Insights

Insights

Psalm 34:15-17

Thank you, Lord, for your goodness which under girds us in difficulties, permeates our problems and transforms our troubles into the next step up as we praise you for who you are and what you are doing in them, even though we cannot see any good at the moment, for you are faithful, as Psalm 34 says.

Psa 34:15  “The eyes of the LORD are on the righteous and his ears are attentive to their cry;”

[Praise be to you, Lord, for your rich faithfulness, for your persistent love, for your deep commitment to your children. Praise you that you always watch over them, always hear every prayer, every word, every thought. Praise you that you are totally aware of what is going on in our lives. Your love is strong and deep and powerful, the rich spiritual earth out of which we grow. Praise be to you that we can trust you to always work out what is best.]

Psa 34:16  “the face of the LORD is against those who do evil, to cut off the memory of them from the earth.”

[What a stark contrast, from the offer of total redemption to the position of total rejection. In your great Love you hate evil and will deal with those who choose to live in it. You will righteously end their lives and wipe out even the memory of them. Praise you for your rejection of evil so that it may not continue in heaven and in eternity.]

Psa 34:17  “The righteous cry out, and the LORD hears them; he delivers them from all their troubles.”

[Praise be to you, the Sovereign, Holy and Powerful God who hears every prayer of every one of your children and answers them. Praise you that you act to deliver us from all our troubles. The timing may be very different from what we’d like, but you will act at the time you know to be right.

In sending Jesus to suffer, die and rise again you have delivered us in the most fundamental of ways. You have delivered us from the demonic kingdom of darkness, from the dominance of sin, from the danger of eternal death, from the devil’s tricks and attacks. We stand now as your beloved children, free of shame, of condemnation, of hopelessness, of meaninglessness. We stand in your presence, in your light, in your love, in the new life you have given us. We stand equipped for the battle, able to be more than conquerors in whatever comes to us, as we stand firm in the armor you have provided.

You have saved us from all the great troubles we were born into as children of Adam, under his curse. And you will save us out of the minor troubles that plague us in this warped world of woe, using each one to mature and mold us into the image of Christ—as we respond with praise and trust in all

In addition, you have supplied us with wisdom, patience, love and grace. You have made your Holy Spirit dwell within us. You have given us your wonderful Word. We live in the certainty that you will triumph and that you are carrying us with you to the end of history, giving us each a significant role to play in the plan.]

Yes, you, Lord God, the faithful One, are the great deliverer, saving us from all our troubles. To you be honor and glory today as we live in the light of your Grace, rejoice in the goodness of your Love and rest in the certainty of your Promises. Keep our eyes on the Truth, Lord, instead of on our troubles; help us to keep on the armor, to keep up the shield of faith, to be people of truth and trust because we know you, the God of love and goodness and righteousness and grace. May you be exalted in all that I do today.

 

Psalm 34:9-10

Psa 34:9  “Fear the LORD, you his saints, for those who fear him lack nothing.”

[The call, the command here is to fear God—to be in awe of the Powerful Creator, the Faithful Ruler, the Righteous King of glory so that we reject our natural responses and instead obey Him, doing what is right and good. If we do this, the promise is that we will lack nothing.  That is a huge, all encompassing promise: everything I need will be given! This, of course, is an echo of Psalm 23:1 “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want,” which also also implies surrender to Him as Lord.

Help me to grow in fearing you, Lord, to rest in your greatness, to do what is pleasing to you, to reject the pressures of men, the pull of my own heart and instead do what is on your heart. I praise you, Lord, for your faithfulness in tying us to yourself, in making us to be dependent on you. You give us much joy as you answer prayer and show yourself wise, demonstrate your faithfulness and display your might. Help me to walk in faith and trust, waiting for your timing.]

Psa 34:10  “The lions may grow weak and hungry, but those who seek the LORD lack no good thing.”

[Here is a the same truth with an example. Even the wild, powerful lions can grow weak when they don’t find food. In comparison, those who look to God, who seek Him, who follow Him, will not lack any good thing. This includes provision of needs for life as well as having the needed difficulties in life to make us grow and deepen spiritually, equiping us and providing us opportunity to give God glory.

Help me to live this way, Lord, to think, obey and live Truth, keeping on the armor of God, embracing all that is right and good.  I praise you ahead of time for how you are going to help me in seeking and fearing you throughout today. I praise you for how you will provide all I need, in your faithfulness protecting, guiding and sustaining me through whatever you allow. I praise you now for your goodness yet to be displayed. Glory be to your name as I walk in the fear and awe of you. Amen.

