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“Let the one who is wise heed these things and ponder the loving deeds of the Lord.” (Psalm 107:43, NIV)

The verses preceding today’s scripture are a recollection of the many gracious deeds of the Lord toward His “redeemed” ones.

It is worth noting that the list is both personal and corporate; as recent as today and long ago; both dramatic and mundane.

We need not personally experience every gracious deed of the Lord God in order to add our “amen.” The testimony of all of the saints of God is also our testimony when we identify with our heavenly Father’s purposes, and affirm in our living our heavenly Father’s will.

Heeding the wisdom of the Lord, and pondering all of His loving deeds will keep your relationship fresh, and your vision clear. – Luther

Tagged God's grace, God's wisdom, the book of Psalms

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“As a father has compassion on his children, so the Lord has compassion on those who fear him; for he knows how we are formed, he remembers that we are dust.” (Psalm 103:13-14, NIV)

The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines “compassion” as “sympathetic consciousness of others’ distress together with a desire to alleviate it.”

To begin to see ourselves as God see us is the first step toward a new frontier of compassion toward others. To regard ourselves as something other than “dust” — that is, as transitory and humble — is to ignore the lessons of history, the evidence of biology, and the propositions of theology.

We may be able to fool ourselves as to our true make-up because everything seems to be going our way (something the scriptures refer to as “the pride of life”). However, if we see ourselves as God sees us, we come not only to realize what we are not, but to the realization of Who God is. It is in such a place that we apprehend the “fear” (also translated as the “reverence”) of the Lord.

The psalmist says that it is upon such people that the Lord’s compassion rests. God sent His only begotten Son, Jesus, as His “sympathetic consciousness” of our distress. The cross of Jesus is His sole and solitary plan to alleviate that distress. The resurrection of Jesus is God’s guarantee. – Luther

Tagged brevity of life, compassion, life's brevity, the book of Psalms

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“Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.” (Psalm 91:1-2, NIV)

Today’s psalm reminds us of the connection between where we choose to live and the quality of that life.

The state of Kansas, where I was born, is known (as much for its depiction in the classic movie, “The Wizard of Oz,” as anything else) as the home of fierce windstorms and tornadoes. Kansas is also a place where a lot of people live in mobile homes.

People whose dwelling place is a mobile home do not rest easy when wind storms and tornadoes are in the weather forecast.

Likewise, in life, people whose “shelter” is their wealth, their popularity, their intelligence, or any state or status other than an established and growing relationship with the Lord God will not — cannot — rest easy when these “shelters” are at risk of destruction in the storms of life.

These storms; whether they be illness, persecution for doing the right thing, the death of a relative or a friend, or enduring a trial of faith, are as natural in the spiritual realm as tornadoes are in the physical realm.

Where is your dwelling place? Where is your resting place?

For the person who trusts in God, these places have the same address. – Luther

Tagged God as refuge, refuge, shelter and security, the book of Psalms, The Wizard of Oz

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