A little power outage makes one think...

 Depend on God and keep at it because in the Lord God you have a sure thing. (Isaiah 26:4)

I depend on my vehicle to get me places I want to go. I depend upon my washing machine to clean my clothes. I depend on my light switch to bring illumination to the room when I switch it on. There are tons of things you and I depend upon each and every day - some of them without even knowing we are depending upon them. My power went out this week, not once, but twice. That meant no air conditioning, no light, and no water dispensed in the refrigerator door. I am aware I have disclosed my dependence upon a few luxuries here, but trust me on this one - in Arizona you want air conditioning, you need water, and when it is dark outside, it is going to be even darker inside! The latest power outage was for several hours and in the middle of the day. We probably all count on this 'sure thing' called electricity to be flowing through those underground lines to our homes, but when a storm hits and that 'flow' is interrupted, we are thrown into chaos. Imagine an interruption in the 'flow' of your relationship with Jesus for just a moment. Would that be considered a 'luxury', or a 'necessity' in your life?

In mine, it is a NECESSITY - no flow in that relationship means my life is thrown into chaos bigger than any 'power outage' I have ever experienced in the natural sense. It is a 'power outage' of quite another type. The power of Christ flowing in our lives is something we all need to depend upon, but I wonder if we realize when it isn't actually 'flowing' as it should be, or worse yet, it is cut off completely? That 'flow' is maintained because there is continual contact with Christ - we are engaged with him on a regular and consistent basis. In other words, we aren't just 'casual' in our relationship with him. I depend upon his power in my life as much as I depend upon breath. Cut off my breath and life is no longer sustained. Cut off my connection with Jesus and things are going to get really ugly around here!

Dependence is defined as placing one's trust in something - to rely upon it fully. I take for granted the electricity will be flowing in my household - but at best, my local electricity provider only reports a 98% success rate in accomplishing this task at my residence. Imagine for a moment if God reported to us that we could only rely upon him 98% of the time - the other 2% of the time we'd be on our own to figure things out. How would that affect you? I wonder how many of us have those numbers turned around - depending upon God about 2% of the time and trusting in our own efforts to figure things out the other 98%? Think on that one for a bit today. How much are you actually dependent upon God? How many of us would actually notice if there was a disconnection from his power in our lives? If we want power to flow unimpeded, we need to ensure the maintenance of the connection. Just sayin!

I don't got this one....

And now just as you trusted Christ to save you, trust him, too, for each day’s problems; live in vital union with him. Let your roots grow down into him and draw up nourishment from him. See that you go on growing in the Lord, and become strong and vigorous in the truth you were taught. Let your lives overflow with joy and thanksgiving for all he has done. (Colossians 2:6-7 TLB)

A moment of honesty here. There are times when I trust others to do as they say, but when they take too long, or aren't doing it the way I'd like it done, I sometimes intervene! Why? I've got a little bit of a "control" issue on occasion - most of the time it is "in check", but on occasion, it creeps out! God help me that it doesn't "creep out" where it comes to him doing things in my life, though! I don't want to "intervene" where he is moving, although his timing may not be my own, nor may his ways of accomplishing things always be the way I thought it should be!

Each day's problems have God's solutions close at hand, but how many times do we lean upon our own way of solving the problem? If we were painfully honest here, we might admit it happens a little too frequently for him and just a little too often for him to let us just get away with it. God doesn't want us to just trust him for our salvation experience - for that moment in time where we recognize he paid the supreme price for our sinful nature and that we need his righteousness to stand in place of our unrighteousness. He wants us to trust him with even the stuff we label as "simple" in our lives - the stuff we seem to want to say, "I got this one, Lord" to.

Living in vital union with God requires more than a "give and take" relationship. We have to lean into him a little more than we might initially desire to and that takes a whole lot of trust. When I finally recognize just how much I wan to "do" whatever it is that other person is taking way too long to "do", I have to pull back a little. Why? Not only will they never learn to do it themselves, but they won't be able to really shine like they are supposed to shine! God wants to shine in our lives - the more we trust him even with the stuff "we've got handled" in our lives, the more he shines!

Overflowing lives don't happen by accident - they are purposefully filled and continuously renewed. This is more than being in the right place at the right time - it is a continual connection that helps the brilliance of the one we are connected intimately with to shine through in a dynamic and vibrant way. This union is living - vital, vibrant, and vigorous. Growth is inevitable where these three characteristics are present! Just sayin!

Can I carry you?