Psalm 34:7-8

Psa 34:7  “The angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear him, and he delivers them.”

[Here is the summary of Life with you, Lord: you prepare all and then look for partnership with us, for fear, meaning awe, trust, surrender and obedience from us and then you deliver us. You send your angel to surround us with love, power and grace. You have him deliver us constantly, as we fear you. Help us, Lord, to fear you, to live in awe of you at all times.]

Psa 34:8  “Taste and see that the LORD is good;”

[Here’s a challenge: if you don’t believe this, taste and see what the Lord really is. Start trusting and see what He does.]

“blessed is the man who takes refuge in him.”

[How happy, protected, helped and safe is the man who acts on this Truth and runs to God for protection and shelter. Again, the partnership: God stands ready to act, waiting for us to seek refuge in Him.]

Lord, help us to live in awe, obedience and trust of you every day, especially today, that we may be beacons of glory for you!

Living Conciously In The Flow of History Part 1

Lord, I praise you that I did not wake up alone this morning, for you were there waiting for me, ready with the elements of this day, all carefully arranged, wisely laid out, lovingly prepared. “My times are in your hands….” (Ps. 31:15)

As human beings we live in the flow of history where events propel us through the day, the week, the year and beyond. The vast majority of these events are outside of our control, swirling in and out of our lives without our desire or power: wars, floods, famines, storms, political changes and economic shifts come and go in a seemingly meaningless, random pattern, empowering some, snuffing out lives of others, bringing and taking prosperity, uniting and separating families and strangers.

Even on a personal level I have only a certain amount of decision-making control, mostly in how to spend the time, money and energy given me. In the limited scope of my life, it seems to be quite a bit of power, but outside events can easily disrupt this control: an accident, sickness, loss of income, a fire, a storm, a fight ending a relationship—any one of these or many others can come to me easily without my wanting or preventing it.

Only on the micro-scale of my inner thought life do I have some reasonable control, and even there as a sinner I am weak, with selfish, negative thoughts, desires and emotions rising unbidden and unwanted out of the swamp of my flesh.

To think of how powerless I am is disturbing: human beings do not like weakness, randomness and insecurity.

However, when we become a child of God, born again into His family, there is a great shift in this scene.  While the situation remains the same, one significant truth is added that changes everything drastically. All those events and things that are out of my control are fully and securely in the hands of our loving and powerful Heavenly Father.

He who breathed the stars into existence, who hung the earth on nothing, who set it in right orbit around the sun, who spun it at the right speed on a perfectly tilted axis, who formed the mountains and valleys, who spoke the animals into life—He is the One who holds our history in His hands.

He is not only in control, He has a specific, detailed plan, one that will not fail: “…the plans of the LORD stand firm forever, the purposes of his heart through all generations.” And no one can frustrate Him in it: “The LORD foils the plans of the nations; he thwarts the purposes of the peoples.” (Psalm 33:11,10)

No matter how hard we may try, we cannot circumvent what God has prepared: “There is no wisdom, no insight, no plan that can succeed against the LORD.” (Pro. 21:30)

What our Father has prepared for us is good: “’For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the LORD, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.’”  (Jer. 29:11)  He may lead us through many difficulties, as the Spirit led Jesus into the wilderness, but these are for our good, our maturity, our equipping, our bringing more glory to God.

 

Psalm 34:4-6

Psa 34:4  “I sought the LORD, and he answered me;”

[Yes, Lord, in your faithfulness you answer: at the right time, in the right way, with the right means. You are trustable and because of that, worthy of praise and obedience. As I call, you are ready to answer.]

“he delivered me from all my fears.”

[This was not what I really wanted for an answer.  However, Lord, in your wisdom and grace,  you started on a much more foundational and inner level in order to bring an answer much bigger than my request. The troubles in my life had revealed these fears, and you want to deliver us from fear: fear of man, fear of the future, fear of loss, fear of humiliation, fear of suffering, fear of failure. You turn our eyes to you and as we gaze upon you, seeing you in your great power, your deep wisdom, your gracious compassion and your rich love, fear has no place to cling and falls away. You are the fear Killer, the freedom Bringer, the peace Giver. Praise be to you.]

Psa 34:5  “Those who look to him are radiant; their faces are never covered with shame.”

