Burunche’s Blog

Prayer for Relief from Adversaries

To the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David. To bring to remembrance.

“Make haste, O God, to deliver me! Make haste to help me, O Lord! Let them be ashamed and confounded who seek my life; let them be turned back and confused who desire my hurt.

Let them be turned back because of their shame, who say, “Aha, aha!” Let all those who seek You rejoice and be glad in You; and let those who love Your salvation say continually, “Let God be magnified!”

But I am poor and needy; make haste to me, O God! You are my help and my deliverer; O Lord, do not delay.”

Once more, David is in trouble and feels there’s no way out; only God can save and help him. And David needs help NOW! All of us have days like this, times when you feel completely helpless.

One of the reasons the Psalms remain so popular is that they describe real situations. And because these are real situations, we can use these prayers as our own.

“Let all those who seek You rejoice and be glad in You; and let those who love Your salvation say continually, “Let God be magnified!”  Notice this does NOT say, “Let all those who are having a good day rejoice and be glad.” All that needs to happen is that we are seeking God; once we are seeking God’s help, we qualify for it.

APPLICATION: There are times when things are so difficult that you want to pray, you need to pray, but you simply can’t! You feel as if the words are sticking in your throat. That’s when psalms like this one can become your prayer lifeline.

When we first came to our current assignment thirty years ago, I had lots of people eager to tell lies about me to anyone who would listen. It took the advent of a tribal war and the expansion of our services to include operations and transfusions before the critics backed off. Many times, these psalms helped save my sanity, reminding me that thousands of years ago, David was enduring similar problems.

Are you struggling right now, even though you know God has called you to do what you are doing? Hang on! Stay the course! Trust God. If God has brought you to this situation, He will bring you through it.

PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and for caring for us. Lord, help all who read these words to take courage from You and to trust for You to save them. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.

An Urgent Plea for Help in Trouble

To the Chief Musician. Set to “The Lilies.” A Psalm of David.

“Save me, O God! For the waters have come up to my neck. I sink in deep mire, where there is no standing; I have come into deep waters, where the floods overflow me. I am weary with my crying; my throat is dry; my eyes fail while I wait for my God.

Those who hate me without a cause are more than the hairs of my head; they are mighty who would destroy me, being my enemies wrongfully; though I have stolen nothing, I still must restore it. O God, You know my foolishness; and my sins are not hidden from You. Let not those who wait for You, O Lord God of hosts, be ashamed because of me; let not those who seek You be confounded because of me, O God of Israel.

Because for Your sake I have borne reproach; shame has covered my face. I have become a stranger to my brothers, and an alien to my mother’s children; because zeal for Your house has eaten me up, and the reproaches of those who reproach You have fallen on me.

When I wept and chastened my soul with fasting, that became my reproach. I also made sackcloth my garment; I became a byword to them. Those who sit in the gate speak against me, and I am the song of the drunkards.

But as for me, my prayer is to You, O Lord, in the acceptable time; O God, in the multitude of Your mercy, hear me in the truth of Your salvation. Deliver me out of the mire, and let me not sink; let me be delivered from those who hate me, and out of the deep waters.

Let not the floodwater overflow me, nor let the deep swallow me up; and let not the pit shut its mouth on me. Hear me, O Lord, for Your lovingkindness is good; turn to me according to the multitude of Your tender mercies. And do not hide Your face from Your servant, for I am in trouble; hear me speedily. Draw near to my soul, and redeem it; deliver me because of my enemies.

You know my reproach, my shame, and my dishonor; my adversaries are all before You. Reproach has broken my heart, and I am full of heaviness; I looked for someone to take pity, but there was none; and for comforters, but I found none. They also gave me gall for my food, and for my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink.

Let their table become a snare before them, and their well-being a trap. Let their eyes be darkened, so that they do not see; and make their loins shake continually. Pour out Your indignation upon them, and let Your wrathful anger take hold of them. Let their dwelling place be desolate; let no one live in their tents. For they persecute the ones You have struck, and talk of the grief of those You have wounded.

Add iniquity to their iniquity, and let them not come into Your righteousness. Let them be blotted out of the book of the living, and not be written with the righteous.

But I am poor and sorrowful; let Your salvation, O God, set me up on high. I will praise the name of God with a song, and will magnify Him with thanksgiving. This also shall please the Lord better than an ox or bull, which has horns and hooves. The humble shall see this and be glad; and you who seek God, your hearts shall live. For the Lord hears the poor, and does not despise His prisoners.

Let heaven and earth praise Him, the seas and everything that moves in them. For God will save Zion
and build the cities of Judah, that they may dwell there and possess it. Also, the descendants of His servants shall inherit it, and those who love His name shall dwell in it.”

“Save me, O God! For the waters have come up to my neck. I sink in deep mire, where there is no standing; I have come into deep waters, where the floods overflow me. I am weary with my crying; my throat is dry; my eyes fail while I wait for my God.” Once more David is in crisis mode and has penned a psalm for the rest of us. There’s a saying that “When you are up to your rear end in alligators, it’s hard to remember that your original objective was to drain the swamp.” David feels as if he is drowning in trouble, sinking in mud while water comes up to his chin.

“Those who hate me without a cause are more than the hairs of my head; they are mighty who would destroy me, being my enemies wrongfully; though I have stolen nothing, I still must restore it.” It’s bad enough when you have actually messed up, but when multitudes of people you don’t know are hating you for no reason, it can destroy you.

…because zeal for Your house has eaten me up, and the reproaches of those who reproach You have fallen on me.”  When Jesus drives the money changers out of the temple in Jerusalem, his disciples apply these verses to him.

“Reproach has broken my heart, and I am full of heaviness; I looked for someone to take pity, but there was none; and for comforters, but I found none. They also gave me gall for my food, and for my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink.” While David is describing his own suffering, these verses have also been applied to Jesus’s suffering on the cross at Calvary.

“But I am poor and sorrowful; let Your salvation, O God, set me up on high. I will praise the name of God with a song, and will magnify Him with thanksgiving.” Even in the middle of suffering, David persists in praising God.

