I rise before the dawning of the morning, and cry for help; I hope in Your word.
--Psalm 119:147 (NKJV)
From the daily Bible reading on July 21, 2013 of Psalm 119:145-152; Luke 3; 2 Chronicles 4-6:11.
In the 19th stanza of the 119th Psalm, following the Hebrew letter Qoph, the psalmist cries out to be saved, to be delivered from his afflictions, because he has obeyed God's commandments and promises to continue heeding His laws. He puts his whole heart into this plea, begging that God hears him. He almost sounds as if he is trying to make a deal with God when he says, "Save me and I will keep Your testimonies" (verse 146b), or maybe he's just appealing to the Lord's sense of fair play when he adds, "Hear my voice according to Your lovingkindness" (verse 149a). But clearly the psalmist is dedicated to God's law, as he lies awake at night meditating on His word. And while he fears that those who refuse to heed God's commandments have drawn near to him, he takes comfort in knowing that God is also near, closer than his enemies, and His law, which the psalmist follows, is truth. Our psalmist closes this stanza by proclaiming that God's laws have not changed throughout history, have held true through all time, and have been founded to endure forever.
In today's focus verse our psalmist lets us get a sense of the angst he feels, giving us just a taste of the bitterness life must be dishing out at that moment. His day begins before sunrise, when he climbs out of bed and immediately seeks God's help. He knows he needs God to get through the day, to survive the next series of setbacks and attacks. We all have days like that, and sometimes they run on day after day, week after week, until it seems as if the last couple of years have been nothing but a constant battle, a sequence of conflicts broken only by fitful periods of sleep. We feel battered and bruised and wonder if things will ever get better again, if our life will ever return to more peaceful times or has this tempest become our new normal. The first thing in the morning and with our last thought before sleep at night we cry out to God for help, praying He will respond to our plea.
The psalmist provides the answer we desperately need to hear and understand: we must hope in God's Word. The Word is Jesus and in Him we can place all our hope and trust. Why? Because through Him and our belief in Him we are redeemed of our sins of this life and granted eternal life in heaven. While each day on this earth may seem like hell, this will pass shortly and then we'll have an eternity in Paradise. Take hope in God's Word. Take hope in Jesus. Amen.
Dearest Jesus, You came to this earth to live among us, to teach us the path we must walk, to show us the way to our Father and heaven. No matter how difficult it may become just to get through each day, we can go to bed at night assured of Your love and Your redeeming grace in our lives. What we face now will be forgotten when we see Paradise. In You, precious Jesus, we can place all our hopes and trust. And in Your holiest name, blessed Jesus we pray. Amen.
In today's focus verse our psalmist lets us get a sense of the angst he feels, giving us just a taste of the bitterness life must be dishing out at that moment. His day begins before sunrise, when he climbs out of bed and immediately seeks God's help. He knows he needs God to get through the day, to survive the next series of setbacks and attacks. We all have days like that, and sometimes they run on day after day, week after week, until it seems as if the last couple of years have been nothing but a constant battle, a sequence of conflicts broken only by fitful periods of sleep. We feel battered and bruised and wonder if things will ever get better again, if our life will ever return to more peaceful times or has this tempest become our new normal. The first thing in the morning and with our last thought before sleep at night we cry out to God for help, praying He will respond to our plea.
The psalmist provides the answer we desperately need to hear and understand: we must hope in God's Word. The Word is Jesus and in Him we can place all our hope and trust. Why? Because through Him and our belief in Him we are redeemed of our sins of this life and granted eternal life in heaven. While each day on this earth may seem like hell, this will pass shortly and then we'll have an eternity in Paradise. Take hope in God's Word. Take hope in Jesus. Amen.
Dearest Jesus, You came to this earth to live among us, to teach us the path we must walk, to show us the way to our Father and heaven. No matter how difficult it may become just to get through each day, we can go to bed at night assured of Your love and Your redeeming grace in our lives. What we face now will be forgotten when we see Paradise. In You, precious Jesus, we can place all our hopes and trust. And in Your holiest name, blessed Jesus we pray. Amen.
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