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Archive for the ‘In times of difficulty’ Category

Is God Your BFF?

Posted in Exhortation, Friend, God, In times of difficulty, Psalms, Relationship with God, the Father, the LORD, the provider, worship, tagged , , on February 25, 2010| 2 Comments »

I re-read a journal entry that I had written about an extended trial I was going through.  In the entry, I was crying out to God asking how I would ever be able to go forward.  I was tired and out of strength.  The path was totally hidden from view by the fog of uncertainty.  The LORD showed me Psalm 20:1-6.  The message was that He would minister to me out of my existing relationship with Him.

I think the message for all of us is to always (whether in trials or in times of peace) be in close relationship with God.  Is God your BFF (Best Friend Forever)?  He should be.

Psalm 20:1 says, “May the LORD answer you in the day of trouble; May the name of the God of Jacob defend you.”  To answer you, the LORD must hear you.  For God’s name to defend you, you must be associated with or be called by God’s name.  To be called by God’s name is to be in close relationship with God, even as close as a child.

Psalm 20:2 provides, “May He send you help from the sanctuary, And strengthen you out of Zion.”  To send you help, He must know what you need and where to deliver it.  The Sanctuary was the Old Testament place where God was (c.f. the New Testament where God’s spirit dwells in the believer).  This statement can best be understood as a promise that God will send you help from where He dwells.  He will send believers to be your help, your brothers and sisters in Christ will be ministers of God to you.  Also God will minister directly to you by His spirit dwelling within you as a believer.

Psalm 20:3 goes on to say, “May He remember all your offerings, And accept your burnt sacrifice.”  The offerings were part of the worship of God in the Old Testament.  It would be like saying today, “May God remember all the sincere worship in which you engaged.”  The burnt sacrifice was the sacrifice to deal with sin.  It is described in the Old Testament as “a sweet aroma to the LORD.”  God is pleased by the sweet smell of our offerings.  As we lay our lives down for others in obedience, as we practice gentleness, self-control, patience, long-suffering and love, we sacrifice up our flesh and what it wants.  That sacrifice is pleasing to God.  He promises to remember that.

In the next 3 verses, Psalm 20:4-6, we read the following:  “May He grant you according to your heart’s desire, And fulfill all your purpose.  We will rejoice in your salvation, And in the name of our God we will set up our banners! May the LORD fulfill all your petitions.  Now I know that the LORD saves His anointed; He will answer him from His holy heaven With the saving strength of His right hand.”   From the relationship with God, comes fulfillment.  This is not just the idea of getting what you want, but rather of having the one who hears, answers, claims, defends, helps, strengthens and remembers you bring to you the best things – things that will satisfy your deepest longing and fulfill your very reason for being.  That is what God does daily for those who are called according to His purposes and called according to His name.

May the God of all creation be your BFF!

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ARE THERE WORKERS OF INIQUITY IN YOUR LIFE? (PSALM 37:1-7)

Posted in Exhortation, Hope, In times of difficulty, Psalms on February 16, 2010| 1 Comment »

Are there workers of iniquity in your life?  The LORD has a strategy to deal with them.  This strategy is laid out in verses 1-7 of Psalm 37.

1.  Do not fret (worry) or be envious of the workers of iniquity aka “the bad guys” Don’t worry over them and their doings. Don’t envy them.  Their prosperity and success is short-lived and shallow.  This message is so important that it is repeated in this psalm at least 4 more times in verses 7b-10, 12-15, 17 and 20.  Psalm 73 walks us through the near calamity that befalls the man of God when he becomes envious of the wicked.  Taking my eyes off of the sovereign God can cause me to lose perspective on my true position and provision in Christ.  (See Ephesians 1, 2; 2 Peter 1:3-4)

2.  Trust in the LORD and do good. His Word is full of promises; read, study and know them.  Then trust them.   If He is LORD (and He is), then trusting Him is like trusting my heart to keep beating.  It requires no effort.  It is a fundamental truth of my existence.  I trust that the God who went to all the trouble to communicate with me, save me and provide an eternal life for me, will keep His promises.  Trusting God’s promises means living as if they are true. Do good means I should obey what God says to do in His word.  Jesus said, “If you love Me, keep My commandments.”  John 14:15.

3.  Delight yourself also in the LORD. As I get to know Him, I enjoy the love He lavishes on me and the time I spend with Him.  He is good!  He is so much more than dead letters on a page.  In order to delight in Him, I must think on Him, study Him, listen to Him, sit with Him, seek His face and be open to His guidance and correction.

4.  Commit your way to the LORD; trust also in Him. Decide to go His way.  Surrender your life, your path, your future to the LORD.  Remember this is a progression.  Only after you stop fretting, learn to trust, obey and delight yourself in God, will it come easily and naturally to surrender to His hand, His yoke.  Jesus was clear in Matthew 11:29-30 when He said, “[t]ake 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.”  This is, however, best understood through personal experience with God.

5.  Rest in the LORD and wait patiently for Him. Ugh!  This is the hardest phase of the progression for me.  I find it hard to wait.  I am like a filly at the gate waiting for the race to begin, anxious for the gate to open and to leap out . . . . but God knows when it is best for me to stay and when it is best to go.  He hedges me in to keep me safe.  I always want to move.  When my circumstances are difficult, I want them changed to be easier, happier, different.  But God, in His wisdom, knows there is benefit for me in the waiting.  In the waiting, I must focus on God and listen for His voice.  In the waiting, I must look at me, and consider my heart and my conduct.  In the waiting, I am left with plenty of time to move through the Psalm 37 progression again and again.  I must give up worrying (again).  I must trust in the LORD and do good (again).  I must delight myself also in the LORD (again).  I must commit my way to the LORD (again).  I can find much to do while I wait.  The LORD will keep me in perfect peace when my mind is stayed on Him because I trust in Him.  (Isa. 26:3 paraphrased)

Don’t let the workers of iniquity in your life (we all have them), keep you down.  Study and apply Psalm 37.  Work the program; see the results.  The Psalm goes on to speak in greater detail about the concepts laid out in the first 7 verses in the later verses.
Delight in the LORD!  What could be better?

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