Psalm 28:1
“To you, O Lord, I call; my rock, be not deaf to me.”
The way the first line of this psalm is worded makes me chuckle. David is the author, and as I read verse one, I get this mental picture of David standing in front of a giant rock, yelling at it to not be deaf. Think about it, David calls God his rock, and says he calls to Him and asks Him to not be deaf. It seems illogical. All rocks are deaf because all rocks are non-living things that cannot hear. Out of all the things David could have compared God to in this line, why a rock? Why not a concerned listening father, or a wise elderly man who always has time to listen? Why not a rabbit, dog, or some other animal that has excellent hearing? Why a rock when the idea is he wants God to hear him?
Well I cannot know exactly what David is thinking, but the first thought that comes to my mind is because rocks have played a key role in David’s life. David uses a few small stones to kill the giant of Goliath. He was so good with a sling shot because he had used that same weapon and stones as ammunition to fend off wolves while guarding his father’s sheep. David hides in the caves and rocks many times as he is fleeing from King Saul who is determined to kill him. Rocks are a part of the landscape in the Middle East, and David had spent quite a bit of time amongst them, learning to use them as shelter from the weather, as hiding places, as weapons, and I imagine for many other parts of his normal life. So to David, rocks symbolize safety, they symbolize defense, and they bring him comfort and peace.
So David, when trouble seems to find him, when his enemy, whether that be a wolf, Saul, or anyone else who is seeking his life, he heads to the rocks. So why compare a God who is hearing him cry for help to a rock, because the rocks are the best help he has ever had. Rocks are always there; they are always present in the landscape. Rocks will never betray him, and he knows he can depend on rocks to do what they have always done.
This is why I believe David compares the God he is crying out to, to rocks. He knows God is always there, God is always with Him no matter how far he has to flee, and he knows God is His defense. Just as surely as he can find a rock to throw in the middle of his landscape, he knows he can count on God hearing his cries. For me, David comparing God to a rock in the Middle East, would be like someone here in Duluth comparing God to a tree. You can’t throw a rock without hitting a tree. (Yes that was an intended pun). David knows God will always hear him just as surely as the rocks all around him will. So it may be silly to think a rock can hear you, but for David, rocks are dependable, and a sure defense. And so God, who always hears us, is always there with us, and is our most sure defense, is a rock we can cry out to.
Wednesday, November 29, 2017
Monday, November 27, 2017
Thanksgiving & Birthday
Greetings in the name of Christ. This last week was truly a blessing. Pastor Tim was super generous and let me go home for a quite a few days for the holiday. So, Wednesday I drove down to Omaha to JoAnna's home. We had the whole family home, with Tim flying in to surprise the parents and Nate and the boys driving out from Colorado. It was a fun day of eating, watching football, and playing cards. Really, that's what we did for three days straight. It was a laid back, relaxing, enjoyable time spent laughing and appreciating the family the Lord has blessed us with.
Then, Saturday was my 29th birthday. I cannot believe 29 years is gone and done, but as I spent 8 hours in the car Wednesday, I took some time to thank God for every part of those 29 years. 18 years growing up in Adair - filled with so many friends, playing football and golf, working countless jobs around town, growing up in church every Sunday, being the baby of an awesome family, and loving the small town life in the heartland of the Midwest. 4 years in Seward - meeting all new people, making and building life-long friendships, joining the golf team, working building and grounds, hunting and farming with local families, and growing in both my education and faith. 3 years in St. Louis - discovering a deep passion for the ministry and the Word, growing so much in my education and faith, building a brotherhood of friends that will never end, working in almost every department on campus, working for a farmer, playing intramurals and pick-up sports, enjoying the endless entertainment options of a big city, and even maturing a little as an adult. 1 year in Brookings, South Dakota - enjoying the best vicarage I could have ever asked for, getting the opportunity to love and be loved by so, so, so many amazing people, working both with the church and the college students, getting to use what I learned at the seminary in real life, developing my preaching and teaching skills for the ministry, becoming a part of so many families I still dearly miss, wrestling with the kids every chance possible, accomplishing lots of remodeling and carpentry projects with the trustees, and falling in love with a college town that has that small town feel in a great state. 3 years field work at Hope Lutheran in Highland, Illinois - getting lots of opportunities to preach, lead liturgy, teach Bible study and grow as a seminary student, having a great relationship with an awesome mentor Pastor, being fed every Sunday, and being blessed to know the people there. 2 years at Peace In Christ in Hermantown - receiving the perfect call to an absolutely amazing church, working with and learning from an exceptional senior pastor who God has clearly worked through to build such an amazing congregation, working along side one of the best DCE's in the synod, continuing to grow as a pastor and a Christian man, building relationships with so many awesome family and friends, being blessed to own my first home, taking advantage of multiple opportunities to fish, hunt, and spend time in the woods and on the water, and loving every single day of my life where I hope to be for a long time.
