SOAP 05/16/2015; Psalm 11:1

Today's reading: Psalm 11

S) "¹ In the LORD I take refuge; How can you say to my soul, 'Flee as a bird to your mountain;'"

Psalm 11:1 (NASB)

O) This psalm continues to quote this opponent, who was apparently threatening. David turned to proclaim the righteousness and justice of the LORD, and it all comes back to this first verse. See, one thing David fully understood, was that in the LORD no one could do anything against him, unless the LORD allowed it. When his refuge was the LORD, then that old phrase takes a different tone... like God was saying, "If you want him, you'll have to go through Me." Now, that is not to say that we have no troubles. In fact, David continued in this psalm, to mention that God tests those that are His. But, we have peace in His sovereignty over those tests. All of this hinged on his position, within the LORD as his refuge.

A) This verse is still applicable to me today, especially with the revelation of Christ. There are numerous verses throughout the New Testament, referring to Christ being our covering. In Him, so many promises hinge. Being a member of His body, being within Him, I have ultimate peace. What a joyful comfort! If I am within Christ, who could breathe threats against me? The only way an enemy could get to me, is to go through Christ! Unless, of course, I am outside of Christ… there is the danger. So, as much promise as is in the verse above (and the Psalm as a whole), I must remember that it is conditional on my positional relationship to Jesus.

P) Father, You are a strong refuge, a safe tower, a loving wing over me. When I am scared, when I am threatened and feel the oppression of my enemies, let me turn to You for sanctuary. In You alone, I have hope. In You alone, I have peace. Be glorified in my life, in Christ. In Jesus's name I pray. Amen.

SOAP 05/15/2015; Psalm 10:14

Today's reading: Psalm 10

S) "¹⁴ You have seen it, for You have beheld mischief and vexation to take it into Your hand.
The unfortunate commits himself to You;
You have been the helper of the orphan."

Psalm 10:14 (NASB)

O) This is a psalm, seeking the justice of the LORD. This particular verse, highlights that nothing escapes the notice of God. He sees the behavior of wrongdoers, and certainly God sees the unfortunate, the helpless, and those who seek Him. This verse adds to the depth of our understanding God's character.

A) There have been many periods of my life, that I have felt orphaned. After my parents divorced, my mom had a dark period in her life where she was addicted to drugs, and my dad basically ignored me. Through that, I had certainly felt helpless, and consequently hopeless, through a lot of my youth. When I started to learn that God had not abandoned me, though, I began to understand the help and hope He offers. He never promised to insulate me from the troubles of the world, but sometimes just knowing that he sees what I'm going through, is comfort enough to sustain me through difficult times. God sees both the perpetrator (mischief) and the victim (vexation), and He will address both in His time (taking them into His hand).

P) Father, before anything else, I thank You for the mercy I have received. I know very well, that I have been the cause of mischief toward others. I have sinned against You and people, and I am thankful for the mercy I received through the grace of the cross. Because I have experienced that grace and mercy, I pray that anyone who might ever wrong me, would find the same grace and mercy through their own repentance. Throughout my life, I can look back and see that Your eye has been upon me from the start. Even though I have felt orphaned, I have never lost You as my Father, God. Whatever may come, I pray that I am forever able to relate to You, realizing that I am not an orphan as long as You are my Father. Thank You for adopting me. In Jesus's name I pray. Amen.

SOAP 05/14/2015; Psalm 8:3-4

Today's reading: Psalm 8

S) "³ When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers,
The moon and the stars, which You have ordained;
⁴ What is man that You take thought of him,
And the son of man that You care for him?"

Psalm 8:3-4 (NASB)

O) There are two important things to understand about this passage, represented in each of the verses. This helps form the basis for what is, at its core, a psalm of humility. First, we must understand that the last word in v.3 is not about God creating things, but about God creating a system of things. At this point in history, mankind had begun to understand science on the level of observing and studying what was around them, in order to make it useful. David understood that the moon had cycles, which correlated to tides, even if he didn't understand the causation: its gravitational pull. He understood that the stars had cycles that correlated to seasons, even if he didn't understand the causation: that the earth spun on an axis and revolved around the sun. But, through those systems he understood it to be the evidence of God. These were seen clearly to be the work of His fingers, not some substitutive explanation opposed to creationism. Next, in v.4, the use of the phrases, "What is man," and "the son of man," are speaking to a common understanding of societal values. David was clearly placing man on a much lower level than God, but acknowledging that God was still mindful of men. Then he used the term, "son of man" to emphasize that he was not referring to some kind of special man that God considers. A son of man would be in contrast to a son of God, or even son of god, as many pagan cultures had in their folklore, even at that time. He was humbling the stature of man as far as he could, to make the point clear that God cares for us because it is His will to do so, not because we are special in any way.

