Seven Times A Day

As I was reading Psalm 119, I became fascinated by verse 164, which says "Seven times a day do I praise thee because of thy righteous judgments."

Recall that this is the longest chapter in the Bible with 176 verses, where practically every verse highlights the attributes of God's Word, all from the very personal perspective of its author.

The Word of God can literally save a life: George Wishart was the Bishop of Edinburgh in the 17th century. Wishart was condemned to death and would have been executed. But when he was on the scaffold, he made use of a custom that allowed the condemned person to choose one psalm to be sung, and he chose Psalm 119. Before two-thirds of the psalm was sung, his pardon arrived, and his life was spared. [Source: blueletterbible.org]

Back to verse 164 - what makes a person so emphatic in their declaration of praise? Well, one quick answer is already noted in the verse - it's because of God's righteous judgments. He has seen that God has always done right by Him; He has never left or abandon him.

Book Review - The Sun Does Shine by Ray Hinton

3:00 am, 10:00 am and 2:00pm. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner if you are on death row. This was Ray Hinton's reality for thirty years in the State of Alabama's Holman Prison. Not everyone on Death Row deserves to be there - remember that.

Ray Hinton was summarily convicted and sentenced to death for a crime he did not commit in September of 1986. His only crime was being a Black man in the state of Alabama. When the crime occurred - a murder of a store manager, he was at work 15 miles away, where his manager could vouch for his presence. With an airtight alibi, he thought he would be released. But none of that mattered. It wasn't an honest mistake; race had everything to do with it.

"You know I don't care if whether you did or didn't do it. In fact, I believe you didn't do it. But it doesn't matter. If you didn't do it, one of your brothers did. And you're going to take the rap. You want to know why?' These are the words that were said to Ray after he was arrested by a police lieutenant. He continued, "I can give you five reasons why they are going to convict you. Number 1, you're black. Number 2, a white man gonna say you shot him. Number 3, you're gonna have a white district attorney. Number 4, you're gonna have a white

Do You Want to Grow in Wisdom?

Wisdom is integral to the Christian walk; it allows us to act in the right way for the situation at hand, even though it may appear unconventional. If your teenager is snapping at you, your first thought may be to respond in kind, but then you say a quick prayer for wisdom and realize that it may be best if you say nothing. Or, perhaps you’re with your toddler in a department store, and she disappears. You could run to security, but something makes you look under the clothing racks, and there stands your child, smiling with not a care in the world. Maybe it’s time for your annual performance review at work. It’s not going as you anticipated but you are prompted to speak up calmly on your behalf, and this time your manager actually hears you.

Women of the Word - Patricia Raybon

This series is an act of faith. When I reach out to others it is because of my faith, a product of God's love that emboldens me. It is nervewracking, yet rewarding. As an avid reader and writer, I became familiar with Patricia's work because of its content - using your faith to bridge the gap with grace; in particular faith and race. The systemic racism in America is a sore spot for me and I sometimes wonder if anything I do or say can make a dent. Patricia writes about this topic gracefully (and forcefully) and dare I say, it's making a difference. Meet this month's Woman of the Word - Patricia Raybon.

Patricia Raybon