Psalm 139 -- For My Younger Son

This is another of my favorite psalms, and I thank God for this extra day this year to read over it again!  I love how my commentary amplified what’s in here!

It started, “What we think about God and our relationship to Him determines what we think about everything else that makes up our busy world … Wrong ideas about God will ultimately lead to wrong ideas about who we are and what we should do, and this leads to a wrong life on the wrong path toward the wrong destiny.”

About verses 1-6, it says, “God knows us intimately.  We cannot deceive Him … He knows our actions, our locations, our thoughts and words, our ways, and our motives … But even more, He knows what is best for us and does all He can to guide us that way.  He hems us in behind and before and puts His hand on us to steady us and direct us … The words here indicate guarding a valuable object, so God’s knowledge and guidance are for our protection.”

About verses 7-12, it says, “God is with us constantly.  We cannot escape Him … God wants to walk with us and guide us, because His plan for us is the very best … We need God’s presence with us if we want to enjoy His love and fulfill His purposes.”

About verses 13-18, it says, “God made us wonderfully.  We cannot ignore Him.  God is present at conception AND birth, because we are made in the image of God… God has a special purpose for each person who is born … God formed us as He wants us to be, and we must accept His will no matter how we feel about our genetic structure, our looks, or our abilities … In the mother’s womb, the Lord weaves and embroiders a human being … But the Lord did more than design and form our bodies.  He also planned and determined our days … What we are and what He plans for us come from God’s loving heart and are the very best He has for us.  If we live foolishly we might die before the time God has ordained, but God’s faithful children are immortal until their work is done.  How can we ignore God when He has given us such a marvelous body and planned for us a wonderful life?”

About verses 19-24, it says, “God judges righteously.  We cannot dispute Him.  If we cannot deceive God, escape God, or ignore God, is it not sensible to obey God? … David closed with a prayer for God to search his heart, know his anxieties and concerns, forgive him, and lead him.  We must be cautious as we examine ourselves because we do not even know our own hearts … We must never dispute with God, for He loves us and wants only the very best for us.”

Father, I thank You that You are now providing my son with a clear mind so that he can understand this about You.  I know that for a while, my own mind was deceived and I couldn’t see Your love for me, and I thank You for lifting the deception Satan placed upon him to allow him to understand You better and Your incredible love for him.  Now please help him to land on solid ground to discover Your plan for His life.

Your Brother In Christ,

Gary Ford

Psalm 137 & 138 Remembering, And Answered Prayers

My commentary describes Psalm 137 as one of the former exiles remembering time spent in Babylon and what such remembrances can do.

Memory can open wounds, bringing pain, and denial often makes it worse.  “It takes time for broken hearts to heal, and Jesus can heal them if we give Him all the pieces.”

Memory can build character.  “Sometimes we have to lose things to really appreciate them … As we look back on life and evaluate our experiences, it is important that we learn our lessons and grow in godly character.”

Memory can encourage faith.  “Babylon had gone too far and treated the Jews with brutality … The psalmist knew from the prophets that God would judge Edom and Babylon, so he prayed for the Lord to keep His promises… One day, He will vindicate His church and punish those who have persecuted and slain His servants.”

“Psalm 138 helps us understand better what really happens when God answers prayers:

Answered prayer glorifies God’s name.

Answered prayer gives witness to the lost.

Answered prayer accomplishes God’s purposes in our lives.”

“The purpose of prayer is not to get man’s will done in heaven but to get God’s will done on earth.”

Father, I’ve got a lot of memories to process from the last two weeks, and I need to see them from Your point of view.  Please walk with me as I open these wounds and process them.  Build my godly character as I do, and encourage my faith as I look and see You at work in them.  I praise You for answered prayers and how they have glorified You and witnessed to the lost!

Your Brother In Christ,

Gary Ford

Psalm 135-136 What Are My Idols? What Am I Grateful For?

In these two psalms filled with praise, there are also the seeds for two very important self-discussions.  The sidebars of my Bible really hit home today.

