Have you ever thought or felt or even uttered the very words of verses 13 & 14 … “What’s going on here? Is God out to lunch? Nobody’s tending the store. The wicked get by with everything; they have it made, piling up riches. I’ve been stupid to play by the rules; what has it gotten me? A long run of bad luck, that’s what – a slap in the face every time I walk out the door.” (Message Remix Bible)
Well, I’ve not said it quite like the Message Remix says it; but I have asked God, “Why does it seem that the unsaved are so prosperous while your children live on barely-get-a-long street?” I know that’s what the enemy would certainly like us to think, to focus on, to get bitter about. The enemy wants us to be ineffective for God, and we will be if our focus is on the temporal instead of the spiritual. The writer of the Psalm said in vs. 17, “I went into your sanctuary, O God, and I thought about the destiny of the wicked.” In the natural, the wicked have temporal prosperity! The word temporal means subject to change. At death, what remains of the riches of the unsaved? Nothing! What seemed like wealth is waste. The enemy would say that our “playing by God’s rules” is worthless. But living God’s way lasts forever. We are storing up eternal rewards! We should think about where people will spend eternity. That’s God’s heart! He does not desire that any man should perish; so, too, our hearts should be broken for the lost.
Verses 22 and 23 say, “I was so foolish and ignorant – I must have seemed like a senseless animal to you (for thinking like that). Yet I still belong to you; you are holding my right hand.” Nothing can separate us from the love of God, not even our stinkin’ thinkin’! We belong to God, and He has hold of our hand!
“But I’m in the very presence of God – oh, how refreshing it is! I’ve made Lord God my home. God, I’m telling the world what you do!” Let’s daily be in the presence of God to be refreshed, renewed, recharged, and back into the world/our sphere of influence and share what God has done and is doing in our lives!
3 comments:
That is really good. I love the last verse too "But it is good for me to draw near to God; I have put my trust in the Lord God, that I may declare all Your works." When we draw near to God, we get our eyes off our circumstance and on to Him and get a good perspective. And, we trust in God, and when we do that, we get a good testimony and can declare all the good things people have done for us and even help other people get through it by our testimony and "declaring" the good work God has done in our lives. I know in my life I have lots of those testimonies, and other people's testimonies also encourage me when I hear the good things God has done in other people's lives as they have trusted Him.
Hi everyone - I'm back - Arlene is doing such a great job and I am enjoying reading her postings. We had SLOW internet while I was gone so I didn't get a chance to follow much but I will enjoy this week of commenting!!!
This Psalm really spoke to my heart. Vs 15 is something I have said to myself many times - "If I had really spoken this way to others, I would have been a traitor to your people...." If I really tell others what I am thinking and how "un" full of faith my thoughts really are sometimes - I could make them loose faith - so I just try to figure it out myself!!! Then I ALWAYS come back to what give me back my faith and that is being in "His sanctuary". I have to run to the Lord and then vs 21 happens and He shows me that my heart has become bitter and I am being foolish and ignorant (that's what my translation says) and I must look kind of stupid to Him - but He just holds my hand!!! Then in verse 25 thru 26 there is one of my favorit songs - God is the Strength of my heart. Remember that one??? "Whom have I in heaven but You - Who do I desire more than You? My heart and my strength, many times they fail, but there is one thing that always will prevail - God is the strength of my heart - God is the strength of my heart - God is the strength of my heart and my fortress forever!!!! God is my Strength!!!!
Welcome home, Pastor Susan! You were missed! Hope you had a great time of relaxing and refreshing.
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