Psalm 6 - Prayer in a Time of Trouble

Psalm 6

Prayer for Mercy in Time of Trouble.

For the choir director; with stringed instruments, upon an eight-string lyre. A Psalm of David.

​ O Lord, do not rebuke me in Your anger,

Nor chasten me in Your wrath. 

Be gracious to me, O Lord, for I am pining away;

Heal me, O Lord, for my bones are dismayed. 

And my soul is greatly dismayed;

But You, O Lord—how long?

Return, O Lord, rescue my soul;

Save me because of Your lovingkindness. 

For there is no mention of You in death;

In Sheol who will give You thanks?

I am weary with my sighing;

Every night I make my bed swim,

I dissolve my couch with my tears. 

My eye has wasted away with grief;

It has become old because of all my adversaries.

Depart from me, all you who do iniquity,

For the Lord has heard the voice of my weeping. 

The Lord has heard my supplication,

The Lord receives my prayer. 

All my enemies will be ashamed and greatly dismayed;

They shall turn back, they will suddenly be ashamed.  NASB

The beauty of the scriptures is that, though they are an ancient document, they are relevant to every situation today.  Psalm 6 is a case in point.  We may wish that every day was one of peace and joy, but sometimes s*** happens!  Some days we struggle against sickness and trouble.  Some days we suffer from problems that are self made. (I know that's hard to believe, but even Elder B messes up some times!) The psalmist doesn't say specifically why he is pining away on this particular day, but that allows us to insert our own problem.  Even though our soul is greatly dismayed, we can turn to the Lord for comfort, just as the psalmist did. When we are weary from the struggle and cry ourselves to sleep, God is there with us.  "For the Lord has heard my supplication, The Lord receives my prayer." 

For me, it is sometimes hard to really believe that the Lord loves me, especially in the hard times. Thus I am encouraged by the psalm, "Save me because of Your lovingkindness." It is when the Lord seems to be most distant that we are assured that His lovingkindness is closest to us, surrounding, protecting and encouraging us. It is in times of sickness and grief that we can rely on the Lord must fully.  If you are struggling today, I pray that the realization of the Lord's love will surround you, so that you will know, that you know, that you are loved, and that the Lord hears your cries.

Psalm 6 (Heal Me) (feat. Deryck Box) - The Psalms Project

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2v8aLMcv3-Y

Psalm 40 - Thoughts on Muck and Mire

Psalm 40: 1-3

I waited patiently for the Lord;

And He inclined to me and heard my cry. 

He brought me up out of the pit of destruction, out of the miry clay,

And He set my feet upon a rock making my footsteps firm. 

He put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God;

Many will see and fear

And will trust in the Lord. NASB

This is just a random though that came to me yesterday when I was listening to Psalm 40 on the way to church.  I was just thinking how often I've been pulled out of the muck and mire.  It seems I've got an affinity for it!  Perhaps it goes back to my childhood, growing up on a farm in Illinois.  With 300 acres of farm land, cows, hogs, and chickens, there was plenty of muck and mire to get into.  We even had a special kind of nasty clay that we called gumbo (not at all like  the southern seafood kind).  Gumbo was a black clay that was hard as a rock when dry and impossible to dig up, but when wet it would pull in the biggest vehicle.  Anything you tried to drive over it would get sucked in, down to the axles, and you would need a much bigger tractor to pull it out.

With all this muck and mire outside, my Mother's eternal mission was to keep it out and to keep the house clean.  Every time that I would drag some sort of mess in, she would exclaim "What! Were you raised in a barn?  Clean that up!".  But to my irony impaired brain, this didn't make a lot of sense.  The completely logical answer was, "Yes, I spend a lot more time in the barn, chicken yard and pig pens than in the house."  Of course, I eventually came to understand that she was making a plea to to keep the barn mess out of her house, and to leave my muddy boots and all the other muck on the back porch!

