He Brought Me Out

This weekend while reading some scripture I came across Psalm 40.  I read verse 1-3 and thought how familiar they sounded to me.  Not just that I had read them many times before....no....there was something more....

Psalm 40:1-3

I waited patiently for the Lord;
And He inclined to me,
And heard my cry.
² He also brought me up out of a horrible pit,
Out of the miry clay,
And set my feet upon a rock,
And established my steps.
³ He has put a new song in my mouth—
Praise to our God;
Many will see it and fear,
And will trust in the Lord.

It is the words of the chorus to an old hymn called....He Brought Me Out written by Henry L. Gilmour, 1898.  Here is the chorus....

He brought me out of the miry clay,
He set my feet on the rock to stay; 
He puts a song in my soul today,
A song of praise, hallelujah!

This was a song from my childhod that was stored somewhere in the recesses of my mind....or was it really stored in my soul?  Anyway, I find it so amazing how the Lord brings things back to our remembrance as we need them....even when we don't know we need them....

First I read the verses, then the song was playing in my mind, and I immediately thought about my life and how the Lord has brought me out. 

The definition of the word mire; used as a noun it means a marsh or a bog. As a verb it means to involve or entangle.  That is what satan does to us.  He gets us so heavily and deeply involved in our sin that before we know what's happening we are entangled as if we are a fly caught in a spiders web.  Then we find ourselves sinking....sinking....sinking....until we are so much in a bog that we think we could never get out.  That is just a mind game that the devil uses on us to keep us in our sin.  The cool thing is....

When the Lord gets a hold of us He pulls us up out of that miry clay and does just what the scripture and the song says.  He sets our feet upon the rock (solid ground) and helps us to stand.  He has done that for me.  He steadies me....calms me....holds me....firmly places me in His care!  Then He started replacing all of the old songs I had carried in my soul for so long....with His songs....and fills my heart with praise!   

There are many times when I start letting the evil one take me down a dark path that I try hard to stay away from.  That's when I need to reach up and grab His hand before the bog starts sucking me in.  It's at those times I need to be reminded of where the Lord has brought me from....and where I am today.  The Lord did that for me yesterday when He led me to these verses.  

As the title of the song says;

He Brought Me Out....and He will bring you out too.  


Until we see Jesus....face to face





 

Steadfast As An Olive Tree

Right now....though I should be in bed....I find myself drawn to my computer.  For a few days now I have had many thoughts of things I wanted to share but when I tried my mind would just go blank....then I would sleep.  So tonight I really don't know where I'm going with this.

Lately when I open my Bible I always go to the Psalms.  Somehow they just seem to give me comfort....rest....peace.

Psalm 52:8-9

⁸ But I am like an olive tree, thriving in the house of God.
    I will always trust in God’s unfailing love.
⁹ I will praise you forever, O God,
    for what you have done.
I will trust in your good name
    in the presence of your faithful people.

I found these two verses yesterday and for some reason can't seem to get away from them. I looked up a little about olive trees and found that....An olive tree is known for its tenacity and that it can grow and thrive in just about any soil. 

I looked up the word to be sure of it's meaning and found that  another word for tenacity is steadfastness.  So, if you remain steadfast as an olive tree....or unshakeable in your faith...and trust that God loves you and cares for you....you are going to thrive in your walk with Him.  We just have to do as David did and commit our life to the Lord no matter what circumstance we find ourselves in. 

As I have said before my quest is to have unshakeable faith.  So I think the reason I found this passage  was to show me that I needed to be like an olive tree....tenacious and thriving where ever I am.  With unshakeable tenacious faith growth should come....as long as I'm relying on...and trusting in...the Lord.

until we see Jesus....face to face 

Linking up with Tracy

Sleepless Nights

Do you ever have sleepless uncomfortable nights?  During one of my recent long nights I opened my Bible and read Psalm 63.  The verses that stuck out to me were 6-8.

⁶ I lie awake thinking of you,
    meditating on you through the night.
⁷ Because you are my helper,
    I sing for joy in the shadow of your wings.
⁸ I cling to you;
    your strong right hand holds me securely.

First, I have to tell you that I was not lying awake thinking of God as the scripture says.  I was praying but probably not in the way this passage is saying....probably more a prayer of desperation.    But, as the night turned to morning my thoughts did go the way of easy more meditative thoughts.  I started realizing that if I kept the Lord in the forefront of my thoughts that rest came easier.  I may not have slept but I did eventually rest.  

When we are going through something that just seems to have no end what is it we should do?  My study Bible says to make it a point to count examples of God's faithfulness.

You know His mercy is so great and really it knows no end.  Our Lord is always holding out His hand to us and if we take it we will find many wonderful things that He has for us.  Some of them are faithfulness....mercy....hope....rest....and His mighty strength to hold us up and get us to the other side of our problem.

Then I read verse 1 again.

¹ O God, you are my God;
    I earnestly search for you.
My soul thirsts for you;
    my whole body longs for you
in this parched and weary land
    where there is no water.

Life can spiral out of control for many reasons.  When it does I find that I start feeling empty.  I long for something to change how I'm feeling.  In the past I have used many different things to fix this feeling.  None of them worked.  When our whole body....our entire being....is suffering or lacking something....only the Lord can help us.  He can give us rest and comfort when nothing or no one else can.  

Another passage that comes to mind is this....

Psalm 42:1

As the deer longs for streams of water,
    so I long for you, O God.

Everything that has life needs water.  The water that we need most is the Living Water....JESUS.  In the midst of your trial reach out for that living water.  If you reach up for His hand you will find it....even in the night!


Linking up with Tracy at Winsome Wednesday.