Scripture
Take delight in the LORD and He will give you your heart’s desires.
~Psalm 37:4, NLT
Quote
The stars may fall from heaven but the word of God will stand and all its promises and prophecies will be fulfilled.
~J.I. Packer
Psalm 37 is special to me. The Lord providentially guided me to this passage some 30 years ago and I made it my blue print for life. I don’t know of a richer passage in all the bible. Some scholars believe that David wrote this for Solomon’s benefit. It is not a praise Psalm or a prayer Psalm, it is a teaching Psalm. David shares with us six principles to guide our life.
- DON’T WORRY OR FRET because of evil doers [v.1]. The Hebrew word for ‘fret’ is ‘charah’ like in charcoal. It means to get heated to the extent you burn. Most of us have probably used the adage, “Don’t that just burn you up.” It’s the same principle. It is the word used of Cain when he got upset or angry over his unacceptable sacrifice. We cannot allow ‘evil doers’ to get under our skin or to burn us up. We must do like David. When he considered the wicked, he took the long view. Sure, in the short term the wicked are going to prosper but they have no long term future. Like smoke, they will appear for a while and then be gone. The fact that the wicked do not believe in judgment does not mean there will be no judgment.
- TRUST IN THE LORD AND DO GOOD [v.3]. The word trust literally means to trust someone to the point that you fear no one else except them. To trust to the point you feel secure.
- TAKE DELIGHT IN THE LORD AND HE WILL GIVE YOU THE DESIRES OF YOUR HEART [v.4]. The word ‘desire’ means to be happy about to the point of celebration. We have many desires and different kind of desires. We have natural desires–thirst, hunger, sleep, etc. We also have carnal desires or fleshly desires–pleasure, power, popularity, etc. Then we have deeper, more spiritual desires. We have longing that are hard to define. What is the deepest, the greatest desire of your heart–a new Honda, Hunting Rifle, House, Husband? I will be willing to bet, your deepest desire has something to do with security and significance–not more money or more sex. You want to be loved unconditionally by someone; you want to be known {be intimate} with someone of the opposite sex; you want a purpose for living and you want your life to count, to mean something. To get what you desire most, do not pursue desires, pursue Jesus. You delight yourself in HIM and He will give you what you desire most.
- COMMIT YOUR WAY TO THE LORD—Trust in Him and He will do it [v.5]. The Hebrews had two words for ‘commit’: one was banking term like making a deposit but the other is used here and it is the picture of rolling an object that is too big to lift. The stone that covered the entrance to the tomb was too big to lift, it had to be rolled. Our sin and shame are too big for us to handle but we can roll them on to Jesus. Commit your way of life to the LORD. Trust Him to fulfill your desires by the power of His grace.
- REST IN THE LORD AND WAIT PATIENTLY ON HIM [v.7]. Remember, you have to take the long view. The LORD is not going to give you your deepest desire today or tomorrow. Don’t get impatient like Eve and jump the gun. The LORD had no intention of depriving our first parents: in time, He would haven given them everything they needed or desired but Eve would not wait. The devil gave her a shortcut or so she thought and the rest is history.
- CEASE FROM ANGER AND FORSAKE WRATH [V.8] This is exactly what Cain refused to do. He refused to let go of his anger and he pursued wrath. Cain was angry with God but he vented his wrath toward his brother. In his twisted thinking, Cain blamed Abel for God not accepting his sacrifice. Instead of leaving it with God, Cain sought to vindicate himself. We have to let it go folks. Vengeance belongs to the LORD. He will deal with all injustice in His own time. We simply need to trust HIM.
Very busy day yesterday and I do give praise for God’s goodness. The sermon to the Colbert/Lauderdale pastors went well and we go the DIGEST to Alabama mail. Two tasks in one day: pretty good for a Senior Adult. There are days when I don’t get anything accomplished. Went to see my great niece Bailey play basketball last night at West Morgan. The West Morgan girls and Clements girls advance. Elkmont and East Lawrence went down so I got to see Bailey’s last game. She played really well, I was very proud of her. Tim and David Keenum were at the game so we got in some good fellowship.