To my father, the muck and mire was a way of life, but he taught me to patiently keep order and cleanliness wherever possible.  When you have cows in the barn, you are inevitably going to get a lot of muck.  Even Proverbs 14:4 says "Where no oxen are, the manger is clean, But much revenue comes by the strength of the ox."  So the answer is not to try to live in a world without muck, but to clean it out whenever necessary.  One of the never ending tasks on a farm was to muck out the barn and hen house.  You can put down straw for awhile to hide it and dry it up, but sooner or later, it's going to get so deep that the cows can't even walk into the barn so you have to clean it out.  The chicken house was the worst.  It was always my job to take care of the chickens, and cleaning out the hen house was the worst job ever.  It's not only dirty, but smells so strong of ammonia that you can hardly breath.  But in the end, you have a clean barn so the cows and chickens are happy and healthy, and as a bonus, you can spread the manure on the fields to fertilize the crops.

So maybe that's why I always seem to betting stuck in the muck and mire and have to call on the Lord to pull me out and set my feet on the rock one more time.  I do hope that there is some fertilizer somewhere in there, after my barn has been cleaned out, so that something good can grow out of all my mischief! 

Psalm 40 - Sons of Korah

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vORSaiLVQOc

Psalm 5 - A Morning Prayer

Psalm 5

For the choir director; for flute accompaniment. A Psalm of David.

Give ear to my words, O Lord,

consider my meditation.

 Hearken unto the voice of my cry, my King, and my God:

for unto thee will I pray.

 My voice shalt thou hear in the morning, O Lord;

in the morning will I direct my prayer unto thee, and will look up.

 For thou art not a God that hath pleasure in wickedness:

neither shall evil dwell with thee.

 The foolish shall not stand in thy sight:

thou hatest all workers of iniquity.

 Thou shalt destroy them that speak leasing:

the Lord will abhor the bloody and deceitful man.

 But as for me, I will come into thy house in the multitude of thy mercy:

and in thy fear will I worship toward thy holy temple.

 Lead me, O Lord, in thy righteousness because of mine enemies;

make thy way straight before my face.

 For there is no faithfulness in their mouth;

their inward part is very wickedness;

their throat is an open sepulchre;

they flatter with their tongue.

 Destroy thou them, O God;

let them fall by their own counsels;

cast them out in the multitude of their transgressions;

for they have rebelled against thee.

 But let all those that put their trust in thee rejoice:

let them ever shout for joy, because thou defendest them:

let them also that love thy name be joyful in thee.

 For thou, Lord, wilt bless the righteous;

with favour wilt thou compass him as with a shield. KJV

This Psalm really doesn't need any commentary.  It is the most famous of the morning Psalms and is a favorite one to sing.  I first remember it being sung by Pastor Joseph Garlington in his magnificent baritone voice, and marveling at the beauty of the Psalm.  How beautiful it is to look up to the Lord in the morning and lift our prayers to Him.

Hebrew poetry has a compare and contrast structure rather than a rhyming cadence.  Note how the psalmist compares the righteous man that rises early to bless the Lord with the evil man who causes bloodshed and deceives many. The actions of the two kinds of people are compared, and then the response of the Lord to each is given.  Take care then, that you live a life of worship instead of a life of wickedness, so that you may be blessed by the Lord, and will be protected by His shield.

Bonus: (It's not Joseph, but it's the same arrangement- DB)
Psalm 5 - Chuck Girard with lyricshttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tk0R7X1rigg

Psalm 4 - Singing Psalms

Psalm 4

For the choir director; on stringed instruments. A Psalm of David.

 Answer me when I call, O God of my righteousness!

You have relieved me in my distress;

Be gracious to me and hear my prayer.

 O sons of men, how long will my honor become a reproach?

How long will you love what is worthless and aim at deception?

Selah.

 But know that the Lord has set apart the godly man for Himself;

The Lord hears when I call to Him.

 Tremble, and do not sin;

 Meditate in your heart upon your bed, and be still.

Selah.

 Offer the sacrifices of righteousness,

And trust in the Lord.

 Many are saying, “ Who will show us any good?”

 Lift up the light of Your countenance upon us, O Lord!

 You have put gladness in my heart,

More than when their grain and new wine abound.

 In peace I will both lie down and sleep,

For You alone, O Lord, make me to dwell in safety. NASB

Ok, I admit it.  When I first read though this Psalm as English text, it didn't do much for me. This guy's got problems; we've all got problems; so what!  But then I listened to Melissa Breems sing this Psalm with the Psalms Project (see link at bottom), and I remembered that the Psalms were written as Hebrew poetry, and were meant to be sung.

