Psalms 37.
In our present society we often find satisfaction in the “stuff” that we have. The latest phone, newest car, or attire. Not that there is anything wrong with any of these, but what David is referring to is the source of our delight. In what or whom do we delight ourselves in? David found his delight in an evident relationship with his God. Abiding in His presence brought David many things that articles and possessions cannot bring.
- God’s presence brings patience. (vs 7) Just yesterday I was driving out of my gym parking lot and as I was trying to make a left, the main street was very busy. I was trying to find just a small gap in traffic to “gun it” and be on my way. Just before accelerating into a risky window between oncoming traffic I remembered one my Dad’s one liners that he must have repeated a thousand times, “Never take unnecessary risks in life.” I sighed like a little boy who just got scolded by his parent and continued waiting on traffic to clear up. This small scenario reminded me of how impatient I have become. I am used to fast results and receiving things quickly. We have microwaves, programs and apps for everything in our modern-day that make everything quickly efficient. However God the Father does not always work this way. At times God puts us through prolonged circumstances and seasons to perfect us into the image of His Son, Jesus. God prefers a slow cooker over a microwave. It takes a lot longer but I would rather enjoy a dish of slow cooked meat than chef boyardee (even though their Ravioli got me through college haha).
- God’s presence brings peace. (vs 10 & 11) At the mention of “peace” one of my favorite songs comes to mind, Tremble. My favorite version is sung by a Christian couple, Caleb & Kelsey. The lyrics are powerful,
Peace, bringing it all to peace
The storm surrounding me
Let it break at Your nameStill, call the sea to still
The rage in me to still
Every wave at Your nameI can only imagine how astounding it was for the disciples of Jesus to witness Him calming a raging storm with His words. (Matthew 8.23-27) In the midst of difficult circumstances, and desperate situations Jesus’ presence brings us comfort. He never promised us that life with Him would be easy, but He did promise us that we would never have to endure it without His presence. (Hebrews 13.5)
- God’s presence brings provision. (vs 25 & 26) In the Scriptures time and time again we read stories where God provided for His people, but afterwards people would put their trust in the provision instead of the Provider. One of God’s names in the Hebrew is Jehovah-jireh. In Exodus 16, the Jews had no food in the wilderness. God gave them a daily portion of manna, but they were instructed to only take enough for that day. God wanted to teach His people to put their trust in Him as their Provider, instead of the manna itself. In this life of following Jesus I must admit that this is a continual struggle. It is much easier to trust in an earthly, concrete, visual source of income like a job, or my career, than to trust in a God that is visually abstract. Faith is a requirement to trust in God. Faith is not easy, and it is something that needs to fed to grow. However every single time that I have taken a step in faith, and the Provider has come through for me, the memory of that experience gives confidence to my faith in God. So when I check my Chase app, I look back and realize that the Provider always provides more than what my needs are, because He’s just that awesome. Provider > provision.
endhyamoros.com 