Indeed, when you were still in the womb, I was taking care of you.  And when you are old, I will still be there, carrying you.  When your limbs grow tired, your eyes are weak, and your hair a silvery gray, I will carry you as I always have. I will carry you and save you.  (Isaiah 46:3-4 VOICE)

There are times in life when what we see started in our lives just don't seem to be coming to fruition. It seems as though progress "stalls out". As with any process change, the movement from one point to another can start with great strides, but in a course of time, the gains seem to get smaller and smaller. Why? We are nearing the completion of the change! It isn't that God has stopped working in us - it is that we are about to be transitioned into a different "change" focus. In fact, once change is deemed to be complete in one area, it doesn't mean we just coast - it means we ready ourselves for the next phase!

I am confident that the Creator, who has begun such a great work among you, will not stop in mid-design but will keep perfecting you until the day Jesus the Anointed, our Liberating King, returns to redeem the world.  (Philippians 1:6 VOICE)

We might just forget that God sets out to define, design, and direct our lives from womb forward - never neglecting one step in the developmental process along the way. He is "taking care of us" even when we don't feel his presence, know which way is up, and when times get a little rougher than we might have imagined. From womb to tomb - God is ever working to see us develop into the creation he designed and defined as his own.  I love the passage from Isaiah about "carrying us" way into our old age - never leaving us to have to "manage" on our own. We might think we have abandoned him along the way, giving up on some of the changes he set out to see accomplished in us, but he never abandons those designs.  They remain consistent - we are the ones who abandon the path to seeing them fulfilled.

What is begun will not be abandoned by God. This might be hard for us to imagine since we are so feeble in our own commitments to some things in our lives. We find the road a little too hard to travel, or we aren't seeing the progress be as quick as it was at the beginning, so we abandon the process. I wonder how many significant changes we might just have been hours short of completing - our full break through in that life issue just days away - all because it just didn't seem like anything was happening anymore.  I have had to learn that change is incremental - not all at one time. There are ups and downs to change, necessitating course corrections along the way on occasion. But...God isn't finished with me yet! What he has begun - he will finish. 

Sometimes we can go through change under our own power - seemingly standing upright and strong - facing the challenges head-on and with great stamina. At others, it is as though God needs to just carry us as we go through them. Some might think the latter is kind of wrong - but sometimes we just need to be carried! There are times when the change requires some adjustments which are not all that easy - we need to be carried over rough spots, through dense places which would mire us down if we weren't. It doesn't mean we are weak or barely holding on - it means we have learned God's hand is there to help us make it through!

I want us to reflect for just a moment on a truth we might just gloss over in our introductory passage. It isn't that God carries us when we cannot seemingly walk through under our own power - he ALWAYS has been carrying us.  We just notice he is carrying us when we are the weakest in our spiritual, emotional, or physical strength!  Maybe what God wants us to really know is that he isn't just there "when we need carrying", but he is there even when we seem to be "doing all right" in the journey.  In the old Southern vernacular, to "carry someone" meant you took them from here to there - not always a literal picking up and toting the person from here to there - but an accompanying of one along the journey.  Some of us need to be physically carried - God is there. Other just need to know he is with us on the journey.  Either way - he carries us! Just sayin!

Learning to lean - it is harder than it looks!

Some of us might equate dependence to some "mamby-pamby" way of living in which we cannot do or think anything on our own.  On the contrary, dependence requires more thought and determination than you might first imagine.  What some consider to be dependence is nothing more than passive complacency and apathy.  What God considers to be dependence is actually a place of active submission and obedience.  Obedience requires forethought and continuous thought - passive complacency does not.  Obedience requires trust and truth - passive complacency is satisfied with the status quo or the easiest route possible.  This life of truly trusting God and living in total dependence upon him is something which requires active thought, leading to active participation, and ending in active renewal.  The key to dependence is then "action", not passivity.

God, you give true peace to people who depend on you, to those who trust in you. So trust the Lord always, because in the Lord you have a place of safety forever.  Honesty is the path good people follow.  They follow the path that is straight and true.  And God, you make that way smooth and easy to follow.  At night my soul longs to be with you, and the spirit in me wants to be with you at the dawn of every new day.  (Isaiah 26:3-4, 7, 9 ERV)

To those who depend upon God - actively choosing to trust in him instead of their own strength or self-performance - God gives something we all long for but which somehow avoids us:  True Peace.  Dependence really starts at the point of trust.  Trusting God's truth revealed in his Word rather than our own thoughts about matters is something we learn over the course of our time walking with Jesus.  Trusting God's provision for our salvation as the sole means by which we are saved and placed in "right-standing" with him requires us to embrace truth, standing on it and nothing we can do or produce on our own.  Trusting God to give us the direction we need when we are walking in unfamiliar territory in this journey we call life begins in embracing the truth he reveals in the wise places we seek his truth.  If you don't see the pattern here, let me point it out:  It all begins and ends with TRUTH.  Depending upon God begins and ends with TRUTH.  God is TRUTH - therefore, all we receive from him is truth.  All we stand upon is truth.  All we rely upon is truth.  

