showed, so there he stood beside balloons and the lunch spread. At one point, a neighbor walked by and threw her arms around my neck. What a pleasant surprise! I love spontaneous hugs, and I’m still enjoying the warmth it gave me deep inside.

Another tender moment or two I experienced was as I read through a portion of the Bible. Psalm 119 is where I’ve spent most of my reading time this week contemplating what blessings God promises for reading His word. I’m finding many already. Integrity brings joy and helps me not compromise with evil. If I pray for my actions to fit with God’s decrees, then I’ll face no shame. And one plea that was especially touching: “Please don’t give up on me.”

If you’re like me, you sometimes wonder why God would even love you. I feel so inadequate and lose my temper easily. Discouragement sneaks in when I think of the ways I compromise by wrong choices in my use of time and money. My weight loss goals stay the same, and the scale never moves down even a pound.

Yet God says that He made me, created me (v 73) and is always fair (v 75.) He promises that His commands will make me wiser than even my enemies (v 98). In Psalm 121 God reminds us that our help comes from Him, the maker of heaven and earth. His promises speak love. What greater help is there in all the world than that of the Lord who always watches us and stands beside us as protection?