Now I Lay Me Down To Sleep…

The title of this post comes from the words of one of the first prayers I learned as a child. Perhaps this was true for you as well. When I think of the moments in life when God has comforted me, having this prayer to pray as a child was one of those moments. Children seek comfort from their parents as a natural course of events. God is our Father, and we are drawn to seek comfort from Him in the same way. And God tells us in the scriptures that He will respond when we seek that comfort from Him and that we can trust that He will respond.

Psalms 4:1 Hear me when I call, O God of my righteousness: thou hast enlarged me when I was in distress; have mercy upon me, and hear my prayer.
2 O ye sons of men, how long will ye turn my glory into shame? how long will ye love vanity, and seek after leasing? Selah.
3 But know that the Lord hath set apart him that is godly for himself: the Lord will hear when I call unto him.
4 Stand in awe, and sin not: commune with your own heart upon your bed, and be still. Selah.
5 Offer the sacrifices of righteousness, and put your trust in the Lord.
6 There be many that say, Who will shew us any good? Lord, lift thou up the light of thy countenance upon us.
7 Thou hast put gladness in my heart, more than in the time that their corn and their wine increased.
8 I will both lay me down in peace, and sleep: for thou, Lord, only makest me dwell in safety.

David wrote this to God both as a call for comfort and mercy, and as a way I think to acknowledge Him and say thanks. In the first verse David calls out to God. When the evil is around him, he knows that God is looking for the godly, those that will follow after Him. We are not perfect, but if we ask for forgiveness God will give it to us, and we will be forgiven. The sacrifice of righteousness in this case is to put our lives on His alter and be humble enough to seek forgiveness. When we do, we can trust God to do His part to show us His goodness and look upon us as the children that He loves. The result is the gladness of comfort in our hearts, and we can rest in peace, knowing our God will keep us safe.

Sometimes our childhood prayers hold more treasures than we knew.

Prayer
Father, we praise and exalt You as our Protector and Deliverer. Please watch over Your people today and keep them safe. Please help us to turn from sin and toward You. Be strong on our behalf, and deliver us from the evil that may come today. In Jesus’ (Yeshua’s) name. Amen.

Who Am I?

On the sabbath I find this to be a question I like to ask myself. The point of the question is that what I want to try to better understand is who am I in God. It is easy for me to get off track and focus on my stuff about family, work, the car, or whatever. These things are all important. However, God already knows they are important to us, and they are important to Him as well. God sees the much bigger picture.

God rested on the sabbath. That does not mean He is not still at work on the sabbath. God holds everything together, everyday, at all times. God has a plan. So what did He rest from on the sabbath, and what was His rest?

Genesis 2:1 Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them.
2 And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made.
3 And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it he had rested from all his work which God created and made.

Some have said it meant resting from creation, therefore we should not create. If that was true then He would only have had one sabbath, because as it says in verse 1, the heavens earth, the creation work, were finished. It seems better to think that it meant he rested from the work He was up to in the first week. He took a break from the busy routine. What I found interesting today is that it says He blessed the seventh day, which in Hebrew means to kneel down. He also sanctified it which means to pronounce like a declaration or appointment. So, here is what I get about the sabbath that God is up to and the pattern.

After six days of the routine (it is hard to think of creating all of this routine) He stopped, and knelt down to be with His creation! He just wanted to spend time with it and with His kids! The message to me is He has it in control and wants to be with us and the world around us, and He wants us to do the same. Today, let’s spend time with our God, the Master and the Creator of the universe. Sound good?

Prayer
Father, we praise and exalt You. What a truly amazing thing You have done in creating our world! We ask that You spend time with us today. We ask that You kneel down and help us to commune with You. Help us to learn to set a day apart for You in a way that advances the kingdom of God. Help us to be Your ministers – Your hands, feet, and voice – here on Your earth. Help us to have our needs met, and overflow us that we might help meet the needs of others. In Jesus’ (Yeshua’s) name. Amen.

Mixed Emotions

Recently I had some good news, and also some news about how certain people were behaving wrongly, using the court system to oppress people. Actually, the news is full of these stories frequently. It left me wondering how we as believers are to respond towards these actions. As I prayed about this and other things in my mind all that kept coming to mind was the head of a large serpent looking at me. I looked up scriptures about serpents and came across two that were interesting.