The good Lord has made it clear to me over and over again, He is with me wherever I go, and He will continue to lavish His grace and love upon my life through countless blessings of people, relationships, opportunities, abilities, and simple joys of life. I love that my birthday is always right around Thanksgiving, because every year as I reflect on another year of life, it always comes down to thanking God for how awesome and amazing and wonderful He has made my life for me. I have never done anything to deserve the best life a guy could ask for, which is simply one more reminder that God's grace is just that - undeserved favor and gifts. And my 29 years has been filled to the brim and are even overflowing with God's richest grace. So, all I can do is say thank you and try to share that grace with others. Thank you Lord, thank you for everything!
Then, Saturday was my 29th birthday. I cannot believe 29 years is gone and done, but as I spent 8 hours in the car Wednesday, I took some time to thank God for every part of those 29 years. 18 years growing up in Adair - filled with so many friends, playing football and golf, working countless jobs around town, growing up in church every Sunday, being the baby of an awesome family, and loving the small town life in the heartland of the Midwest. 4 years in Seward - meeting all new people, making and building life-long friendships, joining the golf team, working building and grounds, hunting and farming with local families, and growing in both my education and faith. 3 years in St. Louis - discovering a deep passion for the ministry and the Word, growing so much in my education and faith, building a brotherhood of friends that will never end, working in almost every department on campus, working for a farmer, playing intramurals and pick-up sports, enjoying the endless entertainment options of a big city, and even maturing a little as an adult. 1 year in Brookings, South Dakota - enjoying the best vicarage I could have ever asked for, getting the opportunity to love and be loved by so, so, so many amazing people, working both with the church and the college students, getting to use what I learned at the seminary in real life, developing my preaching and teaching skills for the ministry, becoming a part of so many families I still dearly miss, wrestling with the kids every chance possible, accomplishing lots of remodeling and carpentry projects with the trustees, and falling in love with a college town that has that small town feel in a great state. 3 years field work at Hope Lutheran in Highland, Illinois - getting lots of opportunities to preach, lead liturgy, teach Bible study and grow as a seminary student, having a great relationship with an awesome mentor Pastor, being fed every Sunday, and being blessed to know the people there. 2 years at Peace In Christ in Hermantown - receiving the perfect call to an absolutely amazing church, working with and learning from an exceptional senior pastor who God has clearly worked through to build such an amazing congregation, working along side one of the best DCE's in the synod, continuing to grow as a pastor and a Christian man, building relationships with so many awesome family and friends, being blessed to own my first home, taking advantage of multiple opportunities to fish, hunt, and spend time in the woods and on the water, and loving every single day of my life where I hope to be for a long time.
The good Lord has made it clear to me over and over again, He is with me wherever I go, and He will continue to lavish His grace and love upon my life through countless blessings of people, relationships, opportunities, abilities, and simple joys of life. I love that my birthday is always right around Thanksgiving, because every year as I reflect on another year of life, it always comes down to thanking God for how awesome and amazing and wonderful He has made my life for me. I have never done anything to deserve the best life a guy could ask for, which is simply one more reminder that God's grace is just that - undeserved favor and gifts. And my 29 years has been filled to the brim and are even overflowing with God's richest grace. So, all I can do is say thank you and try to share that grace with others. Thank you Lord, thank you for everything!
Monday, November 13, 2017
Psalm 32
Greetings in the name of Jesus. It is just past the half way mark of deer season and I have yet to get anything. Although, to be fair it is hard to shoot a deer when you sleep in most mornings. I hope to go sit more this week and hopefully have some meat for the freezer. We still have snow on the ground and it is cold. I truly believe winter is here for good, but that doesn't bother me too much. Ice is being made by the day now, and smaller lakes are already think enough to go do some fishing.
Here is another psalm devotion:
Psalm 32:1-2 “Blessed is the one whose transgression if forgiven, whose sin is covered. Blessed is the man against whom the Lord counts no iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no deceit.”
