Tried and Found True

One of my favorite things to do in my prayer time is to open up to a Psalms, and earnestly re-present it as a prayer to the Lord. It is sweet that I can agree with King David, and the faithfulness of a God has not changed. Isn't that incredible to think upon? The same God that David so earnestly loved is the same God who willingly comes and sits beside us. The same Captain of Hosts that victoriously led Israel against armies twice their size, He is the same one who puts His arm around us when we kneel beside our bed. He who sustained David during the days of being pursued continuously by Saul--this Master is the same one who sustains us with His faithfulness even hundreds of years later.

Still, His name remains to be Faithful.

 David was a king--a man who made decisions that affected an entire nation, not just his own household. Talk about pressure, huh? I love how the Psalms are filled with "Oh, Lord, please stretch out Your hand and rescue me!" and then "Praise be to the God who rescues Israel!". 1st and 2nd Samuel are filled with the challenges and triumphs of God's faithfulness to a man after His own heart--and Psalms is almost an accompanying journal of the heart cry of David during these trials. A small window into the thoughts of a Warrior King (poet) whose only hope was the Lord God. And the victorious Psalms are past  tense. God has  done this. One Psalm even pauses, almost mid-sentence, halting the petitioning with a statement: "You answered me." Fact.

Here's a cup of Living Water to savor. Think of this as advice from a King who has tried and found his faith to be placed rightly in Jehovah:

"The Lord sustains all who fall

and raises up all who are bowed down,

The eyes of all look to You, 

and You give them their food in due time.

You open Your hand

and satisfy the desire of every living thing.

The Lord is righteous in all His ways

and Kind in all His deeds. 

The Lord is near to all who call upon Him, 

To all who call upon Him in truth.

He will fulfill the desire of those who fear Him;

He will also hear their cry and will save them."

~Psalm 145:14-19~

Today, if you are struggling with Faith, if you are walking in the belief that you've slipped off God's radar, or stumbling over guilt from your past--read through a Psalms. Remember that God has not  changed. The Lord is  Kind. He is  gracious. He does  satisfy the desire of every living thing (as a father, so fulfills desires that will good for us). He is near--not some far off entity sitting on a cloud, frowning at you. He also hears our cry--He actually listens. 

My challenge to you: in your own quiet time, take a psalms and offer it up to the Lord as your own prayer of faith.

"You sustain all who fall

and raise up all who are bowed down.

[...]You are righteous in all Your ways

and kind in all Your deeds.

You are near to all who call upon You.

To all who call upon You in truth.

You will fulfill the desire of those who fear You.

You will also hear their cry and save them."

It truly becomes a prayer of Faith...which is one of the sweetest things in the eyes of the Lord! 

In the Arms of One Who Remains Faithful, 

Anna

(Image source: Google)

Come and Drink

One of the most remarkable things to me about the Old Testament is how it points to Jesus. It points to the Gospel, to our Salvation, to our freedom from the slavery of sin and the expectancy of Heaven. It is pretty amazing. Last night, I met a friend at a restaurant for our weekly Bible Study. We have been walking through Exodus together and I have looked forward to every meeting! :) How often do we get a chance to plunk our Bibles down on a visible table and pray for each other in public?

As we were talking, we just began discussing in depth about the incredible things God did and how it is such a testimony for us as followers of Christ. One main pattern I have been noting is how God always causes His people to be thrust into situations where we have the opportunity to trust Him, see His hand, AND He gets the glory--or we can run and complain. The latter usually ends up in discipline or separation from Him. : / Or also thinking about how much patience He has with us! Whew. He has a lot of patience.  Sometimes I think with me, especially. :D

~

But one of the things God showed me last night was this:

" When they came to Marah, they could not drink the water of Marah because it was bitter; therefore it was named Marah (bitterness). And the people murmured against Moses, saying "what shall we drink?" And he cried to the Lord; And the Lord showed him a tree,

and he threw it into the water, and the water became sweet."
-Exodus 15:23-25-

Initial reaction: "Oh, huh, cool. He did another miracle!".

That was my first reaction too. Over a million people, walking around in a desert, needing water. The only immediate source of water was a body of water, but it was incredibly bitter. Imagine needing something desperately, it seeming to be right in front of you, yet you cannot physically bring yourself to drink it?  God heard the cry of His servant Moses, and showed Him a tree, which turned the bitter into sweet. The undrinkable into refreshing.

God showed me something a little different, in addition to how incredibly He provides for His children. As a Christian, the Lord leads us all over the places in our walk with Him--through deserts, mountains, cool misty mornings, and dry barren lands. His purposes include 1) testing us by actually having us put into practice what we profess with our mouths and 2) conforming us into the image of Christ. As a christian, we often are brought to places where we are required to drink a bitter cup. Often it "looks" like disappointment of great aspirations, death of a loved one, being falsely accused, etc. It tastes horrible--often causing our noses to crinkle and the usual "bleck!!!" face, as we push it away in disgust. We would usually do anything to not have to drink it. However, like water is a necessity to keep us physically alive, difficulties are a necessity to keep us spiritually alive. We grow spiritually by being tested spiritually, and God draws us to himself even more closely during these times. As Moses cried out to God, so should we cry out to Him. For He hears us. Just as simple as that.  In the same way the Lord pointed Moses to the tree, so does He point us to a tree--The Tree of Calvary. The tree upon which a blameless man named Jesus surrendered himself, in order that we might live.

When we submit ourselves to Christ, bearing that cross while fixing our eyes on Jesus, God causes a sweetness to spring forth. Not one that we would necessarily volunteer to GULP down buckets of pain, but when we willingly put ourselves in Jesus' hands--saying "Lord, I don't understand, but I don't have to. I choose to trust you. I choose obedience to One who knows better"--He does something incredible.

He gives us Himself.

He gives us His peace, His joy, His love, His promises, His faithfulness, His companionship--Himself. How incredibly precious is it to enter into hardship with the God who created your soul, and knows every part of your DNA because He made it? He causes the bitter to become bearable because of the sweetness of himself. Praise God!

Like I said, just a little different perspective but a good reminder for myself in pressing forward! As you press forward this next week, seek obedience and trust, even in difficulty. Then, as you take a sip of every situation, with your eyes fixed on the Cross, watch as He fills you with Joy and Peace. When you cling to Him, He will not fling you off callously, despite our unworthiness. He will gather you gently in His arms, put His hand on your head, and will carry you. For our Lord is Gentle, Pure, Kind, full of Mercy and Tenderness. He is beyond worthy of all we can give! :)

In Him,