WEBVTT - 474 Praying Through Psalms 60: Victory in Hopeless Ground 0:00:02.680 --> 0:00:07.640 Life Audio. Hey there, and welcome to another Prayer through 0:00:07.640 --> 0:00:11.200 the Psalms episode of the Praying Christian Women podcast. I 0:00:11.240 --> 0:00:14.480 am Jamie, and today we get to talk about and 0:00:14.680 --> 0:00:19.000 pray through Psalm sixty six zero. And before we do, 0:00:19.200 --> 0:00:22.360 as always, let's get started with some prayer. I'm just 0:00:22.600 --> 0:00:26.840 definitely feeling a little bit scattered, and life circumstances for 0:00:26.920 --> 0:00:30.280 me have changed a little bit. I've actually been starting 0:00:30.320 --> 0:00:33.560 training for like a practitioner training that I'm going to 0:00:33.600 --> 0:00:37.400 be doing for kind of a career shift, and so 0:00:37.640 --> 0:00:40.600 a lot of stuff is going on that has my 0:00:40.720 --> 0:00:45.040 brain pretty much like not just swirling, but kind of mush. 0:00:45.280 --> 0:00:47.640 So I would love for us to just take some time. 0:00:48.120 --> 0:00:50.440 I am certain that you have your own things going on. 0:00:50.520 --> 0:00:53.400 This is spring, so this is kind of just a 0:00:53.440 --> 0:00:55.920 crazy time for everybody. If you have kids in school, 0:00:56.000 --> 0:00:58.320 it's kind of wild because you've got lots of end 0:00:58.320 --> 0:01:02.760 of year things happening. Sports are probably shifting and transitioning, 0:01:03.240 --> 0:01:05.080 and if you're not, Spring is just kind of a 0:01:05.080 --> 0:01:07.679 busy time. We've got, like, you know, a lot more 0:01:07.680 --> 0:01:09.920 stuff going on because the weather could be maybe a 0:01:09.920 --> 0:01:13.000 little bit better than it has been, and maybe you're 0:01:13.040 --> 0:01:16.560 starting to make summer plans. But whatever you're doing today, 0:01:16.760 --> 0:01:20.480 whatever is swirling around in your brain, My hope in 0:01:20.520 --> 0:01:24.320 my prayer is that we can take this moment and 0:01:24.400 --> 0:01:26.959 just regroup and kind of dedicate this time to God. 0:01:27.040 --> 0:01:28.920 And I haven't done confession in a long time, so 0:01:28.959 --> 0:01:30.880 I'm going to do a little time of confession for 0:01:31.000 --> 0:01:35.600 us also because I've been missing that too. Let's pray, Lord, God, 0:01:35.640 --> 0:01:40.520 thank you so much. For seasons, things would get kind 0:01:40.560 --> 0:01:45.280 of stale and we would probably end up just going 0:01:45.319 --> 0:01:47.960 through the motions. If we didn't have seasons to shake 0:01:48.000 --> 0:01:52.000 things up, if we didn't have weather changes, or if 0:01:52.040 --> 0:01:56.600 we didn't have activity changes and shifts, if our families 0:01:56.680 --> 0:01:59.160 never changed, if our kids never got older, if our 0:01:59.200 --> 0:02:04.520 friendships weren't fluid, if our church lives didn't shift and 0:02:04.880 --> 0:02:08.600 ebb and flow, and our prayer lives do the same. 0:02:09.360 --> 0:02:12.800 We just pray that instead of fighting against seasons, you 0:02:12.840 --> 0:02:16.600 would help us to really just go with the flow, 0:02:17.280 --> 0:02:19.200 that we would be able to ride the wave of 0:02:19.240 --> 0:02:23.000 the seasons we're in and do it with grace and 0:02:23.040 --> 0:02:27.480 with confidence, knowing that you are in them and that 0:02:27.520 --> 0:02:32.640 you are equipping us even as we go. That we 0:02:32.680 --> 0:02:34.800 don't have to worry that we won't be able