Psalm16

Last Sat, my youth invited me to speak for the afternoon. Not knowing what to preach about, I just started randomly looking at the Bible. I found out from past events, that it really works, just trusting in the Lord to see what God wants to me to say. So I eventually found Ps 16. Here it is, just a bit of a read through.

Psalm 16 (New International Version)

Psalm 16

A miktam of David. [a]

1 Keep me safe, O God,
for in you I take refuge.

2 I said to the LORD, "You are my Lord;
apart from you I have no good thing."

3 As for the saints who are in the land,
they are the glorious ones in whom is all my delight. [b]

4 The sorrows of those will increase
who run after other gods.
I will not pour out their libations of blood
or take up their names on my lips.

5 LORD, you have assigned me my portion and my cup;
you have made my lot secure.

6 The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places;
surely I have a delightful inheritance.

7 I will praise the LORD, who counsels me;
even at night my heart instructs me.

8 I have set the LORD always before me.
Because he is at my right hand,
I will not be shaken.

9 Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices;
my body also will rest secure,

10 because you will not abandon me to the grave, [c]
nor will you let your Holy One [d] see decay.

11 You have made [e] known to me the path of life;
you will fill me with joy in your presence,
with eternal pleasures at your right hand.

The Topic of the day was "TRUST"

I've split the psalm in to 3 parts/points. 1) Trust in the Lord. 2) He has the Master Plan 3) Rejoice in the Lord. I've also tried to explain each verse and how to apply it to our lives.

1) Trust in the Lord. vs 1-4

1. He protects - the main theme of the whole psalm is actually based on this verse and the rest is just the expression of it. Refuge. This is the key word. Refuge is a place where we feel safe, secure and protected. We need to know that, in times of trouble, he is the place where we take refuge, to be protected and be safe.

2. He is my all - You see, even David, a king says there no good things other than the Lord. Look around us, our own possessions, are but nothing. Because we don't actually own them, nor can we bring it back to 'home'.

3. He provides friends - (at this point I would like to point out that these are my interpretations and from what I've studied, do let me know if there is anything I need to change or add) I see this verse as God providing people/ friends for us. I've been truly blessed to have good friends all around, everywhere I go; from my home town in Keningau, to Labuan (which is where I met a lot of good people, in my college, whom I wish I could spend more time with) and in New Zealand. I know that in times of trouble, I could count on them to help me and support me.

4. Pray for others - I urge all of us, to pray for one another and to pray for the non belivers. Every night, in my prayer, I have a list of friends, who do not know the Lord and I pray for them, that one day.. one day.. they will know the Lord. Just look around, in your circle of friends, in uni, in your work place, there is bound to be someone that needs the Lord. Bless those people who are out there, going around daringly telling others of the Lord. If such courage is not within us, then, at least, pray for them and the none believers to have a soften heart.

2) He has the master plan. vs 5-8

5. He provides - each person in the world has a 'portion', big or small, depends on what is in God's plan, but it is always 'sufficient' for you to live on. The Lord even provides for the birds and the trees to live, what more us, his Children?

6. He has a set plan for us - there are two are that I can see from this verse.

One, expansion of your territory. Do pray that the Lord expand your territory and give you wisdom and strength to do what the Lord has in store for you. When I first arrived, I asked the Lord to provide me with an area which I can serve Him. He gave me the music ministry, which is where I found my talent of singing (I use to think that I don't have a good voice, until I started singing in NZ and people keep saying how good it is. Until now, I still don't fully belive that I have that nice of a voice, but I trust the Lord that He did gave me that. :-) ) Then a few months back, I prayed about expantions of my boundaries and to give me more areas to serve Him. The Lord bless me with youth work, which I'll be starting as soon as I get back to NZ.

Two, he has a set path for us. Imagine that you are in a jungle, with no map or compass. We will most likely be going around in circles. This is the same in our lives if we do not have Jesus in the throne of our life. With God directing and showing the way, we will have a path and a road in the thick of the jungle.

7. He counsels you - In times of trouble, we always try to find help, or want someone to reach out to. It is always good to know that God is just a prayer away. I spend a lot of time online and there are times when I have friends who seek my counsel either in relationship problems or other matters. I always pray a short prayer before I start doing anything. "God, help me. Use me and tell me what you want me to say to him/her, to help her and guide her. I lift this up to You Lord. Amen" This little prayer, time and time again, have help me help others. I really thank God for giving me the opportunity to help people in need.

8. He is my strength - Look, even David, who has an army behind him, still puts God before everything. By doing so, he has summoned the strength that is only given by the Lord. Strength that will cause you not to be shaken in times of trials. Spiritual attacks are getting more and more frequent these days. They can even come from friends and family that are close to us. Stand firm but lead on the Lord. When the enemy attack, love him/her.


3) Rejoice in the Lord. vs 9-11

9. Sing to the Lord - Sing on to the Lord, with all your heart and rejoice. I'm blessed by the Lord with a nice voice and musical talent which I am able to serve the Lord int he music ministry. I'm also blessed with being able to write songs of praise and worship. I urge my fellow Christians to give your full-hearted worship when singing. Read and enjoy the lyric, these words are the writer's heart felt joy and love for the Lord.

10. He will not leave you - singing and rejoicing in the Lord keeps Him in your heart. In times of trouble, he'll be there. No matter what.

11. He fills you with Joy - This joy is not the joy that we see on TV. Everyone can be happy, and have joyful moments. But the Joy that a Christian has, is a different Joy. It is God given and is more than a warm feeling. It's God love and peace upon us.


So that's generally my sharing for the youth. Don't really know if it was a bit hard or long (boring) for them. Most of them are my little age (13-15 year-olds). But I hope they understand what I was trying to tell them. I ended with a song I made a few months back. Hope they are blessed by it.


Any Comments, please do so. Need feed back to make sure I'm saying the right things and to teaching wrong things as I'll be leading the youth in New Zealand this year. Pray for me. God Bless..