Tag: Psalms

From His Temple He Heard My Voice

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Psalm 18:6 says, “In my distress I called upon the Lord; to my God I cried for help. From His temple He heard my voice, and my cry to Him reached His ears.”

The same powerful God Who accomplished an amazing rescue of David, from his enemies and from Saul, can be counted on when we cry out to Him. David’s enemies relentlessly pursued him with the intent to bring about his physical death. The odds were never in David’s favor. He had to be tired of running. He had to be spiritually exhausted. He had to wonder if anyone would be there to defend him. He had to wonder if he had any friends. He surely battled fear, anger, anxiety, and loneliness. But, he cried out to God and his cries reached God’s ears.

David credits God with training him to be a successful warrior. Yet, successful in the reality of God’s strength, and not his own. David recognizes that without God, he would not be secure or supported or shielded.

Secure. David is secure because God’s presence is near and trustworthy. Likewise, we are secure because God steadies us in our wavering faith. Secure because God supplies the solid foundation we need and He holds us in His firm grip. He saves us from the penalty of sin. Ephesians 3:11-12 says, “This was according to the eternal purpose that He has realized in Christ Jesus our Lord, in Whom we have boldness and access with confidence through our faith in Him.”

Supported. David was supported because God truly responded to his cries. Likewise, God sees us. God hears us. He understands our circumstances. He is ready and willing to save us. He abounds in compassion, mercy, and grace. Matthew 11:28-30 says, “Come to Me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you, and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy, and My burden is light.”

Shielded. David was shielded because mighty God commanded His angels concerning him (Luke 4:10). Likewise, we are shielded because God’s strength is placed around us like a hedge. Shielded because God loves us and protects us. Romans 8:38-39 says, “For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Psalm 18:35-36 is my Christmas prayer for those who are feeling lost, overwhelmed, in danger, weary, attacked, betrayed. “You [God] have given me the shield of Your salvation, and Your right hand supported me, and Your gentleness made me great. You gave me a wide place for my steps under me, and my feet did not slip.”

Dear Lord, I pray, please be my security, my support, my shield.

And from His temple, God always hears our voices. Never stop crying out to Him.

Her Name Means Pearl

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God brought a third daughter into our lives through the “in-law” route, and we became complete in our understanding of God’s goodness when He did! Her professional accomplishments have never overshadowed her thoughtfulness, her adjustments to our family dynamics have never stolen her kindness, and the hard places in life have never shaken her beautiful faith in God. She’s our pearl!

Father God, I pray that You will give this young woman the glow that comes from a Proverbs 31 lifestyle and a heart that shines peace even when there seems to be none. Enable her to never be shaken because You are always at her right hand, continually set before her (Psalm 16:8). Incline Your ear to her to strengthen her heart when she experiences affliction (Psalm 10:17). Be her stronghold in times of trouble because she has put her trust in You (Psalm 9:9-10).

In the busyness of motherhood, bring this mom into a spiritually spacious place because You, Lord, delight in her (2 Samuel 22:20). Give her time for quiet and rest; give her energy for balancing the demands of child raising; give her grace to be a pastor’s wife; give her margin for meeting the needs of friends and extended family members; give her the encouragement that comes from staying in Your Word.

Lord, be near to this daughter when demands are overwhelming, when co-workers create disappointment, when communications don’t land well, when corporate culture strips away joy. Be a refuge for this daughter when ministry life takes a toll on the family. Be the truest love of her life, Lord, so that others will see in her the luster of Your compassion and love for people. Enable her to love and serve her family well and trust that You will walk her safely through every hurdle, big and small.

Thank you, Lord, for the amazing gift to our family of this daughter! Be the pearl of great price in her life forever. Bless her with the joy of watching her children, and eventually her grandchildren, grow and mature in Christ. Bless her with peace beyond understanding that comes when she keeps her eyes on You alone. Bless her with a sense of humor in the “haywireness” of life on earth. Bless her with a rock solid relationship with her mate for life because Your glory is this couple’s sole desire!

Amen.

Prayer for Fifth Granddaughter

Prayer, Scripture, Truth

Lord, You are the Giver. The gift of life is Yours alone to give. You graciously reached down to add this little girl to our family when America was in turmoil during a pandemic. We deeply thank You for bringing her safely into her new home, to bless her mom and dad with joy and amazement, in 2020! For this little one, I pray that her “life song” interlocks with the lyrics of the beloved song “Lord, I Lift Your Name on High.”

May this girl proclaim: “Lord, I lift Your name on high; Lord, I love to sing Your praises; I’m so glad You’re in my life; I’m so glad You came to save us. You came from heaven to earth; To show the way; From the earth of the cross; My debt to pay; From the cross to the grave; From the grave to the sky; Lord, I lift Your name on high.”