to 0:02:34.840 --> 0:02:37.840 handle the things coming up or that we haven't done 0:02:37.880 --> 0:02:39.800 well the things that are in front of us, because 0:02:40.480 --> 0:02:44.400 we have you, and you can help us course correct, 0:02:44.600 --> 0:02:48.800 You can help us assess our schedules, all of the 0:02:48.840 --> 0:02:53.119 things that don't seem spiritual, like scheduling and work and 0:02:53.280 --> 0:02:56.200 decision making and all of the things that just seem 0:02:56.280 --> 0:03:00.160 very practical and methodical. When we invite you in to 0:03:00.200 --> 0:03:03.480 those things, when we invite you into our seasons, you 0:03:03.560 --> 0:03:07.240 are faithful to guide us and to direct us. And 0:03:07.280 --> 0:03:09.680 we just thank you for that, thank you for that relationship. 0:03:10.520 --> 0:03:12.760 As we come into your throne room, Lord, as we 0:03:12.840 --> 0:03:16.440 come to read your Holy Word and meditate on it, 0:03:16.480 --> 0:03:18.800 and as we come to meet with you, we just 0:03:18.800 --> 0:03:21.280 pray that you would help us to shed any baggage 0:03:21.280 --> 0:03:27.079 we're carrying, and that includes sinful thoughts, words, attitudes, actions 0:03:27.520 --> 0:03:31.799 that we've done or held, or are holding or are doing. 0:03:32.600 --> 0:03:36.120 And we just pray that at this moment, that just 0:03:36.200 --> 0:03:39.600 during this minute or so of silence, that your Holy 0:03:39.640 --> 0:03:44.520 Spirit would really search us, that your Holy Spirit would 0:03:44.600 --> 0:03:50.000 draw out things that aren't immediately visible to us that 0:03:50.080 --> 0:03:53.360 are sinful, and that as we wait and we just 0:03:53.600 --> 0:03:56.560 listen for you, that the things that come to mind 0:03:56.600 --> 0:04:00.000 easily would just be things that we could write down 0:04:00.200 --> 0:04:04.200 and set aside, and that the things that don't come 0:04:04.240 --> 0:04:07.560 to mind easily, Lord, that your Holy Spirit would dredge 0:04:07.560 --> 0:04:12.240 them up, and like that refining process of silver that 0:04:12.280 --> 0:04:17.240 you describe in scripture, that that dross would just precipitate 0:04:17.279 --> 0:04:19.640 out and rise to the top so it can be skimmed. 0:04:20.480 --> 0:04:25.119 Not for us to wallow in self pity or self 0:04:25.160 --> 0:04:30.320 deprecation or hopelessness, but so we could be free, so 0:04:30.360 --> 0:04:32.640 we could walk out of here lighter than we came in, 0:04:33.360 --> 0:04:36.320 because that is a gift, a gift because of the 0:04:36.360 --> 0:04:41.720 blood of Jesus, because of his death and resurrection, we 0:04:41.760 --> 0:04:46.359 are able to shed those things and instead take on 0:04:46.400 --> 0:04:50.320 a cloak of righteousness. And likewise, you tell us that 0:04:50.400 --> 0:04:54.800 all of our righteous acts are like filthy rags. I 0:04:54.839 --> 0:04:58.120 pray that you would help convict us about things that 0:04:58.200 --> 0:05:01.479 we're doing that look good on the surface, but that 0:05:01.600 --> 0:05:04.520 aren't coming from a place of service to you, of 0:05:04.600 --> 0:05:06.920 love for you, and love for our fellow brothers and 0:05:06.960 --> 0:05:10.200 sisters in Christ and brothers and sisters in the world. 0:05:10.880 --> 0:05:13.880 Help us to identify the things that are masquerading as good, 0:05:14.560 --> 0:05:16.520 because those can be the things that are the hardest 0:05:16.560 --> 0:05:22.159 to see. Expose lies of the enemy, expose deception, and 0:05:23.160 --> 0:05:27.960 expose the things that are that are evil masquerading as light. 