Billy Graham’s words on Psalm 135 were:

“An idol is something that you worship in place of  the living God … beauty, sexual pleasure, money, security, power … What is your idol?  What really, honestly, dominates your life?  What are your priorities and what are the real motives in your everyday living? … Anything that entices you away from a wholehearted commitment to Christ is being used of Satan to deceive you.”

A.W. Tozer is cited on Psalm 136:

“… the holy practice of being thankful.  We should write on a tablet one by one the things for which we are grateful to God and to our fellow man … talk over with God the many kindnesses I have received from my fellow man … my parents … my teachers … patriots and statesmen … numerous and unknown soldiers … I please God and enlarge my own heart when I remind the Lord that I am grateful for them.”

Father, I’m glad that You sent these two vital reminders to me this morning!  Help me take stock of anything that entices me away from a wholehearted commitment to You.  I want to honestly place those things before You and give them up, so that You can remove them from my life.  Also, remind me of the countless blessing You have bestowed on me in Your grace and Your mercy and Your sovereignty so that I will not fail to be grateful to You for Your blessings to me!

Your Brother In Christ,

Gary Ford

Psalm 132-134 The Love Of God's People

Psalm 133 is entitled “The Love Of God’s People” in my Bible, and begins, “It is good and pleasant when God’s people live together in peace.”  My commentary noted that David inherited a divided nation and almost a civil war, but then the Lord gave him a united kingdom.  “Individual believers and churches today also have family quarrels and need to learn to walk together in love.” 

The sidebar of my Bible, by Paul Stevens from Disciplines of the Hungry Heart, gave a very meaningful illustration:

“I had a vision one day while our church was worshipping.  As I looked around at the people I have come to love, I saw that each was an earthen vessel, a real mud pot … But as I continued to look, in prayer and worship, I looked ‘into’ each mud pot, and what I saw was exquisite molten gold.  Each person, frail, vulnerable, and half-fashioned, had a treasure inside.  But then I saw something more – each pot was cracked.  Finally I looked again and saw something miraculous:  the molten gold was oozing through the cracks.  That is how ministry comes into the world, not poured out of expensive vases, but through the orifice of the faults and weaknesses of real people who are being transfigured by Christ … Relational life is not a mere accessory to spirituality or ministry, but the heart of it.  Finding unity within diversity because of the diversity, and not in spite of it, is an important link with the unity within God Himself and is both a mark of spirituality and true ministry.”

It also encouraged, “Work to become unified.  Don’t avoid conversations that are necessary to make peace, but resist the temptation to become angry.  Be quick to forgive and careful in your response.  Hear the whole story first, then respond.  Your opinions may differ, but part as friends.”

Father, help us to do this at our church at all times.  Draw us together in Your unity.

Your Brother In Christ,

Gary Ford

Psalm 129-131 Reminders When The Going Gets Tought

About Psalm 129, my commentary mentions three instructions that we should follow when we find ourselves suffering for Jesus Christ:

First, accept it.

Second, benefit from it.  “God permits people to treat us like dirt, and we must accept it, but we have the privilege of transforming it by the grace of God into character that honors the Lord.”

Thirdly, commit it to the Lord.  “Where there has been no plowing, you will not get much of a harvest … Instead of returning evil for evil, commit the conflict to the Lord and trust Him to vindicate you.”

About Psalm 130, I read, “No matter what our need, when we call upon the Lord in faith, He hears us and makes the changes needed in our lives.”

About Psalm 131, I read, “David tells us the essentials of a life that glorifies God and accomplishes His work on earth:

Honesty – Accept yourself – We move toward maturity when we honestly accept who we are, understand what we can do, accept both, and live for God’s glory.  Rejecting or hating ourselves, fantasizing about others, and envying others are marks of immaturity.

Humility – Accept God’s will – Growing up involves painful losses that can lead to wonderful gains … Maturing people know that life is a series of gains and losses, and they learn how to use their losses constructively …  God sometimes has to wean us away from good things to give us better things … To accept God’s will in the losses and gains of life is to experience that inner calm that is so necessary if we are to be mature people.”

Hope – Anticipate the future – When we fret over a comfortable past, we only forfeit a challenging future … Hope is joyful anticipation of what the Lord will do in the future, based on His changeless promises … We may fret at our present circumstances, but we know that our fretting is wrong.”

