Should be Automatic

This year, I'm sharing my "Treasures" of my study of my "Ponder the Morsels" book. I've picked 31 Psalms to study throughout 2013. Today I studied Psalm 150. Here is what I learned.

Praise the Lord., Praise God in his sanctuary; praise him in his mighty heavens.

Praise him for his acts of power; praise him for his surpassing greatness.

Praise him with the sounding of the trumpet, praise him with the harp and lyre,

praise him with timbrel and dancing, praise him with the strings and pipe,

praise him with the clash of cymbals, praise him with resounding cymbals.

Let everything that has breath praise the Lord.

Praise the Lord. Psalm 150 (NIV)

This is my weekend at Chicagoland Speedway. As during any great time, it’s easy to praise the Lord. When there’s excitement, joy, fun, etc. praise is almost automatic. 

Right now, you might say that I’m on the mountain top. I’m enjoying spending time at the Track and all the extra blessings that God continues to provide each day. Oh, yes, my pain level is high, but I’m enjoying the experience of meeting people and seeing the cars on the track. 

The foundation of praising God, however, is not to be based on if I’m having a good time, or enjoying the situation I find myself. For when the excitement of this race experience fads, and the pain continues, God is still worthy of praise. I’m not to praise God only in exchange for “good times” or “gifts”. Rather, I’m to praise God because of Who He is. 

It’s very easy to praise God when I’m having fun. But it’s more important to praise God no matter my situation or circumstance. Praising God should be automatic each and every day. 

To create a positive day, it must include praise to God, simply because of Who He is, and that praise should be automatic out of a heart of thankfulness and awe. 

Fear, Panic, and Chaos

This year, I'm sharing my "Treasures" of my study of my "Ponder the Morsels" book. I've picked 31 Psalms to study throughout 2013. Today I studied Psalm 11. Here is what I learned.

1. In the Lord I take refuge [and put my trust]; how can you say to me, Flee like a bird to your mountain?

2. For see, the wicked are bending the bow; they make ready their arrow upon the string, that they [furtively] in darkness may shoot at the upright in heart.

3. If the foundations are destroyed, what can the [unyieldingly] righteous do, or what has He [the Righteous One] wrought or accomplished?

4. The Lord is in His holy temple; the Lord’s throne is in heaven. His eyes behold; His eyelids test and prove the children of men.

5. The Lord tests and proves the [unyieldingly] righteous, but His soul abhors the wicked and him who loves violence.

6. Upon the wicked He will rain quick burning coals or snares; fire, brimstone, and a [dreadful] scorching wind shall be the portion of their cup.

7. For the Lord is [rigidly] righteous, He loves righteous deeds; the upright shall behold His face, or He beholds the upright.

Psalm 11 (AMP)

In this psalm we have David's struggle with and triumph over a strong temptation to distrust God and betake himself to indirect means for his own safety in a time of danger.

In singing this psalm we must encourage and engage ourselves to trust in God at all times, must depend upon him to protect our innocence and make us happy, must dread his frowns as worse than death and desire his favour as better than life. Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible

Yesterday, at the end of the Boston Marathon, several bombs exploded. Fear. Panic. Chaos. Some ask, where was God then? Why didn’t He stop it? If He is so powerful, why does He allow bad things to happen. 

The first thing that I have to remember, is that God doesn’t owe us any explanation, nor does He owe us any “good thing”. We are sinners. He is a holy God. 

The second thing to remember is that actions of sinners have consequences. Yes, I’m a sinner, saved by God’s grace, and each action I do, has consequences. Some consequences impact more than just a single individual. 

Thirdly, God gave each of us a free will. We choose if we will obey and follow God, or ignore Him and go our own way. God did not create “robots” who will simply do as “programed”. Rather, God wants us to follow and obey Him because of who He is and because we love Him. 

Lastly, bad things do happen to good people, simply because we live in a world of sin. That does not mean that God doesn’t love us. His love is far greater than we can ever imagine. So, even in the midst of chaos, fear, and pain, God continues to love us. Assurance in Him calms our fears and we know that no matter what happens on this earth, because of God’s gift of salvation, we will spend eternity with Him.

To create a positive day, I need to place my trust in God, for He alone can change the fear, panic, and chaos, into courage, peace, and calm. 

What God had planned....

Back on Tuesday, Jan 19th, I mentioned some things which I had planned for the day, but didn't know what God had planned. Well, here's the update.

I dropped off my car for an oil change, and maybe a new battery. Then a friend and I went up to Woodfield Mall, so I could drop off my computer to get that fixed. My friend and I went to enjoy a nice lunch and talk, while we waited for the repairs to be completed. During lunch my phone rang. It was the Auto Repair, I quickly thought, 'my car is finished'. However, I was wrong. The car needed many more repairs that I had planned. My friend quickly and kindly reminded me that God is in control.
After lunch we returned to the computer store, they'd need to keep my computer for a few days to fix it. And since my car wouldn't be ready for a few days... my friend drove me home..empty handed. 

The car repairs and a computer operating system upgrade, were not in my plans. However, God has a way of teaching me total dependence on Him. I had a credit card check (pay a 1 time fee and no interest for 6 months) so I used that to pay the car repairs. That gives me some time to pay it off, or for God to supply in one of His creative ways.

When I went to pick up my car, I took the "guys" cupcakes. I wanted them to know that I wasn't mad at them for the high priced repairs. They work hard to keep my 15 year old car running and safe. 

The next day, I went to pick up my computer. It was raining so I turned on the wipers.... I noticed one of my wipers was worn out and the rubber kept sliding out of the holder. Not a good then when driving in the rain. 

The next day, I stopped by the Auto Repair so they could put on new wipers. The guys greeted me with hesitancy..is something else wrong? When I explained it was just my wipers, there were sighs of relief all around! One of the guys put on my wipers and when I asked how much, the reply was..."This is on us! You brought us great cupcakes!". That was a great reminder that since God takes care of little things, He can easily take care of the big things.

Jan 19th was a day which did not go as I had planned.  However, God once again showed me that He is in control and He can take care of me, no matter what comes my way. God continually teaches me to depend on Him.

On Jan 19th post, I included a part about Leading. God does not lead aimlessly. He has reasons for His plans and all that He allows in our lives. He wants us to be dependent on Him and to glorify Him... no matter what! Years ago, a friend said something which I remember even to this day... "Is God enough?" We quickly answer "yes, of course". But when it comes down to daily living... every day needs.... do we really believe, that "God is enough?". 

On Jan 19th I had to work hard to create a positive day. If I focused on the news of all the "bad" that was happening it was overwhelming. Yet, when I got my focus back on God and His leading and His ability to care for me.... it was a very POSITIVE DAY!