Be Thou My Strong Habitation...

Be thou my strong habitation, whereunto I may continually resort: thou hast given commandment to save me; for thou art my rock and my fortress.--Psalm 71:3

I am redeemed!  You, my God, have set me free!  You are the house of my habitation...in You I live, move and have my being.  You, O Lord, are my house of defense, my strong tower...my rock.  To You and to You alone will I continually resort.  You consider my troubles and have known my soul in all its adversities.  For thy namesake lead me and guide me.  My times are in Your hands.

Show to me, Father, Your marvelous kindness.  Make Your face shine upon me.  My hope is in You, my God who preserves the faithful and strengthens the hearts of those who fear You

I dwell under the shadow of the Almighty God! You give your angels charge over me to keep me in all my ways.  You, Father, know my name and have set Your love upon me.!!  When I call, You will answer.  You will honor me and deliver me and show me Your salvation.  I will be strong and of good courage...I will fear not; nor shall I be afraid:  for the Lord, my God goes with me and will not fail me nor forsake me.  Happy am I because my God is the Lord.

I Am Poor and Needy...

Let all those who seek You rejoice and be glad in You;
And let those who love Your salvation say continually,
“Let God be magnified!”
But I am poor and needy;
Make haste to me, O God!
You are my help and my deliverer;
O LORD, do not delay—Ps 70:4-5

Could any words be more perfect a prayer?  Oh, Father!  Let this be the cry of my own heart as I seek You day by day...moment by moment.  I WILL rejoice and be glad in You.  You are my praise...in You my heart can be glad all the day long.  You are a rewarder of those who diligently seek You.  Be magnified in my life...be magnified in the salvation of Your people.

Father, Your Word tells me that You will not despise the broken and contrite heart. Here I am...poor and needy and so insufficient for the trials of this life.  In Your infinite mercy, then, make haste to help me.  Surround me with Your all sufficient grace and fill me with good things.  In You O Lord, I put my trust.  You are my Deliverer!  Oh, Lord, do not delay!  Let my mouth be filled with Your praise and with Your glory all the day.  

The Lord is Near...

“For what great nation is there that has God so near to it, as the LORD our God is to us, for whatever reason we may call upon Him?—Deut 4:7

And He said, “My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.” You are near to me, Father...near to all who call upon You in truth.  The Lord, my God, is my Keeper and my Shade at my right hand. He hides me in the secret place of His Presence and is my very present help, not only in times of trouble, but always and forever.  I have put my trust in Him, the Maker of Heaven and Earth and, therefore, my heart rejoices and with my lips I will declare His praises.  He will show me the path of life; In His presence is fullness of joy and at His right hand pleasures forevermore. 

Blessed be the Lord,

Who daily loads us with benefits,

The God of our salvation! Selah—Psalm 68:19

1 Bless the LORD, O my soul;

And all that is within me, bless His holy name!

2 Bless the LORD, O my soul,

And forget not all His benefits:

3 Who forgives all your iniquities,

Who heals all your diseases,

4 Who redeems your life from destruction,

Who crowns you with lovingkindness and tender mercies,

5 Who satisfies your mouth with good things,

So that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.

6 The LORD executes righteousness

And justice for all who are oppressed.

7 He made known His ways to Moses,

His acts to the children of Israel.

8 The LORD is merciful and gracious,

Slow to anger, and abounding in mercy.

9 He will not always strive with us,

Nor will He keep His anger forever.

10 He has not dealt with us according to our sins,

Nor punished us according to our iniquities.

11 For as the heavens are high above the earth,

So great is His mercy toward those who fear Him;

12 As far as the east is from the west,

So far has He removed our transgressions from us.

13 As a father pities his children,

So the LORD pities those who fear Him.

14 For He knows our frame;

He remembers that we are dust.

15 As for man, his days are like grass;

As a flower of the field, so he flourishes.

16 For the wind passes over it, and it is gone,

And its place remembers it no more.fn

17 But the mercy of the LORD is from everlasting to everlasting

On those who fear Him,

And His righteousness to children’s children,

18 To such as keep His covenant,
And to those who remember His commandments to do them.—Psalm 103:1-18

The Lord Your God Goes Before You...

