A reflection on Psalm 91
Sagrada Familia
I have …
… a God who covers his children
like a mother hen,
and whose feathers
become a fortress that is
a refuge from danger,
evil
and all that destroys.
… a God who lifts me up
beyond the harm
and hatred swirling ’round me.
… a God who gathers me
in his arms
and gives me
more,
far more,
than I deserve.
… a God
whose son is,
right now,
busy making a home for me,
forever.
“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 (The Message)
One of my daughters pointed me to ‘The Message’ translation of Psalm 91. As a family we are in need of a party right now and here we find God promising us one. In the NIV and KJV it speaks of “honouring” us. I like the “party” idea better. It has a sense of joy and celebration and also echoes forward to the story of the prodigal son and the party his dad throws for him.
When you read Psalm 91 it becomes obvious that there is nothing in our own strength that we can do about our broken human condition. All we can do do is “dwell”, “rest” and seek “refuge”. God however “covers”, guards”, “lifts up” and “protects”. God is active in His care for us and all we can do is flee into His arms. But that is what we must do – fall helplessly into His arms. It is not easy. We are by nature arrogant and stubborn. Like a little child we stand stubbornly stamping our feet, arms crossed defiantly thinking we know best.
Our heavenly dad says, “Come to me my little child. I will hold you and because you have obeyed my call to fall helplessly into my arms, we will have a party.”
I don’t know about you, but a party with God sounds brilliant!
I don’t consider myself a vengeful person but I do have a tendency to want to see justice. When a wrong is done I want to the person suffer the consequences of their actions. After all, “a tooth for a tooth” or “an eye for an eye” is a good OT principle. A friend points out that we will end up with with a lot of blind and toothless people.
However, grace of course, means that I will not have to suffer the eternal consequences of my sin. My divorce, or murder or embezzlement may have temporal consequences – a broken and confused family or a gaol sentence but it will not see me separated from God for eternity if I have come to Him in faith.
So the people I admire are those who have been affected by serious consequences due to the sin/unlawful actions of others but their first response is not revenge, or even justice but have a concern for the eternal salvation of the wrong doer.
I admire them because I am not a person who immediately thinks that way. I have an understanding of grace and our own brokenness yet there are aspects that I haven’t fully grasped yet. The enormity of what Christ did for me on the cross is a fact that I acknowledge but there is an a key truth to his sacrifice that I still struggle to comprehend. Otherwise, why is it that I want to see others get their just desserts. It is just that I don’t want to suffer my own!
And so from this one man, and he as good as dead, came descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as countless as the sand on the seashore. Hebrews 11:12
Anglesea (Australia) on a Summer’s day.
Today, before one of our daughters returns to sea-less Switzerland, we went to the beach. It was 30 degrees C and we hired a boat to paddle for a while. Quite idyllic.
However, the thing I hate about beaches is the sand – it gets into everything. For God however it is an object lesson. Grains of sand remind us that His promises are boundless. He promised Abraham a family – a spiritual family. That family is now spread throughout the whole world. From that family the Messiah came. Every Christian believer is beholden to that patriarch from 4000 years ago.
So I might find sand annoying but God tells me through each scratchy grain in my shorts, that his promises are amazing. Yet I still hope the beaches by the Sea of Crystal are nice cool, manicured lawns.
I wasn’t going to write any more about the burglary and house fire my daughters had recently but I want to finish with two photos of posters in one bedroom that survived. They say it all!
“Be Strong and Courageous” Joshua 1:9
I was trying to think of something positive to write about. Burglary and house fires – no. An eye for an eye – no again. Family -yes. It is one of my favourite topics. Even students at school get sick of my “family” stories.
Briefly, there are two family anecdotes I want to highlight:
A while ago, and again recently (The Providence of God), I reflected on how my wife’s parents met. A few days ago their grandchildren had a reunion. Although my wife’s father has been dead for nearly 50 years, I am sure sure he would have been proud of the brood that gathered – fine young (and some less so!) people all of them. Their grandmother, who died more recently, was able to tell them how proud she was of them. The cousins had a great time remembering and celebrating the bonds they have.
My second story relates to the burglary and house fire two of my daughters had recently. (Which I am not going into!) What impressed me as a dad was how the sisters and lone brother in law went into action to help. Some cleaned, some made meals, others carried and fetched (over long distances) and each person’s shoulder was a available to lean and cry on. As a dad, it chokes me up to see the family at work like this. It is another reason for which to thank God!
So once again, I am compelled to proclaim how important family is. It is a jewel to protect, nurture and celebrate. I know for some readers your experience differs. If you have a young family, make an effort to set a foundation in which mutual care and love is a key guiding principle. In the future times will come when these bonds will be extremely important. So build them when they are young.
This is a reminder to me to be aware of what I post as I may be called to live it out!
Due to recent events piled on others that have occurred this year and the consequent numbness of heart and mind, I was looking through my photos of 2012 searching for one that encapsulated the year. I came across a photo that I had used in a blog on an earlier occasion in the post: “The Providence of God.”
In this blog I reflected on how my wife’s parents met. Out of two struggling lives God created a loving family in a distant land. The place in this photo is the rest home with its message written in the lives of my wife and her sisters.
At this moment that photo summarises my thoughts: through our pains and struggles God can accomplish much. The darkness of the moment will be removed with the glory that is to come.
“De Hezenberg” near Hattem and Zwolle in the Netherlands.
In Psalm 11 David asks the question, which many of us have asked when we peruse the condition of the world, “When the foundations are being destroyed, what can the righteous do?”
David recognises that evil, so often, seems overwhelmingly strong. I am sure there are many times when we too have felt overwhelmed. Just looking over the past year, whether it is our own life or the news, evil has been rampant. Social values are in decline, greed, murder and injustice are seen as “normal”.
David was undergoing his own trial, probably with either Absolom or Saul, but gives us the answer. God in His time will deal with the rebellious because he loves the righteous. The righteous, of course, are those who in their brokenness come to God in faith. It is a Christ bought righteousness. David was acutely aware of his own lack of holiness. God was his only hope.
So as another year ends and a new one begins, David’s Psalm points us to our hope and security – God’s divine promises. And David adds, we will see his face. There is a place for us in His presence where evil is eliminated. In the meantime we have His Word, His Spirit and each other to remind us of this hope in the midst of heartbreaking evil. God is indeed, good!
It is going to be a hot day today so I got up early and watered the garden. The air was still and the neighbourhood very quiet. The only thing spoiling the serenity was my own water pump whirring away.
When I got back inside the family, including those who have flown or driven in for Christmas, were still asleep – or pretending to be.
I started counting my blessings – big and small. We can often be so obsessed with money and material things, but there are so many small things, or should I say “non material” things to be thankful for: a family that enjoys coming home, their love for each other, the banter and retelling of their lives, family jokes and gentle teasing … God is good!
Dear God, thank you for slowing me down and reminding me what us truly precious.
Travels from Ur 