Our Helper

I cried out to You, O Lord;
And to the Lord I made supplication:
“What profit is there in my blood,
When I go down to the pit?
Will the dust praise You?
Will it declare Your truth?
Hear, O Lord, and have mercy on me;
Lord, be my helper!”

Psalm 30:8-10 (NKJV)

Thought for Today: One thing that I don't do well is ask for help.  I have learned over the years to not overestimate what I can do and to seek help when needed, particularly when dealing with maintenance issues around the house.  This took several disasters, such as flooding a kitchen, before my stubbornness lost the battle of DIY.  

Have you been in a situation where you thought that there was no way out, where your eminent demise was before you?  Perhaps you thought that even the Lord could not save you. Yet, upon asking for help, He most certainly pulled you out of the pit.  Why in this portion of Psalm 30 would David almost seem to barter with God, asking Him what He would gain from David's demise?  It is interesting that David talks about the dust not being able to praise God or declare His truth.  Does the Lord rescue us only because He wants someone to praise Him?  I hardly thing so, for He, being God, could create a being to praise Him.  He doesn't need us.  Yet, in His wonderful love for us, He is willing to be our helper, our  deliverer not because He has to be, but because He desires to do this.  Our praise comes from what He does for us and is an expression of our gratitude for His amazing love for us.

This day, do you need help?  Are you afraid to ask for it?  Don't be afraid for He so cares for you that He will deliver you from any situation, any circumstance.  Will you trust the One who dwells in the praises of His people to help you today?

Of Troubles and Trials

Now in my prosperity I said,
“I shall never be moved.”
7 Lord, by Your favor You have made my mountain stand strong;
You hid Your face, and I was troubled.

Psalm 30:6,7

Thought for Today: Jim and his group were making great progress as they climbed Mt. Chocorua in the White Mountains of New Hampshire.  Although the trail was a bit muddy, the late spring weather was beautiful.  The group reached the summit to a glorious view of the lakes region below.  As he and his friends sat for lunch, Jim reflected upon their accomplishment as well as the many hikes that he had been on over the years.  Suddenly, without warning, storm clouds obliterated the sky as a snow squall rolled in, trapping the group on the summit.

Life is full of mountaintop and valley experiences.  We go from days where we feel like we can lick the world to other days which are full of trouble.  As David writes in this psalm, we feel like our faith cannot be moved when we are prosperous and feeling blessed.  When hard times strike, we take one of two approaches: run from God, feeling troubled or cling to God in the day of trouble.

Jim and his group managed to survive the snow by running to shelter in the overhang of rocks on the summit.  This day, should trouble prevail in your life, will you choose to seek shelter in the shadow of the wings of the Almighty or will you see the troubles as lack of His favor and run from Him?   My prayer is that you can choose the former, for this will lead to healing, safety and peace.

Entering His Favor

For His anger is but for a moment,
His favor is for life;
Weeping may endure for a night,
But joy comes in the morning.

Psalm 30: 5 (NKJV)

Thought for Today: Mario and Giuseppe had a falling out over something relatively small.  Mario had made a wonderful meal and invited Giuseppe and his family over for dinner.  Being from a different region of Italy, Mario apparently had not cooked things the way that Giuseppe was used to. This resulted in Giuseppe getting very upset, telling Mario that he was a terrible cook.  Mario asked Giuseppe and his family to leave.  The two would not speak to each other for over 30 years.

We have all been the object at whom anger was directed.  Have you ever felt God's anger?  We see in other passages of Scripture that the Lord is slow to anger.  Yet, He still can be angry with us over our sin.  We so often think of God as not being able to be angry.  Maybe He is not outwardly angry over our choices in life, but He must feel disappointment.  Have you every been heartbroken watching someone that you care about, perhaps a child, making bad choices and then facing consequence that you knew would occur?  Multiply that one thousand fold, and add to that knowing everything.  That is what the Lord must feel when He looks at our lives and our choices that are outside of His will.

One day, Giuseppe ran into Mario at a neighborhood store.  Tears formed in Giuseppe's eyes as he told Mario how much he had missed him and his family.  Giuseppe apologized for his harsh words and Mario apologized for asking his family to leave.  Now, the two families regularly dine at each other's houses, enjoying different dishes from both regions of Italy.

Sometimes, it takes a long time to turn to the Lord in repentance.  But, when we do, His anger fades, our weeping subsides and we have joy basking in His favor.  Do you need to repent today of a bad choice that has led you astray, outside of our Lord's favor?  If so, I would urge you to do so now, lay your sin at the Father's feet so that you may again know the joy of His love and favor.

Faithfulness

Sing the praises of the Lord, you his faithful people;
    praise his holy name.

Psalm 30:4 (NKJV)

Thought for Today: My dog Henry is a great example of faithfulness.  I can be having a miserable day, even yell at him when he barks at people walking the neighborhood.  Yet, when I call him to sit with me at night he is right there, as if I had never been harsh with him.