Then I said to you, 'Do not be terrified, or afraid of them. The LORD your God, who goes before you, He will fight for you, according to all He did for you in Egypt before your eyes, and in the wilderness where you saw how the LORD your God carried you, as a man carries his son, in all the way that you went until you came to this place.' --Deuteronomy 1:29-31

Trials truly reveal where we are placing our trust.  Moses, Caleb and Joshua's trust was in their God.  Their relationship with Him was daily, intimate and strong.  They did not doubt that God would make short work of the giants in the land.  They knew it was Him who carried them through their journey here on earth and it was Him that would see them victorious in what lay ahead.  

Yet, for all that, you did not believe the LORD your God, who went in the way before you to search out a place for you to pitch your tents, to show you the way you should go, in the fire by night and in the cloud by day. --Deuteronomy 1:32-33

It hit me, as I read these verses this morning that the children of Israel did not have to go into the land and search it out beforehand...their God had already done that.   He went before them always and prepared their path...He even searched out a place ahead of time for them to pitch their tents. He does the same for us today.  There is nowhere we can go in this life where He has not gone before and prepared for us. There is no where we can go from His Spirit or flee from His presence.  THAT IS SUCH A GOOD THING!   Fear not!  Our God is our Divine Leader.  He is the God of our Battles. He is our Keeper.  

Unite our heart to believe, Father!  May Your mercy and grace follow and fill our every step as we walk with Him by faith.  Read the following Psalms through and be encouraged and blessed!

1 A Song of Ascents.

I will lift up my eyes to the hills--

From whence comes my help?

2 My help comes from the LORD,

Who made heaven and earth.

3 He will not allow your foot to be moved;

He who keeps you will not slumber.

4 Behold, He who keeps Israel

Shall neither slumber nor sleep.

5 The LORD is your keeper;

The LORD is your shade at your right hand.

6 The sun shall not strike you by day,

Nor the moon by night.

7 The LORD shall preserve you from all evil;

He shall preserve your soul.

8 The LORD shall preserve your going out and your coming in

From this time forth, and even forevermore.—Psalm 121

1 O LORD, You have searched me and known me.

 2 You know my sitting down and my rising up;

         You understand my thought afar off.

 3 You comprehend my path and my lying down,

         And are acquainted with all my ways.

 4 For there is not a word on my tongue,

         But behold, O LORD, You know it altogether.

 5 You have hedged me behind and before,

         And laid Your hand upon me.

 6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me;

         It is high, I cannot attain it. 

      

 7 Where can I go from Your Spirit?

         Or where can I flee from Your presence?

 8 If I ascend into heaven, You are there;

         If I make my bed in hell, behold, You are there.

 9 If I take the wings of the morning,

         And dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea,

 10 Even there Your hand shall lead me,

         And Your right hand shall hold me.

 11 If I say, “Surely the darkness shall fall[a] on me,”

         Even the night shall be light about me;

 12 Indeed, the darkness shall not hide from You,

         But the night shines as the day; 

         The darkness and the light are both alike to You.

      

 13 For You formed my inward parts;

         You covered me in my mother’s womb.

 14 I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made;[b]

         Marvelous are Your works, 

         And that my soul knows very well.

 15 My frame was not hidden from You,

         When I was made in secret, 

         And skillfully wrought in the lowest parts of the earth.

 16 Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed.

         And in Your book they all were written, 

         The days fashioned for me, 

         When as yet there were none of them. 

      

 17 How precious also are Your thoughts to me, O God!

         How great is the sum of them!

 18 If I should count them, they would be more in number than the sand;

         When I awake, I am still with You. 

      

 19 Oh, that You would slay the wicked, O God!

         Depart from me, therefore, you bloodthirsty men.

 20 For they speak against You wickedly;

         Your enemies take Your name in vain.[c]

 21 Do I not hate them, O LORD, who hate You?

         And do I not loathe those who rise up against You?

 22 I hate them with perfect hatred;

         I count them my enemies. 

      

 23 Search me, O God, and know my heart;

         Try me, and know my anxieties;

 24 And see if there is any wicked way in me,

         And lead me in the way everlasting.—Psalm 139

Spurgeon on Psalm 61

Verse 1. "Hear my cry, O God." He was in terrible earnest; he shouted, he lifted up his voice on high. He is not however content with the expression of his need: to give his sorrows vent is not enough for him, he wants actual audience of heaven, and manifold succour as the result. Pharisees may rest in their prayers; true believers are eager for an answer to them: ritualists may be satisfied when they have, "said or sung" their litanies and collects, but living children of God will never rest till their supplications have entered the ears of the Lord God of Sabaoth. "Attend unto my prayer." Give it thy consideration, and such an answer as thy wisdom sees fit. When it comes to crying with us, we need not doubt but that it will come to attending with God. Our heavenly Father is not hardened against the cries of his own children. What a consoling thought it is that the Lord at all times hears his people's cries, and is never forgetful of their prayers; whatever else fails to move him, praying breath is never spent in vain!

