Be still. ( Psalm 27 ) 4

                                            ' Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for Him;

                                             do not fret when people succeed in their ways, when

                                             they carry out their wicked schemes.'

                                                                    Psalm 37 v 7

Rudyard Kipling the poet wrote,'If you can keep your head when all about are losing theirs and blaming it on you,'it is not easy to do that,so let us take a moment to consider the writer of psalm 37, David a man who found himself in many a tight spot. When king Saul ruled, David became a fugitive and a  wanted man,in that Saul wanted to kill him.So often it was not just a matter of panicking,that would not have helped,but he learned a very important lesson,that of resting in God and waiting patiently for God to act on his behalf. He is telling us to not to press the panic button,even though everything is against us,even though our enemies have the upper hand. Their success was a false dawn, the reality was  that God was against them and would deal with them,and would rescue David out of their clutches.The apostle Paul wrote  .'If God be for us ,who can be against us'  (Romans 8 v 31),you cannot be beaten if God is for you,you cannot loose,so be still before the Lord and wait patiently for Him.

                                                     'A mighty fortress is our God,

                                                      A mighty shield and weapon'

                                                               Matin Luther

                                                    

Keep in step.( Psalm 119 v 105 )3

                                                       ' Commit your way  to the Lord;

                                                        trust in Him and He will do this; 

                                                                    Psalm 37 v 5   

Whatever way we should go, and whatever works or enterprises we are involved in,committ them to God,it may be a great venture  or a small venture,it matters not,commit it all to God,leave nothing to chance.My favourite commentary on the Psalms is by William S.Plumer it is no longer published,and I would like to share with you some of his comments on this verse,.'Trust also in Him,' 'If God favors an enterprise,it will not fail if we build a house ,it will stand.The error  against which we are here warnerd is reliance on our own strength or wisdom,The encouragement here given is to renounce  all self confidence and to look to God alone, that He will graciously undertake our case, bear our burdens,and accomplish  for us that which we could never bring to pass, David had a beautiful illustrtion of the truth here urged, in his coming into full and peaceable possession of the throne'. Remember our way should be His way,then all will be well,if we are in step with God He will guide our footsteps,make sure you are not out of step with God  or you may fall flat on your face/He will open doors no one can shut,He will lead us in the right way,and His way is perfect ,He never makes a mistake,He is the perfect guide.

                                'O let me see Thy footmarks, and in them plant mine own;

                                 My hope to follow duly is in Thy strength alone.

                                 O guide me,call me,draw me,uphold me to the end;

                                 And then in heaven receive me,my Saviour and my Friend'

                                                        Words John E.Bode.

                                 

                                                             

         

Delight ( Matthew 7 v 7) 2

                                                                  'Psalm 37 v4 '

                                         'Take delight in the Lord,and He will give you

                                          the desires of your heart. (Psalm 37 v 4)

So many people delight in vain things,things of no accord,the list is endless,My friend was on the pastorial team in a hospice,he visted a man  who told him that he didn't want anything  to do with God.My friend asked him what did he want,? he wanted to hear a certain group singing,my friend got him a recording of the group.  That  was what he delighted in,vain vanites,let us lift our desires to a higher level,our desires,can be our requests,petitions,and in keeping with God's will he will give us them.Plumber writes ,'Moses had a great desire to see God's glory;and the Lord showed him as much as he could bear. Solomon had a quenchless thirst  after knowledge and wisdom,and Jehovah made him the wisest of mere men'I remember when I worked in the grain terminal,it was to say the very least a very dusty job,I really wanted out of it,and I wanted a job that I could wear nice clothes,and God got me that job. I also wanted to  serve God in Christian  ministry and God got me that job.

                                            ' This is the confidence we have in appoaching

                                              God; that if we ask anything according to his

                                               will,He hears us,And if we know that He hears 

                                                us whatever we ask,we know that we have what

                                                 we asked for'

                                                                     (1 John 5 v 14- 15)

                                                    

                                             .