0:05:28.839 --> 0:06:32.400 Speak to us, Lord, Thank you Lord for meeting with us, 0:06:33.000 --> 0:06:36.359 for gently convicting us of the things that need to 0:06:36.400 --> 0:06:40.400 be convicted. We just pray that you would help us 0:06:40.440 --> 0:06:44.120 to deal with those things not in a spirit of despair, 0:06:44.960 --> 0:06:47.920 but that you would help us to see them as 0:06:47.960 --> 0:06:51.440 things that we can walk out of. We just pray 0:06:51.480 --> 0:06:56.080 that this time meditating on Psalm sixty would change us, 0:06:56.720 --> 0:06:59.360 that it would transform us, That your word would literally 0:06:59.480 --> 0:07:03.559 just wash our souls clean, that your word would stick 0:07:03.640 --> 0:07:06.599 with us, That your Holy Spirit would do exactly what 0:07:06.680 --> 0:07:09.880 Jesus said and just bring to mind the words that 0:07:09.960 --> 0:07:13.679 come straight from you throughout our week. That it wouldn't 0:07:13.720 --> 0:07:16.520 just be a one time thing that we would ruminate 0:07:16.600 --> 0:07:20.200 on these words and these lessons, and that as situations 0:07:20.240 --> 0:07:21.800 come up in our lives, that you would just bring 0:07:21.840 --> 0:07:25.480 them to mind and help us to learn from them 0:07:25.600 --> 0:07:43.680 and just to walk in them in Jesus' name. Amen. Okay, well, 0:07:43.800 --> 0:07:47.120 let's look at this. This is Psalm sixty and the 0:07:47.160 --> 0:07:51.160 title is lament over defeat in battle and prayer for help. 0:07:52.120 --> 0:07:56.679 The subtitle is for the choir director, according to Shushan Edith, 0:07:57.480 --> 0:08:00.400 and that literally means and so what we've found. If 0:08:00.400 --> 0:08:04.080 you've joined us before, you know that, according to blank, 0:08:04.480 --> 0:08:07.000 usually means it's like according to the tune of a 0:08:07.000 --> 0:08:11.200 different song. So it means according to literally the Lily 0:08:11.280 --> 0:08:14.200 of Testimony. So maybe that's a song that was known 0:08:14.760 --> 0:08:17.760 and these words were used and overlaid with that melody. 0:08:18.200 --> 0:08:21.000 A mik tom of David. We've talked about mick tom before. 0:08:21.320 --> 0:08:23.960 A mik tom is either an epigrammatic poem or an 0:08:24.000 --> 0:08:27.840 atonement psalm, so we're not sure which it is, but 0:08:28.080 --> 0:08:31.760 it is of David, and it says to teach when 0:08:31.800 --> 0:08:37.120 he struggled with Aram Nahareim and with aarm Zobah and 0:08:37.320 --> 0:08:41.440 joe Ab returned and smoked twelve thousand of edom in 0:08:41.480 --> 0:08:45.240 the valley of Salt. So I looked this up because 0:08:45.320 --> 0:08:48.520 all of these names are crazy to me. But what 0:08:48.600 --> 0:08:52.480 I found is that these places when he struggled Aram 0:08:52.920 --> 0:08:57.200 Nahareim literally means Aram of the two rivers, and it 0:08:57.240 --> 0:09:01.240 was likely between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, and then 0:09:01.840 --> 0:09:05.880 aram Zoba is north of Israel, So yeah, so he 0:09:05.960 --> 0:09:10.760 struggled with Aram between the Tigers and Euphrates. He struggled 0:09:10.760 --> 0:09:16.560 with aram Zoba in the north. And then Joe aberturned 0:09:16.559 --> 0:09:19.880 and smote twelve thousand of Edom in the Valley of Salt, 0:09:20.040 --> 0:09:24.560 which was to the south. So basically, he's