Her name means “life” and I ask that You would make her life abundant and long, joyful and musical, with laughter and twirls, with fascination and inquiry, with total trust in You Lord. Build her faith early and let her light shine for You on the playground, at dance class, at home, and at church. Send Your angels to keep her safe from harm. Send Your Holy Spirit to draw her to Yourself. Send Your promises to secure her peace.

Let her know the Name of Jesus and the reality of Psalm 9:10 “And those who know Your Name put their trust in You, for You, O Lord, have not forsaken those who seek You.” As this precious girl pursues truth, grows up, asks questions, discovers Your Creation, and looks heavenward, give her Divine direction that leads her straight to Your heart.

Let this granddaughter be a branch of Your planting, Lord (Isaiah 60:21), the work of Your hands that You might be glorified. Nourish her (Ezekiel 31:4) and bring flowing rivers out of her life to encourage those in the fields around her to grow and become healthy.

Let this scripture be infallible for her. Psalm 1:3 “[He] She is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that [he] she does, [he] she prospers.”

Amen.


Psalm 40: Shadow and Light

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When I read Psalm 40 and ponder my own experience of being in the dark and not seeing God clearly, here’s how I would personalize it as a lament (my Shadow Psalm 40):

I am weary of waiting for God’s help while I experience the heartache of anger, unfairness, and disappointment. Many things go the wrong way and many things feel unredeemable. I am not forthcoming with songs of praise and my trust in God is ebbing. There are circumstances in my life that rob me of security and blessing. I’m full of pride, thinking I know what is best and that God simply doesn’t. My focus is on things other than God’s wonders and plans. I forget the amazingness of God’s deeds with regularity. I act like God is all about keeping score of my good deeds or supposedly “selfless” acts. I forget God’s Word and don’t let what I know about God’s will inform my heart. I remain disbelieving about God’s faithfulness in my life. I don’t acknowledge His love in my life or mercy or protection. Health and other issues are multiplying and my own responses create a perpetual stance of heartbreak and dissatisfaction. I can’t detect God’s timely responses to my needs for rescue.

I dream of the removal of those who take part in what seems like a conspiracy against the life I want to have. I’m impatient for God to expose my enemies to their shame. I don’t seek after God when I should, and I don’t experience joy or gladness when I know God has come to my aid before. I ignore God’s greatness. I am poor – depleted of physical vitality, afraid of the effects of waning strength and mental acuity. I am needy – I’m wishing that my life had matched the picture I had in my mind for what a good life would be. I want God to clear all this up now, and I doubt He will concur with me, care about my anxious thoughts, or show up in my situations.

(My Psalm of Light – God’s Answers to the Shadow):

Proverbs 29:25-26 “The fear of man lays a snare, but whoever trusts in the Lord is safe. Many seek the face of a ruler, but it is from the Lord that a man gets justice.” Matthew 21:21-22 “And Jesus answered them, ‘Truly, I say to you, if you have faith and do not doubt, you will not only do what has been done to the fig tree, but even if you say to this mountain, Be taken up and thrown into the sea, it will happen. And whatever you ask in prayer, you will receive, if you have faith.’ ” Psalm 31:23-24 “Love the Lord, all you His saints! The Lord preserves the faithful but abundantly repays the one who acts in pride. Be strong, and let your heart take courage, all you who wait for the Lord!” Habakkuk 3:2 “O Lord, I have heard the report of you, and your work, O Lord, do I fear. In the midst of the years revive it; in the midst of the years make it known; in wrath remember mercy.”

2 Chronicles 7:14-15 “If My people who are called by My Name humble themselves, and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land. Now My eyes will be open and My ears attentive to the prayer that is made in this place. Isaiah 43:19 “Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.” Joshua 1:9 “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”

Nahum 1:3 “The Lord is slow to anger and great in power, and the Lord will by no means clear the guilty. His way is in whirlwind and storm, and the clouds are the dust of His feet.” Isaiah 58:11-12 “And the Lord will guide you continually and satisfy your desire in scorched places and make your bones strong; and you shall be like a watered garden, like a spring of water, whose waters do not fail. And your ancient ruins shall be rebuilt; you shall raise up the foundation of many generations; you shall be called the repairer of the breach, the restorer of streets to dwell in.” Proverbs 30:5 “Every word of God proves true; He is a shield to those who take refuge in Him.” Isaiah 59:1 “Behold, the Lord’s hand is not shortened, that it cannot save, or his ear dull, that it cannot hear.”

Light overcomes darkness.

Simple Resolution

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When the New Year’s resolutions unfold in highly breakable patterns, I hope to be reminded that there is one simple resolution that cannot be easily undone by failed diet plans, dropped volunteering, uncontrolled screen time, or an attitude gone bad. That is – simply praying. Psalm 20 promises that the Lord is an active listener.

