Psalm 119:25 and 28

"My soul clings to the dust 

give me life according to your word.

My soul melts away for sorrow

strengthen me according to your word."

Psalm 119: 25, 28

I really like these two verses. In a way they give me a sense of hope. The Word of God can revive and strengthen. Something that I should remember more often and should have taken to heart last week when I was feeling so down and out about some things. "My soul clings to the dust, give me life according to your word." Like I've pointed out before, I'm not a scholar but I believe that that phraseology indicated being near to death, or at least feeling like it. Maybe the Psalmist was close to dying or sick and he needed the life giving Word from the Lord. This is not to say that the Bible has magical healing powers because I don't believe that, but I do believe that in times of sickness and sorrow (as in verse 28) that the Word of God can be an encouragement, it can lift us up. I feel like I often neglect this factor and when I have problems or don't feel good I run to family and friends for my encouragement when I should be running to the scriptures. 

When we are feeling down and out, when we are filled with sorrow and we don't know what to do or how to cope we should get down on our knees and pray and seek solace in the Word of God. When my brother passed away I came across these verses several times and was reminded to seek the Lord and His wisdom during times of sorrow. 

Here is a list of some of my favorite verses (and some that I found highlighted in my Bible). Take some time to look them up. If you don't have your Bible handy you can click on the reference to find the verse(s)

• Joshua 1:8-9
• Deuteronomy 31:6
• Psalm 23
• Psalm 31:24
• Psalm 18:1-2
• Psalm 27:14
• Psalm 29 - The reason this encourages me is because it reminds me that the Lord is present during the storm. Just about every time it storms I am reminded of this chapter. His voices flashes forth like lightning, his voice is like thunder. In the storms of life God is present! Another way I personally see this is that when it storms, the sun seems to disappear. But the sun never really goes away, it is only hidden by the clouds. When we face storms in life, God may not seem present but He isn't gone. His presence is only clouded by our situation and we have to peer through the clouds to find Him.
• Psalm 59:17
• Psalm 68:19
• Psalm 71:3,14
• Psalm 73:25-26
• Psalm 91:1-2
• Isaiah 41:10,13 - The right handed hug! If you don't know what I mean, next time you see me I'll explain!
• Isaiah 40:29-31
• Matthew 6:25-34
• Matthew 11:28-30
• Mark 4:35-41 - He is in control over everything, even the stormy waters!
• 2 Corinthians 12:9-10
• Philippians 4:4-7, 19
• Colossians 1:11-12, 29
• 2 Timothy 2:11-13 - Even if we are faithless, God is faithful!
• James 1:2-4, 12

If you have any verse that are a particular encouragement to you feel free to post them in the comments section on here (or on Facebook)