Psalm 27

-of David

 The LORD is my light and my salvation—
whom shall I fear?
The LORD is the stronghold of my life—
of whom shall I be afraid?

 When the wicked advance against me
to devour me,
it is my enemies and my foes
who will stumble and fall.
Though an army besiege me,
my heart will not fear;
though war break out against me,
even then I will be confident.

 One thing I ask from the LORD,
this only do I seek:
that I may dwell in the house of the LORD
all the days of my life,
to gaze on the beauty of the LORD
and to seek him in his temple.  For in the day of trouble
he will keep me safe in his dwelling;
he will hide me in the shelter of his sacred tent
and set me high upon a rock.

 Then my head will be exalted
above the enemies who surround me;
at his sacred tent I will sacrifice with shouts of joy;
I will sing and make music to the LORD.

 Hear my voice when I call, LORD;
be merciful to me and answer me.
My heart says of you, “Seek his face!”
Your face, LORD, I will seek.
Do not hide your face from me,
do not turn your servant away in anger;
you have been my helper.
Do not reject me or forsake me,
God my Savior.
Though my father and mother forsake me,
the LORD will receive me.  Teach me your way, LORD;
lead me in a straight path
because of my oppressors.
Do not turn me over to the desire of my foes,
for false witnesses rise up against me,
spouting malicious accusations.

  I remain confident of this:
I will see the goodness of the LORD
in the land of the living.
Wait for the LORD;
be strong and take heart
and wait for the LORD.

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One thing I have learned in my life is that nothing goes exactly as planned. Things change, cars break down, people can't make attend something, and yet through it all God is in control. When we are surrounded by problems we need to be more like David --he saw the problems, yes, but then put his focus on God. We do not need to face our problems alone, in the midst of trouble we can cry out to God and seek His help. Do not despair for God is right there!

       

Sweetly Broken

Sometimes it may seem that things are going nowhere but downhill but we are reassured in the Bible that God has all things working for the good of those who love Him. I have a planner with a quote that says "God will meet all our needs...but that doesn't mean all at the same time." Sometimes we need to be patient and endure suffering for a short time so that we can grow. People have told me that God never wants His people to suffer, but in Isaiah when it talks about how Jesus will come and be crucified it says that "it was the Lord's will to crush Him and cause Him to suffer" Isaiah 53:10. God's idea is not to annoy us and cause unnecessary suffering but to mold us into what He wants us to be: we have faults and sometimes the only way to fix them is to totally reshape us into something new. 2 Corinthians 5:17 says "therefore if anyone is in Christ he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come". What we often forget is that we are not only made new but the old is taken away..not all at once but God works away at us to get rid of our sin and make us pleasing to Him. It may hurt for awhile but it is worth the pain...surrender to Christ, trust in the Lord, and He will make you new and better than you ever were before!



♫ At the cross you beckon me you draw me gently to my knees and I am sweetly broken, lost for words; so lost in love, I'm sweetly broken..wholly surrendered ♫