Greetings! Wow, 8 months. It has been 8 months since my last post. I will admit, I needed a break. I let this blog become more of a chore than an enjoyment. So, I took a little break from writing; however, I did not intent for it to last that long. Nevertheless, I have decided I miss writing here. So, I plan to at least once a week post a Psalm devotion. I might post more some weeks, but I want to start out with realistic expectations so that it remains a source of enjoyment for me.
It would take a thirty page book to fill you in on everything that has happened over the past 8 months, so I will just say - life is great! Spring brought another amazing Easter celebration and awesome confirmation class. The summer flew by so fast I hardly even noticed it. I did join a local country club and played in their league which may have been one of the best parts of my summer. It is a working man's club, and all the guys I met are so down to earth and great guys. We had an Abbott family reunion in Colorado in July, which already seems like ten years ago, but it was so much fun to see all the aunts, uncles, cousins, and cousins' kids that I either haven't seen in years or had yet to even meet.
This fall was super exciting around the church as we celebrated the congregation's 25th Anniversary in September with two weeks of events and celebrations. Then the whole month of October was focused on the 500th Anniversary of the Reformation with more celebrations and fun activities.
We got 10 inches of snow on October 27th, so it was a white Reformation and Halloween. I didn't mind though because the snow was perfect for deer hunting which opened this last weekend. I went to deer camp with the guys but didn't get anything. I still have two weeks left to hunt on my property though.
With all the craziness and extra stuff this summer and this fall, I really fell out of any kind of personal writing. Now that things are settling down again, I really want to get back to my Psalms devotions. So, here is the first one on Psalm 18.
Psalm 18:6 “In my distress I called upon the Lord; to my God I cried for help. From His temple He heard my voice and my cry to Him reached His ears.”
I spent this last weekend in the woods hunting. I love this time of year, especially this year since we got snow early, it was perfect for deer hunting. However, being out in the woods makes you think about this line from David’s psalm. When we leave camp to go sit in the woods hoping to have a chance to shoot the big one, we really don’t go all that far away. Our stands are all probably less than a mile from camp. We each go our own direction and walk down the different trails to our spots. As you walk away from camp, you notice that because the woods are so thick, it doesn’t take very long until you no longer hear the generator back at camp. You no longer hear any other voices, really you hear nothing but your own feet crunching through the snow. Then once you get to your stand, get settled in, and finally sit still and silent, you hear nothing. And because I am so accident prone, I thought about the fact that if something were to happen, even if I shouted as loud as I could, I don’t think anyone would hear me. Now, before you go all motherly on me and get worried about my safety, I do carry my cell phone which surprisingly does get some signal even way out in the woods. I also have my rifle and all hunters know that three shots in a row is the signal of distress. We are close enough to hear each other’s rifles. (This is also why you always want to kill your deer in one or two shots, so someone doesn’t come looking for you after hearing three shots only to discover you're just a lousy shot. 😊)
Back to my point though, I could yell at the top of my lungs and not a soul would hear me. Three other guys all within a mile radius of me, would have no chance of hearing me. And yet our God is only a whisper away. You wouldn’t even have to vocalize the call to Him, and He would hear it. How awesome is this! No matter what we are going through, whether it is physical distress of an accident in the woods, an emotional distress of sadness or loneliness, or a spiritual distress of feeling attacked by the evil one, God is always there. His ears are always able to hear our call of desperation. Because even though He sits on His throne in Heaven, He is closer to us than anyone else. He is always with us and that is why He is our strength, our rock, our fortress, our deliverer, our rock of refuge, our shield, our horn of salvation, and our stronghold. No matter what distress you may be going through right now in life, no matter where you find yourself, no matter who else is there, cry out to the Lord. Trust in Him and call on Him for help. He is there with you, He will hear your cry, and He will help you.
I am thankful the Lord kept me safe through yet another hunting trip out in the woods, but I am even more thankful that no matter what, I know He is always listening and I can call on Him in any distress of life. I love you O Lord, you are my strength. Amen.
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