“Let heaven and earth praise Him, the seas and everything that moves in them. For God will save Zion
and build the cities of Judah, that they may dwell there and possess it. Also, the descendants of His servants shall inherit it, and those who love His name shall dwell in it.” David stops focusing on his own problems long enough to express his hopes for God’s salvation.

APPLICATION: There are days when everything seems to go completely wrong, everybody is against you, and you just want to quit! It’s extremely disheartening to do everything right and still get attacked, particularly when your attackers coming at you from all directions.

Obviously, faithfulness to God does not guarantee we will be free from attack; in fact, you might find yourself under more attack because of your stand for righteousness.

But even when David is in the depths of despair, he continues to praise God and to trust Him. It’s easy to trust God when everything is going well; however, the real test of our faith comes when things are falling apart.

Today, you might identify with David. You feel as if you are sinking in quicksand and you’re about to drown! Don’t despair. God is still on the throne, and He will bring you through.

PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and for caring for us. Lord, help us to trust You even when things are falling apart. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.

An Invocation and a Doxology

To the Chief Musician. On stringed instruments. A Psalm. A Song.

“God be merciful to us and bless us, and cause His face to shine upon us, Selah that Your way may be known on earth, Your salvation among all nations.

Let the peoples praise You, O God; let all the peoples praise You. Oh, let the nations be glad and sing for joy! For You shall judge the people righteously, and govern the nations on earth. Selah

Let the peoples praise You, O God; let all the peoples praise You. Then the earth shall yield her increase; God, our own God, shall bless us. God shall bless us, and all the ends of the earth shall fear Him.”

“God be merciful to us and bless us, and cause His face to shine upon us, Selah that Your way may be known on earth, Your salvation among all nations.” This psalm is one of those short but memorable ones. If God is not merciful, He will not bless us because we don’t deserve either mercy or blessing by ourselves. When God blesses a people, He demonstrates His power to all the surrounding nations.

“Let the peoples praise You, O God; let all the peoples praise You. Oh, let the nations be glad and sing for joy! For You shall judge the people righteously, and govern the nations on earth. Selah” Follow current events for even a few minutes and you realize that righteous leadership is in short supply around the world. Nothing is more frightening than laboring under unrighteous leadership, fearing that terrible things might happen at any moment.

“Let the peoples praise You, O God; let all the peoples praise You. Then the earth shall yield her increase; God, our own God, shall bless us. God shall bless us, and all the ends of the earth shall fear Him.” We are wrong when we assume that the earth is inanimate and cannot respond to the spirits influencing the people who are occupying it. George Otis Jr. and the Sentinel Organization have repeatedly demonstrated that when God heals a land spiritually, the land becomes productive. Streams fill with fish. Crops flourish. Why should the ends of the earth fear God? When God does miracles, the news spreads around the world.

Romans 4:17 describes the Kingdom of God. “For the Kingdom of God is not meat and drink, but righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost. “ Many people long for just those things in their lives. When God blesses us and all the ends of the earth fear Him, the Kingdom of God has truly arrived.

APPLICATION: It’s tempting to read this psalm and wonder why it is not already being fulfilled. There are lots of believers around the world begging God to bring peace to their countries. Why hasn’t God fulfilled those requests already?

Our problem is that we have a limited view of things. 1 Corinthians 13 tells us that our knowledge is imperfect and our prophecy is imperfect. No matter how intelligently we try to interpret political events, only God knows the end from the beginning.

There is an old hymn that says, “God is working His Purpose Out.

 1 God is working this purpose out, as year succeeds to year;
God is working this purpose out, and the time is drawing near;
nearer and nearer draws the time, the time that shall surely be:
when the earth shall be filled with the glory of God as the waters cover the sea.

2 From utmost east to utmost west, where human feet have trod,
by the mouth of many messengers goes forth the voice of God:
“Give ear to me, ye continents, ye isles, give ear to me,
that the earth may be filled with the glory of God as the waters cover the sea.”

3 Let us go forth in the strength of God, with the banner of Christ unfurled,
that the light of the glorious gospel of truth may shine throughout the world.
Let us all fight with sorrow and sin to set the captives free,
that the earth may be filled with the glory of God as the waters cover the sea.

4 All we can do is nothing worth unless God blesses the deed.
Vainly we hope for the harvest-tide till God gives life to the seed.
Yet nearer and nearer draws the time, the time that shall surely be,
when the earth shall be filled with the glory of God as the waters cover the sea.

PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and for caring for us. Lord, help us to trust that You ARE working out Your purposes and that the earth shall be filled with the glory of God as the waters cover the sea. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.

Make a Joyful Noise

(Psalm 100:1-5)For the choirmaster. A song. A Psalm.

“Make a joyful noise to God, all the earth! Sing the glory of His name; make His praise glorious. Say to God, “How awesome are Your deeds! So great is Your power that Your enemies cower before You. All the earth bows down to You; they sing praise to You; they sing praise to Your name.”

Selah

Come and see the works of God; how awesome are His deeds toward mankind. He turned the sea into dry land; they passed through the waters on foot; there we rejoiced in Him. He rules forever by His power; His eyes watch the nations. Do not let the rebellious exalt themselves. Selah

Praise our God, O peoples; let the sound of His praise be heard. He preserves our lives and keeps our feet from slipping. For You, O God, have tested us; You have refined us like silver. You led us into the net; You laid burdens on our backs. You let men ride over our heads; we went through fire and water, but You brought us into abundance.

I will enter Your house with burnt offerings; I will fulfill my vows to You—the vows that my lips promised and my mouth spoke in my distress. I will offer You fatlings as burnt offerings, with the fragrant smoke of rams; I will offer bulls and goats. Selah

Come and listen, all you who fear God, and I will declare what He has done for me. I cried out to Him with my mouth and praised Him with my tongue. If I had cherished iniquity in my heart, the Lord would not have listened. But God has surely heard; He has attended to the sound of my prayer. Blessed be God, who has not rejected my prayer or withheld from me His loving devotion!”

“Make a joyful noise to God, all the earth! Sing the glory of His name; make His praise glorious. Say to God, “How awesome are Your deeds! So great is Your power that Your enemies cower before You. All the earth bows down to You; they sing praise to You; they sing praise to Your name.” Selah When it comes to praise songs, David is still one of the greatest song writers of all times. Here we are not glimpsing David the king but David the shepherd boy who has witnessed thousands of sunrises and sunsets and has seen the light of God illuminating the hills and everything in them.