not just 0:09:24.679 --> 0:09:27.720 fighting a war with one group. It's not just the 0:09:27.720 --> 0:09:32.920 Philistines or the whoever's right. He's surrounded and he talks 0:09:32.960 --> 0:09:35.040 about this in some of the other psalms, but this 0:09:35.160 --> 0:09:39.120 is the first one where it's really like fleshed out 0:09:39.160 --> 0:09:41.679 for me. Sometimes he's like in a cave and he's 0:09:41.720 --> 0:09:45.120 surrounded by enemies, but this is, you know, kind of 0:09:45.120 --> 0:09:48.720 like modern day Israel is literally surrounded on every no 0:09:48.760 --> 0:09:51.160 matter where you go, whatever direction you travel, you've got 0:09:51.160 --> 0:09:54.120 people that want to kill you. And so you've got 0:09:54.200 --> 0:09:58.120 David here, same thing he's got all around. He's got enemies. 0:09:58.400 --> 0:10:02.120 They literally surround him. So that is where he's coming from, 0:10:02.720 --> 0:10:05.640 and it sounds like he's got some struggles going on 0:10:06.040 --> 0:10:08.640 that don't look like they're going so well. And then 0:10:08.840 --> 0:10:11.440 Joe averturned and smote twelve thousand of etam in the 0:10:11.480 --> 0:10:14.440 Valley of Salt. The Valley of Salt sounds like there's 0:10:14.440 --> 0:10:17.800 a victory that happened there, and I think it's really interesting. 0:10:17.840 --> 0:10:20.080 I don't know if this is related in any way, 0:10:20.720 --> 0:10:23.000 but when I think of the Valley of Salt, so 0:10:23.120 --> 0:10:26.240 I actually live near Salt Lake City, so I'm familiar 0:10:26.280 --> 0:10:30.720 with salt and barrenness, you know. And we lived in 0:10:30.800 --> 0:10:34.120 Las Vegas a few years ago, many years ago, and 0:10:34.160 --> 0:10:35.959 we went to Death Valley, which was not too far 0:10:36.000 --> 0:10:41.679 from there, and there was literally salt flats. It was barren, 0:10:41.920 --> 0:10:43.560 and it was one of the you know, Death Valleys, 0:10:43.600 --> 0:10:45.079 like one of the hottest places on the face of 0:10:45.120 --> 0:10:48.839 the earth at certain times of the year. And there's 0:10:48.880 --> 0:10:53.040 this valley of salt there and it is you can 0:10:53.080 --> 0:10:56.000 see it. It looks like snow sometimes because it's kind 0:10:56.040 --> 0:10:58.760 of white. But the very cool thing is with this 0:10:58.840 --> 0:11:00.960 reminds me of they're having the victory in the Valley 0:11:01.000 --> 0:11:03.200 of Salt. One of the years that we lived there, 0:11:03.840 --> 0:11:06.400 my neighbor said, you have to come out to Death 0:11:06.480 --> 0:11:08.840 Valley with us this weekend. She knew kind of the 0:11:08.880 --> 0:11:11.920 area more than I did, and I thought, okay, whatever 0:11:11.960 --> 0:11:14.760 we'll go. And we went out and they had like 0:11:14.880 --> 0:11:18.319 this one hundred year bloom. It was a desert bloom 0:11:18.400 --> 0:11:21.839 because of the rain that had come, because of the 0:11:21.920 --> 0:11:24.000 climate that year. I don't know what it was. But 0:11:24.080 --> 0:11:27.840 every once in a while you get this incredible, like 0:11:28.360 --> 0:11:33.240 robust blooming in the salt flats and you look around 0:11:33.280 --> 0:11:35.160 and they're these like I don't know if they're crocuses 0:11:35.280 --> 0:11:37.080 or what the flowers are they. I remember these little 0:11:37.120 --> 0:11:40.520 purple ones. They're just there everywhere, all these different flowers. 