[Because you are faithful, powerful, wise and good, you always answer as we need. So we are never put to shame when we trust in you. As we look upon you, we are transformed more and more into your image, and as we bask in the light of your glory, we reflect that shininess to all those around us, the radiance of trust, peace and contentment in you.]

Psa 34:6 “This poor man called,”

[When I recognize my poverty of wisdom, strength and resources, when all my pretenses were gone, then I call to you all the more whole-heartedly, all the more earnestly. I am open, needy and know that I cannot trust in myself. I am in the position you desire so that you may act in wisdom and power. ]

“and the LORD heard him; he saved him out of all his troubles.”

[Then you act, then you save. You wait for us to come to the position of surrender and trust, seeing and embracing our weakness before you act to snatch us from the jaws of the dragon, to pluck us out of the fire, to surround and shelter us in the midst of turmoil.]

You, Lord God, our Triune King, our Super Shepherd, our Mighty Majesty, our Eternal God, hear and answer prayer wisely, powerfully, deeply and graciously. To you belongs all honor, all worship, all glory. May such flow to you from my heart, mind, mouth and life today.

Psalm 34:1-3

Psalm 34:1  “I will extol the LORD at all times;” [even now, in the midst of my present, painful failure to resolve a conflict for others, I will extol you, Lord. I will praise you, the Great and Sovereign God who is at work doing what is right, bringing good in every situation. You, Lord God are worthy of worship in the worst of circumstance, humanly speaking, for you do not abandon us, you press on in spite of the pain you suffer with us, you are faithful to the end, and therefore worthy of all exaltation.]

“his praise will always be on my lips.” [Always, no matter what happens, in every difficulty, every hardship, every form of suffering, failure and evil, I can praise you and choose to do so. You, Lord God are good, through and through, what you do is good, what you allow you will use for good for your children in the end, even if it be for punishment and breaking. In the end it will be for transformation. Lord God, do good in this situation I am in at present. Have us suffer as long as is necessary; may we learn what we need to and go through what you know is necessary, doing it with power and strength.]

Psa 34:2  “My soul will boast in the LORD;” [If I am honest and wise, there is nothing to boast about in myself, I can only boast in you, Lord Jesus, the perfect One, the pure One, the holy One who never makes a mistake, never fails, never is unknowing. To you certainly belongs honor, praise and worship. You are the One to boast in, not myself.]

“let the afflicted hear and rejoice.” [In this case I am afflicted, beaten down, a failure, one of the losers, but as I think on you, Lord, I can rejoice in you as my loving Heavenly Father, my Sweet Shepherd, my Tower of Strength, my Rock of Salvation and my Refuge in trouble.]

Psa 34:3  “Glorify the LORD with me;” [This is the purpose for which I was created: to bring you honor, praise and exaltation. In this situation, in clinging to you, Lord,  and your truth in faith, in praising you for what you are doing and but I can’t see or understand yet, this brings you glory. I will focus on this now, Lord, giving you honor and praise for how you are working things out. Total loss on our side, but the opportunity for great glory from yours.]

Praise and honor be to you today, Lord. Help me to walk in the Light of your presence, the Love of your heart, the Life of eternity you have given. May my attitudes, words, actions and thoughts bring you honor today.

I Praise You, Lord, for….

I praise you that yesterday, in spite of things not going the way I desired, you gave wisdom and grace to respond with thankfulness and surrender, to move through with grace and wisdom, not giving in to fear or disappointment or self-pity. You are the One who decides what will actually happen, and I thank you for your goodness which you pour out constantly on me.

Praise you for all that you are doing in my life, Lord, for all I can see and that which I cannot see. I praise you for your Eternal Goodness, your Rich Wisdom, your Almighty Strength, your Perfect Righteousness, your Exacting Justice, your Marvelous Mercy, your Expansive Grace, your Lavish Love, your All-pervasive Presence, your Inscrutable Triuneess, your Flawless and Unchanging Character. You, Lord God, are the One to be worshiped, to be praised, to be trusted, to be obeyed.

Forgive me for thinking too much of the details of life and therefore not reveling and basking more in the greatness of your being, in the light of your love, in the loveliness of your life, in the goodness of your grace.

You are worthy of honor, exaltation, magnification and thanksgiving in all circumstances. Your sovereignty, your wisdom, your love, your grace insure that you are moving the world to a conclusion of redemption and reclamation, of destruction and recreation where evil will be eliminated and holiness will rule along with love and grace. Therefore we can trust you in all that comes with your permission, we can think your Truth, see with your eyes, give you glory in thanksgiving and praise, and be carried by you to the conclusion you have planned.

