Devotion 8.18.26

Psalm 138

Give Thanks to the Lord

Of David.

"1 I give you thanks, O Lord, with my whole heart;

  before the gods I sing your praise;

2 I bow down toward your holy temple

  and give thanks to your name for your steadfast love and your faithfulness,

  for you have exalted above all things

  your name and your word.

3 On the day I called, you answered me;

  my strength of soul you increased.

4 All the kings of the earth shall give you thanks, O Lord,

  for they have heard the words of your mouth,

5 and they shall sing of the ways of the Lord,

  for great is the glory of the Lord.

6 For though the Lord is high, he regards the lowly,

  but the haughty he knows from afar.

7 Though I walk in the midst of trouble,

  you preserve my life;

you stretch out your hand against the wrath of my enemies,

  and your right hand delivers me.

8 The Lord will fulfill his purpose for me;

  your steadfast love, O Lord, endures forever.

  Do not forsake the work of your hands."

God is our help at all times - in times of joy and in times of trouble.

I had a phrase in my days as director of elementary that I used if a call to my pager had the number to call and a code - 911 - following it. It meant it was a "blood and bone emergency." That reduced the calls to about one a year for true emergencies. The other calls might be important, but they didn't need my immediate attention. 

Everyone's definition of an "emergency" is different. Lois, the principal at an elementary that had been built pre-World War II, defined a heavy rain in Houston (a daily occurrence there) as an emergency. Joyce, an elder-statesmen of the principals at a large and influential elementary, never would call. She was the captain of that ship, so leave her alone as she yelled, "Full steam ahead." Everyone else was at some points in between.

They all understood and honored "blood and bone emergency" though. And when I got a call and it had 911 after it, I called them immediately.

Today's psalmist, David, had many 911 calls to God in his lifetime, from his first call to deal with Goliath, then to his father-in-law Saul, then king of Israel, to his enemies within and without when he was king, and finally to his own weakness, Bathsheba. David had a lifeline. 

We possess this same lifeline today. Prayer is that lifeline that connects us to God. No strings attached to it to define what needs we can use it for like I did with the principals. In verse 3, David writes of this when he says, "...when I called, you answered...." God hears our calls today as well and answers them in his own time. Sometime the answer is swift, and sometimes it feels like it is forever, but it is answered.

His right hand, Christ, delivers us (v 7). This may be in the form of delivery from the issue we face, to deliver us from evil. It may also be in the form of a blessing, receiving my daily bread. It is, ultimately, delivering us from sin, Satan and death. Our pain is temporary. Our journey ends in the arms of Jesus, our savior. God's steadfast love endures forever (v 8).

Pray the Lord's prayer with me this morning.

Amen.

Hope Men's Ministry is a ministry in service to Hope Lutheran Church and School. Our purpose is to grow, unite, and share God's Word to all men through meaningful activities. These activities center on fellowship, service, conversation, prayer, study and devotion as we seek to become men of God as He created us to be.