0:11:40.920 --> 0:11:44.719 And the crazy thing is, if you were to go 0:11:44.800 --> 0:11:47.760 there any time of year other than that, you would 0:11:47.760 --> 0:11:50.560 think this was a barren waste land where nothing could grow. 0:11:51.920 --> 0:11:54.679 And so this is what I see in this you know, 0:11:54.720 --> 0:11:58.200 even this introduction is David is surrounded by enemies and 0:11:58.240 --> 0:12:01.120 then he has this victory here in the valley of salt, 0:12:02.000 --> 0:12:07.280 and to me it seems like symbolic the valley of 0:12:07.320 --> 0:12:11.520 barrenness is where this victory happens. So anyway, we can 0:12:11.559 --> 0:12:14.880 all relate right to having situations where it feels like 0:12:15.040 --> 0:12:18.160 everything around us is going wrong, and then maybe just 0:12:18.200 --> 0:12:21.400 in the midst of that barrenness comes victory from God. 0:12:21.440 --> 0:12:24.760 It blooms out, and it doesn't mean that when it 0:12:24.840 --> 0:12:28.040 looks barren and it looks like defeat, that there's not 0:12:28.080 --> 0:12:30.640 a victory there. In fact, if you were to look 0:12:30.679 --> 0:12:33.199 at it like the desert bloom any other time of 0:12:33.240 --> 0:12:37.240 the year, you would see barrenness. But in God's season, 0:12:37.960 --> 0:12:40.280 in the exact season that he means it to come, 0:12:40.960 --> 0:12:44.040 there will be that victory. And it's there those seeds 0:12:44.120 --> 0:12:45.839 or bulbs or whatever it is. I don't know. I'm 0:12:45.840 --> 0:12:51.920 not a horticulturist, but those seeds and bulbs of stored 0:12:52.040 --> 0:12:58.199 up life are existing, dormant, but they're there, and that 0:12:58.360 --> 0:13:01.680 is the victory, and it will be exposed in its time, 0:13:01.760 --> 0:13:05.240 but it's already there. So let's actually get into the psalm. 0:13:05.320 --> 0:13:09.440 Though this is important again, I want to disclaim that 0:13:09.559 --> 0:13:11.800 I am not a theologian, so I really hope that 0:13:11.840 --> 0:13:15.840 I'm kind of interpreting thing these things correctly with history. 0:13:16.320 --> 0:13:19.040 I would love it if you guys ever catch me 0:13:19.640 --> 0:13:23.080 with an incorrect don't ever trust what I say, because 0:13:23.240 --> 0:13:26.640 I do my best research, but I'm not a theologian 0:13:26.720 --> 0:13:29.360 or historian. If I come up with stuff that is 0:13:29.400 --> 0:13:31.800 not accurate, I would love you to email me at 0:13:31.840 --> 0:13:35.400 pray at Praying Christianwomen dot Com and just let me 0:13:35.480 --> 0:13:38.360 know so I can issue a correction because I do 0:13:38.559 --> 0:13:44.720 hold God's word very dearly and I don't want to misspeak, 0:13:45.480 --> 0:13:47.600 and if I do, I really want to be caught. 0:13:47.679 --> 0:13:49.520 That's one of my prayers is that if I ever 0:13:49.559 --> 0:13:52.360 say something wrong that might mislead someone, that God would 0:13:52.400 --> 0:13:55.400 just allow me to be made right and corrected. So 0:13:56.200 --> 0:14:00.839 all right, let's read Chapter sixty Psalm sixty. Oh God, 0:14:00.920 --> 0:14:04.680 you have rejected us, you have broken us, you have 0:14:04.760 --> 0:14:09.400 been angry. Oh restore us. You have made the landquake, 0:14:09.760 --> 0:14:15.240 you have split it open, heal its breeches for it totters. 