Father, I needed these reminders to help me see through the fog of the present with all of its uncertainty.  Thank You for reminding me that You are my anchor.

Your Brother In Christ,

Gary Ford

Psalm 126-128 Work & Kids

“Life is not always easy when you are making a new beginning after a time of discipline.  But life is so arranged that we must often make new beginnings, and the Lord helps us by giving us special encouragements,” my commentary said.  Those include, “within us, the joy of freedom; around us, the promise of life; and before us, the challenge of work,”.

A big takeaway I saw was, “If you can explain what is going on, God did not do it.”

And in that vein, my commentary said about Psalm 127, “No amount of human sacrifice or toil can accomplish much unless God’s blessing is upon His people … We cannot succeed without the help of the Lord.  Jesus said, ‘Without Me, you can do nothing.”

It continued, “Our work must be a blessing we enjoy and not a burden we endure… We get tired in God’s work, but we do not get tired of God’s work, because the Lord who gives us the strength to work also gives us the rest we need.”

In those chapters, there are constant mentions of the blessings of children, and it’s so easy to lose that focus when things begin to go wrong.  “Each child brings a blessing all his own … children are precious – a heritage” and “we must pray for our children and grandchildren, that the Lord will keep His good hand of blessing on their lives for His glory.”

Father, You know that my work and my kids are my primary concerns right now.  Thank You for the timing of these psalms to remind me to look upon both as blessings despite everything going on.  Your timing, as always, is impeccable!

Your Brother In Christ,

Gary Ford

Psalm 124-125 Faith's Importance

“What if the Lord had not been on our side?”  I don’t want to even think about it!  Where would I be?

But for God’s grace and mercy and forgiveness, I might not even be alive!  “Praise the Lord, who did not let them chew us up.”  That’s what it feels like on the other side!  If we desert the Lord to live in sin, the worst thing He can do is to give us what we want.

“God surrounds His people now and forever.  The wicked will not rule over those who do right.”

My commentary says that our enemy Satan does not give advance warnings of his attacks, so we must be sober and vigilant, put on the whole armor of God, and be alert in our praying.  “If we are walking with the Lord, we need not feel unprepared for the enemy’s attacks … Like a cunning animal, Satan stalks us and waits until we have relaxed our guard, and then he pounces …But the Lord is stronger than Satan, and if we are abiding in Him, we can win the victory.”

“We must use the Word of God to throw light on our path, so we can detect and avoid the devil’s traps.  Satan always has fascinating bait to offer.  The Lord may allow us to fall into a trap, but nobody can KEEP us when He WANTS us to be free.  The Lord not only opened the trap, but broke it so it could not be used again!”

In Psalm 125, the benefits that faith and faithfulness bring to our lives are listed:

Faith keeps us standing.

Faith keeps us obeying.

Faith keeps us praying.

Faith keeps us hoping.

Sometimes it may not seem easier, leading a life of faith, “but the life of unbelief is much harder  -- in this life and in the life to come.”

Father, You’ve grown my faith this week.  Grow the faith of my son as well!  Show him where he’s stopped believing that he can say, “I TRUST You, God!”

Your Brother In Christ,

Gary Ford

Psalm 122-123 -- God's Timing Is Excellent Again!

Yesterday, I cried out to God for His help all day.  I worried.  I fretted.  Finally, I trusted, and He didn’t disappoint!  I almost didn’t do a quiet time this morning, knowing I needed to finish packing to get on the road to a new aftercare with my son, but God tugged at my heart and I’m so glad I listened.

Back in Psalm 120, my commentary had said, “When we find ourselves experiencing distress and disappointment, we have 3 responsibilities to fulfill if our burdens are to become blessings:

We must pray – sharing it with the Lord.

We must trust God.

We must patiently endure. 

I’d forgotten what I’d just read!

In Psalm 123, it asked, “Where do we turn for help?”

“We look by faith to God’s throne.  To look toward the Lord means to trust Him and turn our problems over to Him by faith.

We look by faith to God’s hand.  Our direction, provision, and protection all come from our Master’s hand, and His hand never fails.

