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NO 72:PSALM 41 (Amplified Version)
To the chief musician
Blessed (Happy, fortunate, to be envied) is he who considers the weak and the poor; the Lord will deliver him in the time of evil and trouble.
- The Lord will protect him and keep him alive; he shall be called blessed in the land; and you will not deliver him to the will of the enemies.
- The Lord will sustain, refresh and strengthen him on his bed of languishing; all his bed You (O Lord) will turn, change, and transform in his illness.
- I said, Lord, be merciful and gracious to me; heal my inner self, for I have sinned against You.
- My enemies speak evil of me (saying), When will he die and his name perish?
- And when one comes to see me, he speaks falsehood and empty words, while his heart gathers mischievous gossip (against me); when he goes away, he tells it abroad.
- All who hate me whisper together about me; against me do they devise my hurt (imagining the worst for me)
- An evil disease they say, is poured out upon him and cleaves fast to him; and now that he is bedfast, he will not rise up again.
- Even my own familiar friend, in whom I trusted (relied on and was confident), who ate my bread, has lifted up his heel against me. (John 13:18)
- But You O Lord, be merciful and gracious to me, and raise me up that I may requite them.
- By this I know that you favour and delight in me, because my enemy does not triumph over me.
- And as for me, You have upheld me in my integrity and set me in Your presence forever.
- Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, from everlasting and to everlasting (from this age to the next, and forever!) Amen and Amen (so be it).
This opening verse is a another reminder of the responsibility we have to look after those in need… and not just carelessly throw a few dollars their way, but to consider them, to be mindful, to allow the plight of the poor to affect your heart in a way that brings change. The Lord promises that He will deliver those who care for the poor… God is so very kind, He is always rewarding faithfulness… but I always pray in my heart of hearts, that I’ll never be of the ones who DO to BE SEEN… or who GIVE to GET. But rather… we DO because we LOVE… we GIVE because we CARE. Truthfully and honestly before God, be the calibre of people who delight in giving, and delight in serving. The joy on the other side is incomparable.
Ray McCauley said a powerful thing at Kingdom People Retreat. He said, ’The lowest form of successful Christian living is to be blessed… It is all about what you do with being blessed.’I love that thought… and I’m not just talking financially, but being open-handed with all God has placed in your life.
The Psalm changes here as David starts to plea for the health of his soul… and again finds himself at the mercy of God. This here is another great lesson, as what I see is that David has sinned, but his SOUL was not strong at the time. When you are weak in the
soul realm, you truly do leave your life open to all of your own weaknesses, whatever they may be.Do you know your own area/s of vulnerability??
For my own soul to be strong, I need God time, family time, thinking time, creative time… and when my soul becomes weary, I find myself vulnerable to waves of depression, waves of insecurity etc. DO WHAT YOU NEED TO DO TO CARE FOR YOUR SOUL.
David is now at the hands again of his enemy… surrounded by evil talk… and you know that evil tongues are busy tongues, they never deal in truth. This is always damaging. David says, ’all my enemies whisper against me… Why wouldn’t they speak out? Were they afraid of him? Were there plans for David so awful that they had to be talked about in secret??Verse 9 is very sad, as David talks of being betrayed by his own very close friend, Ahithiphel (read about it in 2 Samuel:15-17) and how he too, has turned his back on David.But then we come to a new section of the Psalm, as this prayer turns into thanksgiving, and again we have David in a different state of mind as he addresses the cry of his heart.
In one study of this Psalm, it recounts David’s immoral sin with Bathsheba, and basically brings this Psalm to light as an example of the power of repentance. There is no way that David could stand and say with confidence, ‘you uphold me in my integrity’ without the incredible power of repentance and forgiveness. The Lord himself has put away our sin so that we can walk in integrity… without this, we are left to our own inadequate devices to deal with guilt and shame…
I love the reality of how the Lord sets me before his face forever, meaning that my position in Christ is sure… I don’t wonder, I don’t question… for I know that I know that I am a child of God, saved by grace.What about you… do you ever take the time just to meditate on thestrength of your position in Christ… do you take the time to realise all He has saved you from… and saved you to? Do you take the time to worship and love the Lord your God, with ALL your heart, mind, soul and strength??
This Psalm contains a lot of life lessons, many of which I have not even begun to talk about… the distinguishing features of those saved by grace, how God sustains our character, how we live in the favour of God, that our eternal position is secure… so powerful. And lastly, that Jehovah is and always will be the object of our praise… for ever and ever… What a great Psalm….
Missing you all and love you so, I’ll bring home some footage of the last 2 weeks of ministry for you to check out when I get back… Be in church, Live strong, No compromise, Love Jesus…
Your greatest fan,
Darls.
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