I don’t know about you, but most days my guilty conscience hears these beautiful words of David’s psalm with doubt and fear. These encouraging and uplifting words make me feel smaller than a grain of salt and more worthless than a speck of dust. Blessed is the man whom the Lord counts no iniquity, boy, wouldn’t that be nice. Wouldn’t that be awesome if I were a man whom the Lord could look at and say, “You have no iniquity to count son.” My heart aches as I think about how amazing it would feel to be that man, to live with that hope and joy. Nevertheless, my guilt-ridden conscience is all too quick to remind me of the very long list of wretched and grievous sins I know I have committed in the las day or two. That list could fill pages of a notebook and as I mentally picture how disturbing those sins would look actually written out in ink, I sink even lower knowing there is no way I could ever be the blessed man spoken of in this psalm.
Have you ever felt this way? Has the weight of your sin ever caused you to honestly believe your transgression is not forgiven, your sin in not covered, and the Lord is definitely counting ALL of your iniquity against you? I know I have, in fact, I often feel this way. Now you might ask, how can I, a pastor who is supposed to be a living example of a faithful God-fearing man, doubt God’s forgiveness. Well, the answer is because I know my failures. I know my sin, my faults, my iniquity, and my transgressions. I know all too well that they are real! I have never once thought I was any less of a sinner than any one of my members sitting in the pews. To be brutally honest, most days I feel like they should be preaching to me since they clearly have this Christian living figured out more than I do. Here is my confession: I am a sinner. A horrible, wretched, stinking, filthy, miserable, should be damned to hell sinner. And nobody knows it better than me. Therefore, that’s how my sinful nature, along with Satan whispering in my ear, allows my conscience to convict me and beat me down by telling me these words of a blessed man will NEVER be speaking about me. If that was the end of it, I would be left with no hope at all.
However, God is good, and His Spirit is a beast of a work horse. No matter how down I get, no matter how hard my guilt tries to make sure I can never hear these words as good news, the Spirit wins. He continues to work through the Word, and He is able to shine the light of Jesus into my dark despair. Really, most of the time He makes me feel guilty for feeling guilty. The doctor once literally told me I have the thickest skull he had ever seen. So, I know it takes a lot to beat the truth into my thick-head. I like to picture the scene from Tommy Boy where I am the fat guy standing there smarting off and the Holy Spirit is the skinny guy with the 2x4 in his hand. He has to beat me over the head to knock some sense into me. But when He does, the Gospel floods in and takes over. I quickly admit how foolish I was to think my sin was bigger than Jesus Christ, the Son of God who takes away the sin of the world. See these verses from this psalm don’t say blessed is the man who has no sin. No, they specifically say blessed is the man whose transgression is FORGIVEN!!! Whose sin is COVERED!!!! We are all rotten, miserable, death-deserving sinners. It is the one who is forgiven by Christ, the one whose sins are covered by His blood who are blessed. And just like that I am reminded that is me. I am the very one these words are speaking about. All of the relief, the comfort, the hope that comes with being blessed is mine!
I am blessed, even though I am a horrible sinner, because by the cross of Jesus Christ my transgression is forgiven! I am blessed, even though I sinned this very day, because the blood of Christ has covered me and all my sin! I am blessed because as the Risen and Living Lord Jesus looks at me, He sees His own name on me and counts no iniquity because He has personally paid for it already. I am blessed by the one and only Savior of the world, not because I deserve it in any way, but only by the grace of Jesus who hears my confession and trades His perfect righteousness for every last one of my wretched sins.
I don’t know about you, but today the Spirit has cleared my conscience to allow me to hear these beautiful words as hope-filled words of life! These encouraging and uplifting words make me feel like I am sitting beside the King of the World who is smiling down at me with love and pride. Blessed is the man whom the Lord counts no iniquity, boy, isn’t this nice. It is so awesome to be a man whom the Lord does look at and say, “You have no iniquity to count Son.” My heart rejoices as I think about how amazing it is to be a blessed man, to live with this hope and joy only found in the grace and love of my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. I hope you feel the same way and know you are blessed through Jesus! Amen.
Here is another psalm devotion:
Psalm 32:1-2 “Blessed is the one whose transgression if forgiven, whose sin is covered. Blessed is the man against whom the Lord counts no iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no deceit.”
