Summer in Psalms Reading Plan
When this pandemic started, I preached a sermon on Psalm 13, and I told y’all I’ve never really been a “psalm guy” or a worrier. And now, because of this pandemic, I’m both. (I also wasn’t a Star Wars guy or a bird watcher, but that’s a different story.)
When we originally planned (over a year ago) to spend the summer studying the Psalms, I was excited because personally, I felt I had so much to learn about them. I didn’t engage in my seminary classes about them as much as I could have because they just weren’t my thing. My initial excitement was all about learning more—understanding the structure and the themes of the Psalms. Now I’m excited because I need them.
We need all of God’s word, but I’ve always been more of a “story guy.” Give me something from Genesis or some crazy Old Testament story with a talking donkey or man-swallowing fish. Or something from the life of Jesus. I’m most compelled toward God through the stories he has given us … but lately, I’ve just needed to sit in the words of Psalms.
Words like, “weeping may stay for the night, but rejoicing comes in the morning” (Psalm 30:5b).
“How long, Lord? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me?” (Psalm 13:1).
“Keep me safe, my God, for in you I take refuge” (Psalm 16:1).
“Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good. His love endures forever” (Psalm 136:1).
“Praise the Lord, my soul, and forget not all his benefits—who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases” (Psalm 103:2-3).
"You, Lord, hear the desire of the afflicted; you encourage them, and you listen to their cry ..." (Psalm 10:17).
God has given us these words. He has given us words to speak back to him no matter where we find ourselves circumstantially, emotionally, or spiritually. And these words help. They give voice to the unimaginable or inexpressible. They give voice to the afflicted and oppressed. They give voice to the godly desire for justice and peace. They give voice to pain and hope and joy and anger and confusion. Through Psalms, God gives us words that communicate to us, no matter how we feel, and God wants to hear from us. God knows words help.
But God also knows we need more than words.
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. … The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us” (John 1:1, 14a).
God himself came down into this world and became one of us. God experienced the full range of emotions and we often see Jesus turning to God’s word, and in particular the Psalms, to express himself. Nowhere is that fact more poignant than on the cross when Jesus cried out Psalm 22: “My God, my God why have you forsaken me?”
God gave us words expressing incredible emotions in the Psalms that he himself would speak.
Think about this: Jesus knows what it’s like to look to heaven and feel nothing, and through Psalms, he is given just the right words to express that feeling. “My God, my God why have you forsaken me?”
Jesus spoke Psalm 22 on the cross. The Psalms are God’s word for us but also for him.
Y’all, that’s been a game-changer for me. Jesus needed the Psalms like we need the Psalms. Like Jesus, we should look to Psalms to express however we feel to God.
Along with preaching on various psalms this summer, we’ve come up with a 10-week reading plan in Psalms.
Psalms is broken up into five books, and we will spend two weeks reading selected psalms from each book. Many biblical scholars find each book has a guiding theme.
Book one points us to the truth that God is with us.
Book two that God goes before us.
Book three that God is all around us.
Book four that God is above us.
Book five that God is going to make all things new.
I would love for you to join me in this. We’ll be reading one psalm a day for five days per week, and you can find the link below! I’m excited to see what all God shows us as we spend time this summer speaking God’s word back to him.
Supplemental Resources for Studying Psalms
These videos from the Bible Project are a great place to start.
Studies on Psalms from She Reads Truth and He Reads Truth
These studies focus on praying the Psalms and using them as a guide for spending time with God. There are also other resources from them such as cards and booklets here.
As part of this annual Bible reading plan, the Psalms are spread throughout the first 150 daily readings. This podcast discusses the psalm for each day more in-depth. Find it wherever you listen to podcasts.
This is a collaborative effort led by Shane Heilman to set all the Psalms to music in their entirety. So far they've gone through Psalm 38. They're accessible on YouTube or Spotify.
Episode 1: Poems in the Bible? from What's in the Bible? by Phil Vischer | Volume 8: “Words to Make Us Wise”
This is a video series for families, geared toward elementary students. It's also available on Right Now Media, and this particular episode is focused on how we read and understand the use of poetry throughout the Bible.
Scripture Coloring Pages by Mary Dean Draws
These can be helpful for families or children to start conversations about God’s word together.
Zach Van Dyke is the Herndon Campus Pastor at Summit Church. He enjoys hanging out with his fish and two ducks. Besides Disney, Zach also loves Dr. Pepper but, as he nears 40, has begrudgingly switched to Diet Dr. Pepper (which, contrary to popular opinion, doesn't taste more like regular Dr. Pepper).