Encourage the Good

David is confident that God will look after all who trust in him. He encourages the people to remember and proclaim what God has done.

One of the techniques that we talk about in coaching sports is using memory to store away a process or an attitude. Under pressure if things are going awry we try to access that memory to mentally recover, replicate patterns of behaviour and boost performance. 

Remembering does not happen accidentally it is an intentional act and an important discipline. The psalmist instructs the people that they are to recount what God has done among the nations. This deliberate activity is a witness and a testimony. 

It is a reminder that God also remembers and in particular remembers the cries of the afflicted, the persecuted and the needy. David again asks God for rescue and restoration.

It is a seductive trap for any of us to begin to believe our own publicity, to step onto a pedestal and begin to believe that somehow we have a different level of importance and entitlement. The reminder of mortality is an important corrective for all in positions of power or authority.

This is the ninth of a series that began life as a commitment to Counting my Blessings every day after ankle surgery on July 2nd 2021.

Initially I made a brief post on social media and wrote a daily reflection on a Psalm following the same numerical progression.

Later on in the 100 days I began to also reflect on other scriptures and combine those into my daily post

These thoughts from Psalms earlier in the journey have not been made public  until now as I was writing primarily for my own benefit. I have been encouraged to share these now.

“The Big and the Small of it”

God’s glory is not confined to the earth but is clearly visible in the heavens.

The next line is interesting because it speaks of God establishing a stronghold against his enemies. Were this to be a physical structure it would be a fortress or a walled city, an impregnable place of security for His people. But this castle is not built of stone it is established through the praise of children and infants.

The voices of the young drown out the lies and godless chatter of the foe and the avenger. It is yet another example of God using things that are disregarded and devalued in the eyes of the world to advance his kingdom.

 It is good for me to remember how small I am 

But important that at the same time I remember how big God is

And to review my calling and renew my commitment to following him in the company of his people.

This is the eighth  of a series that began life as a commitment to Counting my Blessings every day after ankle surgery on July 2nd 2021.

Initially I made a brief post on social media and wrote a daily reflection on a Psalm following the same numerical progression.

Later on in the 100 days I began to also reflect on other scriptures and combine those into my daily post

These thoughts from Psalms earlier in the journey have not been made public  until now as I was writing primarily for my own benefit. I have been encouraged to share these now.

“Seeking Sanctuary”

Where do we find shelter, security and safety when we are facing storms? Where do we find sanctuary when we are pursued by our enemies? The answer in this Psalm is that refuge is not found in a place but in a person.

We spend a lot of emotional, mental and physical energy trying frantically to make things better. Running from that which would overwhelm us or trying to defeat that which is stronger than us. Much is beyond us but nothing is beyond the Lord.

This is the seventh of a series that began life as a commitment to Counting my Blessings every day after ankle surgery on July 2nd 2021.

Initially I made a brief post on social media and wrote a daily reflection on a Psalm following the same numerical progression.

Later on in the 100 days I began to also reflect on other scriptures and combine those into my daily post

These thoughts from Psalms earlier in the journey have not been made public  until now as I was writing primarily for my own benefit. I have been encouraged to share these now.

“Through Snot and Tears”

Pain can attune us to our deepest needs and elevate our hidden fears.

This is a great encouragement to me. This is someone the Bible describes as being someone after God’s own heart. Here we see a leader chosen by God, a hero of the faith, a mighty warrior and we hear him letting it all out through snot and tears.

There is no quick fix, no snap out of it, no pull yourself together. This is real pain.

This is the fifth of a series that began life as a commitment to Counting my Blessings every day after ankle surgery on July 2nd 2021.

Initially I made a brief post on social media and wrote a daily reflection on a Psalm following the same numerical progression.

Later on in the 100 days I began to also reflect on other scriptures and combine those into my daily post

These thoughts from Psalms earlier in the journey have not been made public  until now as I was writing primarily for my own benefit. I have been encouraged to share these now.

 “Lamentable”

This is a lament, a passionate expression of loss, grief and sorrow.

