The Goodness of God- Psalm 103

 Before the death of Jesus at Calvary, I have often had different thoughts about who the Lord was to the Old Testament saints. Was He more of a Judge, throwing down verdict in form of fire and pestilence for disobedience, or was He the God of provision—shown to Abraham as his son lay on the altar awaiting death? Did He desire to have a close relationship with all of who would long for it, or did He choose certain people to bestow favor on—like Moses, Isaac, Abraham or a Joshua? Before the cross, I tend to think of Him as being less merciful and gentle, and yet when I stopped to read Psalm 103, I got a glimpse of David's good LORD. Let me share some of it with you:

Let all that I am praise the LORD; may I never forget the good things he does for me. 

He forgives my sins

and heals my diseases.

He redeems me from death

and crowns me with love and tender mercies.

He fills my life with good things,

My youth is renewed like the eagle's!

The LORD gives righteousness and justice to all who are treated unfairly.

The LORD is compassionate and merciful,

slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love.

He will not constantly accuse us,

nor remain angry forever.

He does not punish us for all our sins;

he does not deal harshly with us, as we deserve.

For his unfailing love to those who fear him

is as great as the height of the heavens above the earth.

He has removed our sins as far from us

as the east is from the west.

The LORD is like a father to his children,

tender and compassionate to those who fear him.

For he knows how weak we are;

he remembers we are only dust (Psalm 103:2-6, 8-14, NLT).

On this page, written many, many years ago, I see the heart of my own Savior. One who is Forgiver, Healer, Redeemer—compassionate and full of mercy and goodness. He doesn't deal harshly with us as we rightly deserve. He is a loving and tender Father. And He knows everything about us—even our weaknesses. He certainly knew David's, and yet this was the LORD David knew and loved—and the LORD that loved David, despite his many failures.

For any who may be longing for the LORD, this little Psalm is packed full of Him. If you read it with understanding, you will clearly see His good character and it will hopefully birth in you, a longing to know and serve Him better. Charles H. Spurgeon's Treasury of David states this about Psalm 103: "There is too much in the Psalm, for a thousand pens to write, it is one of those all-comprehending Scriptures which is a Bible in itself, and it might alone suffice for the hymn-book of the church." 

I am no David—or even a Charles Spurgeon. But I've come to know each characteristic listed in this song of my LORD, drawing me to a true longing for Him. The world is filled with discouragement and painful situations. Life presses upon all of us at times and fills us with a deep ache—an ache only the good LORD of Psalm 103 can fill. Do you want Him? Do you long for Him? He is our good, good Father who despite the circumstances of living in a broken and sinful world, fills our lives with good things. May we take some time today to reflect on His character and thank Him for His tender, compassionate love toward us. 

Hope is Better than We Realize

 I was in the grocery store the other day, and I heard a little boy talking about getting a dog. "I really hope we get a new puppy, mom." I could see longing in his eyes and hear it in his voice. Getting a puppy is a pretty big deal for a kid, and I remember hoping for the same when I was a child. Lucky for me, I've come to be the owner of quite a few dogs—each very special to me.

Maybe like me, you have a laundry list of things you are hoping for. I hope I get to go somewhere warm, balmy and tropical this summer. I hope spring weather comes soon—I'm sick of rainy, cold days. I hope my children have the most amazing future and enjoy a close relationship with their Heavenly Father. I hope the money we invested in dog training produces the most well-behaved Jack Russell terrier around (quite the feat). The truth is, I hope for many things, yet my hoping does not guarantee they will come to pass. 

"Hope" is a word we use very differently in our culture than what it means when read it in Scripture. When we hope for something, we are essentially "wishing" for it. Our hope is something we long for, but it simply may not happen. If we applied this same meaning when we read this word in Scripture, it would imply that our hope in God isn't really secure—it's possible, but not guaranteed! When we understand God and His Word, we see how our use of this word today cannot be the same as when it was used in God's Word when relating to our hope being in God.