I praise you for the joy of knowing you, for the salvation of your provision, the security of being in your hand, the significance of being your child, the certainty of our future.

To you be glory and honor, praise and exaltation. To your honor be faith and obedience now, and throughout eternity, for you are worthy, O Lord. You are King, you are Creator, you are Shepherd, you are God, you are Lord alone.

I bow before you and give back all you have given me. To you be glory in my life today, O Lord God, Heavenly Father, Lord Jesus, Holy Spirit. May all around me see you at work in my life; may your Spirit overflow my being and touch all I meet. May you be the exalted and extoled One today. Amen.

 

An Insidious And Powerful Glory Thief

Our purpose in life is to give glory to God. Unknowingly we very often do the opposite. How? We steal Glory from God through our discontent.  This is manifested in complaining, impatience, and negative responses,  like “Oh no!” “Not again!” “Jeezz!” and “This is terrible!” I see this tendency so clearly in myself, especially when there’s pressure or sickness.

Discontent is just the opposite of praise and thankfulness. It is saying “God isn’t always good!”  It is saying, “He didn’t handle this well!” It is an insult to our Holy, Loving, All-powerful, Sovereign King.  In contrast, as John Piper is fond of saying, “God is most glorified when we are most satisfied in Him.” That includes being satisfied in Him in all He allows into our lives and how He handles these things.

What does God think about our discontent? In Numbers 11:1 it says, “Now the people complained about their hardships in the hearing of the LORD, and when he heard them his anger was aroused. Then fire from the LORD burned among them and consumed some of the outskirts of the camp.”

Discontent that leads to complaining is not a small thing in God’s eyes. It is the visible evidence of our rebellion and unbelief. It is a statement that we know better than God. It is a sin that we must immediately confess and repudiate in repentance.

How do we combat our very natural tendency to complain and be discontent? First is to recognize it, confess it for the serious sin it is and repent. Then we can ask God for help in replacing it with satisfaction in Him. This is followed by actively praising God in and for all, based on our knowledge of His wonderful, powerful, rich and loving character.

For instance: “I praise you Lord, for the privilege of losing my keys; it reminds me of my weakness and dependence on you. I thank you that you know where they are and will help me to find them at the right time. I praise you for this opportunity to trust you and forgive myself.”

“Thank you, Lord, that I just go my wallet stolen. You are the Sovereign King, you will use this happening for good in my life, and I praise you for it.”

Praise and thanksgiving like that gets up the shield of faith, protecting us from the fiery darts of self-pity, complaining and discontent that Satan shoots at us to activate these sins within us.

Psalm 143:8 says, “Cause me to hear your loving kindness in the morning, for I trust in you.”  Another step is to nurture our first love for Jesus, as that will increase our trust in Him.  Spending time each day gazing upon His perfection described in the Word and worshiping Him for it will increase our trust in Him. Then we will wake up in the morning thinking about His goodness rather than worrying about our troubles.

May God help us to spot our discontent, our complaining, our impatience, our snapping at one another, and replace it instead with trust and praise so that we may be more than conquerors dressed in the armor of God.

“He who offers the sacrifice of thanksgiving honors me and opens the way that I may show him the salvation of the Lord.” Psalm 50:23

PS. PS. Typical of the Lord, immediately after writing this, He tested me: would I apply what I’d written? I had my list of things to do today, and suddenly I couldn’t find it! What I had done with it I had no idea! But, praising God, resting in Him, I went on with my work and within half an hour the thought came to me where it might be, and there it was! I had joy in the loss and joy in the finding. Supernatural joy.

Psalm 33:10-12

Psa 33:10  The LORD foils the plans of the nations; he thwarts the purposes of the peoples.” [You, O Lord rule, you are Sovereign. You see what people are planning and in your might, power and majesty thwart the wrong that contravenes what you want.  And what you do allow, you have a purpose for, you will use for good in the lives involved. Praise be to you for your greatness, Lord, for your wisdom, for your power, all of which are continually at work to transform the evil of men into the goodness of God.]

Psa 33:11  “But the plans of the LORD stand firm forever, the purposes of his heart through all generations.” [In contrast to humans and evil spiritual powers, you are unstoppable, unconquerable, undefeatable and eternally triumphant. You will bring out the results that you have planned, no matter what men and demons may do. You are able to weave their rebellion and rejection of your commands into the overall fabric of your purposes for the redemption and recreation of the universe. In the process you rescue from the kingdom of darkness all those who will believe and sweep them into the Kingdom of Light.

