Open hearts, Open doors

Look at him; give him your warmest smile. Never hide your feelings from him. (Ps. 34:5)

God knows our feelings.  Then why do we spend so much time trying to "clean them up" before we allow them to be expressed to him?  We are fickle creatures, always trying to "preserve face", even in our communications with our Creator.  David had come to a place in his walk where he finally realized that the "fronts" we try to maintain are simply not necessary in the presence of God.  God want the reality of who we are and what we are experiencing to be what we express to him in prayer, praise and worship.  He doesn't want our emotions to be "masked". 

Worship God if you want the best; worship opens doors to all his goodness. (Ps 34:9)

We definitely cannot argue that worship honors God.  Our passage also says that it opens doors to all his goodness.  It is like that honoring adoration of all he is and has done ushers us into his presence and in that place of his awesome presence we find all we need for life and godly living.  His presence is not a vacuum - it is not void.  It is filled to overflowing with the goodness of all that God is!  As we take off the masks we wear to "look" all right in our day-to-day relationships, God brings us right into the very treasuries of his grace - mercies untold.  There he unfolds his arms, welcomes us in, and strokes away our fears, wipes away our tears, and turns back all the decay of the years.

If your heart is broken, you'll find God right there; if you're kicked in the gut, he'll help you catch your breath. (Ps 34:18)

We often think of access to God's throne-room as some place we have to do lots and lots of preparation to enter into.  Hear what the Psalmist is saying in this passage.  If our heart is broken - it is right there that you will find God!  It is in our brokenness that he is reaching us.  If we are kicked in the gut - he stands right alongside to help us regroup and move on.  The nearness of our God is a very comforting thing.  He is there through the tough times, ready to restore as soon as we need it, and always standing with us through the times we are engrafting important life-lessons into our walk.  It is at he first recognition of the depth of our need that he stands ready to rescue.

Disciples so often get into trouble; still, God is there every time. (Ps 34:19)

Don't get me wrong - we still face troubles that bring tremendous emotional struggles.  We will not always feel like being "real" with our present feelings and interpretation of life.  God never negates the choices we make - because he knows the value of a wrong choice.  He sees the redeeming influence of a lesson learned and the power of his love in letting us learn that lesson.  We can go through life blaming him for the bad stuff or look for him in the midst of it - even when we are there by our own doing.  The choice is ours - the freedom to seek him where it seems he'll never be found is guaranteed.  Hold onto this promise that the Psalmist leaves us with today.  When we get in trouble - and we surely will - God is there every time!

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