“Come and see the works of God; how awesome are His deeds toward mankind. He turned the sea into dry land; they passed through the waters on foot; there we rejoiced in Him. He rules forever by His power; His eyes watch the nations. Do not let the rebellious exalt themselves. Selah” Here David is referring to the miraculous deliverance of Moses and the Israelites as they crossed the Red Sea on dry land, only for the entire Egyptian army to be wiped out when the water surged back, covering that path. A God who can defeat the strongest army in the world is certainly a God of power. 

“Praise our God, O peoples; let the sound of His praise be heard. He preserves our lives and keeps our feet from slipping. For You, O God, have tested us; You have refined us like silver. You led us into the net; You laid burdens on our backs. You let men ride over our heads; we went through fire and water,

but You brought us into abundance.” At no point has God ever promised any of His people that they would remain free from suffering and trials. The ancient process of refinement means that the silver is heated repeatedly until all the impurities are gone and the refiner can see his reflection in the silver.

“You led us INTO the net?” Does God allow us to become entrapped? To bear burdens on our backs? To let men ride over our heads? To go through fire and water? Yes to all these things. Sometimes God sends us through hellish experiences BUT He can also bring us into abundance. I’ve said it before, but it’s still true: In the middle of a trial, I don’t want to hear comments from anybody who has not earned his/her PhD. in suffering. Those who have never suffered are the very ones who will smugly give glib advice from the depths of their ignorance. Those who have endured hardships are the ones who can give true encouragement. As an example, experienced parents will never give pat answers to other parents struggling with disobedient teens; they’ve made too many mistakes themselves.

“I will enter Your house with burnt offerings; I will fulfill my vows to You—the vows that my lips promised and my mouth spoke in my distress. I will offer You fatlings as burnt offerings, with the fragrant smoke of rams; I will offer bulls and goats. Selah” We read these words and think “burning flesh-EWW!” But for David and his people, offering the most perfect animals they could find is a very big sacrifice; after all, these are the best breeding animals and these animals will have the choicest meat. Sacrifices that don’t cost you anything are a sham.

“Come and listen, all you who fear God, and I will declare what He has done for me. I cried out to Him with my mouth and praised Him with my tongue. If I had cherished iniquity in my heart, the Lord would not have listened. But God has surely heard; He has attended to the sound of my prayer. Blessed be God, who has not rejected my prayer or withheld from me His loving devotion!”  God wants us to come to Him, but He doesn’t want us to come with ulterior motives. God is not a vending machine nor a computer; He cannot be manipulated. When we come to God purely to worship Him, He knows. And when we come hoping to trick God into giving us things, He knows that also.

APPLICATION: If you’ve ever heard seagulls, you know their cries are anything but melodic; in fact, a flock of seagulls can raise enough noise to wake the dead. So why has someone used a photo of a seagull to illustrate making a joyful noise to the Lord? Face it; some of us produce more melodic results than others. Attend enough services in small churches and you’ll find that some worship leaders are much more talented than others. Some worship efforts can set the hearers’ teeth on edge as the musicians hit one wrong note after another. But what does God hear?

Several years ago, when I was living in West Virginia, there was a Christian blue grass music group whose program aired on Sunday mornings. Possessing a keen sense of pitch, I could scarcely stand to listen to those folks, until the morning God stopped me as I was about to change radio stations. “I want you to hear what I hear,” God said. So I listened. There were still just as many sour notes and quavering chords, but now I heard the love those folks had for the Lord.

None of us praise God the way we should or as much as we should. But God is a Divine Parent who loves his children’s efforts, even when they are far less than perfect. Parents posting their children’s art work on their refrigerators aren’t worried about that those drawings aren’t masterpieces. When a child creates something and gives it to you in love, you accept it and show the child how thrilled you are. In the same manner, God accepts our praises. Some of us are better musicians than others. Some of us can’t carry a tune in a bucket if someone gives us a bucket. But when we praise God from our hearts, God receives our praise gladly. And the praise we give when we are under struggling is particularly precious to God. Remember, “It’s not a sacrifice of praise until you’re pushing it out through clenched teeth.” (Quote from the late Harold Hill, How to Live Like a King’s Kid.)

If you can’t make music, don’t worry. You can still share the thoughts of your heart and God will hear your love for Him.

PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and caring for us. Lord, help us to praise You with everything that is in us. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.

Praise to God for His Salvation and Providence

To the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David. A Song.

“Praise is awaiting You, O God, in Zion; and to You the vow shall be performed. O You who hear prayer,
to You all flesh will come.

Iniquities prevail against me; as for our transgressions, You will provide atonement for them.

Blessed is the man You choose, and cause to approach You, that he may dwell in Your courts. We shall be satisfied with the goodness of Your house, of Your holy temple.

By awesome deeds in righteousness You will answer us, O God of our salvation, You who are the confidence of all the ends of the earth, and of the far-off seas; Who established the mountains by His strength, being clothed with power; You who still the noise of the seas, the noise of their waves, and the tumult of the peoples.

They also who dwell in the farthest parts are afraid of Your signs; You make the outgoings of the morning and evening rejoice. You visit the earth and water it, You greatly enrich it; the river of God is full of water; You provide their grain, for so You have prepared it. You water its ridges abundantly, You settle its furrows; You make it soft with showers, You bless its growth.

You crown the year with Your goodness, and Your paths drip with abundance. They drop on the pastures of the wilderness, and the little hills rejoice on every side. The pastures are clothed with flocks; the valleys also are covered with grain; they shout for joy, they also sing.”

“To the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David. A Song.” David dedicates many of his psalms to “the Chief Musician.” But to whom is David referring? While there was at least one leader of the musicians in the temple, personally, I like to believe that David is referring to God, who gives birds their songs, who causes oceans to roar, who causes mountains to tremble, and who gives the wind its voice.

