Wednesday February 14
Best of All, God is With Us!
Psalm 135:6-21
6 Whatever the LORD pleases He does, In heaven and in earth, In the seas and in all deep places.
7 He causes the vapors to ascend from the ends of the earth; He makes lightning for the rain; He brings the wind out of His treasuries.
8 He destroyed the firstborn of Egypt, Both of man and beast.
9 He sent signs and wonders into the midst of you, O Egypt, Upon Pharaoh and all his servants.
10 He defeated many nations And slew mighty kings--
11 Sihon king of the Amorites, Og king of Bashan, And all the kingdoms of Canaan--
12 And gave their land as a heritage, A heritage to Israel His people.
13 Your name, O LORD, endures forever, Your fame, O LORD, throughout all generations.
14 For the LORD will judge His people, And He will have compassion on His servants.
15 The idols of the nations are silver and gold, The work of men's hands.
16 They have mouths, but they do not speak; Eyes they have, but they do not see;
17 They have ears, but they do not hear; Nor is there any breath in their mouths.
18 Those who make them are like them; So is everyone who trusts in them.
19 Bless the LORD, O house of Israel! Bless the LORD, O house of Aaron!
20 Bless the LORD, O house of Levi! You who fear the LORD, bless the LORD!
21 Blessed be the LORD out of Zion, Who dwells in Jerusalem! Praise the LORD!
This morning, I will be driving to Dulles Airport in Washington DC to meet up with our team of five others wonderful people, and to catch our evening flight India. Again, I’m asking you to pray for our team as we minister to precious widows, orphans, children, pastors, and as we dedicate wells in remote villages. We also want to be a blessing and encouragement to our national partners that labor tirelessly to reach their nation for Christ. We hope to post as many daily chats updating everyone as is possible with travel and the internet. We will return on Saturday February 24th, but only for a few days. On Thursday, February 29th, we leave again for Dulles to catch an evening flight to Jordan for another 10 days, where we will be ministering to national partners, both Syrian and Iraqi refugees and many others. We will be back from that trip Saturday, March 9th. Your prayers and support are very much appreciated!
Psalm 135 is a great passage to share from just before we leave on our trip, as we are reminded that the emphasis of this psalm is on praising the LORD because of who He is and what He has done for His people. Yesterday in verses 1-5, we saw how the psalmist was singing and praising the LORD for His goodness and for His “pleasant” name (v. 3). And rejoicing that the people of Israel are a chosen people and special treasure to the LORD. Today, we are His chosen ones who are also His special possession, and we can trust Him!
In verses 6-12, we are reminded that God is sovereign, and He does what He pleases! He is in charge of the world, both earth and sea, and all the elements including lightning, the rain and wind. He is charge of the nations and gave the land of Canaan to Israel! In verses 13-14, the LORD personally judges His people and has compassion on them! We are His servants, and He cares for us!
The LORD proves He cares for us in verses 15-18, because He is the true and living God. With minor changes, these verses are quoted from Psalm 115:4-8. Dead idols cannot speak, see, hear, or breathe, and they cannot give life to their worshipers. Because Jehovah is the living God, He speaks to us in His Word, sees us in our every circumstance, hears our prayers, and comes to us when we need the help that only He can give.
But best of all, in verses 19-21, the LORD is to be praised because our God is with Us. Israel could praise the Lord because He was present with His people. No other nation could claim that distinction. His glory led Israel through the wilderness, and that glory resided in the sanctuary until God had to depart because of the nation's sins (Ezek. 7-11). What other nation had the glory of God dwelling in their midst (Psalm 63:2; Rom. 9:4)? The Lord is not a distant God; He is "a very present help in trouble" (Ps. 46:1). Jesus is "Immanuel—God with us" (Matt. 1:20-25; 28:20). And He has promised us, "I will never leave you nor forsake you" (Heb. 13:5; Gen. 28:15; Josh. 1:5; Isa. 41:10, 17).
Oh, my friend, today we have so much to praise and bless the LORD for!!!!
God bless!
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