We look for God’s mercy and grace.  We are not only subjects of the King and servants of the Master, we are also the children of a gracious Father who hears the cries of His children and comes to their aid.  He has grace and mercy for each situation.”

Father, thank You for calming me yesterday when I needed it most.  May Your sovereign hand heal my son as we begin another journey.  Get us there safely, Father.

Your Brother In Christ,

Gary Ford

Psalm 120-121 Perfect Timing Again From God

What I’ve been through since I read Psalm 119 last Thursday.  My younger son was hospitalized that night with an overdose of cough medicine in another state, having to change my flights to get there sooner, missing a flight because the plane had to wait 35 minutes on the tarmac for a gate … three days in the hospital with him instead of fun time spent with him… Having to move him back home for a few days before getting ready to head to a new aftercare, because he was kicked out of his present one …Finding another godly aftercare and making plans to get there, only to have him defy me here, in spite of the fact that the records indicate that he had a heart attack in the hospital before I even arrived!  (My parents are unaware of this.  Please do not share if you know them.  They would be crushed.)

I had planned to read my commentary’s 15 pages about Psalm 119 today.  I had prayed Psalm 119 over my son in the hospital while he slept.  But God nudged me to go on, and as always His timing was perfect.

The worshiper who wrote Psalm 120 had been prevented by circumstances from attending a religious feast.  He knew that worship is a privilege…. “When we find ourselves experiencing distress and disappointment, we have three responsibilities to fulfill if our burdens are to become blessings,” my commentary says.  “We must pray, we must trust God, and we must patiently endure.”  Perfect timing, Father!

Psalm 121 concerns God’s keeping or protection over His people, and I certainly need that right now!  It lists several assurances for believers to remind them of God’s care:

“My Father’s creation is before me… Satan and his demonic army may be at work opposing the saints, but this is STILL our Father’s world.”

“My Father’s eyes are upon me … The Lord is concerned about our feet and our walk … Even while we sleep, God watches over us because He does not go to sleep.”

“My Father’s presence is beside me … Our Keeper is not only on the throne looking down on us, but He is at our side to shield us from all harm … The things that God permits to happen to us in His will may hurt us, but they will not harm us … Day and night our Father is with us to shelter us from that which could harm us … whatever the changes might be, the Father’s presence provides all that we need … The shadow of the Almighty covers us.”

“My Father’s care is around me … We need not fear life or death, today or tomorrow, time or eternity, for we are in the loving care of the Father … In His grace, He turns into good the things we think are evil.  In the Bible, Joseph had to endure many trials, all because of his brothers’ sins.  But in the end, he was able to say, ‘You meant evil against me; but God meant it for good.’  The Father is concerned about … even the so-called minor details that we too often take for granted … The Father is with us and cares for our every need … and His loving care will go on forever … God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.”

Father, such incredible timing!  Exactly what I needed today.  Help me to stay the course and to trust completely in You.  Guard my health and strengthen my trust in You.

Your Brother In Christ,

Gary Ford

Psalm 119 -- The Longest Psalm Just Can't Be Finished In One Day!

The longest psalm in the Bible takes up four whole pages in my Bible.  Over the years, I’ve made lots of notes in the margins, and by the time I’d reread the psalm and my notes, I’d run out of time to consider reading the 15 pages my commentary devoted to it!  So I’ll have to stay on this psalm for more than one day!  It’s worth reading regularly, and here are the notes I’d made about various verses:

Verse 1-3 are a recipe for happiness.

Verse 4 is not an option or a suggestion.

Verses 4-6 speak of missing the mark and hating it.

Verse 7 shows that our instinct is to not believe this.  It must be learned.

Verse 9 gives a simple answer to its question.

Verse 10 is a cry, “Help me not to sin!”

Verse 11 is the key to obedience.

Verse 14 describes obedience as real happiness, not a lack of freedom.

Verse 16 says it takes real effort to obey, because sin tries to make us willfully forget God’s Word.

Verse 18 is a cry to remove spiritual blindness.

Verse 20 describes a proper hunger for something of great value.

Verses 28-29 remind us that when we’re sad and tired, we’re most susceptible to breaking His rules.

