Patiently Waiting

"I waited patiently for the Lord; He turned to me and heard my cry." Psalm 40:1

Isn't the term patiently waiting an oxymoron or something? The promise of the Lord is wonderful. He promises us that when we wait on Him He will lift us up. I find myself being extremely patient and longsuffering in some situations and in others I cannot wait one more moment. There doesn't necessarily seem to be a rhyme or reason for why my patience is so challenged in one area of my life and seemingly bottomless in another. This whole Psalm 40 is full of some splendid illustrations of many aspects of our lives but right out of the chute I have to address patience.

Delightfulness

"If the Lord delights in a man's way, He makes his steps firm; though he stumble, he will not fall, for the Lord upholds him with His hand." Psalm 37:23

Let's face it, sometimes we are just gonna find the pothole, slip, or trip, or mess up because after all, we are human, right? Absolutely, if you are not human today you can just go ahead and ascend and leave the rest of us behind. David says that even if the Lord is delighting in us and He makes our steps firm, we may still stumble. Ahhhh, but we will not fall for the Lord will uphold us with His hand. This is so encouraging to me.

Makes No Difference Who You Are

"How priceless is your unfailing love! Both high and low among men find refuge in the shadow of your wings." Psalm 36:7

If you know me, you know that I don't often quote people but today there is a quote rattling around in my mind as I read through Psalm 36 that I can't resist. I think it was Jiminy Cricket who said, "Makes no difference who you are." Granted, that may be taken a little out of context because he was singing about wishing on a star, right? This is a practice that I don't encourage, but the truth within the fantasy is still true. It really does not make a difference who you are, when you trust in God's grace. You could be the most awful person in the world (by the way I am not taking a poll on who you think that is :) or you could be the most wonderful person in world (no voting for yourself :) ... it really makes no difference who you are.

God's Love Reached me in the Heavens

Our Friday Devotion comes to us from Council Member, Lahoma:

"Your love, O God, reaches to the heavens, Your faithfulness to the skies" Psalm 36:5

I traveled to San Francisco last weekend to participate in the Nike Women’s Half Marathon. I had decided not to drive because flights to SFO are usually short and cheap, and I wouldn’t miss work because I could fly up on Saturday and coming back Sunday night. Plus not sitting in a car for six hours after running 13.1 miles is always a BIG plus for me! The flight up was uneventful, and I managed to maneuver through public transportation and enjoyed the challenge of getting to my hotel and finding my friends who were joining me in town mid day. The race was great, and I got to share with several people along the way. It seemed like a seamless adventure… until I started my journey home on Sunday night.

Worship Him

"And the name of the city from that time will be: The Lord is there." Ezekiel 48:35b

Ezekiel begins with a description of the holiness of God that Israel despised and ignored. As a result, God’s presence departed from the temple, the city, and the people. Simply put, “THE LORD WAS NOT THERE.” Ezekiel ends with a detailed vision of the new temple, the new city, the new people, all demonstrating God’s holiness. The pressures of everyday life can persuade us to focus only on the here at now, and forget God. That is why worship is so important; it takes our eyes off our current worries and gives us a glimpse of God’s holiness and allows us to look toward the future kingdom. God’s presence makes everything glorious, and worship brings us into His presence.

Checklist

"I will exalt you, O LORD. O LORD my God, I will give you thanks forever." Psalm 30:1a, Psalm 30:12b

I do well with lists when it comes to fulfilling my responsibilities. I love to check it off and get it done. Whenever the Bible can give me a list, I find it easier to understand how I am supposed to respond. In Psalm 30, David starts and finishes with praising and thanking God. In between verses 1a and 12b, I am convinced the list of reasons David gives to praise God and be thankful can help us to be more grateful as we check off the list in our own lives.