Trust is built on truth.  Without truth, all other foundations are simply unreliable and capable of crumbling at some point.  Anything which is not total truth will eventually all apart.  A child depends upon the parent to provide all he needs for his well-being.  Whether it is food, shelter, or loving arms, the child looks to the parent as his place of trust.  Whenever that trust is violated by the parent, the child is left with lots of confused and mixed up emotional baggage he often carries into his adult years.  Why?  He placed his total trust in the parent.  Trust is "placed" - we choose to rely upon another. Trust is not forced upon us - it is something we make a conscious decision to give.  When we walk across a shaky structure, we choose to believe it will support our weight despite its shakiness.  We are making a conscious decision to move from one side to the other, depending upon (relying upon) this structure to get us there.  It matters not that it appears less than reliable, because we are choosing to place our trust in it.  This is where many of us get into a place of difficulty in our daily walk - we are choosing to place our trust in things, people, and circumstances which are at best a little "shaky" and probably not entirely trustworthy.

The truth is the boards of the shaky structure have been worn by weather, causing nails which once held it firm and reliable to become loosened and rusted.  If we recognized the truth before we took the first step of depending upon the shaky structure, we probably wouldn't venture out onto it!  We'd recognize weathered boards and rusty nails make for a rather unreliable support for our needs.  What if the structure was "whitewashed" in bright paint - covering over those weathered places and rusted nails?   We might be "duped" into believing the weathering and rusting doesn't exist - right?  This is where we come to believe what we see rather than relying upon what we know to be consistently true.  God's Word is consistently true - to rely upon anything which gets added to it, or taken away from it is like whitewashing a lie.  It appears to be reliable, but it will fall apart under careful scrutiny!  This is why I so consistently remind us of the importance of getting to know God's Word for ourselves - not just relying upon what another man or woman tells us the Word says.  We need to ferret out truth for ourselves, adding it to our "trust bank" so we will be able to recognize untruth when it is in front of us as a whitewashed lie!

A true and straight path is the result of knowing and embracing truth.  Truth is the basis of trust.  They go hand in hand - you cannot have one without the other.  If we want our path to be well-guided, secure, and filled with God's peace which passes all understanding, we need to allow that path to be guided by his truth.  This means we submit our decisions to his truth - what does the Word of God have to say about what we are about to do?  If we don't know, we may be going out on some pretty shaky ground!  When the Word doesn't come right out and make it "plain" as to what we should do (as can be the case with some of the things we might encounter in this life like whether we buy and iPad or a Windows tablet), we just need to trust the consistency of God's principles taught throughout.  In other words, our decisions should not violate God's principles of truth.  Now, back to which tablet to purchase.  God doesn't give us that direction in his Word, but he does give us principles of being wise with our money, not being caught up in the trends of the day which lure us into debt we cannot afford, etc.  This is as close as we come to understanding which tablet to purchase.  The one which will perform for us at the optimal measure we expect and can afford is probably the one we should be buying!

Anytime we confuse truth with a lie, our path gets a little rocky.  Obedience is burdensome to those who are expecting truth to be easy stuff!  Truth is learned - believed in our minds, confirmed in our hearts, trusted in our emotions.  Truth is not a "thing" - it is a person - Christ Jesus!  As long as we understand this we will be more open to examining all "truth" in light of what he says, does, is, etc.  Now, back to dependence.  We rely upon a whole lot of things in this life - some out of our control, others quite easily under our control.  God expects that we will take both and place them under his control. In turn, we are "trusting" him to guide us down straight and smooth paths which are outlined by him.  Nothing makes dependence easy - but learning to trust God begins in the moments of submitting our thoughts, actions, and emotions to his careful oversight.  Dependence is active obedience.  All our actions should be leaning heavily upon truth - just sayin!

Tumbleweed or Tree?

Depend:  To rely, place trust; to be sure of.  We depend upon a lot of things, don't we?  We depend on getting to work on time just because we were on the road by our "usual" time today.  The hazards along the way may provide a later arrival than anticipated, but we still depended upon getting there on time because we did our part.  We depend upon our laundry detergent to remove the stains in our clothing, despite the fact the stains are set in and rather stubborn ones at that.  When the detergent doesn't "perform" as anticipated, we buy a different type the next time because we have to "depend" upon the detergent to do its job.  We get into trouble when our dependence upon something or someone is stronger than our dependence upon God.  I am not saying we should depend on God to get the stains out of our jeans, but he is pretty awesome at getting stains out of our "genes"!

