I’ve asked Tony DeKoter, principle at Quisqueya Christian School in Port Au Prince, Haiti, to share his reflections on the readings for this week. Tony and Mary have been serving in Haiti for three years, you can read more at their blog, Hope For Haiti.
My reflections are posted as comments below.
The Lord, the Lord is my All in All. As a child finds shelter in his earthly father, so I too find my stronghold of life in my Father, my God! That reminds me of Thomas in the NT – My Lord and My God.
As I live this day, my focus must be Jesus. Today, God Is First. As I meet the challenges of the day, with whom do I travel?
He goes before me…preparing the way.
He stands behind me…listening when I pray.
He walks beside me…and I am restored.
Before me, behind me, beside me is my Lord.The Psalmist is focused in his daily life, that he will call upon the Lord at all times. His face will he seek at all times. God is his stronghold and tower. His security. Nowhere is he safer than in His presence. To wait upon the Lord is to trust Him as the prophet of old states, Those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength.
As I approach this day, I need to walk with Him in all I do and say because I know He goes with me, strengthening along the Way. What a Saviour!
Those who wait on the Lord
Shall renew their strength
They shall mount up with wings
With wings like eagles
They shall run and not be weary
They shall walk and not faint.
“He goes before me…preparing the way.
He stands behind me…listening when I pray.
He walks beside me…and I am restored.
Before me, behind me, beside me is my Lord.”
these words resonate within me today
Also what norm says is true;don’t neglect your spiritual life until the struggles come.
Keeping current with God is so important, continually learning and being with Him and when difficult days come you don’t go under… it is still hard but you don’t sink.
seek Him now!!!
SCRIPTURE: Psalm 27
OBSERVATION/APPLICATION:
One thing I ask of the LORD, this is what I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to gaze upon 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 tabernacle and set me high upon a rock. [Psalm 27:4-5] David expresses amazing confidence in the Lord; even if he was being attacked by a whole army, he wouldn’t be afraid. WOW! Amazing faith, or just plain stupid? We do know that David struggled with fear on other occasions (see Psalm 55:1-8]. So how can he be so confident here?
I believe that David is building his faith in the good times, so that he is ready for the bad times. His deepest desire is to be close to the Lord, to see Him and rest in Him. He knows that being with the Lord will secure him for the day of trouble – whether it is an army, or whatever else. By putting the Lord first every day, he is ready for the storms of life. Makes me think of the wise man who builds his life on the rock: Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. [Matthew 7:24-25]
David says, set me high upon a rock; Jesus says, its foundation on the rock. By seeking the Lord first (as David expresses here, and as Jesus says earlier in Sermon on the Mount [Matthew 6:33], we strengthen ourselves for future battles. Even if an army attacks us, or our parents fail us, we will have a solid bond to the Lord that will keep us strong and enable us to stand firm.
Too many people neglect their spiritual life until tough times come, then they scramble and struggle to survive, and often blame God for failing them. But the wise man doesn’t wait until the storm before he starts building his house; and he doesn’t build it on a weak foundation.
Psalm 27 is a good Psalm to read and to imitate, in order to strengthen us now for future tough times. To say what David says repeatedly is to build our faith. It doesn’t mean that the storms won’t be hard, it doesn’t mean that we won’t have moments of doubt or fear. But overall, our bond with the Lord will be too strong for the storms to dislodge it. Don’t wait for the storm to seek the Lord, invest in your relationship with Him now, so that when the storm comes…
PRAYER:
Lord, I want to seek You today, now, while the day is OK…