A) This passage is really a reminder to take a compound approach to humility. I heard something along the lines of, "Being  humble is not thinking less about myself, but thinking about myself less," and this is like that. The humility displayed in these verses is borne from meditating on the greatness of God. So, that's my first step. Without bothering about how humble I am, I should already focus on the vast, impressive, majestic nature of God. Then from there, I will be humbled by the comparison. Along with this humility, comes an appreciation for the breadth of God's love. After all, by recognizing the difference between me and Him, I am also recognizing the distance He came to rescue me in His grace and love.

P) Father, Your ways are so deep, I want to be swallowed by the majesty they reveal. The world around me shouts Your praises! Let me contemplate them longer, and recognize that I still stand on the shores of the ocean of Your character. By realizing how vast You are, in Your thoughts, Your plans, and Your designs, I am confronted with the depth of Your grace toward me, that Yoy desire relationship with me. Who am I, that You are mindful of me? I am Your beloved servant. Be glorified. In Jesus's name I pray. Amen.

SOAP 05/13/2015; Psalm 7:11

Today's reading: Psalm 7

S) "¹¹ God is a righteous judge,
And a God who has indignation every day."

Psalm 7:11 (NASB)

O) David was asking for refuge in the LORD in this psalm. He began it by asserting his innocence at the (apparent) accusations of Cush. He welcomed his own demise, if he was guilty (see vv.3-5). He went on to ask for vindication, in light of his righteousness and integrity. It's important to understand a distinction here, though. David was not claiming to be innocent, or without guilt. His description of himself had to do with his honest repentance and love of God's laws (as evinced throughout his other psalms, and the other scriptures we have regarding the life of David). In his repentance, and sacrifices according to the Law, and his innocence in this particular matter, he was stating his case. When we get to the verse above, we can clearly see David was appealing to God's perfect standard and perfect character. He knew that a lack of repentance led to destruction (see vv.12-16), and so he was asking for justice.

A) The most appropriate way for me to relate to this verse, is to remember that God is a righteous judge of my own sins, and (try) to recognize the depth of grace involved in my salvation. Because of that grace within me, I should hope and pray for the repentance and salvation of every person, in the love of Christ. I should not seek their judgment, but should only pray for the will of God to be done. Recognizing that God sees (and judges righteously) indignations every day, I should be all the more motivated to pray for the salvation of many, especially those who are closest to me (i.e., friends and family).

P) Father, You are righteous in Your judgments and perfect in Your timing. Thank You for being slow to anger, and great in Your lovingkindness. I pray that it leads to the repentance of more and more people. I especially ask for You to move in the hearts of my unsaved family, and close friends. Open my eyes to see my role in bringing the truth of the gospel to them, and open my ears to hear Your voice and follow Your lead in those relationships. Let Your will be done in their lives, and on earth, as it is in heaven. In Jesus's name I pray. Amen.

SOAP 05/12/2015; Psalm 6:4-5

Today's reading: Psalm 6

S) "⁴ Return, O LORD, rescue my soul; Save me because of Your lovingkindness. ⁵ For there is no mention of You in death; In Sheol who will give You thanks?"

Psalm 6:4-5 (NASB)

O) The premise is kind of absurd, on its surface. David was pleading with God, to rescue him, based on the idea that no one would praise the Lord if David did not. No one would give God thanks if not for David. So, if he died, so with him would die the thanksgiving to God. Now, David must surely have known that he would be survived by the legacy of worship he had created. Practically speaking, David knew someone would still worship the LORD. But, notice David didn't ask who would give God thanks among the living. No, this was still about David's opportunity to worship. So, a little deeper, we see that these verses are really getting at the heart of David, revealing that at the core of his life was worship of his God. He was saying (confessing, really) that he could not conceive of himself, in a position that he could not give God thanks. He was pleading with God for his life, for the sake of his life's mission, which was to worship, praise, and thank God.

A) Figuring out a life's mission can be a life-long endeavor for some. At the core of Christian life, however, it really should boil down easily. My life should bring God glory. At the end of my days, the more I have glorified His name, the better a life I will have lived. Now, the details of how that looks can be quite varied. But, I can't get caught up in those details. David easily could have made the mistake of thinking his life was about his job: ruling a kingdom. He could have mistakenly thought it was about his family (and he generally failed at that). Instead, he defined his life by his ability to worship the LORD. We value life because of what life affords us the time or ability to do. When I consider that, as a Christian, I am called to die to my self, then valuing my life should be defined by what I can do for Him. I don't feel like my life is in danger, per se, but God is sovereign, and it is His inalienable right to end my life whenever He chooses. In light of that, I must take advantage of each day He gives me, to accomplish my mission in Him. At its core, I should focus to worship, praise, and thank Him. The rest is just details.