Cursed is the strong one who depends on mere humans, who thinks he can make it on muscle alone and sets God aside as dead weight.  He’s like a tumbleweed on the prairie, out of touch with the good earth.  He lives rootless and aimless in a land where nothing grows.  But blessed is the man who trusts me, God, the woman who sticks with God.  They’re like trees replanted in Eden, putting down roots near the rivers—never a worry through the hottest of summers, never dropping a leaf, serene and calm through droughts, bearing fresh fruit every season.  (Jeremiah 17:5-8 MSG)

I live in the middle of the desert, so I understand the 'stunted' growth of desert shrubs.  They just don't grow big and hearty like the elms, oaks, and cedars in the more "well-watered" regions of our country.  They are brittle and dry - even their coloring is kind of "anemic".  The leaves are not the lush deep greens of the trees of the well-watered regions, but rather a light grey green. They just don't look 'healthy'.  There is something about being planted where you have opportunity for the greatest growth, isn't there?  As long as we are depending upon our own efforts to change our character, we are like the tumbleweed in the desert - out of touch with life!  I don't cater to the self-help gurus or their books which are hocked at our local book establishments.  Why?  Self cannot help self!  Only God can help self!  Depend long enough upon your "self" and you will become selfish, self-deceived, and self-absorbed.  Not the best list of qualities, right?

So, growth is dependent upon whom we depend upon.  If our dependence is on self, our growth will be disconnected from the sources of life which we need for balanced and vigorous growth.  At best, we may have leaves, but they are 'anemic' leaves!  Trees replanted in Eden really gives us a picture of flourishing growth - development beyond human capacity.  Eden was planted and tended by God's hand.  He put Adam in charge of the garden, but he was the one who ensured it was watered and receiving the nutrients it needed for robust growth.  We may "tend to" what God puts in our hands, but he is the one who plants the seed, nourishes it to full growth, and then enjoys the fruits from its growth!

A couple of things about depending upon God:

* Wherever we take root determines our potential for growth.  If our dependence is upon God, our roots go down deep into the soil of his Word.  We take frequent nourishment from it.  Superficial roots don't protect us in times of drought or the storms which come.  They are quickly affected by both.  To experience deep growth, we need deep roots.  Dependence upon God is often seen in examining where it is we have taken root, and how deeply those roots are set!

* Dependence upon God doesn't mean no drought will come.  It simply means we are in a position to weather the drought!  Sure our leaves wilt a little under the extreme intensity of the "season" of drought in our lives, but drought really only drives the roots deeper!  Think about it - you don't need deep roots if you can continue to find the source of what you need on the surface.  If the surface is dry, you go deeper!  God allows the seasons of drought in our lives not to scorch us and leave us detached from growth like the tumbleweed.  He allows them because he is counting on us taking deeper root during those seasons!

* Dependence means we place both our hope and confidence in the one upon whom we depend.  Hope reflects some future state - confidence reflects the presence determination of heart.  Confidence knows we are rooted exactly where we will find our source in the times of testing and trial.  Hope recognizes the times of testing and trial are only for a season.  

Tumbleweed or Tree?  Your roots reveal the truth.  Just sayin!

Carry me

There are times in life when we just need a little "carrying".  The journey gets a little rough - too hard to handle alone.  We get fatigued.  Sometimes we just need a break because the battle has been long and hard - that moment of solitude when we just sit back and let the worries of the battle pass from us.  Regardless of the reason for needing to be "carried", there are times when we just cannot go it alone.

God is all strength for his people, ample refuge for his chosen leader; save your people and bless your heritage.  Care for them; carry them like a good shepherd.  (Psalm 28:8-9 MSG)

I find encouragement in this passage today.  The "unchanging" GOD is ALL strength for his people, AMPLE refuge for his chosen, SAVIOR of his people, and the one who BLESSES his heritage.  In him, we find CARE and the arms to be CARRIED for a while.  The one who's promises never fail has us in his care.  The one who is consistent today and tomorrow will be the one to bring us through the battles of both today and will not be caught off-guard by the battles of tomorrow.

He is the GOD of ALL strength.  At best, I have limited strength.  My strength is based on my general health.  It is consistent with the amount of rest my body gets (for in rest, my body finds restoration).  It is dependent upon what I put into my body (only being built up to the degree I give it the good stuff it needs).  It is dependent upon my position - I am stronger standing up than I am laying down.  God's strength is unlimited.  He is not bound by the things which limit us - in fact, he is able to give "boundless" strength to those who ask.  As with my physical body, the amount of "rest" I engage in spiritually determines my spiritual strength.  So does what I "put into" my mind and allow to affect my emotions.  In looking at the position I assume spiritually, I can evaluate the degree of "strength" I will have to endure the battle.  The closer I am to the arms of Jesus - the "stronger" I am for the battle.

He is the GOD of AMPLE refuge.  If you understand the meaning of ample to be "more than sufficient for your needs", then you understand the "ample-ness" of God.  No need exists for which he has not already made provision!  Did you get that?  NO NEED exists for which he has not ALREADY made provision.  Things don't catch God off-guard.  Our need is known to him far in advance of us ever realizing it in our lives - and he has already set out to be "more than sufficient for the need".  