"Hope" is commonly used to mean a wish: its strength is the strength of the person's desire. But in the Bible "hope" is the confident expectation of what God has promised and its strength is in His faithfulness." (onlinelibrary.wiley.com)

When we speak of biblical hope, we speak of it with confidence. The weather, people, finances, and situations are all circumstantial things we may hope for, but they are not definite and we cannot know how those circumstances will play out. Our hope is a desire, but we may not get what we wish for.

In the Bible, hope and faith are interlinked. When we look at Hebrews 11:1, we see evidence of this: "Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen." Our hope is a sure thing, because we have faith in God. This type of hope is only available and known by believers. Our hope is characterized by confidence and not just wishing for something. 

Another characteristic that accompanies our hope is anticipation for something far  better. We are waiting and hoping on our Lord's return to take us home. What is waiting for us—our eternal inheritance in Christ, is far better than the best we can possibly experience here. Our hope lies in a promise given by Jesus when He left this world: "Behold, I am coming soon, bringing my recompense with me, to repay each one for what he has done (Revelation 22:12, ESV)."

Friends, with all of the uncertainties and painful circumstances we experience, isn't it wonderful to have confidence in our Father? To know He is with us, for us, and coming soon to take us home? This isn't just something we wish for—it's an absolute. Somedays when life hurts—when people disappoint me and my heart is broken, I find such comfort in knowing my trials are temporary. Whatever situation you may be battling in this moment, it has an expiration date. Our hope is something we can be sure of—deliverance is coming!

Maybe when you use this word the next time, you'll remember what it means when it's rooted in God's promises. It can be confusing when we think of hope as only a possibility when we understand the faithfulness of God. And as we read it in Scripture regarding our future in Christ, understand it is a promise and God always keep His promises. Our hope in Christ isn't on shaky ground—it isn't tied to wishing or longing. May we know with absolute confidence that God is our hope, and one day soon, He will bring us into the good of that hope—our eternal inheritance. I long for it—yes. I wish for it—certainly. But oh how awesome it is to be assured of it. 

For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience (Romans 8:24-25, ESV).

For whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction, that through endurance and through the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope (Romans 15:4, ESV).

"And now, O Lord, for what do I wait? My hope is in you (Psalm 39:7, ESV).

Dear Heavenly Father, we thank You for being the Source of our hope. Your faithfulness gives us confidence that our hope in You is secure. We don't have to wish or wonder, we can know. We look forward to our inheritance, Lord, and thank You for the hope You have given us. In Your name we pray, Amen.

Living Without Sin

     Today, my heart is heavy when I think of the world we live in. Depravity of every kind fills the hustle of modern day cities, as well as the quiet gentle slopes of the countryside. You can't turn on the news without hearing awful things. Nor could you scroll through social media without squirming with discomfort. School cafeterias buzz with plans-plans that involve sin. Hospital corridors are teeming with patients suffering the results of sin. Co-workers whisper of things that should never be said. Church walls witness sinners in desperate need of a Savior. And my own heart is a place that is in a constant battle against that 3-letter word-sin!
     Without sin, we would live in a perfect world. This is a world only experienced by two humans-Adam and Eve. A world unstained before the fall of mankind. A world fully connected with God. This world was pain-free. It was open and trusting and completely harmonious. No wars. No racism. No worry. No sickness. No sadness. No divorce. No sexual sin. No selfishness. No natural disasters. No hunger. No death! Nothing at all that could hurt us. It's a world that I honestly can't imagine, because I've never lived there. But I know that someday, I will.
     I don't know about you, but I'm looking forward to heaven. But even though I am, I'm unable to grasp what it will be like to no longer be tempted. I can't begin to understand never feeling worry, pain, or sadness. I don't know a world that isn't self-absorbed. I worry about illness, or the loss of a loved one. I am in a constant war against aging and body image. I feel a craving for more-a craving that can't ever be fully satisfied because my list of wants continually grows. This is all we know, because we live after the fall of Adam and Eve. But I long for better.
     If I assigned a mental picture to entering heaven's gate, there would be a huge pile of burdens, too high to measure, laying just outside of it. I would walk through with such relief after such a weary journey through life. Oh, how I long to see the face of Jesus-for sure, but I also long to feel the absence of sin and how deeply it affects every aspect of my life. I long to finally be at complete peace with no worries or cares weighing heavily on my mind and my heart. I long to be holy. And while many days here make me smile with joy, the burden is always there, always lingering, and always beckoning me to succumb to the desires of my flesh. 
     You've been hurt by sin. We all have. None have been exempt from its wages. But if you belong to Christ, it's all just temporary. And while we can claim victory over temptation through His Spirit each day, it's a constant war. Some wars we will win, and some we will falter and fail. As our hearts are heavy with the devastating current events-we long for better days, yet we cannot experience complete peace and unity in a sin broken world. What our souls long for is heaven-a place where sin will be forever put away. And while I can change my own actions, the world will continue to disappoint me. Until I'm home in heaven, sin will be an issue for me. I'll wrestle with it until the day I die. But one day-one day soon, it'll lose its hold on me. I long for the release of its deadly grip, and I daydream of how wonderful it will to finally be free.