Looking at the Psalms firstly as poetry and songs puts a whole new perspective on the them. Yes, the psalmist is in distress and is being reproached by worthless men, but he's singing about it!   Can you sing to the Lord when you are overwhelmed by your own problems, and can you praise the Lord when all around you are making fun of you and your faith? These are perilous days where the people of faith are reviled. Just this week, we received word from one of our related pastors, that a church just down the street from him in Jos, Nigeria was bombed by the Boca Haram terrorists.  Their problems in Nigeria are must worse than those in this country, but they are keeping their faith in God.

In times of trouble, we need to keep the attitude of King David, who was able to bless the Lord, to meditate and to sing even in the midst of trouble.  If you can do the same, the Lord will "put gladness in your heart" and give you  peace "to lie down and sleep". 

"For You alone, O Lord, make me to dwell in safety."

Bonus:
Psalm 4 (When I Call) (feat. Melissa Breems) - The Psalms Project
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KTJcnuGMyr0

Psalm 3 - Family Problems

Psalm 3

A Psalm of David, when he fled from Absalom his son

O Lord, how my adversaries have increased!

Many are rising up against me.

 Many are saying of my soul,

“There is no deliverance for him in God.”

Selah.

 But You, O Lord, are a shield about me,

My glory, and the One who lifts my head.

 I was crying to the Lord with my voice,

And He answered me from His holy mountain.

Selah.

 I lay down and slept;

I awoke, for the Lord sustains me.

 I will not be afraid of ten thousands of people

Who have set themselves against me round about.

 Arise, O Lord; save me, O my God!

For You have smitten all my enemies on the cheek;

You have shattered the teeth of the wicked.

 Salvation belongs to the Lord;

Your blessing be upon Your people!

Selah.  NASB

Have you ever felt that the whole world was against you?  Or that even those in your own family were out to get you? King David not only imagined it; his own son Absolom had raised an army to try to take the throne from him. What was his response?  He complained for a bit, sure, but then he starts to praise the Lord- "My glory and the lifter of my head..." and then thanks the Lord for His answer to this cry. The Lord even helped David to sleep in the midst of his troubles and gave him the strength to "not be afraid of ten thousands of people".

But David was a king, and you would expect him to be a man of faith and power, right!  But what about you and me.  What do we do when our children don't do the things that we think they should, and they disappoint and hurt us?  They say that small children have small problems, but grown children have big problems.  So what do we do when our own family members make life altering decisions that we clearly taught them were the wrong thing to do!  Can we have the faith of King David to cry out to the Lord, but to praise Him regardless of the circumstances?  Can we have the courage to not be afraid of ten thousands of problems, even though we can clearly see them coming?

Lord, help us to trust you when those closest to us disappoint and hurt us.  Even when they don't listen to our clearly superior advice! Help us to praise and worship you in the midst of the problem and trust you to bring Your salvation to the situation, despite what our own eyes may be telling us.

Amen

Bonus: Listen to Psalm 3 by Sons of Korah

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_rvu70bouv4

Psalm 2 - Why do the Nations Rage?

Psalm 2

Why are the nations in an uproar

And the peoples devising a vain thing? 

The kings of the earth take their stand

And the rulers take counsel together

Against the Lord and against His Anointed, saying, 

“Let us tear their fetters apart

And cast away their cords from us!”

He who sits in the heavens laughs,

The Lord scoffs at them. 

Then He will speak to them in His anger

And terrify them in His fury, saying, 

“But as for Me, I have installed My King

Upon Zion, My holy mountain.”

“I will surely tell of the decree of the Lord:

He said to Me, ‘You are My Son,

Today I have begotten You. 

‘Ask of Me, and I will surely give the nations as Your inheritance,

And the very ends of the earth as Your possession. 

‘You shall break them with a rod of iron,

You shall shatter them like earthenware.’”

Now therefore, O kings, show discernment;

Take warning, O judges of the earth. 

Worship the Lord with reverence

And rejoice with trembling. 

Do homage to the Son, that He not become angry, and you perish in the way,

For His wrath may soon be kindled.

How blessed are all who take refuge in Him! NASB

You don't have to look very far today to find nations in an uproar. Rulers and officials of many nations today are plotting vain things.  Is the Lord worried? Is He pacing about in heaven fretting that His great plan for history might be thwarted?  What a silly thought!  The psalmist plainly states that, to the contrary, the Lord sits securely on His throne and laughs! Now don't be mislead that is a gently chuckle of agreement.  No, this is a derisive laughter at the pompous pride of the world rules, that they dare to go against His statutes.  Soon, the Lord's anointed will come take His rightful place as ruler of all the nations, and these wicked people will be smashed,  like a rod of iron striking jars of clay.

