😩 Psalm 73:26 | "My flesh and my heart may fail.."

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📧 In today’s email…

• 🤓 Background context for the Psalms

• 🙏 A prayer and reading to set the tone for the week

• 🎵 A song to help you meditate and memorize this week

Let’s dig in…

 🧠 Memorize

My flesh and my heart may fail,

but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.

Psalm 73:26

Author & Book Context: The Psalms ✍️ 

• What: The Psalms are a collection of Ancient Hebrew poems, songs & prayers

• When: They were written across a 1,000-year period ranging from the lifetime of Moses in the wilderness (1440—1400 BC) to Ezra (fourth century BC)

  • Most were composed during the lifetimes of David and Solomon

• Each of the 150 Psalms generally fits into one of these 6 categories:

  • Lament, Praise Hymns, Thanksgiving, Kingship & Covenant Psalms, Songs of Trust, and Wisdom Psalms

  • Psalm 73 is Psalm of Lament (you’ll soon see why!)

A Psalm of Asaph 🎵 

Asaph is a biblical figure and Levite descendant who is associated with 12 Psalms

He is credited with writing Psalms 50, 73, and 83.

So who is he?

King David appointed Asaph and Heman, the grandson of the Israelite prophet Samuel, to lead worship in song and music.

Asaph is also known as a member of the Asaphites, a guild of musicians in the First Temple.

For a short video about poetry and the Psalms check out the Bible Project’s video here.

Apply & respond: A prayer and reading for the week 📖 

Consider this as you memorize Psalm 73:26 this week:

This song is a song of lament - a passionate expression of deep sorrow and grief.

The Psalms model for us what it looks like to process the entire spectrum of emotions at the feet of God.

Pray 🙏 

Lord, sometimes I avoid certain emotions. Other times, I try to hide them from you. Search me and know me.

Thank you for the example set in the Psalms. You can handle every emotion I experience. Remind me this week that I am safe to process absolutely everything in your presence.

Help me experience your tender heart as a father this week. Amen. 🙏

Read 📖 

Read Psalm 73 slowly, preparing your heart to be worked on this week.

🍽️ Bonus: Read it out loud, even if you are alone. This will help you connect with it emotionally.

Listen 🎵 

Ever wonder why you can remember lyrics from a song you haven’t heard in 20 years? What if we could use that to help us memorize Scripture?

Occasionally, there are songs we find that can help us soak in the verse we’re memorizing.

Here is a beautiful song that includes our memory verse this week along with the verse right before it.

Listen on Spotify | Listen on Apple Music

LAUGH 😂