0:14:15.840 --> 0:14:20.320 You have major people experience hardship. You've given us wine 0:14:20.360 --> 0:14:23.600 to drink that makes us stagger. You have given us 0:14:23.600 --> 0:14:26.800 a banner to those who fear you, that it may 0:14:27.080 --> 0:14:31.600 be displayed because of the truth Selah, that your beloved 0:14:31.640 --> 0:14:35.160 may be delivered. Save us with your right hand and 0:14:35.320 --> 0:14:39.320 answer us. So this is kind of like what David 0:14:39.360 --> 0:14:44.520 loves to do. He gives this just heartfelt lament of God. 0:14:44.560 --> 0:14:47.520 You have rejected us. We are not seeing victory. You 0:14:47.600 --> 0:14:51.520 have literally broken us. You've been angry, You've made us 0:14:51.560 --> 0:14:54.200 experience hardship. I mean, he's not just saying we are 0:14:54.280 --> 0:14:57.560 experiencing hardship, which is evil on the world. He's saying 0:14:57.720 --> 0:15:02.680 you have made that happen and attributing God's hand to 0:15:02.800 --> 0:15:08.280 even lowering their senses as if they were drunk, to 0:15:08.360 --> 0:15:12.200 make them stagger and not be effective. I'm guessing at warfare. 0:15:12.880 --> 0:15:16.560 But in verse four it shifts and he says, you 0:15:16.600 --> 0:15:19.800 have given a banner to those who fear you, that 0:15:19.880 --> 0:15:22.880 it may be displayed because of the truth. So a 0:15:22.920 --> 0:15:31.120 banner in these military terms is usually displayed as like ownership, 0:15:31.520 --> 0:15:33.600 like whose you are. When they see the banner or 0:15:33.640 --> 0:15:36.840 the flag or whatever it is, it's telling whose army 0:15:36.880 --> 0:15:40.760 you're in, what king are you fighting for? And he's saying, 0:15:40.800 --> 0:15:43.440 you have given a banner to those who fear you, 0:15:44.600 --> 0:15:49.000 So if we fear him, if he fears God, then 0:15:49.200 --> 0:15:53.200 he's under God's authority. And it's almost like David is 0:15:53.760 --> 0:15:58.920 complaining about being under God's thumb and his lordship when 0:15:58.920 --> 0:16:02.280 God does these bad things, And yet he's saying, I 0:16:02.320 --> 0:16:05.160 still fear you. I know this stuff is happening, I 0:16:05.240 --> 0:16:08.320 know you're on the throne. I'm still waving your banner, 0:16:08.720 --> 0:16:12.120 and yet you have given us this banner, that it 0:16:12.160 --> 0:16:15.320 may be displayed because of the truth that your beloved 0:16:15.480 --> 0:16:18.840 may be delivered. Save with your right hand and answer us. 0:16:18.880 --> 0:16:22.200 So it's like almost accepting that if God can bring 0:16:22.240 --> 0:16:24.920 this punishment, he can also bring the victory. And I 0:16:24.960 --> 0:16:28.360 trust you and I'm here for it. That's how I 0:16:28.400 --> 0:16:31.040 read it. And it's not always easy. And I love 0:16:31.080 --> 0:16:34.000 that David writes in the midst of his difficulty, because 0:16:34.840 --> 0:16:39.760 it's he's claiming that lordship no matter what comes, whether 0:16:39.800 --> 0:16:44.840 it's victory or defeat, He's the Lord's Verse six, God 0:16:44.840 --> 0:16:48.840 has spoken in his holiness, I will exult, I will 0:16:48.840 --> 0:16:52.120 portion out Shechem and measure out the valley of Sucketh. 0:16:52.760 --> 0:16:57.120 Gilead is mine, and Vanessa is mine. Ephraim also is 0:16:57.160 --> 0:17:02.080 the helmet of my head. Judah is my Moab, is 0:17:02.200 --> 0:17:05.560 my washbowl? Over eat them? I shall throw my shoe 0:17:06.200 --> 0:17:10.400 shout loud, Oh Philistia, because of me, who will bring 0:17:10.440 --> 0:17:13.040 me into the besieged city? This is David talking again. 