He is the GOD who SAVES us.  Some of us struggle with this one because we don't see any need for "saving".  We think we are pretty okay on our own.  We don't see ourselves as sinners - so we don't see ourselves as in need of a savior.  In the simplest sense, a savior is one who rescues.  There is not one individual on this earth who goes through life without one moment or another in which they need some form of rescue!  In the most literal sense, we will always need someone to be "on-guard" to come to our rescue when we realize the need for rescue.  A lifeguard at the pool of an Olympic event might seem like they are there for looks - because everyone swims so well.  No one can be assured they will ALWAYS and consistently be able to "rescue" themselves when they get into trouble.  Hence, the purpose of the lifeguard.  He's there when the need arises.  In the spiritual sense, we have one who stands guard continuously to be there when we finally recognize the need for a savior.  

He is the GOD who BLESSES his heritage.  Do you know what a heritage is?  It is something which comes to a person because of birth.  It is something which has been "reserved" for the one who will receive it.  WE are God's heritage - the idea is of us being "reserved" for his pleasure.  In turn, we receive a heritage of our own - by being "born into" his family.  A heritage "reserved" specifically for us - as his kids!  No one is without family if they are part of the family of God and no one is without a heritage - both to enjoy today and to pass on to others.

He is the GOD who CARES for us.  He is watchful over us - even when we don't feel we need anyone to watch over us!  As a teenager, I remember wanting my independence.  Then I grew up a little, realized I did not like being alone and on my own so much as I thought I'd like it.  I married, finding some sense of peace no longer being "independent" anymore.  Soon, children were added to the relationship, and my independence was indeed a thing of the past.  In all these transitions, I struggled with the literal "sense" of dependence vs. independence - trying to figure out who was in charge, who controlled the activities of life.  In a spiritual sense, I think we also struggle with the "transitions" we make in life.  We have to determine if we will yield our independence for the safety of dependence upon one who is more reliable than us in determining the course of our "transitions".  There is something quite "restful" about being "cared for"!

He is the GOD who CARRIES us.  Most of us don't admit it, but we need to be carried once in a while.  We wear out!  We get tired!  What happens to one of the shepherd's flock when they get tired?  They begin to lag behind, don't they?  This places them in danger because stragglers are easy pickings for the ones who would want to prey upon them.  So, the shepherd is always watching for the stragglers - not to focus on the fact they are "behind" the others - but to pick us up for a while, carrying us high above the rest until we can again keep up!  When we are carried, it is across his shoulders, secure in his care.  We rise above the circumstances which tired us out in the first place until we are strong enough to once again join in!

There are times we need to be carried - in those times, we just need to allow him to do his part.  Just sayin!

On a roller-coaster?

Whenever we are holding onto something, or someone, for dear life, we are using a whole lot of effort to hold onto it, as if our very life depended upon not letting go.  In some cases, we are the ones doing the "holding" - simply because we are desperate to not let go.  At others, someone or something else is holding onto us - because to let go would be to experience loss of some kind.  None of us likes to experience loss - no matter how well we are prepared.  Loss is often equated with being "deprived" of something you once had, such as when we mourn the loss of an individual in our lives.  It can also mean an accidental loss of something, much like misplacing something we once were so careful to have been aware of.  Either way, the loss causes us some type of sense of "urgency" and "grief".  Loss is somehow equated with letting go - either consciously, or unconsciously.

“If you’ll hold on to me for dear life,” says God, “I’ll get you out of any trouble.
I’ll give you the best of care if you’ll only get to know and trust me.  Call me and I’ll answer, be at your side in bad times; I’ll rescue you, then throw you a party.  I’ll give you a long life, give you a long drink of salvation!”  (Psalm 91:14-16 MSG)

Our psalmist reminds us of our need to hold onto God for dear life.  This almost implies we could experience a whole lot of grief, or unnecessary concern if we don't!  When we see what our psalmist says in this passage, we will notice some very important aspects of "holding on" which we can take to heart.

Foremost in our thoughts should be the position of "holding on" - not to some "thing", but to the God of the entire universe - the Creator of all things.  When you are holding on "for dear life", you are determined to not let go!  There is a tenacity and determination to hold on, no matter what comes your way.  I have been on roller-coasters at the amusement parks, being thrown this way, then that, all the while "holding on for dear life" until the ride came to a safe stop at the base of the ride.  Roller-coasters are actually built with something expressly for the purpose of "holding on" - that little bar which comes across you, or the one which straps over your shoulders and comes down around your arms and chest.  The "bars" are designed to not only keep you safe, but to give you something to "hold onto" - simply because the ride will be rough!  Guess what?  Life has some rough twists and turns at times.  When we are holding onto the right stuff in life, we find we get through those twists and turns unscathed!  