Verse 34 is asking God to make sure we buy into His rules completely.

Verse 36 is asking God to give us a desire that we don’t naturally have.

Verse 52 speaks of us becoming comfortable with God’s rules, much like a horse gets comfortable when wearing a familiar saddle and carrying a familiar rider.

Verses 59-60 speak of making correct choices and not hesitating to start obeying.

Verse 96 tells me there’s never a point where God’s rules cease to apply.

Verse 115 reminds us of the importance of not hanging around people who might cause us to fall.

Verse 120 shows the importance of having a healthy understanding of just who God is.

Verse 133 is an important cry out to God for each of us – “Don’t let any sin control me,” for we each can have a besetting sin.

Verses 145 and 146 are amazing because we read, “Lord, I call to You … answer me … I call to You.  Save me …” and this is a rule obeyer crying out like this!

Verse 154 asks God not just to be our Judge, but also our defense attorney – the role Jesus fulfilled!

Verses 156 and 159 remind us that a respect of God’s laws only comes by an acceptance of His love. 

Verse 176 reminds us that even though we stray, He comes looking for us!

Father, please continue to reveal Yourself to me in this psalm as I continue to go through it.

Your Brother In Christ,

Gary Ford

Psalm 118 -- God's Word To Us When We Have Walked Away

Today, as I read this psalm, God put my younger son on my heart.  He’s away from home trying to overcome his drug problem.  I want so much for him to be able to experience what these words say, in his own life.

My commentary derived four practical instructions for believers from this psalm:

Give thanks to the Lord at all times.

Trust the Lord in every crisis.

Glorify the Lord after every victory.

See the Lord in every experience.

Those are instructions I strive to follow as I watch to see God working in my life every day.  I remember a time when I was away from God and I actually wondered if He even cared about my life, but now I am constantly amazed at how He continually intervenes in my life!

Here are the words I want so much for my son to be able to experience in his own life:

“I was in trouble, so I called to the Lord.  The Lord answered me and set me free.  I will not be afraid, because the Lord is with me.  People can’t do anything to me.  The Lord is with me to help me, so I will see my enemies defeated.  It is better to trust the Lord than to trust people…  They surrounded me on every side, but with the Lord’s power I defeated them.  They surrounded me like a swarm of bees, but they died as quickly as thorns burn.  By the Lord’s power, I defeated them.  They chased me until I was almost defeated, but the Lord helped me.  The Lord gives me strength and a song.  He has saved me.  Shouts of joy and victory come from the tents of those who do right:  ‘The Lord has done powerful things.’  The power of the Lord has won the victory; with His power the Lord has done mighty things.  I will not die, but live, and I will tell what the Lord has done.  The Lord has taught me a hard lesson, but He did not let me die … Lord, I thank You for answering me.  You have saved me … You are my God, and I will thank You; You are my God, and I will praise Your greatness.”

There is a powerful verse in the very middle of all this, that I purposefully pulled out:  “The stone that the builders rejected became the cornerstone.”  That is of course a reference to Jesus, and it is only through His love and sacrifice that Joseph can experience all of this and see God working in his life for his good.

Father, please remove the blinders and earplugs that Satan has placed upon my son, just long enough for these words to penetrate to his heart.  Allow him to hear what You have shown me this morning.  Help him to trust You to do exactly what Your Word says, including giving thanks to You, trusting You, and glorifying You.  Bring him back, Father!

Your Brother In Christ,

Gary Ford

Psalm 116-117 Trusting God's Protection and Ending Well

My commentary pointed out reason why God delivers people from pain and death:

He answers His children’s prayers.  The writer knew he could trust in the Lord and call on Him for help.

He is merciful and gracious.  God’s good actions on our behalf grow our love for Him and our trust in Him.  We have to dare to believe that God means what He says.  His Word tells us God wipes away our tears, holds us up, prevents us from stumbling, and walks with us to protect us from our enemies.  And He does it all in spite of the ambivalence of our faith!  “In the pressure of danger and pain, we often say things we really do not mean, but the Lord sees our hearts and knows what we really believe.  The Lord ignores what we say with our lips and responds to what we say in our hearts.”