Perhaps you hold some deep seated contempt towards the Lord due to the way that life has treated you.  Because of this, you really don't want to praise the Lord and faithfulness to Him is out of the question.  When you shed tears over your hurts, do you think that the Lord sits on His throne silently and doesn't care?  He loves you so much that the first time you shed a tear over your hurts, He shed one with you.  He whose love for you sent Him to the cross doesn't want to see you in pain. Yet, He allows suffering in order that His purpose may be done in you and in me.  Trials will not prevail, God's faithfulness to us will.

Faithfulness is not an act but rather a state of mind.  Just like Henry is secure in my love for him and knows that I am his master, so too can we be secure knowing that we are in the loving hands of our Master.  He wants you to curl up next to Him and feel His love as you pour out your heart to Him in prayer.  Will you do that this day?

Hope

You, Lord, brought me up from the realm of the dead;
    you spared me from going down to the pit.

Psalm 30:3 (NKJV)

Thought for Today: When I was a boy staying in a hospital I made friends with another little boy on the same floor.  Neil could not speak due to the effects of a brain tumor.  Somehow I and a few other boys would communicate with Neil as we gave him rides in the hospital carts that we thought were our toys.  We all enjoyed playing with him, even though he could not speak.  One day, everything changed as Neil suddenly began talking to us.   When we told his parents, they were overjoyed beyond words.  Their son, the one who the doctors thought would not talk again, was talking!  To his parents, perhaps the Neil that they once knew, the one who talked, had died.  Now, he was alive and well. 

Have you given up hope?  Perhaps you had thought that your life would be one way and it is not.  Maybe you have been let down by others.  You may have experienced a loss so great that you feel that a part of you has died.  

When Neil was discharged from the hospital, he gave me a multicolored pen with many different barrels of ink and buttons to change the color.  This reminds me of how the Lord wants us to live our lives.  We see things in one color, wanting our lives to go one way.  Yet, the Lord so wants us to write our lives in multiple colors, some pleasant, some painful and some in between.  In the end, all of the colors will come together to tell our story, the one with threads of God's love running through every corner as evidenced by His mercy, love and long-suffering. 

Will you today trust that all of the things that happen to you in this life God will turn into a beautiful picture?  Trust in Him, that you may be rescued from the death of a life without hope, for He is our hope in all things, at all times.

Healing

Lord my God, I called to you for help,
    and you healed me.

Psalm 30:2 (NKJV)

Thought for Today: Frank awoke once again to the annoying sound, "drip, drip, drip."  For weeks now, somewhere in his house there was a leak. He was not sure where it was coming from, but several times a day he would hear that dreadful dripping sound and then, mysteriously, it would stop as quickly as it started.  Being the more practical one, Frank's wife Stella had suggested that they need the services of a plumber.  Frank, being stubborn, would not hear of it.  He told Stella that he would find the problem and fix it himself, thus saving them the cost of hiring a plumber.  Unfortunately, the very next day the sound that Frank awoke to was a roar and not a drip.  Had he not been home to shut off the water at the main, the damage would have been much worse.  Now the source of the leak had been exposed and could be fixed, along with a lot of water damage.

Our human nature is to not ask for help and to try to do things ourselves. Unfortunately, this approach so often doesn't work and causes damage to us and to those around us.  Just like the water in Frank's house left a trail of destruction in its wake, so too can an unhealed heart leave a trail of brokenness.  

Is there some area of your life today that needs healing?  Are you afraid to ask the Lord for help due to your own pride or fear?  Let go of your pride, let go of your fear and ask Him to heal you.  Surely Jehovah Rophi, our God who heals, will reach out His hand to you and bring healing.  My prayer is that this day you will trust Him and let Him into the deepest places of your heart to bring healing and peace.

Our Deliverer

I will exalt you, Lord,
    for you lifted me out of the depths
    and did not let my enemies gloat over me.

Psalm 30:1 (NKJV)

Thought for Today: Cliff and his companions were taking a hike one day in the beautiful October Colorado weather.  They hiked over some foothills heading toward the mountains.  As they approached a valley, the sky began to grow cloudy and it got colder.  Pushing on towards their goal, they eventually found themselves in a blizzard, inadequately dressed and disoriented.   All that they could see ahead of them was the beam of a bright light.  

Life is full of peaks and valleys.  Like Cliff's party, we too often end up in a valley as a storm forms around us.   Ill prepared for the storm, we become disoriented, not knowing what to do or where to go.  Sometimes the storm is external, things beyond our control.  At other times, the storm rages on inside of our own spirits, as we wrestle with our own sinful nature.

As the bright light came closer, Cliff realized that it was multiple headlamps.  A team of experienced hikers who had passed Cliff's party a while back before the storm had come back to find the party.  They brought them to a shelter, gave them warm clothing and hot food.  Once the storm subsided,  both parties hiked out to safety.

Sometimes, in the midst of the storms of life, all we can do is reach out to the Lord and ask to be delivered.  What storm are you facing today?  Perhaps you feel so alone in the depths of your emotions or grief.  Maybe you just learned of a diagnosis that you did not want to hear for you or a loved one.  Whatever the storm, Jesus will shelter you and deliver you.  All that you need to do is ask Him and trust Him to deliver.  Will you do that today?