God tells us he'll be the one to get us out of ANY trouble - when we are holding onto him.  No person, or thing, can do what God can do - they may promise to keep us safe, but the best security system in the world is nothing compared to the shelter of his arms!  Sometimes we stop right there and don't read on in this passage - simply "claiming" the promise that God will get us out of any trouble.  The truth of the matter is God gives us some responsibility in this!  First, we position ourselves to hold onto him for dear life - because our life really does depend upon him!  Then we have to get to know him and learn to trust him.  It is impossible to trust anyone or anything if we never get to know the integrity of the person, or the strength of the object.  We trust the bar across our body on the roller-coaster because it is there, locked into position, and it is solid.  We learn to trust God in much the same manner - because he is consistently there, he is "locked in" on us, and he is a solid foundation!

Simply holding on may not be enough at times - we also need to call out when our resolution is not as strong as it should be, when the obstacles in our path might cause us to stumble, and when our grip seems to be slipping.  If you have ever tried to hold onto something tightly for any length of time, you know you eventually allow your grip to slacken.  Why?  Simply because your attention is diverted from the focus on "holding on".  God reminds us when this happens, we need to call out to him - he is there to strengthen our grip and to pull us even closer.  

What we hold onto determines the stability of the ride!  We can hold onto our "trusted" ways of self-will - trusting in our abilities to deal with life, or we can let go of our grip on "self-dependence" and learn to depend on the "safety-hold" of God's arms firmly around us.  The choice is ours.  What we find ourselves holding the tightest to may not always be the thing which we will find the greatest security and protection in.  If our grip is on the right stuff, we will endure the "ride".  Just sayin!

Coming through? Or brought through?

As we consider our passage today, I wanted to share a couple of verses which came just ahead of our passage.  First, David reminds us no king succeeds by his own doing.  Big armies and lots of loyal servants does not make one successful - indeed, it gives an "appearance" of success, but it is nothing compared to the glory of being anointed by the Most High God.  Second, he points out the futility of thinking a warrior's strength is his own.  This is often a struggle for us because we see out "strength" as something we possess - instead, it is something we are "granted".  Last, he lays out the silliness of thinking having more "horsepower" or "brute strength" will win battles.  When we "count on" the wrong stuff, we often don't really "win" the battles!


Watch this: God's eye is on those who respect him, the ones who are looking for his love. He's ready to come to their rescue in bad times; in lean times he keeps body and soul together. We're depending on God; he's everything we need. What's more, our hearts brim with joy since we've taken for our own his holy name. Love us, God, with all you've got—that's what we're depending on. (Psalm 33:18-22 The Message)


As I speak with many of my friends these days, I hear one common theme - the battle is tough!  The struggles with life-debilitating disease processes almost overwhelms.  The constant changing environments within work, home, and community seem to be pulling them in all directions - stretched beyond capacity.  Grief doesn't seem to pass, despite the passage of time.  In short, the outlook just doesn't seem to "clear up" - it continues to be a little more than challenging!


Looking at how our passage is structured, we see some interesting ideas:


1.  Watch this!  This is a call to pay attention to what David is going to lay out.  He has a hold on something which has been able to take him through some of these tough times and he is calling us to attention.  Wouldn't it be a shame to have the answer to our "need" right there in front of us and miss it totally?


2.  God's eye is on us!  The condition for being under his watchful care is twofold - respect him and look for his love.  Now, don't get this wrong - respect is more than just holding God in "high regard".  It is giving him the foremost part of our being - our attention focused on him above all else.  Too many times, we think we can be "casual" with God - just holding him in "high esteem", but his instruction is clear - have no other god before him.  When he has the right focus in our lives, it is natural for us to look for his love.  We begin to "count on" his love.  What excites me most about this passage is the "face-to-face" contact we have with the one we honor!  His back is not to us - it is his face!  You cannot "eyeball" someone with your back toward them!  When seeking God, holding him in the focus, we are in his!  Woohoo!


3.  He is ready!  God doesn't delay - although we may think the answer is slow coming!  Bad times and lean times come - there is never any assurance in scripture of these being totally avoided by service to the King of Kings.  Too many times I think we have a little bit of warped belief here.  I think we believe God should "keep us from" these bad and lean times.  I challenge this.  In the lean times, I have come to appreciate how little I have and how much I need what he has!  In bad times, I have drawn closer to his heart - just to hear it beat a little faster when I draw near!  Going back to what David said about God's eye being on us - his hands are also ready to intervene for us.  Look at the outcome - body and soul are kept together.  In the bad times, doesn't it feel like we are being "ripped apart" by the struggles we are in?  This is another word picture to show us how much God is the "cement" which holds us together even in the midst of forces who'd like nothing more than to see us "undone"!