Lord of Everything

"I said to the Lord, You are my Lord, apart from You I have no good thing." Psalm 16:2

Who else but to the Lord would you ever say, "You are my Lord?" Seems obvious enough. Yet, sometimes something else becomes our lord. Or, we get so obsessed with something you’d think it was our lord. The safeguard against such faulty temptation is to remind ourselves that God provides everything and owns everything. Outside of Him, there is no good thing. Unless He is the Lord of anything you can think of, it cannot be good.

A Time to Weep

Our Friday Devotion comes to us from Council Member, Ray Beeman:

History can be interesting, especially if we can learn from it. As I considered Pastor Fred’s next sermon, the one entitled "Jesus Wept", my first (lame) thought was that it was the shortest sentence in the Bible. Then I thought about the last "sentence" in the Bible, John’s exclamation point of "Amen" in Revelation:22:21. OK, that’s technically not a complete sentence, but who cares?

Don't Make Me Come Down There

"O LORD, do not rebuke me in your anger or discipline me in your wrath. Be merciful to me, LORD, for I am faint; O LORD, heal me, for my bones are in agony. My soul is in anguish. How long, O LORD, how long? Turn, O LORD, and deliver me; save me because of your unfailing love. No one remembers you when he is dead. Who praises you from the grave? I am worn out from groaning; all night long I flood my bed with weeping and drench my couch with tears. My eyes grow weak with sorrow; they fail because of all my foes. Away from me, all you who do evil, for the LORD has heard my weeping. The LORD has heard my cry for mercy; the LORD accepts my prayer. All my enemies will be ashamed and dismayed; they will turn back in sudden disgrace." Psalms 6

I don’t like to consider the Lord’s anger. Recently, I saw a billboard that said, "Don't make me come down there.” God.

Being Clear in the Real World

"You are not a God who takes pleasure in evil; with you the wicked cannot dwell. The arrogant cannot stand in your presence; you hate all who do wrong. You destroy those who tell lies; bloodthirsty and deceitful men the LORD abhors. But I, by your great mercy, will come into your house; in reverence will I bow down toward your holy temple. Lead me, O LORD, in your righteousness because of my enemies— make straight your way before me. Not a word from their mouth can be trusted; their heart is filled with destruction. Their throat is an open grave; with their tongue they speak deceit. Declare them guilty, O God! Let their intrigues be their downfall. Banish them for their many sins, for they have rebelled against you. But let all who take refuge in you be glad; let them ever sing for joy. Spread your protection over them, that those who love your name may rejoice in you. For surely, O LORD, you bless the righteous; you surround them with your favor as with a shield." Psalms 5:4-12

There are three things that the remainder of Psalms 5 makes clear; three things that we should be mindful of at all times. In the real and often difficult world we live in it is good to remember that: 1. God is Holy and will not be mocked. 2. Because of His mercy He will hear us, help us, protect us, and bless us. 3. God will deal with His enemies.

Ex Nil Nihilo Fil

"The LORD gives strength to his people; the LORD blesses his people with peace." Psalm 29:11

In the creation, God spoke things into existence. I have always been inspired by the Latin phrase, ex nil nihilo fil. Out of nothing God made everything.

Two Paths

"Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked or stand in the way of sinners or sit in the seat of mockers. But his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither. Whatever he does prospers. Not so the wicked! They are like chaff that the wind blows away. Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous. For the LORD watches over the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish" Psalms 1:1-6

Life is a series of choices and we will always find ourselves, in one way or another, back at the proverbial fork in the road. We are by design, choices makers, responsible for our free will and we decide which way to go, what to do, and how to respond to opportunities, situations, and circumstances. As much as we would like to explain away or excuse our dilemmas and quagmires, alas we are the common denominator in all our problems. Even when there is a good reason for how we manage to get ourselves where we end up, even then we are responsible for how we handle ourselves from there. Oh, more choices.