You are firm and faithful, you are unchangingly consistent, ever sure and supremely powerful. What you planned from the beginning has come to pass despite Satan’s constant attempts to thwart your desires: the line of Judah was preserved, the Messiah came, He made the necessary sacrifice, rose from the dead and provided salvation for all. No present force could prevent this, no power exists that could thwart it. “There is no wisdom, no insight, no plan that can succeed against the Lord.” (Prov.)

Praise be to you the Sovereign God, You are the star breather, the galaxy former, the planet hanger, the earth spinner and the dawn bringer. You are great beyond comprehension. You are worthy of worship beyond anything we could ever give you.

Psa 33:12  “Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD, the people he chose for his inheritance.” [Blessed is way to weak a word for the wonder of being made the people of God, being chosen for His inheritance. Especially when I consider what I actually deserved as an enemy of God, incapable of obeying you, Lord. You would have been right and righteous to strike me down upon birth, send me to hell and separate yourself from me for eternity.

Yet you called me to be one of your children, a princeling in your family. You cleansed and transformed me, you chose and cherished me, and I stand before you dearly loved, deeply cared for, doted on and delighted in. Not because of what I am, but because of who you are: Love itself, Light itself, Life itself, breathing new creation into a being born a ruin, giving worth to what was destructive, making useful what was dangerous.

To belong to you, O Holy God, is a marvelous shift of fortune, a wonderful change, an undeserved privilege, a miraculous outcome—all dependent on your goodness. Praise be to you that you gave worth where there was waste, you gave value where there was viciousness, you gave life where there was languishing. In you we are wanted, worthwhile, wondered at and watched over. To be your people is a privilege beyond comprehension.

We give you glory, honor and praise for the incredible goodness of your heart, the unbelievable forgiveness of your character, the incomprehensible love of your being.  We bow before you in thankfulness, gratitude and joy. We rise up to return your love in obedience, rejoicing and praise. Glory be to you in our lives today. Amen.

 

Psalm 33:6-9

Psa 33:6 By the word of the LORD were the heavens made,”

[How powerful you are, Lord, able to create through simply speaking. Praise you, Lord Jesus, that you, as the Living Word, made all that there is. Your might is immeasurable filling the skies with stars. Your power is greater than the stretch of the known heavens, wider, deeper, longer and higher than we will ever be able to comprehend, for you are infinite in every way.]

“their starry host by the breath of his mouth.”

[You are the star breather, exhaling stars great and small, blowing them into orbits, galaxies, clusters of galaxies and placing them properly in the universe. Billions of stars, billions of light years apart, yet you can measure the heavens with the span of your hand. You, O Lord God, are mighty beyond comprehension, worthy of worship, worthy of love, worthy of awe, worthy of fear, worthy of obedience by all your creatures.]

Psa 33:7 “He gathers the waters of the sea into jars;”

[The vast oceans are but a small puddle to you, easily channeled into the place prepared, kept in store for your plans.]

“he puts the deep into storehouses.”

[You, Lord God, prepared all that mankind would need and stored it up: minerals for health (zinc, magnesium, selenium); metals for help (iron, titanium, aluminum); might for power (coal, oil, atomic energy); and measures for money (gold, silver, precious stones). You, knew what would be needed and prepared all, putting it where men could find it. You are the great and wise Planner and Provider.]

Psa 33:8 Let all the earth fear the LORD;”

[Your might, your power, your dominion, your wisdom and your creation are all reasons to tremble before you, to bow in surrender to the Almighty Ruler. You are the One to be feared, not puny man, or even Satan who is far more powerful than us, but also immensely less than you.]

“let all the people of the world revere him.”

[The wonder of your works, the beauty, the wisdom, the creativity, the intricacy, the variety, the vastness and the very minute detail of all lead us to bow before you in awe, in wonder, in reverence at such power, such greatness, such goodness, such beauty and such majesty. You alone are worthy of worship, O Lord God.]

Psa 33:9 For he spoke, and it came to be; he commanded, and it stood firm.”

[With such ease you made all, with such finality you placed all. Every part of creation obeyed you and even now in its present twisted state the universe follows the laws of physics you established. Your wisdom, your order, your goodness are visible to all who care to see, for what you made is good.]

Glory be to you, Lord God, the great I AM, you are the One to whom we bow in worship and rise up in obedience. May this increasing knowledge of how great you are lead us to further trust, rest and praise, giving you greater and greater glory.