Psalm 20 says, “To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David. May the Lord answer you in the day of trouble! May the name of the God of Jacob protect you! May He send you help from the sanctuary and give you support from Zion! May He remember all your offerings and regard with favor your burnt sacrifices! May He grant you your heart’s desire and fulfill all your plans! May we shout for joy over your salvation, and in the name of our God set up our banners! May the Lord fulfill all your petitions! Now I know that the Lord save His anointed; He will answer him from His holy heaven with the saving might of His right hand. Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God. They collapse and fall, but we rise and stand upright. O Lord, save the king! May He answer us when we call.”

The Lord answers you, protects you, sends help to you, supports you, remembers you, fulfills you.

P.R.A.Y. is simple. Pause, Rejoice/Reflect, Ask, Yield. This simple pattern comes from a devotional app called Lectio 365. Although it takes a moment of looking at a screen (which you may be trying to reduce as I am), it is a helpful tool.

Bigger Than Us

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The truths that are bigger than us, don’t let them become easy to miss. Don’t doze off. Pondering is a helpful non-waste of time. Just think through the wonder of a small seed that grows into a very tall sunflower plant. According to Wikipedia, the tallest sunflower on record achieved 9.17 m (30 ft. 1 in.) in height. Think about all that had to happen from the time of planting a small sunflower seed, to the time of the plant reaching such a great height.

Psalm 89:27,33-37 says, “And I will make him the firstborn, the highest of the kings of the earth…But I will not remove from him My steadfast love or be false to My faithfulness. I will not violate My covenant or alter the word that went forth from My lips. Once for all I have sworn by My holiness; I will not lie to David. His offspring shall endure forever, His throne as long as the sun before Me. Like the moon it shall be established forever, a faithful witness in the skies.” Psalm 89 is a Messianic psalm. It speaks of the coming Messiah in the family line of David. It affirms God’s covenant that lasts forever and will never change. It speaks of a “faith-in-God” people group and a “forever” kingdom. A big truth!

The truth of an Infinite Creator God is one of those bigger-than-us verities. God’s character is big and is expressed in many ways, especially revealed in His redemptive plan whereby Jesus, the established King and Savior, has secured victory over sin and death for those who have faith in Him. Failure to ponder this is truly an eternal risk. Not grappling with the Word of God is tantamount to fatal – a permanent oversight that has forever ramifications…

In this psalm, God promises He will not remove His faithfulness, will not violate His covenant, will not alter His word, and will not lie. What He establishes is forever. These “will nots” are big truths. Pondering God’s unchanging character and plan is more than a fruitful pursuit, far beyond the wonder of the height of the sunflower. Just because the truth of God is so big, we should not take it for granted.

Take time. Give thought. Open your mind and heart. Look and see the height and depth of Who God is and what He says. It is big.

Heart Highways

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Photo Credit Anna Christina Fordham

"Going" is what life does. You've heard it said, "Life goes on." The journey doesn't ever stop, even if it is upended by continuous disasters, minuscule and epic.

Psalm 84:5-7 says, "Blessed are those whose strength is in You, in whose heart are the highways to Zion. As they go through the Valley of Baca they make it a place of springs; the early rain also covers it with pools. They go from strength to strength; each one appears before God in Zion."

The possibility that the heart can move forward when the body is pulling forcefully backward is the present reality of life in Christ on a planet  that is passing away. Believers are assured the journey is toward our heavenly home, an eternity that will never stop, where heart and body finally blend forward in their highways to Zion and arrive there! And then, no more wrenching tears, no more calamitous pain, no more betrayals. No more suffering. No more Valley of Baca...

The Valley of Baca in the Bible can be translated "the valley of weeping." Baca would include any difficult or devastating place in life. Any place of hopelessness. Any place of helplessness. Zion, on the other hand, is the "City of Holiness" or "city of refuge" in the Bible.  It is the place of hope. It is the place where God dwells, where the Lord protects His people. Where suffering ends. Where relationship with God is unhampered and joyful. Where nothing keeps the heart's highways from being Godward. Where nothing prevents the worship of the One True God. Where there is no more doubt. Where there is only certainty that God has kept all His promises. Where God is the same yesterday, today, and forever. Where God reigns and all is well.

So how can the springs and early rains even be found in our present "valley of weeping?" Only via hearts that are truly highways to Zion, where Zion is the place of God's presence now and in the future, full of the springs of His life-giving word, packed with the refreshing rains of His mercy and grace, abounding in pools of truth and selfless love. These highways of the heart have no detours, no construction slow-downs, no left-lane sitters. These highways flow unimpeded in one direction - toward Him.

Hebrews 12:1-2 says, "Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us looking to Jesus, the Founder and Perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God."

Let the highways of your heart point you to Zion.