0:17:13.080 --> 0:17:15.960 I think who will lead me to eat them? Have 0:17:16.040 --> 0:17:18.879 not you, yourself, oh God, rejected us? And will you 0:17:18.960 --> 0:17:21.880 not go forth with our armies? Oh God, Oh give 0:17:21.960 --> 0:17:25.240 us help against the adversary for deliverance by man is 0:17:25.280 --> 0:17:29.080 in vain. Through God, we shall do valiantly, and it 0:17:29.160 --> 0:17:32.800 is he who will tread down our adversaries. So again, 0:17:33.640 --> 0:17:35.840 I don't know, it's almost like he's sort of trying 0:17:35.840 --> 0:17:40.880 to manipulate God by saying, oh, you know, Lord, have 0:17:40.920 --> 0:17:44.240 you you know? Haven't you rejected us? Will you not 0:17:44.560 --> 0:17:47.080 go forth with your people and display your greatness. It's 0:17:47.119 --> 0:17:51.920 almost like he's kind of trying to use human persuasion 0:17:52.040 --> 0:17:56.159 to persuade God to come with him. But again, he 0:17:56.280 --> 0:18:01.560 just gives this very kind of permission for us as 0:18:01.920 --> 0:18:06.440 humans who live in the confines of time and space 0:18:06.920 --> 0:18:10.920 where we're not experiencing that victory at this moment. We're shielded, 0:18:10.960 --> 0:18:15.399 we're we're cloaked, we don't have vision to see the 0:18:15.400 --> 0:18:20.280 big picture. And so he's expressing his humanity. But at 0:18:20.320 --> 0:18:23.800 the same time, deliverance by man is in vain, and 0:18:23.840 --> 0:18:27.360 I think what he's saying is, if you have forsaken us, 0:18:28.080 --> 0:18:31.120 then we have no hope. I have a lot of armies, 0:18:31.240 --> 0:18:33.840 I have a lot of military skill and prowess, and 0:18:33.960 --> 0:18:39.160 yet without you I will not do valiantly. It reminds 0:18:39.200 --> 0:18:42.480 me of Moses and This is in Exodus thirty three, 0:18:43.520 --> 0:18:46.720 when thirty three to three and the Golden Calf incident happened, 0:18:46.720 --> 0:18:49.200 where Moses went up onto the mountain to hear from God. 0:18:49.240 --> 0:18:51.240 He comes back down and the people are all making 0:18:51.280 --> 0:18:54.320 this golden calf and worshiping it because they just they 0:18:54.359 --> 0:18:58.280 need something to worship. And basically God tells Moses, I'm 0:18:58.280 --> 0:19:00.199 going to still send you to the Promised Land. I'm 0:19:00.240 --> 0:19:02.560 not going to go with you. You guys can go on, 0:19:02.720 --> 0:19:04.800 you can have the great land that I've prepared for you, 0:19:04.840 --> 0:19:09.000 but I'm not going to be there. And Moses basically says, 0:19:10.000 --> 0:19:13.360 we don't want the land if you're not coming with us. 0:19:14.000 --> 0:19:19.399 Your presence is what makes this people great. It's not 0:19:19.520 --> 0:19:22.040 the land. The land is just a bunch of dirt. 0:19:22.920 --> 0:19:25.879 And that's kind of what I think of when I 0:19:25.960 --> 0:19:29.280 hear David saying this to God, won't you come with 0:19:29.359 --> 0:19:34.680 us because we can go and we can do our best. 0:19:35.920 --> 0:19:39.000 I mean, in his case, he's saying, you know, God 0:19:39.359 --> 0:19:42.159 is not going to If God doesn't go, then there 0:19:42.200 --> 0:19:45.680 will be no victory. But he's saying, through God, we 0:19:45.720 --> 0:19:48.080 shall do valiantly, and it is he who will tread 0:19:48.080 --> 0:19:50.440 down our adversaries. He's like, I don't we don't want 0:19:50.440 --> 0:19:52.800 to go if you're not going to be with us. 0:19:53.320 --> 0:19:57.040 So what I take away from this whole psalm is, 0:19:58.000 --> 0:20:02.760 no matter what, no matter whether our situation right now 0:20:03.440 --> 0:20:06.160 feels like we're being surrounded on all sides by enemies, 0:20:07.080 --> 0:20:11.800 whether it seems like there's barrenness and lack of victory. 