Verse 2. "From the end of the earth will I cry unto thee." He was banished from the spot which was the centre of his delight, and at the same time his mind was in a depressed and melancholy condition; both actually and figuratively he was an outcast, yet he does not therefore restrain prayer, but rather finds therein a reason for the louder and more importunate cries. To be absent from the place of divine worship was a sore sorrow to saints in the olden times; they looked upon the tabernacle as the centre of the world, and they counted themselves to be at the fag end of the universe when they could no longer resort to the sacred shrine; their heart was heavy as in a strange land when they were banished from its solemnities. Yet even they knew right well that no place is unsuitable for prayer. There may be an end of the earth, but there must not be an end to devotion. On creation's verge we may call upon God, for even there he is within call. No spot is too dreary, no condition too deplorable; whether it be the world's end or life's end, prayer is equally available. To pray in some circumstances needs resolve, and the psalmist here expresses it, "I will cry." It was a wise resolution, for had he ceased to pray he would have become the victim of despair; there is an end to a man when he makes an end to prayer. Observe that David never dreamed of seeking any other God; he did not imagine the dominion of Jehovah to be local: he was at the end of the promised land, but he knew himself to be still in the territory of the Great King; to him only does he address his petitions. "When my heart is overwhelmed:"—when the huge waves of trouble wash over me, and I am completely submerged, not only as to my head, but also my heart. It is hard to pray when the very heart is drowning, yet gracious men plead best at such times. Tribulation brings us to God, and brings God to us. Faith's greatest triumphs are achieved in her heaviest trials. It is all over with me, affliction is all over me; it encompasses me as a cloud, it swallows me up like a sea, it shuts me in with thick darkness, yet God is near, near enough to hear my voice, and I will call him. Is not this brave talk? Mark how our psalmist tells the Lord, as if he knew he were hearing him, that he intended to call upon him: our prayer by reason of our distress may be like to a call upon a far off friend, but our inmost faith has its quiet heart whispers to the Lord as to one who is assuredly our very present help.

"Lead me to the rock that is higher than I." I see thee to be my refuge, sure and strong; but alas! I am confused, and cannot find thee; I am weak, and cannot climb thee. Thou art so steadfast, guide me; thou art so high, uplift me. There is a mint of meaning in this brief prayer. Along the iron bound coast of our northern shores, lives are lost because the rocks are inaccessible to the shipwrecked mariner. A clergyman of one of the coast villages has with immense labour cut steps up from the beach to a large chamber, which he has excavated in the chalk cliffs; here many mariners have been saved; they have climbed the rock, which had else been too high for them, and they have escaped. We have heard of late, however, that the steps have been worn away by the storms, and that poor sailors have perished miserably within sight of the refuge which they could not reach, for it was too high for them: it is therefore proposed to drive in iron stanchions, and to hang up chain ladders that shipwrecked mariners may reach the chambers in the rock. The illustration is self interpreting. Our experience leads us to understand this verse right well, for the time was with us when we were in such amazement of soul be reason of sin, that although we knew the Lord Jesus to be a sure salvation for sinners, yet we could not come at him, by reason of our many doubts and forebodings. A Saviour would have been of no use to us if the Holy Spirit had not gently led us to him, and enabled us to rest upon him. To this day we often feel that we not only want a rock, but to be led to it. With this in view we treat very leniently the half unbelieving prayers of awakened souls; for in their bewildered state we cannot expect from them all at once a fully believing cry. A seeking soul should at once believe in Jesus, but it is legitimate for a man to ask to be led to Jesus; the Holy Spirit is able to effect such a leading, and he can do it even though the heart be on the borders of despair.

How infinitely higher that we are is the salvation of God. We are low and grovelling, but it towers like some tall cliff far above us. This is its glory, and is our delight when we have once climbed into the rock, and claimed an interest in it; but while we are as yet trembling seekers, the glory and sublimity of salvation appal us, and we feel that we are too unworthy ever to be partakers of it; hence we are led to cry for grace upon grace, and to see how dependent we are for everything, not only for the Saviour, but for the power to believe on him.

