Psalm 40 Step Back to Let God Step In to Receive His Blessings
Heart of my worship:
When we speak of the patience of Job of Job as in James 5:9, one needs to read the book of Job to understand “Patience.” It is not passive. Job cried out & questioned God. His “patience” was his “endurance,” he did NOT give up. Here, “I waited Patiently, endured…while I SCREAMED out of the abyss.” God heard…here, but God does not always hear in the way we think he should. It is as though we are screaming into empty space. Stephen Crane, the author of the Civil War book, “The Red Badge of Courage,” was a Great Poet of Pessimism. Crane didn’t get the idea of waiting patiently.
Through spaces of night;
And as he sped, he called,
“God! God!”
He went through valleys
Of black death-slime,
Ever calling,
“God! God!”
Their echoes
From crevice and cavern
Mocked him:
“God! God! God!”
Fleetly into the plains of space
He went, ever calling,
“God! God!”
Eventually, then, he screamed,
Mad in denial,
“Ah, there is no God!”
A swift hand,
A sword from the sky,
Smote him,
And he was dead.
v. 2 Soooo, what is our slimy pit we find ourselves in-dark, lonely, stuck? Is it self inflicted? The divorce, the problems with sobriety, the websites one can’t stay away from, the bitter rage? Note the author of the Psalm admits this pit might be his own making-40:12. There is GOOD news though, EVEN if we have a LARGE “L” on our forehead and when we look in the mirror and recognize the handwriting as our own!!! God will still perform v. 2-AIRLIFT onto the solid rock.
v. 3 NEW SONGS are oft because we have experienced anew the forgiving grace v. 2 or His amazing power, v. 5. Take a moment. Write a four line thank song for something anew from God.
v. 4-The Lord is our trust-Note the opposite in Job 8:14-What some people trust in is FRAGILE, like a SPIDER’S Web. God is our bomb-proof ROCK. We can TRUST he IS, and will ALWAYS be there. Preacher… He who marries today’s fads will be a widower tomorrow. Carefully consider what is fad & what is permanent trend –Bob Russell
v. 6-7 are the wonderful words of Jesus (Hebrews 10:5-7). Note God does not want SACRIFICE, but OBEDIENCE-not mere RITUAL, but READINESS to do his will! Go ahead, say it: “Here I am Lord to do YOUR WILL.” Are you sure? Let’s prove it.
v. 12-Oh the painful transparency of David: His troubles are caused by his disobedience. What parallel world of problems have we caused causing us to be in a miry pit?
Ab slept w/Hagar.. How did that work for him.
David slept with Bathsheba. How did that work for him.
We have NOT said, Here am I Lord…to do your will.”
The 6 great things God WORKS for the Psalmist, is because the Psalmist does NOT work-he relies on the grace, the free work of a God busy with blessing us. The 6 great things are a result of us “WAITING PATIENTLY.” I have to wonder how many times God has pulled back from blessing me because I tried to WORK things out on my OWN…
I have hid from his will so God has to say- “Where are you my son, I take it you are NOT doing my will.” Though forgiven, I will have a parallel universe of problems haunting me.
But AH-there is a divine bodyguard of two ladies J SHIRLEY Goodness and SHIRLEY Mercy who will follow us, protect us. God’s great grace. Psalm 23
terryocasey 