Psalms 58:3 The wicked are estranged from the womb: they go astray as soon as they be born, speaking lies.

The psalmist begins by describing the wicked as those that lie. In fact he does not speak in a flattering way at all about these people, showing them to be evil people trying to harm the people of God. Most of the balance of this psalm talks about various harsh experiences that will come upon these evil people.

Psalms 58:10 The righteous shall rejoice when he seeth the vengeance: he shall wash his feet in the blood of the wicked.
11 So that a man shall say, Verily there is a reward for the righteous: verily he is a God that judgeth in the earth.

In the end these things happen to the evil people and the people of God are lifted up so that everyone knows God delivers His people. There is a similar yet a little less blunt description in another psalm that speaks about evil men as serpents.

Psalms 140:1 Deliver me, O Lord, from the evil man: preserve me from the violent man;
2 Which imagine mischiefs in their heart; continually are they gathered together for war.
3 They have sharpened their tongues like a serpent; adders’ poison is under their lips. Selah.
4 Keep me, O Lord, from the hands of the wicked; preserve me from the violent man; who have purposed to overthrow my goings.

Here David is the psalmist and he directly speaks about the evil people that want to cast him down. In David’s time that meant war. Today there are other ways that evil men try to attack God’s people. This psalm is similar to Psalms 58 in the ending of it.

Psalms 140:11 Let not an evil speaker be established in the earth: evil shall hunt the violent man to overthrow him.
12 I know that the Lord will maintain the cause of the afflicted, and the right of the poor.
13 Surely the righteous shall give thanks unto thy name: the upright shall dwell in thy presence.

Again, the evil people are made to feel their own evil and God’s people are upheld by Him. I noted that the cause of the afflicted and the right of the poor are something that David knew God would stand and defend.

So these are my mixed emotions. These types of psalms that cry out for deliverance and give praise to God for overthrowing evil then raising up His people, they are throughout the Psalms. It seems like David was often singing these types of songs to God. On the one hand I feel sad for the evil people because I know I am not perfect either. On the other hand it appears that this is a pattern for us to fight against the evil that comes in our lives, and that can include people. Paul instructs us to sing psalms to ourselves and others as a means of building them and us up. It appears that this is a part of a believer’s ministry, to sing into existence the judgments of God that all men may know that God alone is King, and that He looks out for the poor and afflicted, and will preserve His people.

Prayer
Father, we praise and exalt You today. We are blessed to have You for our King. We want to do the things You are doing and say the things You are saying. Please help us to do those things and say those things. Sometimes we struggle with being a people that take a stand, not because we don’t want to but because we are uncertain what stand You want us to take. Please give us Your wisdom. Please help us have the strength and the courage to stand as You would stand. We ask that You cast down the spiritual darkness and the evil people that come against Your children, and that You raise up Your people that all men may know You are God. In Jesus’ (Yeshua’s) name. Amen.

It’s All In Where You Look

Have you ever had a time in your life when it seemed like there were more obstacles than open doors to go through? I know I have. We are placed here on earth in part to give us the opportunity to learn and to grow, and to enjoy that process, or at least I think that is true. As I reflected this morning on this very idea, it made me smile. Jesus gave us some insights in this regard that I find very valuable, and in the past I don’t think I really clearly understood the impact of His words.

Luke 12:31 But rather seek ye the kingdom of God; and all these things shall be added unto you.
32 Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.

This is one of two times that Jesus (Yeshua) told a parable about the importance of the kingdom of God to us. He was talking about how we cannot change anything by worrying. He also said we do not have to worry because God takes care of all of the animals, certainly He will take care of us. What I see now about that is He is constantly working at all times in everything. He is already taking care of making sure we have our needs met. In His kingdom, everything is already taken care of by Him. Certainly we would be too, right? Like us, God wants to be happy, so He wants to do what makes Him happy. Verse 32 is such a blessing then because Jesus (Yeshua) said it makes God happy to give us the kingdom when we seek it! And later Jesus tells us how to get there and what to watch out for that could keep us from getting there.

Luke 12:34 For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.

