July 15, 2019 
The word Sabbath means to cease.  So as Dr. Brooks is away on sabbatical, we will be using his original devotionals from 2009 on the book of Psalms.  He will resume The Bible Project devotionals upon his return.  Thank you for reading with us and praying for him as he replenishes his soul for the next seven years of ministry.
Psalm 41
1 Blessed are those who have regard for the weak;
    the Lord delivers them in times of trouble.
2 The Lord protects and preserves them—
    they are counted among the blessed in the land—
    he does not give them over to the desire of their foes.
3 The Lord sustains them on their sickbed
    and restores them from their bed of illness.
4 I said, “Have mercy on me, Lord;
    heal me, for I have sinned against you.”
5 My enemies say of me in malice,
    “When will he die and his name perish?”
6 When one of them comes to see me,
    he speaks falsely, while his heart gathers slander;
    then he goes out and spreads it around.
7 All my enemies whisper together against me;
    they imagine the worst for me, saying,
8 “A vile disease has afflicted him;
    he will never get up from the place where he lies.”
9 Even my close friend,
    someone I trusted,
one who shared my bread,
    has turned against me.
10 But may you have mercy on me, Lord;
    raise me up, that I may repay them.
11 I know that you are pleased with me,
    for my enemy does not triumph over me.
12 Because of my integrity you uphold me
    and set me in your presence forever.
13 Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel,
    from everlasting to everlasting.
Amen and Amen.

New International Version (NIV)
Snow was falling all around us.  We had ridden a boat out to the Statue of Liberty and waited in line to enter.  There we saw again Emma Lazarus’s great poem which speaks of America’s desire to help those who come our way.  Do you remember the words? 

"Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"

I never noticed David’s first line in the Psalm until now.  Blessed is he who has regard for the weak.  We avoid weakness, don’t we?  In ourselves and others, weakness and the admission of it make us very uncomfortable.  So we carefully craft our public images making sure to put our best feet forward. 

Especially because our God has regard for the weak, so should we.  David took Mephibosheth, Jonathan’s only surviving son into his home.  This man, dropped at birth, had special needs.  David made a point of making a place for him at his table.  I am thinking today about those who minister to our special needs kids at Tallowood Baptist Church as well as at other churches.  How I thank God for the love of these who share in this ministry.  We are all blessed by their work.  If I read this first line correctly, nobody is blessed more than they are.  God welcomes us in our weakness.  Let us go and do likewise! 

This year our Every Day with Jesus readings will follow The Bible Project Read Scripture Plan.  Copies of this reading plan are available at Tallowood Baptist Church, or download 
the app at readscripture.org.  Read through the Bible with us in 2019!
Joyfully, 
Duane 

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