“Praise is awaiting You, O God, in Zion; and to You the vow shall be performed. O You who hear prayer, to You all flesh will come.” God’s people are already praising Him and waiting for Him to manifest His glory. Fulfilling a vow to God is one of the highest forms of praise. God’s creation longs to come to Him, but people are sometimes very foolish and separate themselves from God by rejecting Him.

“Iniquities prevail against me; as for our transgressions, You will provide atonement for them.” Our own sins are more dangerous than any attack from someone else. Only God can provide complete atonement for these sins.

“Blessed is the man You choose, and cause to approach You, that he may dwell in Your courts. We shall be satisfied with the goodness of Your house, of Your holy temple.” We can only approach God because God allows us. If God hides Himself, we are powerless to find Him. When God’s Holy Spirit abides in a place, we can feel the goodness and the righteousness in a way that satisfies our souls, calming us and fulfilling us like nothing else.

“By awesome deeds in righteousness You will answer us, O God of our salvation, You who are the confidence of all the ends of the earth, and of the far-off seas; Who established the mountains by His strength, being clothed with power; You who still the noise of the seas, the noise of their waves, and the tumult of the peoples.” We see natural wonders and take them for granted, little realizing that it is the righteousness of God that brings all these things to pass. What some unbelievers choose to call natural law is actually God’s righteousness at work.

“They also who dwell in the farthest parts are afraid of Your signs; You make the outgoings of the morning and evening rejoice. You visit the earth and water it, You greatly enrich it; the river of God is full of water; You provide their grain, for so You have prepared it. You water its ridges abundantly, You settle its furrows; You make it soft with showers, You bless its growth. You crown the year with Your goodness, and Your paths drip with abundance. They drop on the pastures of the wilderness, and the little hills rejoice on every side. The pastures are clothed with flocks; the valleys also are covered with grain; they shout for joy, they also sing.”

The rest of the psalm describes God’s righteousness at work. As a shepherd, David keenly observed as dry deserts blossomed during the rains. Now David is singing a hymn of praise for all the goodness he has witnessed. David also claims that the land itself is singing and shouting for joy.

APPLICATION: This psalm is one of the favorites read in churches during harvest season in farming areas. Anyone working the land has witnessed the miracles described here on an annual basis. Isaiah 35 mentions “the desert will blossom as a rose,” a real phenomenon in dry places that suddenly receive much-needed rain. Right now, we are entering the dry season in northern Ghana. Our teak trees are beginning to drop their huge leaves and our grass is withering. Only the mango trees leaves remain glossy and green.

We are entering a lean season and praying for the harvest. This year has not been a good year for farming, and we are seeing increasing numbers of children requiring transfusions. We worry that the next few months we will see an increase in malnourished children; only yesterday one severely anemic four year old girl weighing 6 kg (13.2 lb) was admitted.

People who regard land as inanimate are completely wrong. The earth knows when someone who loves it is caring for it and it will respond. What we term natural disasters frequently occur because someone mishandles the land. The catastrophic dust storms of the 1930’s in the high plains part of America came because of over-grazing and poor farming practices. Now the land has recovered in many places because good conservation methods have been set in place. But not everything we call progress brings positive results. When American farms were smaller, there were many fences and hedge rows with vegetation growing up around them. Not only did these areas shelter wildlife and birds, but they also reduced the effect of winds, leading to less soil erosion and less blockage of highways from snow in the wintertime. Now that these fences and hedge rows are gone, there is more wind  erosion and state highway crews are coping with more snow drifts in the winter.

Today, why not thank God for His goodness, His mercy, and His love! Remember that if we don’t praise Him, the very rocks will cry out.

PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and for caring for us. Lord, help us to follow hard after You all the days of our lives and help us to praise You for Your goodness, Your mercy, and Your love. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.

Oppressed by the Wicked but Rejoicing in the Lord

To the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David.

“Hear my voice, O God, in my meditation; Preserve my life from fear of the enemy. Hide me from the secret plots of the wicked, from the rebellion of the workers of iniquity, who sharpen their tongue like a sword, and bend their bows to shoot their arrows—bitter words, that they may shoot in secret at the blameless; suddenly they shoot at him and do not fear.

They encourage themselves in an evil matter; they talk of laying snares secretly; they say, “Who will see them?” They devise iniquities: “We have perfected a shrewd scheme.”

Both the inward thought and the heart of man are deep. But God shall shoot at them with an arrow; suddenly they shall be wounded. So He will make them stumble over their own tongue; all who see them shall flee away.

All men shall fear, and shall declare the work of God; for they shall wisely consider His doing. The righteous shall be glad in the Lord, and trust in Him. And all the upright in heart shall glory.”

“Hear my voice, O God, in my meditation; Preserve my life from fear of the enemy. Hide me from the secret plots of the wicked, from the rebellion of the workers of iniquity, who sharpen their tongue like a sword, and bend their bows to shoot their arrows—bitter words, that they may shoot in secret at the blameless; suddenly they shoot at him and do not fear.” Fear! Fears can paralyze us, rendering us unable to do anything. Fears can haunt us for years. Fear can even affect our bodies, giving us stomach ulcers, hypertension, heart attacks, strokes, and possibly even cancer. But here David is begging God to preserve his life from FEAR of the enemy. Here is a prayer for all of us.

“Hide me from the secret plots of the wicked.” Ever notice how some people are natural conspirators; they are never happier than when they are plotting someone else’s downfall. If those same people would put half as much energy into doing their work well, they would become flaming successes and have no need for plotting against others.  

“They encourage themselves in an evil matter; they talk of laying snares secretly; they say, “Who will see them?” They devise iniquities: “We have perfected a shrewd scheme.” The more evil people become, the prouder they become as well. Truly evil people are convinced that they are far superior spiritually and that they are above the law, even the Law of God.

“Both the inward thought and the heart of man are deep. But God shall shoot at them with an arrow; suddenly they shall be wounded. So He will make them stumble over their own tongue; all who see them shall flee away.” Truly evil people are convinced that God is blind and that they can get away with anything without fear of retribution. But all this time, God is watching and waiting, giving them time to repent if they will. But at some point, God WILL deal with the wicked. We wish God would deal with them right now, but God even loves the wicked and longs for them to repent. For anyone who fails to repent will wind up separated from the Love of God forever.