“God gave Jesus Christ to die on the cross in our place.  If our Father loves us that much, then He must be concerned not only with how we live, but also how and when we die.”  Verse 15 says, “The death of one that belongs to the Lord is precious in His sight.”  For believers, death is not an accident, but an appointment… Just as the blood of Christ is precious, so our blood is precious to God.  God’s servants are immortal until their work on earth is done.” 

“God is in control and will work all things for our good and His glory, even our death … May the Lord help us to end well and be faithful to Him.”

Father, I thank You that I can trust You to do everything for my good, whether it be joyful or painful.  I dare to believe that You mean what You say!  Thank You for seeing my heart and knowing what I truly believe.  Thank You for considering me precious to You!  Such love!  Help me to end well.

Your Brother In Christ,

Gary Ford

Psalm 113-115 Praising God

It’s wonderful to spend time focusing on what kind of God I worship, and my commentary boiled it all down well:

God’s NAME is the greatest, and we need to do our best to make Him look good to nonbelievers.

God’s THRONE is the highest, yet “He is willing to stoop down and pay attention to mere mortals who do not always honor Him … He sees us and knows our every need” … He sits on a throne of grace.

God’s LOVE is the kindest.  “The love of God and the grace of God made our God stoop to our level, especially when He sent Jesus Christ to become one of us and die for us on the cross.  He condescended to become like us so that we might become like Him … God is able to do the impossible.”

God is FOR us – He grafted us into His family!

God is OVER us and BEFORE us.  “God went before Him people, and everything in nature trembled at His presence and obeyed … God removes obstacles and takes us through the hopeless places.”

God is a REIGNING God.  The victories He gives us are opportunities for us to tell others about Him.

God is a LIVING God.  He speaks to us.  He sees us and what we do.  He hears our cries.  He receives our worship.  He works for us.  He carries us and walks with us.

“We  become like the God we worship, and as we worship Him, He transforms us, giving us ears to hear His truth and eyes to see His Word and the path He wants us to walk.”

God is the GIVING God.  He will protect us and provide for us.

God is the God who deserves our praise.  For all He is to us, we’d better start now, because eternity won’t be long enough to tell Him all He’s done for us!

Father God, thank You for this morning of relishing who You are and what You do for me, as undeserving as I am.  Thanks for reminding me that Your love for me makes my life worthwhile.  Help me to help others see You this week.

Your Brother In Christ,

Gary Ford

Psalm 111-112 Remembering God's Help In The Past Gives Us Hope For The Future

Psalm 111 reminds us of who God is and what He does.  It shows us “four instructions to follow if we would enjoy the help and blessing of the Lord in the difficult situations of life,” my commentary said.

Begin with worship and praise.  If we cannot rejoice in our circumstances, we can always rejoice in the Lord!

Remember God’s great works.  We can use what God has done in the past to give us encouragement in the present and hope for the future.

Rely on God’s Word.  “If we obey His Word, He is faithful to bless; if we disobey, He is just to chasten us in love.”

Obey His will.  “If we want to understand God’s works and God’s Word, we must maintain a reverential fear of the Lord, for this attitude is the basis for receiving spiritual wisdom and understanding.”

Psalm 112 is written on the basis of God’s covenant with Israel, which promised blessings for obedience; we can’t conclude that it will be that way for us because we live under the new covenant, which says that we have in Jesus Christ every spiritual blessing that we will ever need and the promise that God will meet our needs.  “We want more than the blessing; we want to be like the One who gives the blessing … We aren’t protected from pain and trials, but we are enabled by the Holy Spirit to use those trials to glorify the Lord and to grow in grace.”

Regarding my circumstances, my commentary said, “Believers with a confident heart and a clear conscience have nothing to fear when they receive bad news because they know the Lord is in control.  If there is darkness around them, they wait for the Lord to send the light.”

Father, thank You for the reminder yesterday of all You have done for me and for my boys – of how You stepped into my life in such a tangible way and taught me to trust You through the tough times and to know that everything is under Your complete control.  I needed reminding.