4.  We can depend on him!  The instruction here is not one of living "independent" of God - it is one of relinquishing our control and giving it to him.  In the times of challenge - don't we always want to "fix" whatever we can first, then ask God to help us with the rest?  Or is this just my struggle?  I think I am in good company here - we try the best we can to "fix" the leanness or change the outcomes of the bad stuff.  When we just can't get it done - then we turn to God.  Oh, what a warped sense of importance we give ourselves!  We try to live independent of God - all the while he is saying he is the one we can depend upon!  


I associate with David - he wanted nothing more than to serve his God well.  He struggled with the "real stuff" and each time, he found God faithful in his life.  He leaves us with this thought - "God, love us with all you've got!"  Now, isn't it interesting - he doesn't close with, "So, God I am going to love you with all I've got!"  Instead, he brings us back to what brings us through the challenges unscathed - God loving us with all he's got!  It is good to keep the right perspective!  We "make it through" or we are "brought through" - which would you prefer?  Quite honestly, I'd prefer the latter!

Size does not really matter!

Several years ago, a TV program began to make the "impossible" a possibility for those with unrecognized talent. American Idol became the most talked about program, featuring men and women with amazing talent, pitting once against another, until America "voted" the best of the best to the top of the heap.  Many of today's "idols" are followed by society, given a place of prominence, and rise to levels of unbelievable importance - yet their rise to popularity is not without the challenges of "stardom".  There are struggles with the competition the next "idol" presents, the unexpected demands of what such a quick rise to popularity places on both home and personal life, etc.  When I look at those who rise to such places of "importance" in society, I wonder if they really will endure the tests of time.  Today's passage deals with the very often missed fact - God is not impressed by what man sees as impressive!  In fact, he looks at the heart.

He's not impressed with horsepower; the size of our muscles means little to him.  Those who fear God get God's attention; they can depend on his strength.  (Psalm 147:10-11 The Message)

I love the simplicity of God's word!  He is not impressed with horsepower!  The idea of "horsepower" is often associated with the size of an engine in a vehicle.  The bigger the engine, the faster it travels, the quicker it starts, and the louder it is.  To me, when God says he is not impressed with horsepower, I think he means quick starts mean very little if you don't finish well.  We can make fast transitions in life, but the ones which really matter are those which endure the tests of time.  We all know the idiom, "The squeaky wheel gets the oil."  God knows the "loudest" wheel is not always turning in the right direction!  He is more concerned about where the wheel is traveling than he is in the noise it makes!

The size of our muscles means little to him!  This is a good thing since mine seem to have developed a little flabbiness with age!  Mighty men fight in the wrestling rings around the world - laden with well-developed muscles and bulked up physical stature.  Appearance means little when God is in charge of a man's life, though.  Don't believe me?  Think of David, a small shepherd boy.  Up against the mighty Philistine giant, Goliath.  In all estimation, he should never have felled the giant!  Yet, a few small stones in his hand, with the anointing of God, toppled one the world held up as a "giant".

Those who fear God get God's attention.  I am always amazed when my small need touches God just as much as the huge need of a small child dealing with a life-threatening disease.  God is no respecter of person - he sees all of us equally - through the blood of his Son!  Sin was the first "equalizer" for mankind - ALL have sinned and have fallen short of God's glory.  Christ is the last "equalizer" for mankind - by HIM all things are made new!

We can depend on his strength.  What we choose to lean upon is what will either sustain us, or be our undoing.  We can lean on what the world proclaims as important - job, material possessions, amassed funds.  Or...if we are wise...we can lean upon what God declares to be supremely important - the provision of his grace and mercy through his Son, Jesus.  In this standing, we learn dependence.  In our dependence, we learn to glean of his strength, leaning less and less upon our own.  In turn, we are made strong!

Deprived or Dependent?

 Don't ever deprive me of truth, not ever—your commandments are what I depend on.  Oh, I'll guard with my life what you've revealed to me, guard it now, guard it ever; and I'll stride freely through wide open spaces as I look for your truth and your wisdom; then I'll tell the world what I find, speak out boldly in public, unembarrassed.   I cherish your commandments—oh, how I love them—relishing every fragment of your counsel.

(Psalm 119:43-48 The Message)

Have you ever been deprived of something you depend on?  I remember wrestling with my brother as a kid.  He is 11 years older, so it was never really a "fair" wrestling match!  He'd pin me down with his full body weight, tickling me to tears, and I would find myself laughing so hard that'd I almost felt like I'd lose my breath at any moment.  I'd wriggle harder, trying to escape his clutch.  He'd just tickle more!  