“All men shall fear, and shall declare the work of God; for they shall wisely consider His doing. The righteous shall be glad in the Lord, and trust in Him. And all the upright in heart shall glory.” But if the wicked refuse to repent, why does this verse say, “All men shall fear and shall declare the work of God”? God will receive praise one way or the other. Either we will praise Him here and now or we will acknowledge His greatness on the way to hell. The choice is ours; God doesn’t send people to hell; people choose to go there by turning away from God. As soon as we turn our hearts toward God, He helps us grow in His righteousness so that we can be glad and trust in Him and glory in Him.  

APPLICATION: Through the years, we have weathered a great deal of criticism, not to mention outright lies. When we blocked unscrupulous men from stealing hospital equipment and otherwise profiting from our first project, they carried lies about us back to our first mission group. Sadly, the mission group believed the lies, refusing to even give us a hearing. Some of those leading that group even spread more lies, claiming that we “lacked a can-do attitude.” Hmm. Our next assignment from God in Ghana was to turn a small health center with eleven workers into a small bush hospital in the middle of a tribal war with no electricity or running water. Obviously, God’s view of us differed greatly from those lies.

When we first came to our current station, the national leadership failed to introduce us to the Regional Health Directorate properly, leaving us vulnerable to further lies and criticism. All those lies died away as the hospital grew and succeeded under extremely trying circumstances. But repeatedly through the years, those bent on unrighteous gain have persisted in their lies.

How can one survive under such circumstances? When Nehemiah was rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem, the enemies of the Jews were attempting to scare him by reporting threats. One Jew who was a secret informer even tried to get Nehemiah to hide in the temple. Nehemiah answered, ““Should such a man as I flee? And who is there such as I who would go into the temple to save his life? I will not go in!” Then I perceived that God had not sent him at all, but that he pronounced this prophecy against me because Tobiah and Sanballat had hired him. For this reason he was hired, that I should be afraid and act that way and sin, so that they might have cause for an evil report, that they might reproach me. My God, remember Tobiah and Sanballat, according to these their works, and the prophetess Noadiah and the rest of the prophets who would have made me afraid.” (Nehemiah 6:11-14)  Ironically, God has remembered these traitors, and we can still read all their names in Nehemiah’s accounts.

Are you trying to fulfill God’s calling on your life but meeting opposition? Hold on! God is still on the throne! Don’t give way to fear-don’t even begin to fear. As soon as you feel fear rising, remind yourself that God is the One who has called you and therefore He is responsible for results. Soak your mind and your heart with scriptures of hope and encouragement. Refuse to obsess about your problems!

Read the 4^th Chapter of Philippians. Philippians 4:6-7 says, “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:19 says,“ And my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.” Find Scriptures that encourage you and write them on cards or post-it notes and place them where you can see them readily. Psalm 64 says, “All the upright in heart shall glory.” It does NOT say “all the upright in heart who have no problems.”

PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and for caring for us. Lord, many of us are worried and fearful and with good reason. We are facing big problems and we feel overwhelmed. Please speak to the hearts of all who read these words so that they will take their courage from You, the only true Source of Light and Life. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.

Thirsting for God (2 Samuel 15:30-37)

A Psalm of David, when he was in the Wilderness of Judah.

“O God, You are my God. Earnestly I seek You; my soul thirsts for You. My body yearns for You in a dry and weary land without water.

So I have seen You in the sanctuary and beheld Your power and glory. Because Your loving devotion is better than life, my lips will glorify You. So I will bless You as long as I live; in Your name I will lift my hands.

My soul is satisfied as with the richest of foods; with joyful lips my mouth will praise You. When I remember You on my bed, I think of You through the watches of the night. For You are my help; I will sing for joy in the shadow of Your wings.

My soul clings to You; Your right hand upholds me. But those who seek my life to destroy it will go into the depths of the earth. They will fall to the power of the sword; they will become a portion for foxes. But the king will rejoice in God; all who swear by Him will exult, for the mouths of liars will be shut.”

“O God, You are my God. Earnestly I seek You; my soul thirsts for You. My body yearns for You in a dry and weary land without water.” David is fed up! King Saul has been chasing David all over Israel and now David and his men are hiding in the Wilderness of Judah not far from the Dead Sea. The sun is broiling hot and heat waves are shimmering off the hills. The only way to stay cool is to hide in caves, coming out in the evening to hunt. Drinking water is at a premium and David and his men are rationing their water as they search for new sources to replace the water they are consuming. Little wonder then if David refers to thirsting for God in a dry and weary land. As David gazes out on the glaring noonday heat, he is remembering the good times when he was able to worship with other believers without fear of being annihilated…and probably when he had all the water he could drink.

“So I have seen You in the sanctuary and beheld Your power and glory. Because Your loving devotion is better than life, my lips will glorify You. So I will bless You as long as I live; in Your name I will lift my hands.” What has David seen while in the sanctuary? We don’t know, but clearly God has manifested Himself to David in some special manner so that David can confidently speak of God’s power and glory. Now as a fugitive, David is reminding himself of God’s loving devotion that is more important than anything else. David plans to keep on praising the Lord and blessing Him, no matter what.

 “My soul is satisfied as with the richest of foods; with joyful lips my mouth will praise You. When I remember You on my bed, I think of You through the watches of the night. For You are my help; I will sing for joy in the shadow of Your wings.” While David and his men are lucky to get sufficient bread and water to survive, David continues to glory in God’s goodness and mercy. Countless times as a shepherd, David has watched birds sheltering their fledglings beneath their wings to protect them. That image of the sheltering wings runs throughout many of David’s psalms. But God’s wings are not made of flesh; they are eternal, fireproof, and bomb-proof. David knows that as long as God is protecting him, no evil can touch him unless it comes through God first.

 “My soul clings to You; Your right hand upholds me. But those who seek my life to destroy it will go into the depths of the earth. They will fall to the power of the sword; they will become a portion for foxes. But the king will rejoice in God; all who swear by Him will exult, for the mouths of liars will be shut.” By himself, David has little means of protection. Wherever David has fled, even the people whose lives he and his men have saved have turned traitors in hopes of currying favor with King Saul. More then once, David has had the chance to kill Saul, but he has refused, leaving Saul’s fate to God. Samuel has already anointed David to be the next king of Israel, and David is trusting that God will bring that kingship to pass. God Himself will shut the mouths of David’s critics.

