10 Things You May Not Know About Poetry & Psalms

It's very early, but I'm driving an employee of Steve's to Santa Fe at 7 A.M. Sometimes there's no other way to get a car to Albuquerque. It's a beautiful drive and takes about 45 minutes. Driving up and up, you go from around 5,000 feet in altitude here in Albuquerque to around 6,000 feet in Santa Fe. But before I leave the house, I'm going to give you 10 things that you may not know about poetry and David's psalms.

What is Mortality

But the things relating to the Body,

Which dies?

What is Immortality

But the things relating to the Spirit,

Which lives Eternally?
William Blake 1757-1827

In his book The Healing Power of Blake: A Distillation, Dr. John Diamond has taken Blake's very long poems and made them readable in this book. He uses poetry to heal his patients, and he believes that Blake was one of the best at writing poetry that heals, especially when it is sung. Diamond suggests to his patients that they write poetry, and also read the poetry of the masters out loud, and to sing the poems.

This suggestion from Dr. Diamond reminds me of the Psalms of David, who was a master of poetry writing, and who used his songs to heal King Saul's malady. In fact, here are 10 things that you may not know about poetry and psalms.

1) David gave us one of the most glorious collections of poetry ever written. We call it the Book of Psalms, and the Jews call it the Book of Praises. It is often called the Psalms of David.

2) David had a great talent for playing, singing, and writing poetry.

3) David's true character is revealed in his songs: his love of God, his care for people, his anguish at his own failings, and his trust and faith in God's forgiveness and deliverance.

4) David's poems serve as a journal of his life experiences and a history of his people.

5) David's love of God spills over in beautiful expressions of not only God's love and mercy, but His presence with him, His holiness, His power, and His faithfulness.

6) All of God's attributes can be found in the songs of David.

7) In the Psalms, we learn the value of knowing God, what it means to be righteous, as well as the vanity found in the way of the ungodly, and what their end will be.

8) David wrote 150 poems, which were written to be sung by a large choir accompanied by thousands of musicians.

9) David organized all the music for worship in Jerusalem.

10) The Psalms are read, chanted and sung every day of the year. No other book of hymns has been used for such a long period of time by so many people.

No wonder David is called "the sweet Psalmist of Israel." The Psalms have come down to us as a blessing--their healing power and influence is impossible to calculate. But even a cursory look at their depth and meaning will convince you that they are worth contemplating. Once again, we realize that we have been given great gifts from God. What will we do with them?

Blessings...Mimi