P) Father, I can't pretend that Your thanks and worship and praise, would either begin or end with me. You are so much more vast than my own, brief life. You were worshipped for thousands of years before me, and You will continue to be worshipped for thousands of years after me (according to Yoyr will to let humans remain that long). The value of my life is dependent on what I do with it, though. I know You are sovereign, and I am small, but if it is at all possible, I want my life to be valuable to You. Help me to be focused on glorifying You with every moment of my every day. Make me more aware of what's at stake in every relationship, word, and deed. Let only Your will be done. In Jesus's name I pray. Amen.

SOAP 05/11/2015; Psalm 5:3

Today's reading: Psalm 5

S) "³ In the morning, O LORD, You will hear my voice; In the morning I will order my prayer to You and eagerly watch."

Psalm 5:3 (NASB)

O) David was often motivated by very present, physical, real dangers to his life. As the king of a sovereign nation, David also easily recognized that he had only one hope, only one help, the One true God. When he was afflicted, his struggle was present on his mind, even from the moment he awoke. What we read in this verse, is the discipline David had to put these two things together. He took his present, consuming trouble before the only help he had, as soon as he could.

A) For the most part, I enjoy mornings. Having said that, I am not always very disciplined to get up in the morning. There are exceptions, though. If I am particularly excited about an event, or if there is an occassionally important reason to get up earlier than normal (if I know that I need to get gas before going to work, or if I need to take the trash out to the curb, etc.). What I don't do very well, though, is allow the storms of my life to be the occassionally important reason to get up early - particularly, so I can pray about those things with exclusive attention. David sets a good example for me, here. I must remember that there is a real answer to all of my problems. I will find Him in prayer. If I have pressing needs, troubles afflicting me, chaos or confusion or hardship, my Lord wants to hear me on the matters. If I could have an audience with the sovereign authority in my life, why would I ever wait? Why would I ever delay about presenting myself to my King? There is no reason to wait, and every reason to get up early.

P) Father, You are my solution. You hold all of the answers to all of my problems. I acknowledge that You will not always remove my hardships from me, but even then I know You will guide me through them. I confess that You are not the first on my mind, when problems overwhelm me. But here, now, I know that You should be. I want to be committed to seeking You, in prayer and worship, with the first of my day. You bless me with time, everyday, and I want to bless You with the first fruits of my time. Help me develop this discipline, to glorify Your name. In Jesus's name I pray. Amen.

SOAP 05/10/2015; Psalm 3:4

Today's reading: Psalm 3

S) "⁴ I was crying to the LORD with my voice, And He answered me from His holy mountain.
Selah."

Psalm 3:4 (NASB)

O) David had a big reason to be upset. When he wrote this psalm, he was fleeing from his son, Absalom, who had forcibly ascended the throne. Many of David's psalm followed a similar pattern. He lamented his troubles, praised the LORD, then confessed his faith that God would deliver him. In the verse above, when David was describing his woe, he used a very specific wording. He said he cried "with his voice." Throughout the psalms, crying out to God is a frequent occurrence, but it is not often specified that this is an audible cry. After all, our "heart's cry" is a very real thing, which our God can very much hear. But, in this psalm, David seems to place an emphasis on the vocalization of his sorrows. God may very well have heard him, and answered him just the same, had his cry been only within his heart. We don't know. What we do know, is that David was unashamed to cry, audibly cry to his God.

A) On the show, "America's Funniest Videos" I remember seeing a home movie of a toddler throwing a fit on camera. When the parent moved to another room (still filming) te toddler would stop crying, following the parent into the new room, and only resume his cry once he was on camera again. It was pretty funny. There is a sense I have, that audibly crying a prayer helps to prove my faith. Otherwise, I could reduce the prayer to an internal monologue of self-pity. Speaking my prayers aloud is a testament that I believe someone is listening. Not just anyone, but the One. The One who can hear my cry, and actually do something about it. The LORD is His name. He hears my heart's cry, but I hear my cry with my voice, and I remember that He's listening. The cry of my voice is about me hearing and remembering that He hears, as much as it is about Him hearing it in the first place. I remember who He is, what He does, for crying out loud.

P) Father, You know all things. You see clearly, the hearts of men. You know fully, the cry of my heart. But Lord, when I am pressed, when I am woeful and fearful and life is painful, I will cry to You with my voice. When I hear my own words, my own cry, I will remember that Yoh also hear me. I will remember the One who hears is the same One who saves. You are my God, the LORD is Your name, and You are faithful and mighty to save. Be glorified. In Jesus's name I pray. Amen.