May the mumbling commence!
Do you burn from within with the joy of the Lord? Are you impatient to tell all who will listen of the wonders of the Lord? Do you pant with thirst for the presence of the Lord in times of trouble? Today, we walk with David in these types of circumstances with Psalms 39 and 42.
Sometimes, it seems easier to do nothing at all to avoid failing. But to do nothing denies the call of our Lord. David spoke of this paralysis in the first five verses of Psalm 39. Read them below:
I said, "I will watch my ways and keep my tongue from sin;
I will put a muzzle on my mouth
as long as the wicked are in my presence."
But when I was silent and still, not even saying anything good,
my anguish increased.
My heart grew hot within me, and as I meditated, the fire burned;
then I spoke with my tongue:
"Show me, O Lord, my life's end and the number of my days;
let me know how fleeting is my life.
You have made my days a mere handbreadth;
the span of my years is as nothing before you.
Each man's life is but a breath.” Selah
Whenever we see the word Selah, we should pay careful attention to the preceding verses. Fear of saying the wrong thing and sinning can keep our mouths muzzled and our tongues stilled. Not only is it a good strategy to stop the progress of sin (our words are formed from the attitudes of our hearts and the thoughts of our minds) but it is also a good strategy for trying to stop the confession of our awesome God.
But David could not keep his tongue still. His heart grew hot within him. A fire burned. The heat, the spark, and the flame were fanned by silence and an awareness of the transitory nature of life. Each of our lives is but a breath. Our lifetimes are as nothing to the eternal, immortal God.
Time stands still for no one. We never know when our last chance will come to express our love for God or for our family and friends. And what better way is there to express your love to your family and friends than to confess the greatness of God?
You may think: “This is all great for those people who have it all together. But, sometimes I feel sickened and disoriented by troublesome times.” Well, let’s turn our attention to Psalm 42. Many of you may be familiar with the song “As the deer pants for the water.”
It seems idyllic and lovely in your mind now, if you know it. That song is based upon the beginning of Psalm 42. We sing this song without the context of where the words “as the deer pants for streams of water” come from. Read the first five verses (Plus two words from verse 6. How arbitrary are some of the divisions of verses in the Bible!) of Psalm 42 below:
As the deer pants for streams of water,
so my soul pants for you, O God.
My soul thirsts for God, for the living God.
When can I go and meet with God?
My tears have been my food day and night,
while men say to me all day long, "Where is your God?"
These things I remember as I pour out my soul:
how I used to go with the multitude,
leading the procession to the house of God,
with shouts of joy and thanksgiving among the festive throng.
Why are you downcast, O my soul? Why so disturbed within me?
Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God.
Talk about singing the blues! Something has separated David from the awareness of God’s presence. “When can I go and meet with God?” Tears had come freely, and appetite had dwindled to nothing. People taunted David, “Where is your God?”
It is a question we all ask when we fall on hard times. Where is God when things are hard? I used to take the lead in shouting joy and thanksgiving to the Lord, but now my soul is downcast and disturbed. In today’s language: “I am depressed.” David tells us, “There is always hope in God. That’s why we pant all the more for God when times are tough.”
Praise will come again to our lips. The fire will burn. Let us give thanks to God!
Enough mumbling for now…
Peace Out
No comments:
Post a Comment