Brown's Daily Word 3-8-10

Good morning,
Praise the Lord for this new day. It is going to be one of the ten best days or, as Rodney indicated yesterday, maybe one of the five best. The Lord blessed us with His rich blessings yesterday in His House. Better is one day in His house than thousands elsewhere.
One of the readings for yesterday was Psalm 63. It is a is a psalm of David when he was in the wilderness of Judah. We only know of two times that David was in the desert of Judah. The first was when he was on the run from Saul, and the second was when he was on the run from his own son, Absalom. Psalm 63 clearly describes the latter exile. In the midst of trouble King David remembers God’s consistent protection in the past, praises Him for His anticipated provision now, and renews his own trust in God’s loving providence for the future. He declares in Psalm 63 that he seeks for God, he thirsts for God, he longs for God, because His loving-kindness is better than life itself.
Psalm 63 is a song about satisfying the soul. Here it teaches us about true joy, the impeccable character of God, our confidence in Him, and how faith grows.
We notice that believers find their help and satisfaction in God, and in God alone (vv.1-2). “O God, thou art my God; early will I seek thee. My soul thirsteth for thee, my flesh longeth after thee, in a barren and dry land where no water is.”
We notice from Psalm 63 that believers make it a habit to praise the provision, protection, power, and providence of God (vv. 3-8). This praise involves recalling and retelling God’s mighty acts of redemption in the past, (verse 8) “Because thou hast been my helper; therefore under the shadow of thy wings will I rejoice.” This praise involves realizing God’s mighty acts of redemption, provision, protection now, (verse 5) “As long as I live I will magnify thee…and lift up my hands in thy name.” Furthermore, this habit of praise anticipates God’s mighty acts of rescue for the future, (verse 6) “My soul shall be satisfied…when my mouth praiseth thee with joyful lips.”
One of our troubles is that we have forgotten what we were created and redeemed for. We tend to think that our purpose is to serve ourselves, that we are here for ourselves, and yet nothing could be further from the truth. We are here for Him. St. Paul reminds us in II Corinthians 5:15 that Christ died to save us so that we would live no longer for ourselves, but for Him who died for us and rose again.
We further notice that believers are to exercise trust in the future faithfulness of the Lord (Psalm 63:9-12). It is the process of stepping out in faith. It is also known as living by faith and not by sight. David declared that, come what may, his fortunes would be tied to God: “My soul hangeth upon thee” (v. 9). God is faithful to His covenantal promises and will always, always, always do what He says He will do. In David’s case, it meant deliverance from his enemies. “These also that seek the hurt of my soul, they shall go under the earth” (v. 10). Even though things looked bad, David reasoned, he was still going to trust the Lord to deliver him. The Lord would deliver, not because of anything intrinsically valuable about David, but because God had sworn to protect him, and God always, always, always keeps His promises. David didn’t worry. He knew his enemies were near, yet he anticipated deliverance, and praised God for it in advance, because He knew God never fails.
In Romans we are reminded that nothing can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus. Jesus reminded us that in this world we have trouble, but we are not to fret because He has overcome the world. He also reminded us that He would never leave us nor forsake us, and that He would be with us always, even unto the end of the ages.
Job was able to say with confidence, “Though he slay me, yet will I trust him” (Job. 13:15). Where does that kind of confidence in God come from? It comes, first of all, from knowing that the Lord always has the best in mind for each of us. It comes, secondly, from knowing that there is a life after this one in which all, including those things that I cannot make out now, will be clear. Third, it comes from knowing God never fails.
C. S. Lewis wrote: "Our Lord finds our desires not too strong, but too weak. We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition, when infinite joy is offered to us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in the slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily pleased."
C. Samuel Storms, in an article entitled, “Is Jesus Really Enough?” (Discipleship Journal, Issue 65) said, “I am persuaded that all of our problems are conceived and born in the sinful belief that something or someone other than Jesus Christ can quench the thirst of our souls.”

My soul thirsteth for thee, my flesh also longeth for thee,
In a barren and dry land where no water is.

Whether we are in the land of Canaan or the desert of Judah, there is only one help, and only one being that can satisfy our agonizing thirst for significance. That one is the Lord who made heaven and earth.
In Jesus our Lord.
Brown

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0VdUiKagWjU