Verse 3. "For thou hast been a shelter for me." Observe how the psalmist rings the changes on, "Thou hast," and "I will,"—Psalm 61:3-6. Experience is the nurse of faith. From the past we gather arguments for present confidence. Many and many a time had the persecutions of Saul and the perils of battle imperilled David's life, and only by miracle had he escaped, yet was he still alive and unhurt; this he remembers, and he is full of hope. "And a strong tower from the enemy." As in a fort impregnable, David had dwelt, because surrounded by omnipotence. Sweet is it beyond expression to remember the lovingkindnesses of the Lord in our former days, for he is unchangeable, and therefore will continue to guard us from all evil.

Verse 4. "I will abide in thy tabernacle for ever." Let me once get back to thy courts, and nothing shall again expel me from them: even now in my banishment my heart is there; and ever will I continue to worship thee in spirit wherever my lot may be cast. Perhaps by the word "tabernacle" is here meant the dwelling place of God; and if so, the sense is, I will dwell with the Lord, enjoying his sacred hospitality, and sure protection.

There would I find a settled rest,
     While others go and come;
No more a stranger or a guest,
     But like a child at home.
He who communes with God is always at home. The divine omnipresence surrounds such a one consciously; his faith sees all around him the palace of the King, in which he walks with exulting security and overflowing delight. Happy are the indoor servants who go not out from his presence. Hewers of wood and drawers of water in the tents of Jehovah are more to be envied than the princes who riot in the pavilions of kings. The best of all is that our residence with God is not for a limited period of time, but for ages; yea, for ages of ages, for time and for eternity: this is our highest and most heavenly privilege, "I will abide in thy tabernacle for ever."

"I will trust in the covert of thy wings." Often does our sweet singer use this figure; and far better is it to repeat one apt and instructive image, than for the sake of novelty to ransack creation for poor, strained metaphors. The chicks beneath the hen how safe, how comfortable, how happy! How warm the parent's bosom! How soft the cherishing feathers! Divine condescension allows us to appropriate the picture to ourselves, and how blessedly instructive and consoling it is! O for more trust; it cannot be too implicit: such a covert invites us to the most unbroken repose. SELAH. Rest we well may when we reach this point. Even the harp may be eloquently silent when deep, profound calm completely fills the bosom, and sorrow has sobbed itself into a peaceful slumber.

Verse 5. "For thou, O God, hast heard my vows." Proofs of divine faithfulness are to be had in remembrance, and to be mentioned to the Lord's honour. The prayer of Psalm 61:1 is certain of an answer because of the experience of Psalm 61:5, since we deal with an immutable God. "Vows" may rightly be joined with prayers when they are lawful, well considered, and truly for God's glory. It is great mercy on God's part to take any notice of the vows and promises of such faithless and deceitful creatures as we are. What we promise him is his due already, and yet he deigns to accept our vows as if we were not so much his servants as his free suitors who could give or withhold at pleasure. "Thou hast given me the heritage of those that fear thy name." We are made heirs, joint heirs with all the saints, partakers of the same portion. With this we ought to be delighted. If we suffer, it is the heritage of the saints; if we are persecuted, are in poverty, or in temptation, all this is contained in the title deeds of the heritage of the chosen. Those we are to sup with we may well be content to dine with. We have the same inheritance as the Firstborn himself; what better is conceivable? Saints are described as fearing the name of God; they are reverent worshippers; they stand in awe of the Lord's authority; they are afraid of offending him, they feel their own nothingness in the sight of the Infinite One. To share with such men, to be treated by God with the same favour as he metes out to them, is matter for endless thanksgiving. All the privileges of all the saints are also the privileges of each one.

Verse 6. "Thou wilt prolong the king's life;" or, better, "days to the days of the King thou wilt add." Death threatened, but God preserved his beloved. David, considering his many perils, enjoyed a long and prosperous reign. "And his years as many generations." He lived to see generation after generation personally; in his descendants he lived as king through a very long period; his dynasty continued for many generations; and in Christ Jesus, his seed and son, spiritually David reigns on evermore. Thus he who began at the foot of the rock, half drowned, and almost dead, is here led to the summit, and sings as a priest abiding in the tabernacle, a king ruling with God for ever, and a prophet foretelling good things to come. (Psalm 61:7.) See the uplifting power of faith and prayer. None so low but they may yet be set on high.