I don’t know about you, but most days my guilty conscience hears these beautiful words of David’s psalm with doubt and fear. These encouraging and uplifting words make me feel smaller than a grain of salt and more worthless than a speck of dust. Blessed is the man whom the Lord counts no iniquity, boy, wouldn’t that be nice. Wouldn’t that be awesome if I were a man whom the Lord could look at and say, “You have no iniquity to count son.” My heart aches as I think about how amazing it would feel to be that man, to live with that hope and joy. Nevertheless, my guilt-ridden conscience is all too quick to remind me of the very long list of wretched and grievous sins I know I have committed in the las day or two. That list could fill pages of a notebook and as I mentally picture how disturbing those sins would look actually written out in ink, I sink even lower knowing there is no way I could ever be the blessed man spoken of in this psalm.
Have you ever felt this way? Has the weight of your sin ever caused you to honestly believe your transgression is not forgiven, your sin in not covered, and the Lord is definitely counting ALL of your iniquity against you? I know I have, in fact, I often feel this way. Now you might ask, how can I, a pastor who is supposed to be a living example of a faithful God-fearing man, doubt God’s forgiveness. Well, the answer is because I know my failures. I know my sin, my faults, my iniquity, and my transgressions. I know all too well that they are real! I have never once thought I was any less of a sinner than any one of my members sitting in the pews. To be brutally honest, most days I feel like they should be preaching to me since they clearly have this Christian living figured out more than I do. Here is my confession: I am a sinner. A horrible, wretched, stinking, filthy, miserable, should be damned to hell sinner. And nobody knows it better than me. Therefore, that’s how my sinful nature, along with Satan whispering in my ear, allows my conscience to convict me and beat me down by telling me these words of a blessed man will NEVER be speaking about me. If that was the end of it, I would be left with no hope at all.
However, God is good, and His Spirit is a beast of a work horse. No matter how down I get, no matter how hard my guilt tries to make sure I can never hear these words as good news, the Spirit wins. He continues to work through the Word, and He is able to shine the light of Jesus into my dark despair. Really, most of the time He makes me feel guilty for feeling guilty. The doctor once literally told me I have the thickest skull he had ever seen. So, I know it takes a lot to beat the truth into my thick-head. I like to picture the scene from Tommy Boy where I am the fat guy standing there smarting off and the Holy Spirit is the skinny guy with the 2x4 in his hand. He has to beat me over the head to knock some sense into me. But when He does, the Gospel floods in and takes over. I quickly admit how foolish I was to think my sin was bigger than Jesus Christ, the Son of God who takes away the sin of the world. See these verses from this psalm don’t say blessed is the man who has no sin. No, they specifically say blessed is the man whose transgression is FORGIVEN!!! Whose sin is COVERED!!!! We are all rotten, miserable, death-deserving sinners. It is the one who is forgiven by Christ, the one whose sins are covered by His blood who are blessed. And just like that I am reminded that is me. I am the very one these words are speaking about. All of the relief, the comfort, the hope that comes with being blessed is mine!
I am blessed, even though I am a horrible sinner, because by the cross of Jesus Christ my transgression is forgiven! I am blessed, even though I sinned this very day, because the blood of Christ has covered me and all my sin! I am blessed because as the Risen and Living Lord Jesus looks at me, He sees His own name on me and counts no iniquity because He has personally paid for it already. I am blessed by the one and only Savior of the world, not because I deserve it in any way, but only by the grace of Jesus who hears my confession and trades His perfect righteousness for every last one of my wretched sins.
I don’t know about you, but today the Spirit has cleared my conscience to allow me to hear these beautiful words as hope-filled words of life! These encouraging and uplifting words make me feel like I am sitting beside the King of the World who is smiling down at me with love and pride. Blessed is the man whom the Lord counts no iniquity, boy, isn’t this nice. It is so awesome to be a man whom the Lord does look at and say, “You have no iniquity to count Son.” My heart rejoices as I think about how amazing it is to be a blessed man, to live with this hope and joy only found in the grace and love of my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. I hope you feel the same way and know you are blessed through Jesus! Amen.
Monday, November 6, 2017
My Return - Psalm 18
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.
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.
Tuesday, March 7, 2017
Psalm 123
“Our Soul has had more than enough of the contempt of the proud.”
The definition of contempt is the feeling that a person or thing is beneath consideration, worthless, or deserving scorn. How can something be beneath worthless? What would drive someone to intentionally make another person feel beneath worthless? And yet, while we can ask these questions in genuine wonder, every single one of us is too fully aware that this actually happens in real life. We have seen instances where someone bullies another person into believing he isn’t worth the air he is breathing. We have seen someone belittled so badly she feels smaller than the very atoms that make up her physical body. We have heard insults that could cut clean through the biggest hearts. These “proud” people who view themselves as more important, smarter, prettier, stronger, and just plain better in every way for some reason feel the necessity to make sure that worthless person knows exactly where he or she falls into place.