Know God, Not Just About Him

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Psalm 119:52-59 says, “When I think of Your rules from of old, I take comfort, O Lord. Hot indignation seizes me because of the wicked, who forsake Your law. Your statutes have been my songs in the house of my sojourning. I remember Your name in the night, O Lord, and keep Your law. This blessing has fallen to me, that I have kept Your precepts. The Lord is my portion; I promise to keep Your words. I entreat Your favor with all my heart; be gracious to me according to Your promise. When I think on my ways, I turn my feet to Your testimonies.”

The Psalmist is not just watching a child of God from the balcony. He is the child of God. He is the traveler. He is affected. He is comforted. He is not a casual observer.

In his sojourning, the Psalmist is troubled by evil. Life is a “disappointing and unpleasant business” (says J.I. Packer) without the comfort of hope in the Lord. When all seems dark, God’s Word is our refuge and sustainer. God’s Word becomes the song that uplifts the heart and reminds us of Who He is and who we are in Him. We are His children, His saints, His followers. We are different because we know Him personally, not just about Him. We are not “balconeers” looking on, but we are travelers changed by our growing knowledge in Him and before Him.

Indeed, this blessing has fallen to me! What I know about God isn’t paralyzed, it has changed me. I came down from the balcony. I know God. Knowledge of Him has become a matter for my meditation before God. I’m a participant. I’m in the middle of it. I know Him. The Lord is truly my portion. I am transformed and increasingly I want to keep His words. I pray for His favor and grace. I turn toward Him and away from my sinful ways again and again. God is not someone else’s song. He is my song. I turn my feet to His testimonies.

I take comfort! I am a traveler, not a balconeer.

Yes or No Questions

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I am a retired high school mathematics teacher and a great lover-of-order. I like yes or no questions that have no nuances, no gray areas. Questions that are not really up for discussion. True/false. Right/wrong.

Psalm 77 may look at first like a discussion, but I have walked with the Lord for long enough to know that the Psalm writer Asaph’s invitation is to enter the true/false realm. I am invited to affirm the yeses and nos in my life of faith. Even when God is silent, even when I am greatly troubled and losing sleep, even when waiting on God seems excruciating, I am invited to gaze thoughtfully at God’s work and character…

Let’s start with the “Nos.” Psalm 77:7-9 (NIV) says, “Will the Lord reject forever? (No) Will He never show His favor again? (No) Has His unfailing love vanished forever? (No) Has His promise failed for all time? (No) Has God forgotten to be merciful? (No) Has He in anger withheld His compassion? (No) Maybe rhetorical. Maybe not.

For me these are not timidly spoken “Nos.” They are emphatic “Nos.” These are the “Nos” that lead me to contemplate the “Yeses.” In the remainder of Psalm 77 (v10-20), I remember that God is the Most High Who does miracles and mighty deeds. Amen. Bringing about my salvation was miracle #1! Amen. He is Holy, great, powerful. He has moved mountains in my life, surrounded me with friends, transformed my anxious thoughts, kept me steady in times of turmoil, helped me to see loss as gain, helped me to see His Kingdom spreading on earth, helped me to apply His Word, helped me to help others. Amen.

Because of the “Nos,” He shows me His welcome, His favor, His unfailing love, His kept promises, His mercy, His compassion. Psalm 77:20 says, “You led Your people like a flock by the hand of Moses and Aaron.” I remember how God faithfully led His people like a flock by Moses and Aaron. He still leads today. He is the Good Shepherd.

2 Corinthians 1:20 says, “For no matter how many promises God has made, they are “Yes” in Christ. And so through Him the “Amen” is spoken by us to the glory of God.”

Keeping Life in Order

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About this. I confess I try to keep up the appearance of life in order. My calendar is a moving target. And yes, I am talking about a paper, grid-style calendar! I can’t abide a digital calendar.

Psalm 89:47-48 (NIV) says, “Remember how fleeting is my life. For what futility You have created all men. What man can live and not see death, or save himself from the power of the grave?”

But Psalm 68:19-20 answers, “Praise be to the Lord, to God our Savior Who daily bears our burdens. Our God is a God Who saves; from the Sovereign Lord comes escape from death.”

God redeems the fleeting and futility of life.

My Prayer: Lord, “You care for the land and water it; You enrich it abundantly” (Psalm 65:9a); You care for the raw material of my days and the way the time gets scheduled; You give time and life generously; You place the 24/7 boundary, You created rest, yet You knew I’d overstretch; You sort my confusion; You redeem the overplan; Your enrichment is gladly received when my calendar meets with Your initiative; Your abundance is celebrated when the fish and loaves of my calendar must be multiplied; Your Sovereignty is praised when I see Your handprint stamped on my days.

How do I count my days? As “grasslands of the desert” when Your grace is detected; As “meadows covered with flocks” when Your provision is received; As “streams filled with water” when Your redemption comes near; As beautiful sunrises and sunsets when You color my calendar with Your Goodness!

Amen.