Verse 7. "He shall abide before God for ever." Though this is true of David in a modified sense, we prefer to view the Lord Jesus as here intended as the lineal descendant of David, and the representative of his royal race. Jesus is enthroned before God to eternity; here is our safety, dignity, and delight. We reign in him; in him we are made to sit together in the heavens. David's personal claim to sit enthroned for ever is but a foreshadowing of the revealed privilege of all true believers. "O prepare mercy and truth, which may preserve him." As men cry, "Long live the king," so we hail with acclamation our enthroned Immanuel, and cry, "Let mercy and truth preserve him." Eternal love and immutable faithfulness are the bodyguards of Jesus' throne, and they are both the providers and the preservers of all those who in him are made kings and priests unto God. We cannot keep ourselves, and nothing short of divine mercy and truth can do it; but these both can and will, nor shall the least of the people of God be suffered to perish.

Verse 8. "So will I sing praise unto thy name for ever." Because my prayer is answered, my song shall be perpetual; because Jesus for ever sits at thy right hand, it shall be acceptable; because I am preserved in him, it shall be grateful. David had given vocal utterance to his prayer by a cry; he will now give expression to his praise by a song: there should be a parallel between our supplications and our thanksgivings. We ought not to leap in prayer, and limp in praise. The vow to celebrate the divine name "for ever" is no hyperbolical piece of extravagance, but such as grace and glory shall enable us to carry out to the letter. "That I may daily perform my vows." To God who adds days to our days we will devote all our days. We vowed perpetual praise, and we desire to render it without intermission. We would worship God de die in diem, going right on as the days roll on. We ask no vacation from this heavenly vocation; we would make no pause in this sacred service. God daily performs his promises, let us daily perform our vows: he keeps his covenant, let us not forget ours. Blessed be the name of the Lord from this time forth, even for evermore.

Fear, Cowardice and Instability....

Now as Peter was below in the courtyard, one of the servant girls of the high priest came. And when she saw Peter warming himself, she looked at him and said, “You also were with Jesus of Nazareth.” But he denied it, saying, “I neither know nor understand what you are saying.” And he went out on the porch, and a rooster crowed. And the servant girl saw him again, and began to say to those who stood by, “This is one of them.” But he denied it again. And a little later those who stood by said to Peter again, “Surely you are one of them; for you are a Galilean, and your speech shows it.” Then he began to curse and swear, “I do not know this Man of whom you speak!” A second time the rooster crowed. Then Peter called to mind the word that Jesus had said to him, “Before the rooster crows twice, you will deny Me three times.” And when he thought about it, he wept.—Mark 14:66-72

Fear, cowardice and instability...all of us, like Peter, have been there.  Perhaps even now, as the entire world seems to have gone over the edge amidst fears of COVID-19.  Fear makes our thinking at best skewed and at worst chaotic.  We become like unbelievers running to and fro and carried about by every wind of doctrine.  We read, believe and feed on lies instead of immersing ourselves in the truth of our God’s word. We forget the ONE in Whom we believe and trust in our own abilities and schemes to protect us.  Praying today that each of us would look to our Lord and Savior.  That we draw near to Him...spending time with Him in His word, in worship and in prayer.   Father...root and ground us today in Your truth.  

For this reason I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, from whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named, that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man, that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height--to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.  Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.—Ephesians 3:14-21

True Greatness...

But Jesus called them to Himself and said to them, “You know that those who are considered rulers over the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. “Yet it shall not be so among you; but whoever desires to become great among you shall be your servant.  “And whoever of you desires to be first shall be slave of all. “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.”—Mark 10:42-45

True Greatness:

When God makes you great: Ps 75:7

I will make you a great nation;

I will bless you

And make your name great;

And you shall be a blessing.—Genesis 12:2

But God is the Judge:

He puts down one,

And exalts another.—Psalm 75:7

Knowing the way of the Lord through obedience. 

Therefore if there is any consolation in Christ, if any comfort of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any affection and mercy,

2 fulfill my joy by being like-minded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind.

3 Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself.

4 Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others.

5 Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus,

6 who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God,

7 but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men.

8 And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross.

9 Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name,

10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth,

11 and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.—Philippians 2:1-11

Pointing Others to Christ:

Whoever therefore breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever does and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.—Matt 5:19

Is the servant of all:

Yet it shall not be so among you; but whoever desires to become great among you, let him be your servant.—Matthew 20:26  (also Mark 10:43)

Dependence on the Father in heaven:

You have also given me the shield of Your salvation; Your right hand has held me up, Your gentleness has made me great.