When a skeptical lawyer tried to trick Jesus by asking Him, “which is the great commandment in the law?” Jesus replied,
“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind”. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself”. On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets (Mathew22: 35-40).
It has been said that the book of Psalms describes the relationship of humanity to God and the book of Proverbs describes the relationship of humanity to humanity. Reading a portion of the Psalms and a portion of the book of Proverbs everyday keeps our hearts continually turned toward fulfilling the Lord’s words: loving God, and loving others as ourselves.
Psalms
Nearly every emotion known to humankind can be found in this collection of 150 “songs”. Sorrow, anger, hurt, loneliness, despair – all are there. Love, faith, hope, joy, high praise and worship – you’ll find them in the Psalms! You’ll even discover an antidote for sleep and a passage about swimming in your tears (Psalms 4:8, 6:6)
If you read n average of 5 Psalms a day – or about 3 pages – you’ll finish the entire book in a month and have the satisfaction of having completed the longest book in the Bible.
You can use the Psalms as a basis for prayer too. Personalize them whenever you can. You can also sing the Psalms. Make up your own tune.
Proverbs
The book of Proverbs is perhaps the most directly practical of all books in the Bible. Try reading 1 chapter a day for a month to finish the 31 chapters. By reading just a few verses a day, you can finish the book in a year.
You’ll find practical words of wisdom such as:
Better is a dry morsel with quietness, than a house full of feasting with strife (Proverbs 17:1).
Whoever is a partner with a thief hates is own life (Proverbs 29:24)
Hope deferred makes the heart sick (Proverbs 13:12)
The book of Psalms and Proverbs are excellent ones to commit to memory over time. Meditate on a verse daily. Rehearse it frequently. Make it part of the way you live.
