Pslam 72:18-19 NASB

Blessed be the LORD God, the God of Israel, who alone works wonders.  And blessed be His glorious name forever; and may the whole earth be filled with his glory.  Amen, and Amen.

Are you one who sometimes wonders about the active presence and power of God around you? Not that you're "prone to wander", as the old hymn says, but you're just prone to wonder?  In your heart, you know these things are true, and you don't aim to walk away from Him, but when others talk about God moments and God miracles, you feel like Gideon who said, "O my Lord, if the LORD is with us, why then has all this happened to us?  And where are all His miracles which our fathers told us about...?" (Joshua 6:13). We have all struggled with the God who seems to rarely show His hand; We struggle when we feel like we're rooting for the God who seems to choose to be mostly silent; we struggle when we've given credence to this God only to feel like we've been left holding the bag without the goods. This is especially difficult in a world that challenges our faith at every turn and mocks our beliefs at every opportunity.  That's okay; your faith hasn't been shaken nor have you forsaken what you believe to be true, not because you're stupid, senseless and unreasonably stubborn about your strong hold on these things.  Your stubbornness has strong reason.  You know Him to be true. You know His word to be true.  You know His story to be true.  You know His work in you to be true.  There is that conviction and voice within you that, no matter the questions, wants to cry out, "Blessed be the LORD God, the God of Israel, who alone works wonders.  And blessed be His glorious name forever; and may the whole earth be filled with his glory.  Amen, and Amen."  Cry it out!  It does wonders!  Because it's true!

I Kings 4:20 NASB

Judah and Israel were as numerous as the sand that is on the seashore in abundance; they were eating and drinking and rejoicing.

I like this verse!  It speaks to the way things were meant to be; and it was the way things were when the people honored God with all their hearts.  Solomon, as the new king of Israel, was ruling with humility and integrity, and the people followed.  It was a recipe for joy.  The same can happen with a church when the pastor serves with humility and integrity, or with a family where the parents lead with humility and integrity. Have you ever been to a carry-in dinner at such a church? The food is plentiful and the selection delicious; and especially the desserts!  But there is something going on that is better than the food.  It's called Christian fellowship.  There's just nothing comparable to the fellowship of God's people in a place where God is honored.  If it's not present, there should be concern.  It ought to be a given, that anytime you have Christians gathering together, whether it be a family meal or a time with friends, there should be the sound of rich, wholesome converation and laughter, the sense of genuine appreciation for one another, and the bond of a love the world does not understand.  Where this is present, the enjoyment is full and real, having all the markings of God's kingdom on earth, as it is in heaven. I've seen this scene played out over and over again around the world, whether in the land of plenty or the land of poverty.  It has nothing to do with the kingdom of this world who measure everything by the material.  It has everything to do with the Kingdom of God in the heart where there is love, joy, peace, trust, harmony and hope.  This is a different world because God is present; and God is a God full of joy.  Therefore, it's no wonder, wherever God's people come together, that there is "eating and drinking and rejoicing."  This is His world, and this is the way it was meant to be.  When Judah and Israel walked with the LORD, and with each other, in holiness and righteousness, the promises and blessings of God were abundant. As with Israel, the world needs to see the church "eating and drinking and rejoicing".  There is no greater testimony than pure, real, unrestrained joy!  May God fill your home and your church with this joy!  Yes! This is the way God meant it to be.  Let's not settle for anything less.

I Kings 3:10-12a NASB

And it was pleasing in the sight of the LORD that Solomon had asked [for an understanding heart to judge God's people].  And God said to him, "Because you have asked this thing and have not asked for yourself long life, nor have asked riches for yourself, nor have you asked for the life of your enemies, but have asked for yourself discernment to understand justice, behold I have done according to your words."

God's offer to Solomon, to ask whatever he wished and He would give it to him, is not only a revelation of Solomon's heart at this time in his life, but especially a revelation of God's heart for His children.  This was an open, immediate, heartfelt, and full response, one to another, about what moved them.  What moved Solomon was his love for God. What moved God was his love for Solomon. That's what forms this amazing story. This always forms amazing stories!  The bond that happens between God and His children leads to memorable moments and incredible blessings.  Ask them, and then take the time to sit down and listen to the stories of these, God's people. Ask them about their God moments.  Ask them about their God blessings. They will amaze you with something like nothing else in the world. You'll quickly sense the deep love they have for the Eternal One; a pure, full love that made the things of earth grown strangely dim.  On one hand these people flat out contradict the world;  they don't think like the world, they don't talk like the world, they don't seek like the world, and they don't live like the world.  And yet, while they aren't trying to impress anyone, they care about everyone.   They don't ask for the things of the world, but they ask for the world.  And here is where the stories come alive. They have the heart of God for holiness and righteousness (justice), and they are ready to give their very lives and living for God's heart.  This immediately gets God's eye.  That's what our text reveals.  It shows us what really impresses God:  a person not consumed with his own needs, wants and feelings.  Consider our text again:  "Because you have asked this thing and have not asked for yourself long life (our needs), nor have asked riches for yourself (our wants), nor have you asked for the life of your enemies (our feelings), but have asked for yourself discernment to understand justice, behold I have done according to your words." 

So, what is it you're asking for?  Ask for something bigger and better!  It will set you apart!  It will give you some amazing stories!  Tell them for His glory.  Stir our hearts with these God moments and God blessings. We need to hear them.

Psalm 119:9-11 NASB

How can a young man keep his way pure?  By keeping it according to Your word.  With all my heart I have sought You; do not let me wander from Your commandments.  Your word I have treasured in my heart, that I may not sin against You.

