The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, and majestic in his radiant splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him today and what came to my heart and mind in Psalm 88:1-2,
Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!
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"Lord, you are the God who saves me; day and night I cry out to you. May my prayer come before you; turn your ear to my cry."
The psalmist is clearly concerned with his ability to communicate with the Lord. In the above two verses he points to his crying out day and night to the Lord in his desperation and that his prayer be received and responded to by him.
In verse 9 he again speaks of his calling out to the Lord, and again in verse 13, "But I cry to you for help, Lord; in the morning my prayer comes before you." It appears to me his prayers, his calling out to the Lord, his crying out to the Lord, is proportional to the desperate condition he finds himself in.
I can't help but notice that he attributes that desperate condition he finds himself in to the Lord himself:
"You have put me in the lowest pit, in the darkest depths." Verse 6.
"Your wrath lies heavily on me; you have overwhelmed me with all your waves." Verse 7.
"You have taken from me my closest friends and have made me repulsive to them." Verse 8.
"Why, Lord, do you reject me and hide your face from me?" Verse 14.
"From my youth I have suffered and been close to death; I have borne your terrors and am in despair." Verse 15.
"Your wrath has swept over me; your terrors have destroyed me. All day long they surround me like a flood; they have completely engulfed me." Verses 16-17.
"You have taken from me friend and neighbor— darkness is my closest friend." Verse 18.
The Lord has his ways of getting our attention, and that attention is expressed as we cry out to the Lord. We all have our opportunities with the Lord in this very regard:
"Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as his children. For what children are not disciplined by their father? If you are not disciplined—and everyone undergoes discipline—then you are not legitimate, not true sons and daughters at all. Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of spirits and live! They disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, in order that we may share in his holiness. No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it." Hebrews 12:7-11.
It is within those difficult times in our lives as believers that the Lord is treating us as his own children, possibly more than at any other time. When we find ourselves in such a time, we need to follow the psalmist's example and call out to God. I think it is the very reason why he goes to the trouble of bringing difficulties our way.
What do you think?
The psalmist is clearly concerned with his ability to communicate with the Lord. In the above two verses he points to his crying out day and night to the Lord in his desperation and that his prayer be received and responded to by him.
In verse 9 he again speaks of his calling out to the Lord, and again in verse 13, "But I cry to you for help, Lord; in the morning my prayer comes before you." It appears to me his prayers, his calling out to the Lord, his crying out to the Lord, is proportional to the desperate condition he finds himself in.
I can't help but notice that he attributes that desperate condition he finds himself in to the Lord himself:
"You have put me in the lowest pit, in the darkest depths." Verse 6.
"Your wrath lies heavily on me; you have overwhelmed me with all your waves." Verse 7.
"You have taken from me my closest friends and have made me repulsive to them." Verse 8.
"Why, Lord, do you reject me and hide your face from me?" Verse 14.
"From my youth I have suffered and been close to death; I have borne your terrors and am in despair." Verse 15.
"Your wrath has swept over me; your terrors have destroyed me. All day long they surround me like a flood; they have completely engulfed me." Verses 16-17.
"You have taken from me friend and neighbor— darkness is my closest friend." Verse 18.
The Lord has his ways of getting our attention, and that attention is expressed as we cry out to the Lord. We all have our opportunities with the Lord in this very regard:
"Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as his children. For what children are not disciplined by their father? If you are not disciplined—and everyone undergoes discipline—then you are not legitimate, not true sons and daughters at all. Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of spirits and live! They disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, in order that we may share in his holiness. No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it." Hebrews 12:7-11.
It is within those difficult times in our lives as believers that the Lord is treating us as his own children, possibly more than at any other time. When we find ourselves in such a time, we need to follow the psalmist's example and call out to God. I think it is the very reason why he goes to the trouble of bringing difficulties our way.
What do you think?
Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!
If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just reply and let me know.
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