This is the first Messianic prophecy in the book of Psalms.  It is the assurance to His people, that unrighteousness will not reign forever and that injustice will not triumph in the end.  The judges of this world can try to insist that life is not life, and marriage is not marriage, and that war is peace, but One is coming who will set all things right. So take heed judges, and be warned rulers. As for me, I plan to be with those who are worshiping the the Lord with reverence, doing homage to the Son.

Bonus: Listen to Psalm 2 by The Psalms Project:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zgKOyJNuhqc

Psalm 1 - Blessed is the Man

It's been awhile since I've posted anything, but I thought it was a time to bring back the blog. So despite, or maybe because of, these perilous times, let us consider the Psalms...

Psalm 1

How blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked,

Nor stand in the path of sinners,

Nor sit in the seat of scoffers! 

But his delight is in the law of the Lord,

And in His law he meditates day and night. 

He will be like a tree firmly planted by streams of water,

Which yields its fruit in its season

And its leaf does not wither;

And in whatever he does, he prospers.

The wicked are not so,

But they are like chaff which the wind drives away. 

Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment,

Nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous. 

For the Lord knows the way of the righteous,

But the way of the wicked will perish. NASB

"How blessed is the man..." Does anyone in our day and age still wish to be blessed? Does anyone still remember how to be blessed?  Perhaps, if you are reading this, you are one such, who wishes to explore the ancient wisdom, to learn the path that leads to being blessed by God.  If so, welcome to the journey.  The purpose of the Psalms is given to us in the first Psalm: "how blessed", "delight in the law of the Lord", "meditate day and night", "yields its fruit", "The Lord knows".  Let that sink in a moment. Read the Psalm again, and then let us begin.

The Declaration of Independence lays out "the pursuit of happiness" as one of the fundamental rights endowed by our Creator.  Did you know that the Hebrew word used here for blessed also means happy?  The writer of the Declaration undoubtably knew that the pursuit of happiness and the pursuit of blessing were one and the same thing.  You can not truly be happy without the blessing of God.  We have forgotten that in our time, and most pursue happiness in things that can not truly satisfy instead of pursuing blessing in the way that God prescribes.

The first step is to stop listening to the crowd. "Does not walk in the counsel of the wicked" sounds more dramatic, but that's basically what it means.  Listening to the constant cry from the public square, be it by TV, music, movies or friends, will pull in the exact opposite direction of being blessed and happy. "Not listening to scoffers"- where would our press be without a full staff of vocal and eloquent scoffers? It's tempting to take the easy way and listen, but the psalmist says that in the end all of this will blow away like chaff in the wind.

The second step sounds harsh to western ears, "delight in the law of the Lord".  That sounds down right un-American! My understanding of this made a great leap forward when I read a Bible teacher (though I don't recall who it was) who said that we can best understand the Old Testament by substituting "Jesus" for "law".  In our New Testament understanding, Jesus fulfilled the law and became our pattern and example for living.  This was the intent of the Old Testament law, but it was never able to fulfill that mission until Jesus came to fulfill all of its requirements.  So start again, "his delight is in Jesus, the Messiah of the Lord".  Doesn't that sound more like something that we can delight in doing?

"Like a tree..." Picture for a moment a quiet stream, with green grass, blue skies, and a majestic tree shading the bank, providing a safe and comfortable spot to sit and meditate on the wonders of creation. This begins to show us an image of what it is like to live a blessed life.  If we can be firmly planted by the water, drawing our sustenance from the river of life, then we will be able to provide shelter and protection to those who look to us.  

In the end, the greatest blessing is that "the Lord knows the way of the righteous".  To the one who isn't seeking the blessing of God, this might not sound like a good thing.  And indeed, the psalmist closes by saying that "the way of the wicked will perish".  But to the one who has spent time meditating on the way of Jesus and the love of the Father, it is a very good thing to be known by the Lord, and to receive the smile of His blessing.

Bonus: Listen to Psalm 1 by The Sons of Korah
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NfxT8fZi5qA