For years scientists have  been been listening with powerful receptors for sounds from outer space that might indicate that there is life out there and hoping that somehow it will communicate with man.  They have been struck with an incredible silence.  I wonder what these great minds would do if all of a sudden they heard a voice coming over their receptors, saying, "I am the Almighty God; walk before Me and be blameless"?  That was God's voice to Abraham centuries ago and and that voice still speaks to us today through His word.  John Wesley, attentive to the voice of God out of the eternities, and wanting to connect with the reality of the eternity in his heart, said "I want to know one thing, the way to heaven... God Himself has condescended to teach the way... He hath written it down in a book!  O give me that book!  At any price, give me the book of God!"  A heart aflame with eternity is a heart that burns with the fire of God's word, rekindled daily in a man's soul.  Taste it.  You'll find it to be sweet to the soul:  How sweet are Your words to my taste!  Yes, sweeter than honey to my mouth! (119:103).  Take it.  You'll find it to be good for the soul:  "How can a young man keep his way pure?  By keeping it according to Your word...."   Treasure it.  You'll find it to be strength in the soul:  "Your word I have treasured in my heart, that I may not sin against You."  We need the strong voice of God's word today.  What is He saying? Listen!  What's that again?  "I am the Almighty God; walk before Me and be blameless!"  Yes He can!

Psalm 119:1-3 NASB

How blessed are those whose way is blameless, who walk in the law of the LORD.  How blessed are those who observe His testimonies, who seek Him with all their heart.  They also do no unrighteousness; they walk in His ways.

How contrary this text is to most people's way of thinking about the law of the LORD.  Instead of seeing it as negative, binding and difficult, the psalmist sees it as the best thing that ever came into his life, protecting him, strengthening him, reviving him, comforting him, teaching him, guiding him, saving him, and blessing him.  He saw it as the principle of all that is pure, honest and good, and he set his heart to have that principle within.  If we were to be dead honest and open about the harm done, not only with the obnoxious, extreme disregarders of God's law, but also with the "soft" disregarders of God's law, we would have to say that the way of the transgressor is hard.  We are paying a high price for our carelessness and ignorance; not only in overcrowded prisons but also in overwhelming personal pain.  Sidelining the law of the LORD has brought on a huge increase in marriage, family, community and national injuries, beyond anything we could have ever imagined.  And the worst is, we have accepted it as normal; as something to be expected.  But it's not normal!  Someone needs to say it.  What is happening to us isn't normal!  Why in the world do we try to comfort ourselves by finding a way in our thinking to make it normal and even acceptable?  That's insanity!  God has ordained a better way!  This is what the psalmist is exclaiming over and over again.  Is there anyone out there with ears to hear, with eyes to see, and with a will to "walk in His ways"?  The psalmist does!

• "I will keep Your statutes (v8)
• "I will delight in Your statutes (v16a)
• "I will not forget Your word (v16b)
• "I will run the way of Your commandments (v32)
• "I will observe it to the end" (v33)
• "I will delight in Your commandments which I love (v47)
• "I will lift up my hands to Your commandments (v48)
• "I will diligently consider Your testimonies (v95)

It has to do with the bent of the heart!  If we lean away from God's ways, His ways will seem hard.  If we lean into God's ways, His ways will fit our lives like hand in glove; and we'll delightfully exclaim, "His commandments are not hard!  This feels good! This feels right! This is my new normal!"  Yes!  "How blessed are those whose way is blameless, who walk in the law of the LORD.  How blessed are those who observe His testimonies, who seek Him with all their heart."

Psalm 94:17-19 NASB

If the LORD had not been my help, my soul would soon have dwelt in the abode of silence.  If I should say, "My foot has slipped," Your lovingkindness, O LORD, will hold me up.  When my anxious thoughts multiply within me, Your consolations delight my soul.

How many times have we found ourselves saying, "If the LORD had not been my help..."?  God's people know instinctively the hand of God in their lives, and they aren't shy about saying so.  They see the Unseen.  They simply don't live with any idea of chance, luck or fortune. They live under the certainty of God's attention and involvement all along the way.  That way can be filled with a rough and tough crowd, causing a lot of pushing, slipping and stumbling, but, all of a sudden, God's people feel the steadying hand of His lovingkindness holding them up.  That way can be filled with scary voices that can throw the mind into a panic, but, all of a sudden, God's people know the comforting and cheerful voice of God that calms multiple anxious thoughts.  As to these enemies of the soul, the Psalmist (vs.21-23) says, "They band themselves together against the life of the righteous...But the LORD has been my stronghold, and my God the rock of my refuge...He has brought back their wickedness upon them, and will destroy them in their evil..."  God does not stand by and watch His people from the sidelines.  He takes up our cause.  We are His cause!  You can put your whole weight on that promise.

Psalm 71:17-19 NASB

O God, You have taught me from my youth; and I still declare Your wondrous deeds.  And even when I am old and gray, O God, do not forsake me, until I declare Your strength to this generation, Your power to all who are to come.  For Your righteousness, O God, reaches to the heavens, You who have done great things; O God, who is like You?

Don't ever let your voice get dull, boring, negative and critical.  Even to old age and dying days, if we are children of God, our voice ought to have the ring of joy, sense, knowledge and experience; simply because the older we get the more we should know about the God we serve. Surely a long walk with God should make one a person of interest!  Most don't care to bear with the details of our past, but an old saint of God ought to be able to speak to the wonders of God's power with such authenticity and authority that it causes people to give attention and thought.  Don't carry on about how bad things are these days.  Why speak to the obvious?  Help people see the Unseen; the One who is the same yesterday, today and forever, giving a lively hope to all who hear.  This is the prayer of my heart!  Don't let me lose my voice, O God!  Pray it old man!  Pray it old woman!  For our generation's sake, pray that "even when I am old and gray, O God, do not forsake me, until I declare Your strength to this generation, Your power to all who are to come."  We need your voice.