Look Back, Look Around, Look Up

"I remember the days of old;

I meditate on all Your doings;

I muse on the work of Your hands."

Psalm 143:5

When we are in the midst of a trial and peace seems far from us, it's a perfect time to stop what we're doing and mediate on the goodness of our Heavenly Father. Look back to days past when He has brought us victoriously through trouble. Remembering what He has already done for us gives us hope in our current situation. Look around, consider creation and the blessings that He gives us every day through the natural world. Think about how the Lord holds it altogether by His power and strength. How constant He is in bringing the sunrise every morning and the sunset every night. If He is so trustworthy with nature, won't He be so much more trustworthy with our lives today and in the future? Look up. Seek the Lord's face and praise Him. Praising Him when we are troubled is a sacrifice which He will never refuse and one that delights Him. When we focus our attention on Him instead of our circumstances, He responds with all we need for the time. "The joy of the Lord is your strength" (Nehemiah 8:10). Look back and remember His faithfulness, look around and consider His power and strength, look up and receive His peace.

Patient Silence

"My soul waits in silence for God only; From Him is my salvation.”

Psalm 62:1

The Lord is close to those who are troubled. He will never neglect the one who is in need. But if we are consumed with fretting and worrying about our problems, if we complain to others instead of taking our complaints to the Lord, we will never hear the gentle words of our Savior telling us to cast our burdens upon Him. It is when we wait only on Jesus -- when we remain still and silent -- that we hear Him say, "Come to me. I care for you. My shoulders are broad and I am well-equipped to carry those things that press down upon you like a giant boulder."

"No eloquence in the world is half so full of meaning as the patient silence of a child of God." (Spurgeon)

In Time of Need

"For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin. Therefore let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need."

Hebrews 4:15-16

When I am troubled and hurting, I want to talk to a friend who will listen and sympathize. Someone who understands. Jesus, our High Priest, is the perfect friend to run to for compassion. He won't reject us when we tell Him about our pain. His mercy caused Him to heal countless people that came to Him with ailments.  He won't criticize us for weeping in grief. He wept at the tomb of His friend Lazarus. Do you think you are under a great trial that Christ cannot relate to? When He left His heavenly home and came to dwell on earth as a man, He was tempted far beyond anything you or I will ever experience, yet He did not sin. Yes, Jesus sympathizes. But He does so much more than just listen with compassion. He has the divine power to help us in our time of need. "You cannot pour out your heart in the fullest confidence to a person you do not respect, but if you get with some one you entirely trust, how swiftly the words flow and how very easy it is to tell out the whole heart. Just so with this great word of the writer of this Epistle, descriptive of the temper and disposition with which men are to go to God — with confidence, full, cheerful, and unembarrassed, and which expresses itself in full trust." -- Alexander Maclaren. 

Take Refuge

"But let all who take refuge in You be glad, Let them ever sing for joy; And may You shelter them, That those who love Your name may exult in You." 

Psalm 5:11

ref-uge (noun)

1: shelter or protection from danger or distress

2: a place that provides shelter or protection

3: something to which one has recourse in difficulty

God is the perfect refuge. Those who place their trust in Him will not be disappointed (Romans 10:11). He is always present; they don't have to search for Him (Psalm 46:1).  He answers their cry for help (Matthew 14:30-31). He rescues them from trouble (Psalm 91:3,15). He gives them the kind of peace that can only be found in Him (John 14:27). When darkness closes in and threatens to steal your song of joy, you must remember the truth of scripture. God is your shelter. Take refuge in Him. 

He Holds Your Hand

"The steps of a man are established by the LORD, And He delights in his way. When he falls, he will not be hurled headlong, Because the LORD is the One who holds his hand." 

Psalm 37:23-24

Sometimes the path of our life is filled with obstructions that threaten our stability, sometimes causing us to stumble. But always, the Lord keeps us from falling flat on our faces. His steady hand holds us fast. His word reminds us that not one of those obstacles is a surprise to Him. Before we were born He had established the steps we would take and had seen each hardship we would encounter. He delights in the way we are going because He planned it long ago and He knows the reward that waits for us at the end of our walk. If you are treading a bumpy path today, remember that you are not walking alone. The Lord is walking with you and He is intimately familiar with the trail. Your hand is in His hand and He will lead you safely home. 

Never Alone

"Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Will tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?"

Romans 8:35

Here in the mountains the weather can change rapidly. This morning a blue sky disappeared, within minutes, behind dark clouds. Wind and rain followed, driving me to find shelter. Circumstances in life can suddenly change, too. The death of a loved one, divorce, illness, a natural disaster, or other misfortune can threaten to undo us. Friends and family come along side us to provide comfort and assistance, and we thank God for them. But even the best of friends and the most loving family members can't be with us every minute. That's when we need someone from whom we can never be separated. We find that someone in the person of Jesus Christ. If we have a relationship with Him, we will never be alone. Not ever.

Deep Calls to Deep

"Deep calls to deep at the sound of Your waterfalls;" Psalm 42:7a

When the waters of trouble rush over us, threatening to drown us, we are then at the point when we cry out to God from the deepest need of our soul. The Lord hears us and hurries to answer us out of love from the deepest part of His heart.