Jesus (Yeshua) told us to treasure the kingdom, so our heart will be there. Our heart is a driving force in empowering both our speech and our prayers. Our heart will drive us to what it seeks. If we consciously keep seeking for the kingdom, our heart will be there, and this process will snowball until we are completely engaged in wanting God’s kingdom. And God will give it to us.

It can be challenging to do this in times of stress. I think that is why God invented prayer and praise, but that is for another post. For today, join me in lifting your prayer and praise to God in thankfulness for all He has for us, and for bringing His kingdom into our lives.

Prayer
Father, we praise and exalt You today. You truly are the great King or the universe. Please bring Your kingdom into our lives today, and into the lives of our friends and families. Do so mightily and speedily so that all may know You alone are the One True God. In Yeshua’s (Jesus’) name. Amen.

Wisdom In The Battle

When in life we face challenges, we can find ourselves wondering at the prosperity of those that do things that we would believe God does not like. This same point was addressed by the psalmist in Psalms 49.

Psalms 49:16 Be not thou afraid when one is made rich, when the glory of his house is increased;
17 For when he dieth he shall carry nothing away: his glory shall not descend after him.
18 Though while he lived he blessed his soul: and men will praise thee, when thou doest well to thyself.
19 He shall go to the generation of his fathers; they shall never see light.
20 Man that is in honour, and understandeth not, is like the beasts that perish.

Here we see that those that do well and have acquired many things may think it will go on forever, and men praise them in their wealth. However, it will not go on forever. In fact, we see in verse 20, that if we end up with great possession but lack understanding, then when we die we will be like the animals that die. We will perish without God and without a future. So what should be our battle cry? Should we cry out to God when we are in need, and to what end? The answer is found in many places in scripture. One I saw this morning was in Psalms 25.

Psalms 25:1 Unto thee, O Lord, do I lift up my soul.
2 O my God, I trust in thee: let me not be ashamed, let not mine enemies triumph over me.

The first part of the answer comes in the first two verses. Yes we should ask God to battle on our behalf. This same theme continues throughout this Psalm. Toward the end of the verse we find what the psalmist said when he called out to God, and what his expectations were from God.

14 The secret of the Lord is with them that fear him; and he will shew them his covenant.
15 Mine eyes are ever toward the Lord; for he shall pluck my feet out of the net.
16 Turn thee unto me, and have mercy upon me; for I am desolate and afflicted.
17 The troubles of my heart are enlarged: O bring thou me out of my distresses.
18 Look upon mine affliction and my pain; and forgive all my sins.
19 Consider mine enemies; for they are many; and they hate me with cruel hatred.
20 O keep my soul, and deliver me: let me not be ashamed; for I put my trust in thee.
21 Let integrity and uprightness preserve me; for I wait on thee.
22 Redeem Israel, O God, out of all his troubles.

In verse 14 the word “secret” means the close company, similar to the secret place of the Most High in Psalms 91. Here the psalmist keeps his eyes on and looking toward God for His deliverance. Deliverance from what? In the last verse we see it is all troubles – sickness, sorrow, poverty, and every manner of distress.

In verse 17 we see that the psalmist felt a great burden in his heart. Have you ever felt that from some problem? I know I have. He asked God in verse 18 to look at the specific problem, and then he asked forgiveness. This is key in our warfare. If we ask God to cleanse us, He does, and then we are once again in good standing with Him.

Nothing separates us from God if we seek His forgiveness. It is just a request away. Then the psalmist asks for God to look at the many points of attack he is feeling, his many enemies. He is asking for deliverance from them all. Again, this ties back to our covenant with God.

God promised His people great blessings when they served Him. The law was once external and required much doing. Even so, this psalmist knew that God would respond to a request for forgiveness, and knew God was the only source of deliverance. Today, the new covenant is written in our hearts. Today it is about being. We can follow this same path as the psalmist, and ask God for forgiveness, and for His deliverance from all our troubles. This would be great wisdom in our warfare against darkness.

Prayer
Father, we praise and exalt You as the Most High God. Father, we ask today that You look and see all of the many afflictions of Your people. Please forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. Please help us to know the way we should go, and help us go that way, Your way. We have many troubles and are cast down, and we ask that You deliver us from all of these. In Jesus’ (Yeshua’s) name. Amen.