0:20:12.600 --> 0:20:15.800 Maybe you feel like God isn't even really hearing you 0:20:16.119 --> 0:20:18.800 or speaking back to you. Maybe you're looking for wisdom 0:20:19.280 --> 0:20:23.760 or guidance or direction and there's just silence that just 0:20:23.880 --> 0:20:27.600 because things seem barren, just think back to that desert 0:20:27.640 --> 0:20:31.320 bloom and death valley and think that there are bulbs 0:20:31.359 --> 0:20:35.480 and seeds and maybe rhizomes. I don't know, I don't 0:20:35.480 --> 0:20:39.560 know what they're called. But there are life giving structures 0:20:39.640 --> 0:20:45.440 that are lying dormant under this cracked, salty, dead looking space. 0:20:46.320 --> 0:20:49.639 And in God's time it will bloom and it will grow. 0:20:49.720 --> 0:20:54.480 And just claim him as your banner, because he's the water. 0:20:55.320 --> 0:21:00.560 He's that water that creates the conditions in which you 0:21:01.240 --> 0:21:07.680 and your circumstances will flourish to their most perfect degree. 0:21:08.440 --> 0:21:13.000 And without him, I believe that barrenness is real. Even 0:21:13.000 --> 0:21:17.040 though there's potential. But without God, without that water, without 0:21:17.080 --> 0:21:22.879 that infusion of divine, there will be no bloom. So 0:21:23.800 --> 0:21:29.520 let's pray. Father, God, you are everything, and regardless of 0:21:29.560 --> 0:21:33.520 our circumstances, we can be joyful, we can be hopeful, 0:21:33.640 --> 0:21:38.440 we can be confident that there are bulbs and seeds 0:21:38.640 --> 0:21:44.679 under the desert, under the salt, under what looks permanently gone. 0:21:45.440 --> 0:21:48.359 But when the rains come we will see. In your time, 0:21:48.440 --> 0:21:53.240 we will see victory. But right now, even as we 0:21:53.320 --> 0:21:58.920 look on salt, crusted desert dirt, we acknowledge you as 0:21:58.960 --> 0:22:03.399 our Lord, as our banner. You are good, You are 0:22:03.480 --> 0:22:07.520 all powerful, and whatever comes, whatever you have for us, 0:22:07.600 --> 0:22:13.720 whether it's earthquake and defeat in the moment, or perceived 0:22:13.720 --> 0:22:18.360 defeat or perceived failure, whatever it is, we still call 0:22:18.400 --> 0:22:22.160 you Lord. And we wouldn't go into the Promised Land 0:22:22.160 --> 0:22:27.000 without you, because you are the reward, not our circumstance. 0:22:27.800 --> 0:22:31.040 I just pray for each person now, for the person 0:22:31.640 --> 0:22:36.440 right now who feels your silence, and who sees that crusted, 0:22:37.200 --> 0:22:42.320 salt dusted dirt that looks pointless and hopeless and bleak 0:22:42.400 --> 0:22:46.359 and desolate. I pray for hope. I pray for faith, 0:22:47.040 --> 0:22:50.040 I pray for people to surround them that will build 0:22:50.080 --> 0:22:52.200 them up, that will pray for them when they don't 0:22:52.200 --> 0:22:54.840 have the words. And I do pray that you would 0:22:54.840 --> 0:22:57.440 break through God in Jesus name, that you would give 0:22:57.440 --> 0:23:01.120 them a glimmer of hope and light, that you would 0:23:01.119 --> 0:23:04.159 bring the reins and show them that there is indeed 0:23:04.200 --> 0:23:11.200 life in Jesus' name. Amen. 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