It is easier to listen to songs of celebration, laughter and love but often pain is our portion and lament our only lullaby. In this psalm we hear, through the pain, a cry for help.

In conflict it is easy to allow our behaviour to replicate that of our enemies. To return hate with hate, arrogance with arrogance, self righteousness with self righteousness, lies with lies and violence with violence 

David understands that being on the Lord’s side means doing things in the Lord’s way.

This is the fifth of a series that began life as a commitment to Counting my Blessings every day after ankle surgery on July 2nd 2021.

Initially I made a brief post on social media and wrote a daily reflection on a Psalm following the same numerical progression.

Later on in the 100 days I began to also reflect on other scriptures and combine those into my daily post

These thoughts from Psalms earlier in the journey have not been made public  until now as I was writing primarily for my own benefit. I have been encouraged to share these now.

“A Song to Sing Quietly”

How long will you love delusions and seek false Gods?

 It is not sustainable because these things are not sustaining because they are not real or true.

 How easy it is to fall in love with our own imaginings, to start to believe our own narratives, to become unable to see clearly. These false ideas will inevitably lead us away from the one true God and to seek or manufacture variations who will grant us our desires and fulfil our wishes.

This is the fourth of a series that began life as a commitment to Counting my Blessings every day after ankle surgery on July 2nd 2021.

Initially I made a brief post on social media and wrote a daily reflection on a Psalm following the same numerical progression.

Later on in the 100 days I began to also reflect on other scriptures and combine those into my daily post.

These thoughts from Psalms earlier in the journey have not been made public  until now as I was writing primarily for my own benefit. I have been encouraged to share these now.

“On Good Government”

This conspiracy of nations and plot of peoples is in VAIN. Their manifesto is based on a lie. The lie is that they will deliver freedom and end enslavement.

They propagate a false idea about God

Their propaganda says that is that it is God who oppresses and that they will set free when it is actually the reverse of that which is true.

This is the second of a series that began life as a commitment to Counting my Blessings every day after ankle surgery on July 2nd 2021.

Initially I made a brief post on social media and wrote a daily reflection on a Psalm following the same numerical progression.

Later on in the 100 days I began to also reflect on other scriptures and combine those into my daily post.

These thoughts from Psalms earlier in the journey have not been made public  until now as I was writing primarily for my own benefit. I have been encouraged to share these now.

“Am I more like the chaff or more like the tree?”

The contrast to the fruitfulness of the tree is the rootlessness of the chaff, stripped of use and goodness and blown away by the wind. It is a depressing conclusion. That those who live away from God who keep in step with the majority and walk in wickedness and sinfulness will not be able to face the righteous judgement that comes to all people.  

The wicked will face destruction but the Lord will watch over the righteous and assemble them together.

Of course this is very challenging and quite sobering.

Am I more like the chaff or more like the tree?

This is the first of a series that began life as a commitment to Counting my Blessings every day after ankle surgery on July 2nd 2021.

Initially I made a brief post on social media and wrote a daily reflection on a Psalm following the same numerical progression.

Later on in the 100 days I began to also reflect on other scriptures and combine those into my daily post.

These thoughts from Psalms earlier in the journey have not been made public  until now as I was writing primarily for my own benefit. I have been encouraged to share these now.

This is Day 1. “Am I more like the chaff or more like the tree?”

One of the things I have been learning about since coming to Canada is the Underground Railroad. This was a network that was created to help escaped slaves find their way to freedom. 

The Underground Railroad was neither a railway nor was it literally underground. Rather it was a movement where people of different political persuasions, faith convictions and ethnic backgrounds found common cause in working for liberty and standing for justice.

The Underground Railway was developed by abolitionists and sympathizers to help slaves avoid capture and navigate to safety. Because the penalties for helping escaped slaves were severe it was dangerous work. It was a secret organisation that had it’s own terminology, music and symbols.

As part of an underground organisation that is also working to help people find freedom I am interested in what I can learn from this story that can encourage us today.