In the midst of your day today, take a moment to pause before the Lord. Take a deep breath, hold it, and exhale. Repeat this a few times to set some intentionality to this time of holiness with God right now.
Encounter: Psalm 130 is one of several Psalms of Ascent, which were sung by Jewish pilgrims as they traveled up to Jerusalem for the Jewish festivals.
Slowly read through this Psalm of Ascent.
Psalm 130
“From the depths of despair, O Lord,
I call for your help.
Hear my cry, O Lord.
Pay attention to my prayer.
Lord, if you kept a record of our sins,
who, O Lord, could ever survive?
But you offer forgiveness,
that we might learn to fear you.
I am counting on the Lord;
yes, I am counting on him.
I have put my hope in his word.
I long for the Lord
more than sentries long for the dawn,
yes, more than sentries long for the dawn.
O Israel, hope in the Lord;
for with the Lord there is unfailing love.
His redemption overflows.
He himself will redeem Israel
from every kind of sin.”
Psalms 130
Reflect:
In our day-to-day life, we don’t have to go far to experience the reality of life that seems to so easily disrupt our hopes, expectations and aspirations.
The author of Ecclesiastes revisits this idea time and time again as he writes, “there is nothing new under the sun.” A portion of our 730 Challenge readings this week is especially pertinent to this experience of life:
“In my search for wisdom and in my observation of people’s burdens here on earth, I discovered that there is ceaseless activity, day and night. I realized that no one can discover everything God is doing under the sun. Not even the wisest people discover everything, no matter what they claim.”
Ecclesiastes 8:16-17 NLT
In talking with a few others this week, I know I am not alone in feeling more than a little disappointed and less encouraged by these “words of wisdom.” But surely, the author’s statement that there is nothing new under the sun rings true because when I read that passage, I feel as though he is sitting and observing my own life as well as our overall American culture. The pursuit of the American dream could certainly be seen as ceaseless activity. It reminds me of the Dave Matthews Band song, Ants Marching.
“People in every direction,
No words exchanged
No time to exchange
When all the little ants are marching
Red and black antennas waving
They all do it the same way”
Perhaps there is comfort in knowing not much has changed in the world and yet people have gone on living their lives, but in equal measure, there is a sense of monotony, for me at least. Yet, as the author of Ecclesiastes rightly acknowledges, God is in the midst of it all.
God is actually so much in the midst of it that no amount of human wisdom can accurately pinpoint how He is working so intricately in all the details of life. When compared to the greatness of God’s ongoing presence in the midst of all things (good, bad, ugly, and everything in between), human wisdom clearly falls short. There is absolutely no way humans can come anywhere close to the wisdom of God.
In response to this “wisdom,” what else can be done but to claim futility before the Creator God, to submit to the authority of God, and humbly live our days under His wisdom, free from the burden of constantly striving to understand it all. Doing this opens, rather than closes, the window of opportunity for us to know God and His love.
The apostle Peter writes about this in 1 Peter 5:6-7.
“Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you.”
1 Peter 5:6-7 ESV
Humility under God builds within us a trust in Him to provide for our greatest needs because of His love and care for us. So, now, take this opportunity to build that trust with Him through one of the following spiritual practices. Of course you can do more than one if you’d like :)
Humbly before the Lord with you,
Pastor Matt
Spiritual Practice:
Offer to God the situations and circumstances that have your mind grasping for control and your heart set on finding solid ground? Perhaps this situation has been one that’s been gnawing at you continually over the past week, several weeks, or months. Odds are, your mind rather quickly identified one of these types of situations or circumstances.
Journal: Write out to God all the details of the situation that is holding your attention. Are the parallels between your situation and the passages we’ve looked at here in Renew? Underline those passages and in the margins of your journal write in the Scripture reference.
Hand Writing Scripture:
Grab a piece of paper. In your favorite Bible translation, write out word for word 1 Peter 5:6-7. Under your handwritten passage, write your anxieties, worries, cares that you will cast upon God.
Breath Prayer to submit to Father God:
Breathe in the Father’s love…breathe out to stop trying to control or worry about the outcome of ___________ (fill in the blank).
Gather:
As you sit with your triad, small group, Sunday study group, or other fellowship group consider sharing your responses to the following questions.
Is there anything in any of the Scriptures in this Renew that really impact you? If so, what is it and why does it impact you?
Have you ever consciously submitted or humbled yourself before the Lord? What did it look like for you to do that, and what impact did it have on you?
Which of the spiritual practices did you do? How did the spiritual practice help you to humble yourself before God? Were any of the spiritual practices new to you?
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