Bible Study: November 26, 2025
- Stephen Bell
- 2 days ago
- 3 min read
Prayer
As always, we start with prayer. Firstly, do we have any praise reports from the previous week? Next, is there anything we as a group can pray for concerning you or someone close to you?
Praise
Where Does My Help Come From?
I lift my eyes up
Up to the mountains
Where does my help come from?
My help comes from You
Maker of Heaven
Creator of the earth
Oh, how I need You Lord
You are my only hope
You're my only prayer
So I will wait for You
To come and rescue me
Come and give me life
Passage
Psalm 121
Assurance of God’s Protection
A Song of Ascents.
1 I lift up my eyes to the hills—
from where will my help come?
2 My help comes from the Lord,
who made heaven and earth.
3 He will not let your foot be moved;
he who keeps you will not slumber.
4 He who keeps Israel
will neither slumber nor sleep.
5 The Lord is your keeper;
the Lord is your shade at your right hand.
6 The sun shall not strike you by day
nor the moon by night.
7 The Lord will keep you from all evil;
he will keep your life.
8 The Lord will keep
your going out and your coming in
from this time on and forevermore.
Ponder
Context: This is a part of the ‘Psalm of Ascents’. And what is that? In context, Hebrew worshippers are travelling from different areas all over the map, to the centralized location of Jerusalem where they will all worship together—at the Temple! And naturally, as it may be for you on your highway, travel can be more than a little dangerous. People can be scared. Nervous. And in the even greater picture, life can also feel that way: we all want to get to the goal we’re looking for as we travel, but we also know that there are perils along the way. But this psalm invites us to shift our gaze--both physically and spiritually.
1 What part of this psalm/song really stands out to you and warms your heart? Why do you think it has that effect on you?
2 Verse 1 states: "I lift up my eyes to the hills—from where will my help come?" Some have thought that this 'hill' was the Temple of the LORD. But then we realized that the word is plural: ‘hills.’ In this context, the hills represent something dangerous as a person is travelling to worship: hiding spots for dangers (people, animals) or maybe local pagan gods as the traveler passes on, or maybe even a hill they have to climb to get to where they need to go. And it’s easy to lose sight of the goals sometimes and veer off path, as we remain concerned about the hills in front of us. When was a time in your life when you've "lifted your eyes" to something that ended up being unreliable to you for help: like a job, a relationship, or even your own plans. How did that turn out, and what might this verse teach us about redirecting our search?
3 Verse 2 declares, "My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth." Interesting. Why does the psalmist bring up 'God as Creator' as his help in this time? What connection is he making here between verse one and two as both the problem and the solution?
4 Verse 3 states: "[God] will not let your foot be moved; he who keeps you will not slumber" while verse 4 states "He who keeps Israel will neither slumber nor sleep." How has God prevented your "foot from slipping" in unexpected ways, day and night? And how does God continue to do that for all of us at City Centre Church? Testify! Either/Or Both/And!
5 Pulling it all together, notice below how the Hebrew word shamar threads through verses 3-8. The author really seems to be using it like a golden cord. In eight verses the word is used six times! Six times to hammer home God's active guardianship. Think of this like a second version of "The LORD is my Shepherd". This is God's active watch over you in a textual/rhythmic reassurance. Which repetition of "keep" or "watch" resonates most with your current season, and why?
6 For application, let's make this psalm missional. How would you tell other people with whom you have daily contact about how you trust in a God who you believe watches over you?
Pray & Part