For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, Romans 3:23 (ESV).
Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned- Romans 5:12 (ESV).
Surely there is not a righteous man on earth who does good and never sins Ecclesiastes 7:20 (ESV).
Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me Psalm 51:10 (ESV).

Dear Heavenly Father, we long for the day sin will be forever removed from us. It hurts others, and it hurts me. Our sin had such a cost to Your Son, Jesus, and through that cost, He made a way for us to be free! We look forward to the day we will no longer struggle with it, and are at perfect rest in Your presence. In Your name we pray, Amen!

     
     

Don't Rush "Right"

     There is nothing that unsettles me like having my "right" disrupted. A mess on the kitchen floor, a missing check, a piece of wayward hair, or a dinner gone bad can yank my chain. "Right" feels good to me, and I don't want anything or anyone to mess it up. Doing so frustrates me, and makes me feel stressed. It's silly, since life is rarely full of days that go perfectly right, so why I let it get to me, I don't know. 
     What I do know is that when "right" turns "wrong", I scramble to clean up the mess and restore order once again. It doesn't really matter about the process, as long as it is quick. That works just fine when you're dealing with little life messes, but when you're facing infidelity in your marriage, quick won't work. Fixing the bigger issues in my life takes time, effort, patience, and the help of my Heavenly Father.
     I confess when it came to my broken marriage, I initially rushed "right." I hated being broken, and longed for things to feel normal again. I accepted an apology without a change of heart. I wanted to believe him, because I wanted to believe. I forgave, and didn't wait to see the spiritual change I longed for. As a result, I found myself in a mess again from rushing forward. I welcomed him back home, wanting so desperately for him to be there. But I soon discovered that without a spiritual change, this wasn't what was right.
     Waiting is hard, isn't it? Especially when you don't have peace with your "now." I knew that scripture urged me to wait on the Lord, and I heard if from others. But sometimes when you're hurting while you wait, your heart can get in the way of wisdom. Yes- I longed for the wrongs to be made right, but until they really were right, it was wrong to push forward. And yet life is a learning process, and God understood my longing. 
     After my husband walked out the door the second time, I knew I could not receive him back without a change in not only his heart, but his spiritual heart. I would not rush ahead this time, but would exercise faith and patience as I waited to see what God had for me. I didn't know what that was, but I knew that until He gave it to me, I wasn't interested. Some things are just not meant to be rushed into, but when God unmistakably opens a door, I don't want to miss it. And I hope I'm not too busy to notice from rushing around to find that missing check or fix a piece of wayward hair! 

The simple believes everything, but the prudent gives thought to his steps. Proverbs 14:15 ESV
Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. Philippians 4:6 ESV
For still the vision awaits its appointed time; it hastens to the end- it will not lie. If it seems slow, wait for it; it will surely come; it will not delay. Habakkuk 2:3 ESV
For there is a time and a way for everything, although man's trouble lies heavy on him. Ecclesiastes 8:6 ESV

Dear Heavenly Father, help me to exercise godly patience and not rush things. It's hard to wait, yet I know that waiting for Your timing will bring about the peace I truly long for. Guide my steps, and give me eyes to see like You see, and a heart that seeks Your way, and not my own. In Jesus' name I pray, Amen!