Guilty Conscience

"My guilt has overwhelmed me like a burden to heavy to bear."" Psalm 38:4

How is your conscience working today? Are you even conscious of your conscience? Are you conscientious of your conscience? Why are the words con and science in the word conscience? Enough with the questions today. So what is my point here, so far? Guilt is not a bad thing sometimes. We should feel the pangs of guilt and many times they can manifest themselves with physical maladies.... such as aches and pains and unknown nausea and illness. David's sin, whatever it is this time, has caused him to be sick of himself. His conscience is working overtime.

White Knuckler

"To you I call, O LORD my Rock; do not turn a deaf ear to me. For if you remain silent, I will be like those who have gone down to the pit. Save your people and bless your inheritance; be their shepherd and carry them forever." [REFERENCE]

We would all admit that life is sometimes like a roller coaster, a real white knuckler. So, we hang on for dear life, through the ups and downs, the highs and lows, knowing the ride will end eventually. David, in Psalm 28, starts at the bottom considering God not hearing him or speaking to him. He rather graphically describes that feeling, saying basically that to have God not hear or speak would be like hell. If you have ever felt like God didn’t hear you or wasn’t speaking to you, it is like hell, eternal separation from God

Keep the Light On

"The Lord is my light and salvation, who shall I fear?" Psalm 27:1a

When I consider fear, several things come immediately to mind. My earliest recollection of being afraid, maybe like yours, is fear of the dark. How fitting that David begins this Psalm with, The Lord is my light. How true! We never need to fear the dark, because He is the light.

Walk in the Word

"in you I trust, O my God. Do not let me be put to shame, nor let my enemies triumph over me." Psalm 25:2

We have been singing parts of this particular Psalm in Worship recently; and I know it is especially precious to a few of you because it addresses deep issues, deep needs, and the depths of God’s promises to us to pardon us, guide us, remember us, and protect us. An interesting fact about the Psalms is that the word enemies is spoken about in 72 of them. Enemies are not only those who oppose us, but also anything that opposes God’s standards, principles or teachings. In other words, all of our temptations, weaknesses and lusts, like pride, greed, power and control. Our greatest enemy is Satan, and of course ourselves, when we choose to be persuaded by him. Frankly, I most often read David’s writings and think of enemies as those people who wanted to destroy him and yet it never was anyone who actually put him at risk as much as his own passions and self-centeredness. Probably true for all of us. I believe we all fall victims to our own folly and blame it on outside forces when almost all our real battles are fought between our ears. Don’t get me wrong, the devil will use whatever means, from within or without to steal our joy, ruin our witness or stifle our spiritual development. But, when we give in or give up the process is simplified. So many of us are prone to self-destruct, which means Satan need not get involved. You see, when the world and the flesh trip us up so easily, the devil pretty much leaves us be. So what do we do? We do what David did…… really make a daily, moment by moment effort to be conscious of the battle, our weaknesses, His promises and the power we have in Him to be obedient, disciplined and righteous.

Truth and Nature

"The law of the LORD is perfect, reviving the soul. The statutes of the LORD are trustworthy, making wise the simple. The precepts of the LORD are right, giving joy to the heart. The commands of the LORD are radiant, giving light to the eyes. The fear of the LORD is pure, enduring forever. The ordinances of the LORD are sure and altogether righteous." Psalm 19:7-9

When I read Psalm 19, I can get so caught up in the first few verses about the creation and the heavens, I most often don’t really take the time to focus on consideration of the second half of what David is sharing. So compelling and beautiful are the illustrations about His handiwork and how breathtaking they are, I am completely fulfilled and satisfied by the wonder of the sun and how it moves and functions all under the canopy of God’s supervision. Indeed nature and the heavens are a constant witness to God’s glory, but what about the rest of the Psalm? Change gears with me here and now read again verses 7, 8 & 9. Absolute truth is a deep subject and David wants us to know that the beauty of it is as awe inspiring as the stars in the heavens. Look at the promise that came after every phrase describing the truth as the Law, statutes, precepts, commands and ordinances, after the commas comes blessings that are ours when we hunger for the Word as much as we can be enthralled by creation. I will list them so you can join me in their appreciation.