APPLICATION: No bush hospital should have fewer than two doctors, and three doctors are even better; I know, for I have manned (womanned?) two different mission hospitals as the only doctor for several long years. At one point, I even served as the Medical Superintendent/Acting Administrator. (I had to buy books on Health Service Administration and read them quickly just to do a barely adequate job.) In such situations, sleep deprivation is a constant problem and decision-making is very difficult; meanwhile, my well-rested critics have persisted in assailing me. Many times the criticism has had nothing to do with my performance and everything to do with the fact that I am an honest woman working for Jesus and I refuse to countenance corruption and favoritism. Having grown up on a farm having to handle animals far bigger than I am, I refuse to be bullied.

When we are reading these psalms, we should remember that David has also had to overcome daunting challenges. Here is a man who has walked or run long miles over rocky terrain, subsisting on bread and water, sleeping in caves, and fearing for his life. David has suffered, and yet his faith has even grown under these circumstances. One of the laws of the Kingdom of God is that faith that has not been tried is not really faith but a wistful belief.  

Dr. Jeanette M. Troup was working at the ELWA Hospital in Jos, Nigeria in 1970 when a Lassa Fever outbreak took place. While performing an autopsy on one of her nurses, Jeanette accidentally cut herself. As Jeanette was developing the Lassa Fever from which she herself eventually died, she told a missionary friend that “Nothing can come to me except through my Father’s hand.” Little was known about Lassa Fever before this outbreak. The autopsies that Jeanette performed before her death helped advance the knowledge of this disease and make it possible to develop a vaccine. (Lassa can still kill; a few years ago, a colleague in a hospital in Togo died from Lassa.)

Jeanette Troup’s faith was an inspiration to all who knew her because that faith was forged in the fire of suffering. We treasure David’s psalms today for the same reason. No matter what you are going through, God’s strong right hand is still there to hold you securely. Trust Him to keep you, even in the middle of your struggles.

PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and for caring for us. Lord, many of us are facing severe trials, things too terrible to speak about to others. But You know us better than we know ourselves and You know all the pain. Lord, speak to the hearts of all who read these words so that they will put their trust in You and never quit. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.

A Calm Resolve to Wait for the Salvation of God

To the Chief Musician. To Jeduthun. A Psalm of David.

“Truly my soul silently waits for God; from Him comes my salvation. He only is my rock and my salvation; He is my defense; I shall not be greatly moved. How long will you attack a man? You shall be slain, all of you, like a leaning wall and a tottering fence. They only consult to cast him down from his high position; they delight in lies; they bless with their mouth, but they curse inwardly. Selah

My soul, wait silently for God alone, for my expectation is from Him. He only is my rock and my salvation; He is my defense; I shall not be moved. In God is my salvation and my glory; the rock of my strength, and my refuge, is in God.

Trust in Him at all times, you people; pour out your heart before Him; God is a refuge for us. Selah Surely men of low degree are a vapor, men of high degree are a lie; if they are weighed on the scales, they are altogether lighter than vapor.

Do not trust in oppression, nor vainly hope in robbery; if riches increase, do not set your heart on them. God has spoken once, twice I have heard this: That power belongs to God. Also to You, O  Lord, belongs mercy; for You render to each one according to his work.”

“Truly my soul silently waits for God; from Him comes my salvation. He only is my rock and my salvation; He is my defense; I shall not be greatly moved. “ We aren’t certain when in David’s long career this psalm was written; however, David is obviously facing stiff opposition and criticism. Steve Jobs once said, “If you want to make people happy, don’t be a leader, sell ice cream.”  Being a leader makes you a target for people’s complaints, their criticisms, their schemes, and their desire to depose you so that they might take over, as evidenced by the next few verses.

“How long will you attack a man? You shall be slain, all of you, like a leaning wall and a tottering fence. They only consult to cast him down from his high position; they delight in lies; they bless with their mouth, but they curse inwardly. Selah” If a leader is truly righteous, anytime someone begins to attack that leader, he or she is on a very shaky foundation that will likely collapse at any moment. Unfortunately, that fact fails to prevent people from nosing around to find any dirt possible or even to manufacture lies. And sometimes those who praise you the most and say the most comforting things are simply trying to worm their way into your affections so that they will have more material for criticism.

 “My soul, wait silently for God alone, for my expectation is from Him. He only is my rock and my salvation; He is my defense; I shall not be moved. In God is my salvation and my glory; the rock of my strength, and my refuge, is in God.” People may fail us but God will never fail us. When we rely on God, we can be confident that He will give us His best. God is the One who can defend us from all threats, including schemes about which we know nothing.

“Trust in Him at all times, you people; pour out your heart before Him; God is a refuge for us. Selah Surely men of low degree are a vapor, men of high degree are a lie; if they are weighed on the scales, they are altogether lighter than vapor.” No matter how important and powerful our friends are, they can die at any moment. If we rely on the poor, they may be bought. If we rely on the rich, they may sell us to the highest bidder. Compared to God, all people are nothing but a weightless vapor floating in the air.

“Do not trust in oppression, nor vainly hope in robbery; if riches increase, do not set your heart on them. God has spoken once, twice I have heard this: That power belongs to God. Also to You, O  Lord, belongs mercy; for You render to each one according to his work.” Those who trust in oppression or robbery are likely to find themselves oppressed and robbed. Money can evaporate; just ask anyone unfortunate enough to have lost their life savings in a Ponzi scheme or the collapse of a savings and loan.

APPLICATION: Once more, we are considering a psalm for the embattled. During the years when I headed mission hospitals, this psalm was one of my favorites and it was underlined, highlighted, and commented upon in several of my Bibles. Now that I use an e-reader, I still paste comments, and it is fascinating to read those remarks and remember how we were suffering at the time I wrote them.

