Month: May 2017

Trouble, for the Christian, and the grace to bear it always come in the same package.
Unknown

that we should not trust in ourselves, but in God which raiseth the dead:
2 Corinthians 1:9
The King James Version

We have fewer friends than we imagine, but more than we know.
Hugo Von Hofmannsthal

To live the life Christ would have us live may not always add years to our lives; but it will always add life to our years.
Unknown

He who belittles his neighbor lacks sense, but a man of understanding remains silent.  He who goes about as a talebearer reveals secrets, but he who is trustworthy in spirit keeps a thing hidden.
Proverbs 11:12-13
The Revised Standard Version

We are silent at the beginning of the day because God should have the first word, and we are silent before going to sleep because the last word also belongs to God.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer

Blessed is the man that endureth temptation: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him.
James 1:12
The King James Version

The more selective you are about seeds, the more delighted you will be with the crop.
Max Lucado

STRONG PRAYERS – PSALM 62
Lesson 12 of Psalms: Lessons in Prayer
by Eric Elder
The Ranch

You can listen to today’s psalm here:
Psalm 62, read by Lana Elder, with J.C.F Bach’s “Anglaise,” played by Kaleo and Karis Elder
Sometimes you just need to lean on God’s shoulder; you just need to feel the strength of His power; you just need to rest in the fact that no matter what comes your way, everything’s going to be okay, because you know that God is holding you close.
When I read Psalm 62, it’s helps me to do just that: It helps me to lean on God’s shoulder; it helps me to feel the strength of His power; it helps me to rest in the fact that no matter what comes my way, everything’s going to be okay, because I know that God is holding me close.
I love the way David begins this psalm:
“My soul finds rest in God alone;
My salvation comes from Him.
He alone is my rock and my salvation;
He is my fortress, I will never be shaken.”
(Psalm 62:1-2, NIV).
God’s so strong that when we lean on Him, we can truly find rest. He’s our rock. He’s our salvation. He’s our fortress. We will never be shaken.
As a man, I love being independent making a way where there is no way, leading the charge through life and helping others whom God has entrusted to my care. That’s how I’m wired. Yet, I also realize that I have limits, that I can’t do everything on my own, and that there are times when I need–and I want–someone else on whom I can rely on, someone else to whom I can turn, someone else in whom I can place my trust. And that “someone else” is often the God who created me–the God who built the rocks on which I stand.
As one man said to another on a TV show called When Calls the Heart:
“You’re a self-made man, Mr. Coulter, and you should be proud of that. But no one does it alone. We all need help at times.”
We do all need help at times. David was strong. David was a leader. David took hold of his life with a passion. Yet, David realized his limits, too. And when he did, he knew where to turn to find someone stronger than himself. He turned to the God who created the rocks on which he was standing.
I love the way Eugene Peterson paraphrases David’s opening words in Psalm 62 in The Message version of the Bible:
“God, the one and only–
I’ll wait as long as He says.
Everything I need comes from Him,
so why not?
He’s solid rock under my feet,
breathing room for my soul”
(Psalm 62:1-2, MSG)
I was reading these words three years ago while sitting on a beach in Cancun–a rare treat for me. I was there for just 48 hours, but they were 48 hours in which I knew I was going to need God’s help to get through. It my 25th wedding anniversary–and I was taking the trip alone.
My wife had passed away just over a year earlier. I didn’t know how I would handle it, being all alone, and being afraid I might capsize under yet another wave of grief.
But sitting there on the beach, all alone on my anniversary, I came upon Psalm 62. I read David’s words, written at a time when he could have easily capsized, too. I took heart when I read how, at such a tenuous time in his life, David leaned on God.
“God, the one and only–
I’ll wait as long as He says.
Everything I need comes from Him,
so why not?”
In that moment, I realized that everything really did come from God–even my dear wife whom I had lost and was missing so much. I realized that if  God was able to provide a wife for me all those years ago–not to mention every other blessings I had ever enjoyed in my life–that I could trust in Him to provide anything I might need now or ever in the future.
I wrote in the margin of my Bible:
“Father, thank You for reconnecting me with this truth, that You are the one and only, that everything I need comes from You. Even Lana came from You. You are my source and my strength.”
Instead of the wave of grief I had feared, I was overwhelmed by a wave of peace; a wave of love; a wave of rest in the fact that I knew that I knew that I could trust God with this, too.
It’s hard to wait on God, I know. It’s hard to wait when there are bills to pay, people depending on you, or a doctor’s report hasn’t yet come in. It’s hard to wait when a baby’s on the way, a life mate hasn’t appeared, or a job offer hasn’t been forthcoming. It’s hard to wait in checkout lane, at a traffic light, or for dinner to get done. It’s just plain hard to wait when there’s so much living to do!
But David knew he could trust God “in the waiting.”
“I’ll wait as long as He says.
Everything I need comes from Him,
so why not?”
If you’re facing something today that you’re afraid could overwhelm you, I’d like to encourage you to say some “strong prayers” of your own God, prayers where you truly lean on His strength, resting confidently in His love, knowing that He is with you, for you, and is solid as a rock. Take heart from the words of David, that what God was able to do for him, He is able to do for you:
“Find rest, O my soul, in God alone;
My hope comes from Him.
He alone is my rock and my salvation;
He is my fortress, I will not be shaken.
My salvation and my honor depend on God;
He is my mighty rock, my refuge.
Trust in Him at all times, O people;
Pour out your hearts to Him,
For God is our refuge.”
(Psalm 62:6-8, NIV).
Will you pray with me?
Father, thank You for having such strong shoulders upon which we can lean. Thank You for letting us come to You today and rest in Your arms once again. Thank You for being there for us when we come to the end of ourselves. Take over, Lord, and take us beyond where we could have taken us on our own. Help us to trust in You, to wait on You, and to enjoy this time of waiting while we are with You. You are our rock; You are our fortress; and You are our salvation. Help us to never be afraid, knowing that You are for us, and that You are with us, now and till the end of the age. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Eric Elder
Here’s the link again to today’s psalm if you’d like to listen:
Psalm 62, read by Lana Elder, with J.C.F Bach’s “Anglaise,” played by Kaleo and Karis Elder
And here’s the link to our reading plan for the book of psalms:
2017 Reading Plan for Psalms

