Another day I was encouraging my sisters just to take all the blessings as they come (this was in relation to friendships). Then God said "Go ye and do likewise" ;-).
"Offer the sacrifices of righteousness" Ps 4:5 Righteousness feels like a sacrifice sometimes (oftentimes!) but it is SOO worth it!
"The lines have fallen to me in pleasant places; yes, I have a good inheritance... I have set the Lord always before me; because He is at my right hand I shall not be moved... You will show me the path of life; in Your presence is fullness of joy; At Your right hand are pleasures forevermore." Ps 16: 6, 8, 11
"One thing I have desired of the Lord, that will I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord..." Ps 27:4
"I will offer sacrifices of joy in His tabernacle; I will sing, yes, I will sing praises to the Lord. When You said, "Seek My face," my heart said to You, "Your face, O Lord, I will seek." Teach me Your way, O Lord... I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Wait on the Lord, be of good courage, and He shall strengthen your heart; Wait, I say, on the Lord!" Ps 27: 6, 8, 11, 13-14
"Trust in the Lord and do good;
Dwell in the land, and feed on His faithfulness,
Delight yourself also in the Lord,
And He shall give you the desires of your heart.
Commit your way to the Lord
Trust also in Him,
And He shall bring it to pass.
He shall bring forth your righteousness as the light,
And your justice as the noonday.
Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him.
Those who wait on the Lord,
They shall inherit the earth.
Wait on the Lord, and keep His way...
And the Lord shall help them and deliver them,
Because they trust in Him."
Ps 37:3-5, 7, 9, 34, 40
"Whom have I in heaven besides You? And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides You." Ps 73:25
"Blessed is the man who fears the Lord, who delights greatly in His commandments. His heart is steadfast, trusting in the Lord, his heart is established..." Ps 112:1, 7-8
"Return to your rest O my soul, for the Lord has dealt bountifully with you." Ps 116:7
I heard a great sermon on this once, at a Chinese new year celebration actually :-). It went something like this: Has the Lord been good in the past? Yes! Abundantly yes! Then shall He not be good in the present? In the future? Can God change???
"Who among you fears the Lord? Who obeys the voice of His Servant? Who walks in darkness and has no light? Let him trust in the Name of the Lord and rely upon his God."
1 comment:
The sacrifice of righteousness is definitely worth the cost! ^_^ In fact, if you think about it, the "cost" is not much of a cost at all when you consider what it "buys". ^_^
I like the particular translation of "the lines have fallen to me in pleasant places"--in light of "You maintain my lot". Consider this, that the psalmist realizes that it was of no work of his that he has a good inheritance. He states: "you maintain my lot", knowing that God controls all chance, then proceeds to state that "the lines have fallen to me in pleasant places", implying it was Providence, not any birthright or skill of his own, that the psalmist can say: "I have a good inheritance."
To have God--that is to be desired above all other things. God should be all to us, and if we have God we need nothing else--we have all we will ever need! It is no wonder, then, that the psalmist can say "one thing I have desired of the Lord...that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life". It is not though David had not desired other things of God, such as victory over enemies, peace of heart, etc. However, the context seems to imply more that this was his deepest desire, knowing that in God he has all things.
Ah, to trust in the Lord! ^_^ Though there is much that could be said, I will just have one note here: note that the psalmist directly correlates patient trust in God to good results. It is interesting that it would be so directly correlated, especially as today we consider those that live holy, trusting lives but do not live to see prosperity or justice or other such. But maybe they have received such things. Possibly not in the way they or we expect, but if you have talked to those who have trusted in God like that, you will quite likely get a response saying they have been blessed, helped, and delivered by God--in this life, yea, even in the lives of those who suffer. The Lord has given them the desires of their heart; they have inherited the earth and more; they have been helped and delivered. Not necessarily prosperity gospel, but the prosperity of the gospel. ^_^
Seek the Lord, and you will find Him. =) Fear Him, obey Him, trust Him, love Him; He is above all things and worth more than anything. There is naught to lose in God, rather, all else is loss compared to His surpassing worth--He is all. ^_^
--Josiah C.
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