Worshiping through the Psalms
Our Spiritual Focus for the month of October is Worshiping through the Psalms. The Book of Psalms has been called the Hymnal of both the Jewish and the Christian faiths. The Psalms are hymns of praise, songs of thanksgiving and poetry of the heart that date back at least to the time of David.
Richard Foster and Julia Rolle, in their book, A Year with God, Living Out the Spiritual Disciplines , express beautifully the impact of the Book of Psalms can have on ones life...
“The Psalms are primary instruments for forming the inner life of the faithful, but much of their effectiveness derives from the fact that they are also about how this formation occurs. They speak forth, in suitable poetic tones, of how God and human beings interact to shape the inner and outer lives of individuals and groups. Though the Psalms do teach, most of their power for forming our inner life and character lies in their beauty and capacity to penetrate our emotions, our body, our social relations - indeed, our entire life.
These inspired poetic expressions can, under God, be the locus of great joy and character transformation as we allow them to sink deep into our heart. If we enter into the Psalms honestly and faithfully, they can induce experiences and actions within us that truly reflect the words expressed. This, in turn, will reshape our inner being and character into the state God would have it. And maintain it! The testimony of the People of God throughout the ages, even up to our day, confirms this. Nothing on earth matches the Psalter as a public exercise for cultivating a right heart in relation to God."
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Here are a couple of reading plans that I have found that you can download if you desire. These plans concentrate on reading the Psalms.
Psalms Reading Plan Update
30 60 90 Reading Plan