Your Brother In Christ,

Gary Ford

Psalm 108-110 A Cry To God

David, speaking to God, said, “God, my heart is steady.  I will sing and praise You with all my being …. I will praise You among the nations … Your great love reaches to the skies.  Let Your glory be over all the earth … Help us fight the enemy.  Human help is useless, but we can win with God’s help.  He will defeat our enemies.”

With that outlook, it’s hard to imagine anything going wrong, but life happens.  In fact, in the very next psalm (109), David is praying fiercely for God to answer him, because his enemies are running him down with the people.

My commentary said most people are surprised that David would pray like this about his enemies, but we weren’t there to understand his situation.  David still wanted God to be glorified as the result.

Psalm 110 is the psalm Jesus used to prove His divinity to the Pharisees, those they didn’t accept it, and just imagining David being given this peek into the heavenly throne room is stunning.  Who knows whether David understood fully what he’d been tasked to write this side of heaven? 

Father, I thank You for Your truth, and Your mercy when I don’t live up to that truth.  I thank You for calling me out when I sin and for making me miserable until I cry out to You in repentance.  I don’t know what I’d do without Your forgiveness and Your provision for removing my sin – not just covering it – through Your Son’s death on the cross.  My sins never surprise You, because You are the all-knowing God, so trying to hide them from You is ridiculous.  I’m thankful that, at the moment I accepted Christ’s death for me on that cross, You forgave not only my sins up to that point, but also the sins You knew in advance that I would and will commit for the remainder of this life.  Still, I will need to confess them to You and agree with You that they are sins.

What a God!  What a Savior!

Your Brother In Christ,

Gary Ford

Psalm 107 -- What We Get Ourselves Into & How God Gets Us Out

I noticed in this psalm five illustrations of what we do and what God does as a result.  Rather than reading them literally, this morning God had me look at them figuratively and spiritually.

In the first, the people wandered away from God, into a spiritual desert.  They became spiritually hungry and thirsty as a result and became discouraged with life.  Finally in their misery, they cried out to God.  He saved them from their troubles, led them on a straight path, where they could live again.

In the second, the people mentioned had become imprisoned by their actions – chained down, possibly by addictions, into a dark and gloomy existence.  Life wasn’t sunny anymore.  The root cause was that they’d turned against the words of God and refused His advice.  They thought they knew better!  He first had to break their pride through hard work, helping them to understand that they weren’t too good to work, and also to see that work builds self-esteem.  Previously, they’d stumbled and no one helped them.  Now, they cried out to God from the middle of their misery, and , faithful as He is, He saved them from their struggles, bringing them out of the dark existence they’d brought upon themselves.  He broke the chains of addiction, even though they were as strong as bronze or iron!

In the third, people foolishly turned from God, thinking they knew better than He does.  They suffered for the evil they did.  As a result, they didn’t even care about their health.  Finally, in misery, they cried out to Him.  God gave the command and healed them.  It was that easy for Him!  They were saved from a life that was leading to their death.

In the fourth, the people did nothing wrong.  They were simply caught up in circumstances beyond their control, such as a financial storm.  Things got so bad that they lost their courage.  Not knowing what to do, in their misery they cried out to God.  He stilled the storm and calmed the waves and saved them.  He also guided them through the storm to the port they wanted.

In the fifth, because of the evil actions of the people, God altered their very existence.  What had been fruitful became barren.  Once He caught their attention through their spiritual thirst and hunger, He restored the fruitfulness of their existence and settled them into the place He wanted them to be.  The disastrous result of their rebellion was loss of their families and having to wander through an existence like a desert.  Finally hitting rock-bottom, they found that He lifted them out of their suffering.  He restored them to their families, and brought back their joy of living.

The psalmist concludes with this advice:  “Whoever is wise will remember these things.”

Father, I’ve seen these very things played out in my own family and in the lives of people I love.  I’ve seen them think that they knew better, that they were in control and immortal, and that they could handle it, only to find their lives radically changed for the worse.  Open their hearts and minds to Your wisdom and show them what You can do in Your love with even the mess they’ve made.  Remove the blinders Satan has placed over their hearts, so they can see the truth of their existence and understand what they have lost and what You have awaiting them if they will just cry out to you and accept Your help and Your forgiveness.

