Praises and truths

Reading Psalm 118 this morning. I am reminded again by David just how faithful and righteous our God is, even when I am not. The passage is full of praises and truths.

I love only because He has taught me to live by loving me first. His love never ceases.
¹ Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;
    his love endures forever.

When I have been in turmoil and cried out, He has been there to walk with me through the storm. When I have stumbled, He been there to catch me when I fall.
⁵ Out of my distress I called on the Lord;
    the Lord answered me and set me free.

When I faced uncertainty and called on Him, Christ calmed my anxiety with His promise to never leave me. When I suffered through terrifying nightmares in my sleep when I was younger, He answered my cries, calmed my fear, and gave me peaceful rest.
⁶ The Lord is with me; I will not be afraid.
    What can mere mortals do to me?

It is indeed better to seek refuge in a God who is forever bigger than man or his problems than to look for solace in something or someone whose time and knowledge is fleeting.
⁸ It is better to take refuge in the Lord
    than to trust in humans.
⁹ It is better to take refuge in the Lord
    than to trust in princes.

By His mighty hand and loving grace, I have and will continue to withstand the slings and arrows of those who seek to harm me.
¹⁰ All the nations surrounded me,
    but in the name of the Lord I cut them down.
¹¹ They surrounded me on every side,
    but in the name of the Lord I cut them down.
¹² They swarmed around me like bees,
    but they were consumed as quickly as burning thorns;
    in the name of the Lord I cut them down.

I sing not to only calm and entertain myself, but my song is to Him in praise and thanks.
¹⁵ Shouts of joy and victory
    resound in the tents of the righteous:
“The Lord’s right hand has done mighty things!

I have lived through the trials and tribulations of life and come out on the other side knowing now that He disciplines in love and righteousness.
¹⁸ The Lord has chastened me severely,
    but he has not given me over to death.

I stand today filled with the joy and anxiety of a child on Christmas morning in the knowledge that He has prepared a place for me where I will love and praise Him forever. ¹⁹ Open for me the gates of the righteous;
    I will enter and give thanks to the Lord.
²⁰ This is the gate of the Lord
    through which the righteous may enter.

He is my God and I will thank Him and praise Him forever.
²⁹ Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;
    his love endures forever.