My experiences as a leader have taught me several truths, many of which David has captured in this brief psalm. Repeatedly, those in authority to whom I am to answer have proven to be “vapors,” nothing more than smoke that floats away in the first high wind. Rich and powerful people can change their minds without notice, leaving institutions depending on them struggling to survive. National considerations and tribal ones may lead to a withdrawal of support. And then there is the impact of international events.

In the wake of September 11, 2001, many charitable organizations witnessed a precipitous downslide in charitable giving. Groups that had supported mission hospitals for large sums of money were forced to curtail their support or to withdraw altogether. The recent COVID outbreak hurt as well when businesses that had been flourishing were forced into bankruptcy. The Ebola scare of 2014 caused many groups to focus their attentions on Latin America or India or the Far East, further damaging support for African institutions.

I am not saying all these things to whine but to point out that God is the only One who has not changed throughout all these crises. God is our only dependable Source. If God has called you to a work, God will protect and sustain you. Trust Him and Him alone. He is faithful!

PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and for caring for us. Lord, many of us have never known a father’s care because our fathers were absent in some fashion. Lord, help all of us to trust You and to expect You to guide and provide for us. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.

Assurance of God’s Eternal Protection

To the Chief Musician. On a stringed instrument. A Psalm of David.

“Hear my cry, O God; attend to my prayer. From the end of the earth I will cry to You, when my heart is overwhelmed; lead me to the rock that is higher than I. For You have been a shelter for me, a strong tower from the enemy. I will abide in Your tabernacle forever; I will trust in the shelter of Your wings. Selah

For You, O God, have heard my vows; You have given me the heritage of those who fear Your name. You will prolong the king’s life, his years as many generations.
He shall abide before God forever.

Oh, prepare mercy and truth, which may preserve him! So I will sing praise to Your name forever, that I may daily perform my vows.”

“Hear my cry, O God; attend to my prayer. From the end of the earth I will cry to You, when my heart is overwhelmed; lead me to the rock that is higher than I. For You have been a shelter for me, a strong tower from the enemy. I will abide in Your tabernacle forever; I will trust in the shelter of Your wings. Selah”

 Rocks! People have been hiding in rocks and caves as long as humans have existed. Rocks are strong, solid, and can protect us in ways that no man-made structure can. David is fully aware of all this. While Israel once had forests, the rocks are even more abundant. Many of those rocks mark boundaries or sites of famous battles. During the long years when David was fleeing from Saul, he and his men took full advantage of those rocks and caves as they dodged Saul’s armies and escaped to fight somewhere else.

“…when my heart is overwhelmed…” We read the Bible knowing everything that will eventually happen, that David will become a highly successful and popular king and that his reign will be glorious. But at the time David is writing this psalm, he is a fugitive, continually seeking new hiding places and wondering how he will care for his troops. We know that when David fled to the Cave of Adullam, 400 men joined him; however, we don’t know how many people are now with David at the time of this psalm. Little wonder then, if David feels overwhelmed.

“I will abide in Your tabernacle forever; I will trust in the shelter of Your wings.” What could be better than an absolutely safe place, a place where one might stay forever? Here David is comparing God to a mother bird sheltering her fledglings under her wings, protecting them with her own body. But mother birds can be killed while God abides forever. When we find God’s protection, we can be at complete rest for He is faithful and true.

“For You, O God, have heard my vows; You have given me the heritage of those who fear Your name. You will prolong the king’s life, his years as many generations. He shall abide before God forever.” Nothing is better than the eternal heritage that God alone can give. Abiding before God means that we routinely seek His presence, worshiping Him, calling on His Name and rejoicing in His Word. You might think that this is impossible; however, you are actually doing all those things right now. You are reading this psalm and meditating on it, something far more important than any number of wild gyrations to worship music.

It is highly significant that the promise implied in these verses has been fulfilled. Jerusalem is still referred to as “the city of David.” The Messiah is referred to as “the Son of David.” Even though David died thousands of years ago, God has preserved his memory and has honored his faithfulness.  

“Oh, prepare mercy and truth, which may preserve him! So I will sing praise to Your name forever, that I may daily perform my vows.”  David began life as a shepherd and he knows sheep must be fed and watered daily. In the same way, David continues to praise God daily so that he will have the courage, the stamina, and the endurance to perform his vows to God.

APPLICATION: We all make promises; however, keeping those promises can become quite tedious. The late Eugene Peterson wrote an excellent book about the pilgrim psalms entitled A Long Obedience in the Same Direction. Daily obedience, daily consistency, these are the things that help us continue to perform our vows to God regularly. Anybody can make promises in the heat of the moment, but fulfilling those promises daily is a whole different matter.

While growing up on a Midwestern farm, I learned the value of daily consistency and obedience. Ours was an “Old McDonald” type of farm with beef cattle, dairy cows, pigs, chickens, and sheep. That livestock needed to be fed and watered twice a day, and without pipe-borne water, we had to either pump water into water tanks using a small electric pump and haul them out to the hogs in the field or carry water in buckets. Although the beef cattle were allowed to graze, we still had to supplement with ground feed we carried and poured into feed bunks-long narrow flat troughs from which the cattle could eat. (A full 5-gallon bucket weighs 25 pounds; I used to carry one in each hand down the center of the feed bunk.) We also chopped green corn for silage, storing it in a pit silo; few things are less attractive than having to chop frozen silage out of a pit silo on a frosty winter morning with the wind whipping over the prairie. You know it’s really cold when the condensation from your breath forms frost on the muffler you have tied around your neck.

The one thing all these experiences taught me was to be dutiful. Dictionaries tell us that: Dutiful means performing the duties expected or required of one, and characterized by doing one’s duty. It can also mean required by duty or proceeding from or expressive of a sense of duty. A dutiful person is obedient and respectful. Thousands of patients over the years have reason to be grateful for those chores that taught me to be dutiful as a child. But our attention to duty, no matter how strong, pales by comparison with God’s.