Your Brother In Christ,

Gary Ford

Psalm 106 -- Focus On God Here, Not Israel

“The purpose of the psalm is not to condemn Israel but to extol the Lord for His longsuffering and mercy toward His people.  In order to glorify God, the writer had to place God’s mercies against the dark background of Israel’s repeated disobedience,” my commentary says.  He didn’t mince words, but called a spade a spade.  We have to keep our eyes on God and not on the sin of Israel as we read it.

The writer spoke of how the Israelites preferred the security of slavery to the challenges of freedom, even wanting to return to Egypt!  How sin can enslave us to the point that we prefer the misery of our bondage! 

“The Lord took Israel out of Egypt in one night, but it took Him forty years to take Egypt out of Israel.”  The move to Egypt some 450 years prior had seemed a blessing – God saving them from famine.  But they’d stayed too long and absorbed too much of that culture.

“They were slow to remember God’s past deeds but quick to rush ahead and ignore His desires.  However, they didn’t hesitate to make known their own desires … People who grumble and complain are people not walking by faith in the promises of God.  We must resist the temptation to yield to our fleshly cravings,” my commentary said.

It pointed out that their first failure – craving water, food, and meat, involved the lusts of the flesh.  Their second failure – the rebellion of Korah, involved the pride of life.  “The third failure, the worship of the golden calf, involved the lust of the eyes … In spite of what the Lord had taught them at Sinai, they wanted a god they could SEE.” 

Their tragic failure happened at Kadesh Barnea, when they refused to enter the Promised Land. 

When we want our own way and refuse to trust the Lord and obey Him, the same results can happen to us – LONG delays!

Two events showed the high cost of willful disobedience to the Lord – the failure at Baal Peor and Moses becoming proud and angry, taking for himself God’s glory by losing his temper and speaking rashly.  As a result, Moses could not enter the Promised Land.  What a terrible cost!

They repeatedly rebelled against God after taking the Promised Land, and their biggest failure was compromising with rather than destroying the people whom God had taken the land from.  Though He was longsuffering, God finally had to act and remove them from the Promised Land.  What a tragedy!  Ten tribes were absorbed by Assyria.  The remaining two went to Babylon for 70 years, but the Davidic dynasty was never restored in their kingdom.

Through all of this, God continually forgave and restored.  But they tested His limits.  Father God, please help me not to do the same.  I want to hear from You before I sin and I ask that You give me the wisdom and the will to turn back before I sin.  Speak loudly to me!  And help us all  not to prefer the security of slavery to the challenges of freedom.

Your Brother In Christ,

Gary Ford

Psalm 105 -- The Obligation To Remember And To Obey

My commentary states that this psalm may have been written to encourage the remnant returning from Babylonian exile and to remind them that “they were God’s chosen people and that God worked according to His schedule.”  It also applied these principles to us today as Abraham’s spiritual children.

This psalm rehearses the history of the nation of Israel and God’s interaction over the centuries, and my commentary noted that, “Even when they erred, the Lord protected them and even reproved kings on their behalf.”  The psalmist told of Joseph and the Egyptian slavery of his people.  “Joseph experienced great suffering in prison, for in God’s economy, suffering precedes glory and being a servant precedes being a ruler … God always sends His servant ahead to prepare the way.  God permitted the Egyptians to persecute His people, for suffering is one of the secrets of fruitfulness.”

From all of this my commentary summarized, “God’s people live on promises, not explanations, and it is through faith and patience that we see these promises fulfilled.  But God’s keeping His promises meant much more for Israel than victory over the enemy and acquisition of riches.  It meant accepting the responsibility of obeying the God who had been so faithful to them.  Before his death, Joshua reminded the people what the Lord had done for them and admonished them to serve the Lord and not turn to idols.  When we consider all that the Lord has done for us, we find we have the same obligation.”

Father, thank You for the reminder this morning of all the miracles You have done for my family.  Thank You for the reminder that I need to be faithful to You as a result.  Please help me today to obey Your will for my life and to tell others what You have done for me.

Your Brother In Christ,

Gary Ford