I used to think this was like being deprived of air until I actually experienced it on the softball field one day.  I went up for a fly ball, landing flat on my back - causing the air to be pushed out of my lungs.  The force of the blow sent my lungs into a "spasm" of sorts - sports players know this as getting the air knocked out of you.  There I lay, struggling to take a breath in, panic beginning to rise with each seemingly never-ending second.  

The coach said I was without air for about a minute or two, but not much more.  It seemed an eternity to me!  Why did I think hours had passed when only minutes had?  Why was my coach calm and my response was one of panic?  Simply put - perspective!  She was still breathing!  I wasn't!  I was experiencing the pain - she was "coaching" me through!  What a difference it makes in how we "interpret" the circumstances based on the perspective we have within those circumstances!

We all depend on air.  When we are deprived of it, our body sets off a series of responses designed to help us get air into our bodies.  When we cannot because of the circumstances, the adrenaline released begins to send us into that fight or flight response we sometimes equate with panic.  To our psalmist, God's truth (his Word) was something he learned to equate to much as he equated to "breath" - he could not be deprived of it!  In fact, he earnestly pleads with God to never deprive him of it because he had come to depend on it so much!

Deprivation is always equated with dependency.  We won't feel deprived if we have never developed an dependency.  If you have never tasted chocolate, developing a "taste" for it, you won't feel deprived of it when it is not available to you.  David had developed a "taste" for God's Word and the regular intake of it.  He was dependent on it for his every move - so much so that he would guard losing it!

Not only would he guard losing it completely, but I believe because he had developed a dependency on God's Word he would guard against something "robbing" him of the regular intake of the Word.  Not having God's Word to guide his steps, give him strength in times of struggle, or to build him up when he fails, was like depriving him of air.  I wonder if we have the same dependency upon God's Word.  Do we relish the Word - enjoy it, feel pleasure in the discovery of what is contained there?  

Babies are dependent upon their regular intake of a mother's milk for their development.  If they are deprived of it long enough, what do they do?  They cry out!  Even if we see ourselves as "babes" just taking in God's Word, we want a regular intake!  Deprive us of intake and we begin to feel the effects!  It is not long before we begin to cry out!  As we grow a little older in our Christian faith, developing the ability to take in "meat", we still depend upon the Word - we just don't need it so "digested" for us to enjoy its intake!

Whether babes, toddlers, teen, or mature - we cannot be deprived of that which we need for life.  If you take something in long enough, you become dependent upon it.  It is in the development of the "habit" of turning to God's Word that we develop a dependency on its counsel.  

Don't quit on me now!

 ^4-6 When they hear what you have to say, God, all earth's kings will say "Thank you."  They'll sing of what you've done: "How great the glory of God!"  And here's why: God, high above, sees far below; no matter the distance, he knows everything about us.  ^7-8 When I walk into the thick of trouble, keep me alive in the angry turmoil. With one hand strike my foes, with your other hand save me.  Finish what you started in me, God. Your love is eternal—don't quit on me now.

(Psalm 138:4-8)

David had a special way of telling us about how God interacts with is children.  This psalm is just another example of what David had come to know about the Lord he served.  Imagine all kinds of this earth proclaiming that God is great and that his glory is high above all other!  David must have been speaking prophetically here, because we sure have not seen the day where we can say that the kings are giving glory to God like that!

The crux of this psalm is really found just after that - God, high above, sees far below!  We may not "see" him, but he sees us!  If nothing else, the fact that God even notices humankind should bring us to our knees!  David is quite clear when he says that "no matter the distance, he knows everything about us".  Wow!  Nothing escapes his notice - nothing is overlooked for his intervention.  Too many times we come to the conclusion that we are in the thick of things all alone - no one noticing the mess we are in.  Just the opposite is true - God never misses a beat!

David's plea is that God will finish what he began in David's life.  Those are words that literally tug at the heart-strings of God's infinitely large heart!  All of heaven knows that we are not very good at finishing what WE start!  We make starts and stops like jackrabbits on a hot day!  There is very little consistency in our walk, but God sees it all - both the starts and the stops.  Both attract his attention.  When we cry out for him to finish what HE started, forgetting what it is the WE started, his hands are quick to go into action on our behalf.

Why does God let us start things on our own when he knows they will end in failure?  I imagine it is so we will learn just how insufficient our self-will, self-dependence, and self-determination are.  Once we fail, we consider the error of OUR ways and are often open to considering the blessing of GOD's ways.  God never asked for us to be robots - under his control and just going through the motions of serving him.  He wants us to come to the conclusion that his ways are better than our own - so he allows us to experience the results of our own actions.

Then end result is usually that end up calling out like David, "Finish what you started God!  I got it all messed up when I tried it on my own!"  I honestly believe that God unleashes all of heaven's resources at those very words!  He never misses a step we take - all the while just waiting to hear that we need him to finish what he began!  Glory!