I Am Psalms… But I’d Rather be Proverbs.

Several years ago, back in the day before Facebook quizzes, back in the day when email forwards were cool (wait… were they ever, really?) … a quiz entitled, “Which Book of the Bible are You?” made the email forwarding rounds amongst my family and my friends.

I have no idea what anyone else got, but I got Psalms. I thought that was silly, meaningless information until I realized that like Psalms, I’m either praising the Lord… or crying my eyes out….? Hmm.

I do love the book of Psalms… though I think I would have chosen Proverbs for myself.

Most mornings, I get up and read the chapter of Proverbs for the day (31 books in Proverbs = 31 days in the month), and the same chapter in Psalms.

Proverbs, the book is wisdom, is full of… uh… wisdom… and having read each chapter over and over again, I still don’t have even 6.5 minutes of wisdom, though hopefully more than I once did.

Proverbs is concise, readable, and practical; if you find yourself getting bogged down in the hard-to-understand parts of the Bible, start with Proverbs.

The beauty of Proverbs is that NO MATTER WHAT it is that I’m going through, there’s usually at least one little nugget of wisdom in Proverbs applicable for THAT situation, for THAT day, and its like THAT VERSE was deliberately put there by God just for me.

That’s what they mean when they say the Word of God is LIVING… because it seems to grow to be whatever it is you need at that moment.

I wish I was Proverbs. I wish I had all the answers to all of life’s questions, and the solution to every dilemma. I wish the wise words of the Lord flowed forth from my mouth 31 days a month.

Psalms, though, is a poetic book of David’s prayers, apparently written during some tumultuous years full of extremes of emotion, his life a rollercoaster of drama, suspense, and turmoil. Sound familiar?

Psalms is about being oppressed and attacked, with enemies rising up… but the Lord will save me.

Psalms is about massive weaknesses and vulnerability… but the Lord is my strength.

Psalms is defenseless and wronged… but God is the mighty defender.

Psalms is drowning in deep waters… but God will reach down and draw me out.

Psalms is weeping in the night… but God will bring rejoicing in the morning.

Psalms is knowing that days of trouble come, but that the Lord is ALWAYS a shield for me; my glory and the lifter of my head.

I guess its not so bad to be Psalms … though my life is hardly the prayer or praise it should be.

Psalms is highs and lows, the depths and the heights… Proverbs is wisdom, stability, and straight paths.

Hmmm… come to think of it, wisdom, stability and straight paths; the answers to all of life’s problems?? Yeah…. that sounds boring. If I didn’t have my highs and lows and my miry clay and God lifting me out of it, I’d have nothing to blog about.