Through the Bible - Jeremiah 33-35, Philemon
Good morning,
I've mentioned before that as part of my devotions I read from the Psalms every day. When I send out the VOTD, most often I mark down that date that the verse was quoted in the margin. I read Psalm 31 the other day and was surprised to see that in over 4 years I did not show a reference to this chapter even though several verses are underlined. I decided then to go to this chapter for this weekend.
Mike Kellogg writes that "the Psalms, in all their poetic beauty, tell us that God deserves all the glory.... and they show us why. They extol the majesty of His creation and the goodness of His ways. And then a funny thing happens; they help us with everything."
Ps 31:15 My times are in Your hand;
Deliver me from the hand of my enemies,
And from those who persecute me.
16 Make Your face shine upon Your servant;
Save me for Your mercies' sake. NKJV
In this time of political unrest, and uncertainty in many areas of life. we as Christians must remember that our times are in His hand. We should be praying that the Lord would make His face shine on us, that He would have an impact on our country as He works through us.
The psalmist is writing in a time of uncertainty, (read the passage below), but he is still rejoicing, still trusting, and still hoping for his future with the attitude shown above.
I was reminded of the song "Shine on Us".
Lord, let Your light, light of Your face
Shine on us (repeat)
That we may be saved
That we may have life
To shine our way in the darkest night
Let your light shine on us
Lord, let your grace, grace from Your hand,
Come over us (repeat)
That we may be saved
That we may have life
To shine our way in the darkest night
Let Your grace come over us
Lord, let Your love, love with no end
Fall on us (repeat)
That we may be saved,
That we may have life
To shine our way in the darkest night
Let Your love fall on us
Let Your light shine on us
I'll close this with a reference to the first time that the request for God to "shine upon us" is mentioned in the Bible. From the book of Numbers (how many times do you go to that book for encouragement).
Num 6:22-7:1
The Priestly Blessing
22 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: 23 "Speak to Aaron and his sons, saying, 'This is the way you shall bless the children of Israel. Say to them:
24 "The Lord bless you and keep you;
25 The Lord make His face shine upon you,
And be gracious to you;
26 The Lord lift up His countenance upon you,
And give you peace."'
27 "So they shall put My name on the children of Israel, and I will bless them." NKJV
That is my prayer for you and our, churches, our country today.
In Christ,
Mike
mikevw@bellsouth.net
Ps 31:7-17
7 I will be glad and rejoice in Your mercy,For You have considered my trouble;You have known my soul in adversities, 8 And have not shut me up into the hand of the enemy;You have set my feet in a wide place.
9 Have mercy on me, O Lord, for I am in trouble;My eye wastes away with grief,Yes, my soul and my body! 10 For my life is spent with grief,And my years with sighing;My strength fails because of my iniquity,And my bones waste away. 11 I am a reproach among all my enemies,But especially among my neighbors,And am repulsive to my acquaintances;Those who see me outside flee from me. 12 I am forgotten like a dead man, out of mind;I am like a broken vessel. 13 For I hear the slander of many;Fear is on every side;While they take counsel together against me,They scheme to take away my life.
14 But as for me, I trust in You, O Lord;I say, "You are my God." 15 My times are in Your hand;Deliver me from the hand of my enemies,And from those who persecute me. 16 Make Your face shine upon Your servant;Save me for Your mercies' sake. NKJV
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