Praying the Psalms: Growing Emotionally Closer to God and Those You Love

by Rick Stedman

Overview

Praying the Psalms Will Draw You Closer to God
...and to the People in Your Life

Your emotions are powerful. They can enrich your life and strengthen your relationships—especially with God. The writers of the Psalms knew this and were honest with God about whatever they were experiencing—love, anger, worship, loneliness, fear—and many other emotions. As they did this, they found joy in spite of struggles and turned their laments into praise. Above all, they drew closer to God.

Praying the Psalms will help you to do the same by giving you words to reflect the deepest cries of your soul. You'll discover that God delights in hearing your most honest prayers and uses them as the starting point for transformation. Learning to emotionally connect with God in greater intimacy will also lead to relational breakthroughs with others.

As you read and apply this book, you will

• learn to pray the Psalms in an enjoyable and effective manner
• discover how the wisdom of the Psalms relates to insights from pioneers in emotional intelligence, emotionally focused therapy, and emotionally healthy spirituality
• form a more intimate attachment to God than you've ever experienced before

If you desire to grow closer to God and others, praying the Psalms is a great place to start. You might even grow to understand yourself better in the process.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780736960731
Publisher:	Harvest House Publishers
Publication date:	10/01/2016
Pages:	224
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.50(h) x 0.50(d)

About the Author

Dr. Rick Stedman is a collector of classic-rock vinyl LPs, bookaholic, author, pastor, and devoted husband and father. He founded and for two decades led Adventure Christian Church in Roseville, California. He has graduate degrees in theology, philosophy, and ministry, and is the author of Praying the Armor of God and Praying the Psalms.

Table of Contents

Chapter 1 Our Need for Emotional Closeness with God and Others: Introduction to the Psalms 9

Chapter 2 Does God Care About Emotions? (Psalm 1): Learning to Identify and Value Our Feelings 35

Chapter 3 Is God an Emotional Being? (Psalm 2): The Psalms and Emotional Intelligence 61

Chapter 4 Building a Secure Attachment with God (Psalms 3 and 4): The Psalms and Emotionally Focused Therapy 85

Chapter 5 Connecting with God Through Anger, Grief, and Sadness (Psalms 5 and 6): The Psalms and Emotionally Healthy Spirituality 109

Chapter 6 Does God Feel Loved by Me? (Psalms 7 and 8): The Psalms and Attunement 137

Chapter 7 Moving from "Wiry God?" to Worship (Psalms 9 and 10): The Psalms and the Transformed Christian Life 159

Appendix 1 Praying the Psalms-The First Days of Your Journey 191

Appendix 2 Lists of Emotional Words in the Psalms 201

1 Alphabetical List of Emotional Words in the Psalms

2 List of Emotional Words Occurring Most Frequently in the Psalms

3 List of Grief-Related Emotional Words in the Psalms

4 List of Praise, Thanks, and Joy-Related Emotional Words in the Psalms

Notes 213