Our safety lies in God and not in our feeling safe.
Hubert van Zeller

Do not be conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that you may prove what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.
Romans 12:2
The Revised Standard Version

He who forgives ends the quarrel.
African proverb

Broken Dreams
As children bring their dreams to parents
With tears for them to mend.
I brought my broken dreams to God
Because He was my friend.
But then instead of leaving Him
In peace to work alone,
I hung around and tried to help
In ways that were my own.
At last I snatched them back and cried,
“How can you be so slow?”
“My child,” He said, “What could I do?
You never did let go.”
Unknown

For the kingdom of God is not a matter of talk but of power.
1 Corinthians 4:20
The New International Version

Most people are proud, not of those things which arouse respect, but of those which are unnecessary, or even harmful: fame, power, and wealth.
Leo Tolstoy

So then, brothers, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh.  For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.  For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.
Romans 8:12-14
The English Standard Version

If God had wanted to be a big secret, He would not have created babbling brooks and whispering pines.
Robert Brault

Faith teaches a new math, which subtracts old ways and adds new thoughts, for sharing with God divides troubles and multiplies possibilities.
Christine A. Dallman

“For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
Mark 10:45
The English Standard Version

Nothing fails quite so totally as success without God.
Vic Pentz

But let judgment run down as waters, and righteousness as a mighty stream.
Amos 5:24
The King James Version

One does not surrender a life in an instant.  That which is lifelong can only be surrendered in a lifetime.
Jim Elliot

CLEANSING PRAYERS – PSALM 51
Lesson 11 of Psalms: Lessons in Prayer
by Eric Elder
The Ranch