For those people who have been held in contempt by the “proud”, they can let these attacks, insults, and beatings drive them to honestly believe they are worse than worthless!!! These people question their very existence. They doubt that they were even made for a purpose. They tell themselves they are a waste of space, a waste of breath, and would be better off dead and buried under a manure pile.
Notice how the psalmist emphasizes this disgrace, our souls have had more than enough. It’s not that our souls have had a little bit of this, it’s not even that our souls have had enough of this. Our souls have had more than enough of this!!! The reason we have had more than enough of this is because the littlest bit of it is more than enough. This is evil in its purest form. Satan loves to demean human life, make people feel worthless, and cause people to question the purpose of their existence. The reason is because he knows our worth and our purpose come directly from God. God is the one who sets our worth on us. God is the one who calls us into the life He gave us for His divine purpose. So, when people are shamed, bullied, and treated with contempt, causing them to doubt their worth and purpose, it causes them to doubt their relationship with God. This is exactly what Satan wants.
Our souls have had more than enough of the “proud” doing the devil’s work of damaging people’s relationship with God. Two simple facts put things into perspective. First, the “proud” are the ones who have determined their life’s worth according to human standards. They may be rich, good looking, or popular here on this earth, but God’s word makes it clear they have their reward already. They are living at the pinnacle of their lives as they strut around this world thinking they are on top. There is nothing for them to look forward to, and they will discover one day 60 to 80 years of a proud earthly life is worthless compared to an eternal life in paradise. Second, Jesus came to save the lost. He came to lift up the lowly, give eternal riches to the poor, eternal health to the sick, and worth to the ones the world calls worthless.
Our souls have had more than enough contempt from the proud, because know our worth comes from the Son of God who showed us exactly how priceless we are to Him. Through His death and resurrection, He has declared our worth and our purpose and no human can take that away from us. So we keep the attitude of a servant, loving those around us, hoping to show the lost they are loved. They are loved not only by us, but by the one who first loved us enough to give us our worth and our purpose of serving others.
The definition of contempt is the feeling that a person or thing is beneath consideration, worthless, or deserving scorn. How can something be beneath worthless? What would drive someone to intentionally make another person feel beneath worthless? And yet, while we can ask these questions in genuine wonder, every single one of us is too fully aware that this actually happens in real life. We have seen instances where someone bullies another person into believing he isn’t worth the air he is breathing. We have seen someone belittled so badly she feels smaller than the very atoms that make up her physical body. We have heard insults that could cut clean through the biggest hearts. These “proud” people who view themselves as more important, smarter, prettier, stronger, and just plain better in every way for some reason feel the necessity to make sure that worthless person knows exactly where he or she falls into place.
For those people who have been held in contempt by the “proud”, they can let these attacks, insults, and beatings drive them to honestly believe they are worse than worthless!!! These people question their very existence. They doubt that they were even made for a purpose. They tell themselves they are a waste of space, a waste of breath, and would be better off dead and buried under a manure pile.
Notice how the psalmist emphasizes this disgrace, our souls have had more than enough. It’s not that our souls have had a little bit of this, it’s not even that our souls have had enough of this. Our souls have had more than enough of this!!! The reason we have had more than enough of this is because the littlest bit of it is more than enough. This is evil in its purest form. Satan loves to demean human life, make people feel worthless, and cause people to question the purpose of their existence. The reason is because he knows our worth and our purpose come directly from God. God is the one who sets our worth on us. God is the one who calls us into the life He gave us for His divine purpose. So, when people are shamed, bullied, and treated with contempt, causing them to doubt their worth and purpose, it causes them to doubt their relationship with God. This is exactly what Satan wants.
Our souls have had more than enough of the “proud” doing the devil’s work of damaging people’s relationship with God. Two simple facts put things into perspective. First, the “proud” are the ones who have determined their life’s worth according to human standards. They may be rich, good looking, or popular here on this earth, but God’s word makes it clear they have their reward already. They are living at the pinnacle of their lives as they strut around this world thinking they are on top. There is nothing for them to look forward to, and they will discover one day 60 to 80 years of a proud earthly life is worthless compared to an eternal life in paradise. Second, Jesus came to save the lost. He came to lift up the lowly, give eternal riches to the poor, eternal health to the sick, and worth to the ones the world calls worthless.