Trust , (Isaiah 12 v 2) 1

 There are very instructive verses in Psalm 37  the first one reads,

                                                  'Trust in the Lord and do good;

                                                   dwell in the land and enjoy 

                                                   safe pature' v 3

What God desires from us is trust,we honour Him when we trust Him ,Israel's history so often was filled with fretting and fearfulness,with the result they didn't always trust and obey, so they suffered because of their rebelliousness, and unbelief in God .Peter walked on water but faith deserted him,and Jesus had to save him from drowning.( Matthew 14 v 25-31)Jesus asked him ,''why did you doubt?,'' doubt will put a spanner in the works all the time,it did for Peter,and it will do the same for you and me.Trust in the Lord and then he adds,'do good',it was said of our dear Saviour that He went about doing good, ( Acts 10 v 38)let us follow in his footsteps,there are so many people doing bad things, let us be people who do good things.The last part of the verse  reads,'dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture',one commentator puts it like this,'So shalt thou dwell in the land and live securely',let the Lord be your security ,the result will be,'The Lord will keep you from all harm ,He will watch over your life,He will watchover your coming and going both now and forever more.(Psalm 121 v 7-8 ) Lastly 'and enjoy safe pasture',in other words God would provide for his children,so let us not dwell in doubting castle,

                                                    'Be gone unbelief!my Saviour is near

                                                    And for my relief  will surely appear..

                                                    By prayer let me wrestle and He will perform;

                                                    With Christ in the vessel I smile at the storm'.

                                                                      'John Newton'

All our lives. ( Psalm 37 v 25 )

                                                   ' All my life you have been faithful,

                                                    All my life you have been so,so good,

                                                    With every breath, that I am able,

                                                    I will sing of the goodness of God''

God is faithful, no one in all of history is as faithful as God, why oh why has He not given up on planet  earth. Well the Word of God says,that He is a faithful Creator (1 Peter 4 v19),that means He has not given up on  planet earth,it belongs to Him and to Him alone,as He promised'As long as the earth endures, seed time and harvest,cold and heat,summer and winter,day and night will never cease ',(Genesis 8 v 22) He is faithful to His Word, but Peter reminds us that the end is coming of this present world at a time appointed by God,yes there is a reason why it is delayed, His divine patience,and mercy,and love desires that all should  come to repentance, and faith in Christ, so the earth continues.We who are His Children are not forsaken,  He is a faithful loving Heavenly Father,many of  His children have suffered throughout history ,and many at this present time are suffering,He will loose none of them. (John 10 v 28 -30 ).Whatever our experience in life,we can with  Jeremiah declare ,great has been God's faithfulness. (Lamentations 3 v 23) ,and we can all say.

                                                    'All our lives you have been faithful                         

                                                     All our lives you have been so,so good'

                                                       Words by 'Ben Fielding/Brian Johnson'

We are all one.{ Revelation 4 v 9 )

 I visited a church recently ,and one of  the leaders said to me ,that they had at least 42 different nationalities attending their church. I said that was wonderful it is what the church is all about,as John 3 v16 tells us,'that God so loved the world'.Sad it is ,that down through history , there were groups who raised barriers ,excluding people on the bases of colour and race.In Romans 16 v 1-23,Paul sends greetings to the saints in Rome naming 26 individuals, diverse in race and gender.At that time there were Jewish believers who really wanted the status quo to continue,and of course that was wrong, it was weakening the idea of a universal church.It is also weakens it, when we exclude people on the bases of social standing or whatever .Yet it still goes on,we hear people referring to a church as a' black church',the little childrens song goes,'Jesus loves the little children all the children of the world,red and yellow,black and white all our precious in His sight'  That's the way it should be,everyone should be accepted equally into the Church of Chirst.Our Saviour said ,'There shall be one flock and one shepherd.' (John 10 v16)and in Galatians 3 v28 we read,'There is neither Jew nor Gentile,neither slave nor free,nor is there male and female,for you are all one in Christ Jesus.

                                                        ' Salvation is indiscriminate'

A mind at peace with God.( Romans 8 v14 -17)

                                              'But now in Christ Jesus you who 

                                              once were far away have been 

                                               brought near by the blood of                           

                                                           Christ'

                                                    'Ephesians 2 v 13'

                                    'A mind at peace with God,O what a word is this!

                              A sinner reconciled through blood; this,this indeed is peace.

                                    By nature and by practice far,so very far from God!

                             Yet now by grace brought near to Him,through faith in Jesus blood.

                                      So near,so very near to God,I cannot nearer be;

                                      For in the person of His Son, I am as near as He.

                                     So dear, so very dear to God,more dear I cannot be;

                               The love with which He loves His Son,such is His love for me.

                                Why should I ever be anxious be,when kept by power divine?

                                  This is my God who says to me,that all He has is mine.'

                                                            'Words Catesby Pagent'