In this psalm David is avowing that God will protect him better than any rocky fortress. At the same time, David is hoping he is right. When we are stressed out, it’s difficult to trust God; however, we can still hope that He is there and that He remains rock-solid, dependable, and everlasting. 1 Peter 5:7 tells us, “Casting all your cares on Him, for He cares for you.” So many times we come to God clutching our worries tightly to us, hoping that God is really there and that He does care. But we are just as likely to finish praying and then walk away, still clutching those worries. What has saved David during all his trials is that David calls on the Lord and then hands his worries over to the Lord, leaving David free to move forward. Today, why not cast ALL your cares on God? Tell Him your hopes, your dreams, and your fears. And then watch and see what God can do. David was right; God really is the rock of our salvation!

PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and for caring for us. Lord, help us to follow hard after You all the days of our lives. Help us to trust You with those worries and fears, knowing that You can handle them far better than we can. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.

Urgent Prayer for the Restored Favor of God

To the Chief Musician. Set to “Lily of the Testimony.” A Michtam of David. For teaching. When he fought against Mesopotamia and Syria of Zobah, and Joab returned and killed twelve thousand Edomites in the Valley of Salt.

“O God, You have cast us off; You have broken us down; You have been displeased; Oh, restore us again! You have made the earth tremble; You have broken it; heal its breaches, for it is shaking. You have shown Your people hard things; You have made us drink the wine of confusion.

You have given a banner to those who fear You, that it may be displayed because of the truth. Selah That Your beloved may be delivered, save with Your right hand, and hear me.

God has spoken in His holiness: “I will rejoice; I will divide Shechem and measure out the Valley of Succoth. Gilead is Mine, and Manasseh is Mine; Ephraim also is the helmet for My head; Judah is My lawgiver. Moab is My washpot; over Edom I will cast My shoe; Philistia, shout in triumph because of Me.”

Who will bring me to the strong city? Who will lead me to Edom? Is it not You, O God, who cast us off?
And You, O God, who did not go out with our armies? Give us help from trouble, for the help of man is useless. Through God we will do valiantly, for it is He who shall tread down our enemies.”

 “O God, You have cast us off; You have broken us down; You have been displeased; Oh, restore us again! You have made the earth tremble; You have broken it; heal its breaches, for it is shaking. You have shown Your people hard things; You have made us drink the wine of confusion.”

David and his men have embarked on a military campaign believing that they are doing God’s will. But they’ve had some setbacks and now David isn’t sure about anything anymore. Things are not going as well as expected. It is unclear just which campaign this is, but it seems to be near the start of David’s reign as king. Things are going so badly that David is asking both himself and God what has gone wrong? Normally, David and his leaders are skilled at military strategy; yet, gambits that have proved so successful in the past are proving useless. Now David is afraid and confused.

“You have given a banner to those who fear You, that it may be displayed because of the truth. Selah That Your beloved may be delivered, save with Your right hand, and hear me.”  David is reminding God that he has tried to serve God throughout his life. Now is the time for deliverance! Why is God delaying? David’s cry is simple: “God, we need help and we need it NOW!”

“God has spoken in His holiness: “I will rejoice; I will divide Shechem and measure out the Valley of Succoth. Gilead is Mine, and Manasseh is Mine; Ephraim also is the helmet for My head; Judah is My lawgiver. Moab is My washpot; over Edom I will cast My shoe; Philistia, shout in triumph because of Me.” David is reminding both God and himself of God’s promises of victory. We can feel David’s confusion; God has made all these promises, so why isn’t He acting instantly?

“Who will bring me to the strong city? Who will lead me to Edom? Is it not You, O God, who cast us off?
And You, O God, who did not go out with our armies? Give us help from trouble, for the help of man is useless. Through God we will do valiantly, for it is He who shall tread down our enemies.” The strong city referred to here might be Petra, the city carved out of rock, although the Edomites undoubtedly had several other strongholds. But David is worried; he’s been begging God for assistance, and so far God has refused to answer. David fully realizes that unless God is helping, all the efforts of his men and him will fail miserably. David is also reminding God that God is the One who gives victories and they are waiting on Him.

APPLICATION: One of the wonderful things about the psalms is that we see the writers warts and all. When someone is angry at God or confused, they say so bluntly. How many of us have prayed for years, praying prayers we think are in the perfect Will of God, and yet, we are still waiting for results?

One important lesson of the Kingdom of God is that “Delay is not denial.” We always want instant answers. “God, give me patience and give it to me right now!” But God sees things far differently than we do, and He continues to arrange events to benefit the maximum number of people, not just us.

We must remember that it is God who has subjected the whole creation to futility just so human beings would come to know Him and trust Him. Romans 8:20-22 says, “For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it in hope; because the creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation groans and labors with birth pangs together until now.” God’s purposes are far higher than we can possibly imagine.

When we came to the village of Saboba thirty years ago, there was only a small health center with 11 workers, no electricity, no running water. One year after we arrived, a tribal war broke out and suddenly we were the only safe facility for 100,000 members of the dominant local tribe. We had to cram a small OR, a laboratory, a pharmacy, and men’s, women’s, and children’s wards with a total of 37 beds into that health center building. It was the impetus of that crisis that helped expand the facility into a true hospital. Today we have a well-functioning district hospital with more than 100 beds, an active laboratory and OR, a dental unit, an eye unit, and a public health unit. We continue to expand our services. Only God could bring all this progress about.

Perhaps you have been praying earnestly for years and are beginning to get tired. Why pray any longer? But let’s learn from the example of George Mueller. George Mueller was a man of great faith who founded orphanages in Bristol, England that catered for 10,000 orphans. Mueller also preached internationally and supported a number of missions, both domestic and foreign. Lacking resources, himself, Mueller trusted God to bring in funds. If anybody could pray effectively, George Mueller was that man, and yet….. one of Mueller’s friends had a son who hated God and who emigrated to Canada to escape his father’s influence. Communications were far poorer in those days. Mueller promised his friend to continue to pray for that son. It was when Mueller died that the son learned of Mueller’s death, came under conviction, and turned his life over to God completely. Mueller never saw the fruits of his prayers; the fulfillment came after his death.

Are the answers to your prayers delaying? Remember, delay is not denial. If your requests are in God’s Will, He will certainly fulfill them. But fulfillment will come on God’s schedule and not on yours.

PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and for caring for us. Lord, many of us are sitting with unfulfilled prayer requests. We praise you that delay is not denial and that You are already sending answers but on Your time schedule and not ours. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.