You can listen to today’s psalm here:
Psalm 51, read by Lana Elder, with J.S. Bach’s “Prelude In C,” played by Lucas Elder
Sometimes we think our sins are too big for God to forgive.  But Jesus didn’t die for only the sins that we feel are “petty.” He died for all our sins, even those which we feel are the most grievous. A sin that leads to death might seem too hard for God to forgive, but if Jesus didn’t die for those, He wouldn’t have had to die at all.
In Psalm 51, David pours out His heart to God in prayer over what are perhaps the most grievous sins he had ever committed–his adultery with Bathsheba, who was another man’s wife, and the subsequent cover-up and murder of her husband.
The consequences David had to face from his actions were real, as the child born to him and Bathsheba died. But the cleansing that God poured out on him was real, too, as David poured out his confession to God. Listen to David’s heart as he begins his prayer:
“Have mercy on me, O God, according to Your unfailing love; according to Your great compassion blot out my transgressions. Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin. For I know my transgressions, and my sin is always before me. Against You, You only, have I sinned and done what is evil in Your sight, so that You are proved right when You speak and justified when You judge” (Psalm 51:1-4).
David pleads for God’s mercy. He acknowledges the evil of what he’s done. And he acknowledges God’s right to judge him accordingly. Yet he pleads for God’s mercy nonetheless.
One of the reasons I find the Bible to be so trustworthy is that it doesn’t gloss over or try to cover up the sins of some of the most heroic figures contained within it. If I think of some of my own sins that are most grievous to me, and if you think of some of your own sins that are most grievous to you, can you imagine having them recorded in a book for everyone to see? Yet I am so thankful that David’s sins were recorded in the pages of the Bible, giving me hope that the same God who forgave David can also forgive me. If I thought that God could only forgive sins that I thought were petty, or if the Bible only recorded sins that seems trivial, I might think that I could somehow pay the price for my sins myself, doing a few more good deeds, or giving more generously, or in some other way. But David’s words remind me that this is not what God wants. He wants our hearts, broken and contrite:
“You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it; You do not take pleasure in burnt offerings. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, You will not despise” (vv. 16-17).
That is exactly what David offers to God. That is exactly what I offered to God on the night that I put my trust in Him for everything in my life. And that is exactly what every one of us can offer to God, whenever we sin, to whatever extent that we sin, even for those sins which we might feel are the most grievous.
As you pray to God, come to Him and ask for forgiveness for even your biggest of sins. Then let Him forgive you, since the price for those sins has already been paid when Jesus died on the cross in your place. To not accept God’s forgiveness–and the joy that is possible from that forgiveness–would be like leaving an Easter basket filled with candy on the counter at the store, a basket for which your father has already paid for and truly belongs to you.
But sometimes we leave our baskets of forgiveness sitting on the counter. We don’t pick them up and truly enjoy the healing that forgiveness can bring because we don’t feel like we deserve it. We don’t! But our Father didn’t buy it for us because we deserved it. He bought it for us because He loves us. He doesn’t want us to die. He knew we would need it one day, so we could once again feel loved and accepted, cleansed and forgiven– otherwise we might melt in a permanent puddle of shame and regret and guilt, never to rise up again.
None of us have a perfect moral scorecard. But God wants us to know that He will gladly forgive us of any and all of our sins if we will simply acknowledge those sins before Him; pour out our broken and contrite hearts to Him; and trust in Him, that He truly has bought our forgiveness at the price of His Son on the cross.
Don’t leave the basket of forgiveness and cleansing and true joy on the counter. That’s not why He bought it for you. He bought it because He loves you. He adores you. And He doesn’t want you to die. By faith, through prayer, God will give to you what He has already purchased for you: forgiveness, cleansing, and true joy.
When David came before God, he acknowledged God’s ability to forgive. David said:
“Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow. Let me hear joy and gladness; let the bones You have crushed rejoice. Hide Your face from my sins and blot out all my iniquity” (vv. 7-9).
Then David called out to God to do a mighty work in his heart; a work that he knew he couldn’t do on his own; a work that only God, the creator of his heart, could do:
“Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me from Your presence or take Your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of Your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me. Then I will teach transgressors Your ways, and sinners will turn back to You” (vv. 10-13).
If you need a clean heart today, whether it’s the first time you’ve asked God to do this mighty work in your life or the hundredth time, I’d like to lead you in a prayer of cleansing–a prayer straight from the words King David prayed after committing some of the most grievous sins of his life.
Will you pray with me?
“Have mercy on me, O God, according to Your unfailing love; according to Your great compassion blot out my transgressions. Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin. For I know my transgressions, and my sin is always before me. Against You, You only, have I sinned and done what is evil in Your sight, so that You are proved right when You speak and justified when You judge… You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it; You do not take pleasure in burnt offerings. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, You will not despise… Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow. Let me hear joy and gladness; let the bones You have crushed rejoice. Hide Your face from my sins and blot out all my iniquity. Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me from Your presence or take Your Holy Spirit from me. Restore
to me the joy of Your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me. Then I will teach transgressors Your ways, and sinners will turn back to You” (Psalm 51:1-4, 16-17,  7-13). In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Eric Elder
Here’s the link again to listen to today’s psalm:
Psalm 51, read by Lana Elder, with J.S. Bach’s “Prelude In C,” played by Lucas Elder
And here’s the link to follow along with our reading plan to read through all of the psalms this year.
2017 Reading Plan for Psalms