California Corners

In construction with 2x4s a standard corner is made up of solid wood. While sturdy, it offers little in the way of insulation properties. Outside corners in such construction are typically colder in the winter and warmer in the summer. They are solid, but not as good as they could be. Enter newer construction methods.

If a home is built with 2x6s, less vertical members are required for the same or equal strength. And the corners can be modified so that they are partially hollow, allowing for insulation to be placed in them. These corners are equally solid, and they add more usefulness in terms of better insulation. How does this relate to us?

Not everyone will be built the same way or by the same people. Different people may experience different amounts of spiritual growth at the same time. Paul addressed this in various places.

1 Corinthians 3:6 I have planted, Apollos watered; but God gave the increase.

Here Paul is pointing out that there are many that may come in to our lives to help us grow, but it is God doing the work.

Ephesians 4:11 And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers;
12 For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ:
13 Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ:
14 That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive;
15 But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ:

Here Paul talks about how the work of the ministry is to perfect the saints so they can build up the church. Reading to the end here we see that it takes time to everyone moving forward. This is in part because different people are different, and it takes a body to build a body.

The point is some people will be California corners and some will not, but God does the work in us all.

Prayer
Father, we praise and exalt You. You alone are our King. Please help us to build each other up and not tear each other down. Please help us to move forward toward being more like Jesus (Yeshua) every day. And thank You for the provision for wholeness You give us everyday. In Jesus’ (Yeshua’s) name. Amen.

What Encourages You?

During the times of the year when there are holidays, I find myself asking what is it that I am thankful for and what is it that encourages me. Maybe you ask these same questions for yourself. In communications today with a friend, he had several co-workers that faced tragedy and disappointment over the last few days. This morning as I was reflecting on a sunny day and asking these very questions, I was lead to Psalms 103.

Psalms 103:1 Bless the Lord, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy name.
2 Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits:
3 Who forgiveth all thine iniquities; who healeth all thy diseases;
4 Who redeemeth thy life from destruction; who crowneth thee with lovingkindness and tender mercies;
5 Who satisfieth thy mouth with good things; so that thy youth is renewed like the eagle’s.
6 The Lord executeth righteousness and judgment for all that are oppressed.

In this passage we see the psalmist blessing God, and then listing a list of all that God does for us.

• Forgiveness
• Healing
• Redeemed from destruction
• Love and mercy
• Every good thing
• Renewed youth.

What an amazing list of things God has in store for us, and this was only a few verses! Our God loves and cares for us. He is on our side.

I think I found my answer.

Prayer
Father, we praise You today for being our God. Thank You for all You do and provide for us. Today please touch the lives of Your people to lift them up. reach out to those in need and tragedy and give them strength. Me too. In Jesus’ (Yeshua’s) name. Amen.

Beauty For Ashes

When Jesus was offered the scrolls for the weekly reading in the temple, He read from Isaiah.

Luke 4:16 And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up: and, as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and stood up for to read.
17 And there was delivered unto him the book of the prophet Esaias. And when he had opened the book, he found the place where it was written,
18 The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised,
19 To preach the acceptable year of the Lord.

In looking into the Hebrew for the “acceptable year of the Lord” we find some interesting meaning to this phrase. The word acceptable here means delight, good or favorable. It is a positive thing. The word year means a cycle of time. This phrase then means to announce the beginning of the good cycle of God our Lord, not just a single year. After handing them back the scroll, Yeshua (Jesus) had this to say.

Luke 4:20 And he closed the book, and he gave it again to the minister, and sat down. And the eyes of all them that were in the synagogue were fastened on him.
21 And he began to say unto them, This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears.

He proclaimed that that scripture was fulfilled when they heard Him read it. That means that the new cycle of God’s deliverance began at that moment. The tradition was to read certain scripture portions each week. Most often these were chanted or sung. So we see that the fulfillment of the good cycle beginning took place when He read the scripture. Jesus later told us that he needed to leave so the Comforter could come to us. If we read further in Isaiah, we can see what that meant. Jesus (Yeshua) stopped reading about half way through Isaiah 61:2. The rest of this verse and then all of verse three create a great picture of hope for believers.

