"Be merciful to me, O God, be merciful to me! For my soul trusts in You; and in the shadow of Your wings I will make my refuge, until these calamities have passed by." (Psalm 57:1)
There is no word for "these" in the Hebrew text. The NASB says, "....in the shadow of Your wings I will take refuge until destruction passes by." The NIV says, "....until the disaster has passed." But we must ask the question, When is, "destruction passe[d]," or, "the disaster... passed"? Never. Life is, "destruction," waiting to consume you and me at every turn. Peter said, "Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour." This is his 24/7 mission in this age; he has no, "until destruction passes by," in his thinking. Every day, even times when we are not aware of the need for, "Be merciful to me," even when we are unaware of the need for, "the shadow of Your wings...," we need Jesus Christ's mercy and, "shadow." There is no, "until," in our life in Jesus.
Most live life from one "calamity" to another, hoping that the present one will be the last. "Well, it can't get any worse than this," is a common response. Well, many times it does. "I just can't seem to catch a break," is another often heard lament. Yet the answer is not complaining. It is what David came to in Psalm 27, "One thing have I desire of the Lord, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life...." I freely admit that I was not a, "One thing...I will seek after," person before June 10, 1970. Since that day, there is a very real sense in which I can say I have really had no choice. I was a drowning "sailor" in life, and Jesus became to Me what He always was, but I had little idea to what extent--- my literal Life Preserver. His Words are my life, because without Jesus, "The Word of God," and the, "God-Breathed...words of God," I would not be writing this to you today.
As "coincidence" would have it, this is from Bonhoeffer's devotional for August 12. "God cannot simply be pertinent to our lives when we face failure or difficulty. We cannot only invoke Him when we have no answers. God is not the God of the gaps when we have run out of human resources or explanations. God is not to be called upon only when human wisdom fails. He is not waiting in the wings to be called upon only when things run into difficulty. He is there at the center-- central to our wisdom, to our answers, to our very life."
Father, in Jesus' Name, I pray I never forget just how "central to [my]...very life" You Are. Amen.
There is no word for "these" in the Hebrew text. The NASB says, "....in the shadow of Your wings I will take refuge until destruction passes by." The NIV says, "....until the disaster has passed." But we must ask the question, When is, "destruction passe[d]," or, "the disaster... passed"? Never. Life is, "destruction," waiting to consume you and me at every turn. Peter said, "Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour." This is his 24/7 mission in this age; he has no, "until destruction passes by," in his thinking. Every day, even times when we are not aware of the need for, "Be merciful to me," even when we are unaware of the need for, "the shadow of Your wings...," we need Jesus Christ's mercy and, "shadow." There is no, "until," in our life in Jesus.
Most live life from one "calamity" to another, hoping that the present one will be the last. "Well, it can't get any worse than this," is a common response. Well, many times it does. "I just can't seem to catch a break," is another often heard lament. Yet the answer is not complaining. It is what David came to in Psalm 27, "One thing have I desire of the Lord, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life...." I freely admit that I was not a, "One thing...I will seek after," person before June 10, 1970. Since that day, there is a very real sense in which I can say I have really had no choice. I was a drowning "sailor" in life, and Jesus became to Me what He always was, but I had little idea to what extent--- my literal Life Preserver. His Words are my life, because without Jesus, "The Word of God," and the, "God-Breathed...words of God," I would not be writing this to you today.
As "coincidence" would have it, this is from Bonhoeffer's devotional for August 12. "God cannot simply be pertinent to our lives when we face failure or difficulty. We cannot only invoke Him when we have no answers. God is not the God of the gaps when we have run out of human resources or explanations. God is not to be called upon only when human wisdom fails. He is not waiting in the wings to be called upon only when things run into difficulty. He is there at the center-- central to our wisdom, to our answers, to our very life."
Father, in Jesus' Name, I pray I never forget just how "central to [my]...very life" You Are. Amen.
When Peter, an 18 year old Norwegian, "heard the call to evangelize China, on that day he not only emptied his wallet into the collection plate, but included a small note with the words, 'and my life.'"
"Looking unto Jesus"
Hebrews 12:2
"Looking unto Jesus"
Hebrews 12:2