Our souls have had more than enough contempt from the proud, because know our worth comes from the Son of God who showed us exactly how priceless we are to Him. Through His death and resurrection, He has declared our worth and our purpose and no human can take that away from us. So we keep the attitude of a servant, loving those around us, hoping to show the lost they are loved. They are loved not only by us, but by the one who first loved us enough to give us our worth and our purpose of serving others.
So as we read this psalm, we pray with the psalmist, “Lord, have mercy on us, as we strive to live a life of love, serving others, so that they may find their own worth and purpose, just as we have, in You and Your Son alone. Amen.”
Wednesday, March 1, 2017
Keep Calm and Carry On
"Oh, save your people and bless your heritage! Be their shepherd and carry them forever." Psalm 28:9
David while writing Psalm 28 is also trying to boost morale. David is actually more along the lines of being at war as he flees for his life from King Saul and his military men. However, David gives a slight but very important twist to the Keep Calm and Carry On slogan. He is talking about calling out to God while the wicked and his enemies surround him earlier in this psalm. Then in the very last verse, David is speaking directly to the Lord, and extols Him to be the shepherd of Israel and carry them forever. As I read that line about the Lord carrying us as our shepherd was when I thought about it being the slight twist to the keep calm and carry on slogan. If us carrying on under our own power is supposed to boost our morale and make us feel better about situations we cannot control, how much more does the idea of being carried by the one who is in control of all things boost our calmness. David, as he is fleeing for his life, keeps himself calm not by reminding himself to carry on, but rather by reminding Himself that he has a shepherd who is carrying him.
So the next time you find yourself in a stressful, fearful, or chaotic situation, instead of calming yourself with a t-shirt or coffee mug that says, “keep calm and carry on”, try calming yourself by praying to the Lord, “I’ll be calm as You carry me on”. And then you can be calm and trust that the Good Shepherd, who has laid down His life for His sheep, is carrying His people forever. Jesus has you in His hands now and always, and that is our comfort that life will go on. Life certainly will go, for the rest of eternity, because no amount of evil or chaos can overcome the Shepherd who has defeated all enemies with the sacrifice of His own life. The British and all those non-believers can keep calm and carry on, but you and I who know we belong to the Good Shepherd will keep calm and be carried on forever. Amen.
Wednesday, February 8, 2017
Happy 2017
Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ. Happy 2017! Come on, I am only a month and a half late. So as you can imagine, life has been busy. We survived the Christmas season, which already seems like a year ago. Christmas Eve services were awesome. We had the three services again at 4, 6, and 9. Then since Christmas fell on a Sunday this year, we did have a Christmas morning service. The choir did a cantata to replace the sermon and they did an amazing job with it.
Then right after the new year, I took a little vacation time. My friend got married down in Nebraska and I was a groomsman. So I took off a few days early to go see some folks in South Dakota. It was good to catch up with all of them and see them again. Then I was in Wayne for the wedding and had a blast there. Then I finished off the trip by swinging down through Omaha to see Ava, JoAnna, and Steven. Then I hit Adair just for a few hours to see mom and dad before making the long trek back north again. It was a great week and a nice get away after the holidays.
Then I just back from an ice fishing trip with 11 other guys from church. We went up to the Lake of the Woods on the Canadian border. We took 8 guys last year for one day of fishing and had a good time. This year we bumped it up to 12 and stayed for two days of fishing. We had really good fishing the first day, but then it was super slow the second day. It is for sure a new yearly tradition though and I look forward to it already.
My latest big project has been designing and building the new church website. Everyone always says,"I didn't know you knew how to do that." And my answer is always the same, "I don't." I have learned more about websites and coding and all of it in the past month than I thought I would ever know. It has been kind of fun, but pretty much every hour I'm not working on something else, I am playing around trying to learn more, finish more of it, or improve what I already have done. Look for the official release to come right around Ash Wednesday.
Other than that, it is still cold and snowing here. We got four inches of snow yesterday night, and then another three inches yesterday day. It's always fun to scoop both before you go to work and as soon as you get home again. I really don't mind though. The chickens are definitely ready for warmer weather so they can be outside more again.
I am going to try to get back into posting more things on here and apologize for the break. Hopefully a few of you are still checking in once in a while. Blessings to you and the rest of your 2017. See perfect bookend theme!
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