Isaiah 61:2 To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn;
3 To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that he might be glorified.

We are in the time where we are to cast of lamenting and morning. Jesus (Yeshua) ushered in a new cycle, and we are the participants in that cycle today. The rest of this chapter tells of what will happen, how we move forward, and of God’s blessing on us all as we partake of this cycle. God is truly on our side and has provided for us a means of comfort.

Prayer
Father, we praise You for the age of goodness that we are in and thank You for being our King. We ask today Father that You rise up in judgment, and bring righteousness to the earth. You have sent Your Comforter. Use us in our prayers and praise to bring deliverance to Your creation. In Yeshua’s (Jesus’) name.

Family Times

Today was a wonderful day for me. My oldest daughter and her step son came to town and over to my place, which does not happen often enough. It was a great time of singing songs together, making food, and laughing. As they pulled down the driveway, leaving for the day, I was saddened that they were leaving. After waving until they were out of sight, I turned back into the garage, brushing the moisture from my eyes. It made me think of God and what the sabbath is about.

God is our Father. He longs to spend time with us, just as we do our children. He loves to hear us sing, like when I listened to my daughter and her son. And as I am writing this, I imagine Him smiling and laughing. I know that may sound odd, but that is what us father’s like to do. We like just being dad to the kids.

Days like today help me to understand God’s pattern for the sabbath.

Genesis 2:2 And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made.
3 And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it he had rested from all his work which God created and made.

It seems to me that God wants to spend time with us, like I did today with my family. He wants there to be time every week for us to be with Him and the rest of our family. He wants to relax and listen to what we have to say, see what we are up to, and enjoy our rejoicing. What a great pattern God has given us. He is the pattern of a true Father.

Prayer
Father, thank You for Your patterns of life. Thank You especially for showing us what a real Father is like. Thank You for Your pattern of rest and family time every week. Thank You for delivering our families from the trials of lack and sickness. Thank You for life. In Yeshua’s (Jesus’) name. Amen.

The Sun Singer

Today I was reading Psalms 19, which I have not read in a while. As I read through it I discovered that this Psalm is the source of several songs. I found myself at YouTube listening to some of the older versions of the song with the chorus, “More to Be Desired than Gold”, and some of the newer songs. As I reread the Psalm, I saw something new that I had not seen before.

In verses 1-6, the psalmist is telling us how the heavens are set to sing to the rest of creation.

Psalms 19:1 The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth his handywork.
2 Day unto day uttereth speech, and night unto night sheweth knowledge.
3 There is no speech nor language, where their voice is not heard.

In verse one we are told that we will both hear and see God’s glory and handiwork. Verse two says this goes on day and night. Verse three tells us there is no place where it is not heard, that every language everywhere hears what is being said.

Psalms 19:4 Their line is gone out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world. In them hath he set a tabernacle for the sun,

Verse four tells that their line (their ability to bind, connect, and measure) has gone through all the earth along with their words. At this point I began to wonder who was singing and what were they singing, because their line and words made a place for the sun to dwell (the tabernacle for the sun).

Psalms 19:5 Which is as a bridegroom coming out of his chamber, and rejoiceth as a strong man to run a race.
6 His going forth is from the end of the heaven, and his circuit unto the ends of it: and there is nothing hid from the heat thereof.

In verses five and six we see that at least one of the singers is the sun as it moves across the sky. The sun is referred to as a bridegroom coming out of his chamber. A bridegroom coming to the wedding has great intent! And the description of the comparison to the one that shouts and carries on at a sporting event, the runner at the race, makes clear that their is not only great resolve but that the sun is shouting across the sky the praises of our God. What are those praises?

Psalms 19:7 The law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul: the testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple.
8 The statutes of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart: the commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes.
9 The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring for ever: the judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether.
10 More to be desired are they than gold, yea, than much fine gold: sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb.
11 Moreover by them is thy servant warned: and in keeping of them there is great reward.

Today, let’s join with the heavens and the firmament, singing the praises of our God!

Prayer
Father, we exalt You as the Most High God. To You we give all honor and glory and praise. You alone are worthy, and You alone are the One that delivers Your people. Deliver Your people today, Great and Mighty King! In Yeshua’s (Jesus’) name. Amen.