Just Pondering
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Rick Branan |
I will bless the Lord who counsels me—
even at night when my thoughts trouble me.
I always let the Lord guide me.
Because he is at my right hand, I will not be shaken.
Therefore my heart is glad and my whole being rejoices;
my body also rests securely.
Psalm 16:7-9 (CSBBible)
This is what I call a ‘gathering song’ – one that works best at the beginning of a service, and reminds us of the basis on which we approach God. And let’s face it: we regularly need reminding!
It’s so easy for us, especially after a difficult week, to be so aware of our failures, our weaknesses and our disappointments that we ‘keep our distance’ from God, feeling like we don’t deserve to enjoy His closeness or experience His love. At this point we need to remember that we can NEVER come to God on the basis of our own worth – we ALWAYS come on the basis of what Christ has done. It is His righteousness, His total obedience that ushers us into the Father’s presence, and enables us to enjoy all the blessings that Jesus deserves because we are ‘in Christ’.
Stuart Townend
Come People of the Risen King
Come, people of the risen King,
Who delight to bring Him praise.
Come, all and tune your hearts to sing
To the Morning Star of grace.
From the shifting shadows of the earth
We will lift our eyes to Him,
Where steady arms of mercy reach
To gather children in.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Let every tongue rejoice!
One heart, one voice, O Church of Christ, rejoice!
Come, those whose joy is morning sun
And those weeping through the night.
Come, those who tell of battles won,
And those struggling in the fight.
For His perfect love will never change,
And His mercies never cease,
But follow us through all our days
With the certain hope of peace.
Come, young and old from every land,
Men and women of the faith.
Come, those with full or empty hands,
Find the riches of His grace.
Over all the world, His people sing,
Shore to shore we hear them call
The Truth that cries through every age;
‘Our God is all in all’.
Written by Gettys and Townend
I love reading and singing the psalms. David and the other psalmists laid bare their souls as they approached God. Seemingly no subject was off limits: from praying for a curse on an enemy to royal weddings. The added title is “A Miktam of David.” We don’t know what a “miktam” is, though the root means to cover or inscribe. It is probably a musical note. Five other psalms have the same note.
David, in my focal passage, acknowledges that God is his counsel or source of wisdom. We need to remember that. In our age of “internet” wisdom, we are easily swayed to others’ opinions. Only God’s Word is the true source of wisdom. I struggle with falling to sleep on occasion. I can’t get my mind to stop. David had the same problem. But he turned to God and his faith in the Lord led him through. Finally, David calls us to rejoice because God is sovereign.
In their lyrics, the Gettys and Townend write, “Come, those whose joy is morning sun and those weeping through the night.” Joy comes when we know the Creator of the morning sun. We have Christ, the Morning Star (Revelation 22:16), to be our Savior. We should “Rejoice, rejoice!” As you face struggles this week, remember that God is on His throne, forever. Rejoice in that.
Just pondering . . . Bro. Rick