Life upon Life

For the last couple of days I've been processing Psalm 18. I admit I have a bit of disconnect with this Psalm. I am not a ruler, I don't have evil people chasing me, no one is trying to kill me,  I've never been to war or been in battle and I don't plan on crushing anyone to fine dust. I have felt very alone and somewhat threatened. I have had my moments where I have been unsure, incapable of handling pressing circumstances, confused and overwhelmed. Most often I am just weary of dealing with the multitude of life stresses.

And this Psalm speaks hope into my life piled upon life existence.

David reminds me that God is to be my strength (not my next cup of coffee).
God -My God- is to be where I take refuge (not that tasty bowl of ice cream).
God is to be the One who lightens my darkness (not my spouse, or my children, or any other marvelous significant person in my life).
God is the one who equips me (not the latest self-help book I am enjoying).
God is the one who protects me (not my newly purchased "Fashion Armour" from Macys).

I admit I find it way too easy to substitute "stuff," when God is standing right next to me, longing to fill the trouble space I find in my life. Psalm 18:19b says,   "... he rescued me because he delighted in me."  God Almighty, Creator of all I see, Savior, Messiah, the Holy One, the Great I AM → delights in me. I am overwhelmed! It gives one the perfect opportunity to cut loose with a Happy Dance!
Psalm 18:39 says "For you equipped me with strength for the battle..." The Psalmist reminds me that God never promised all easy days or a cushy life. There will be battles AND God will equip me. Woot! I do not need to find 'stuff' that I think will sustain and empower me. I am not claiming  giv up coffee, my spouse, reading or Macys (please, no Never!). I am stating that I must base who I am, where I find strength and joy, on Christ Alone.
Verse 33 in the Amplified Bible reads, "He makes my feet like hinds feet (able to stand firmly or make progress on the dangerous heights of testing and trouble); He sets me securely upon my high places."  Here the Psalmist reminds me that sometimes I will stand and sometimes I will move. There will be circumstances that just have to be lived through. There are others situations that I can move away from with God's help or that He will reveal how I can change the situation or He will move in and change it for me.  I may be looking all fine and sipping on yet another cup of coffee -but it is God who is doing the real work.

My life piled upon life existence is refreshed this morning as I revel in the morning sunshine and the goodness of a God who loves me. I sing with the Psalmist in 18:36 (NCV) "You give me a better way to live, so I live as You want me to." I am not a King like David though I am royalty. I am a daughter of the King of Kings- a true Princess who can say, "...the Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer..." (Psalm 18:2a)

Living Life on Both Ends of the Spectrum

As I try to process my list of things-to-do today I am acutely aware that I am experiencing "Life." It's not that everything is falling apart and I'm barely hanging on by a thread. It's not that things are gloriously and joyfully grand. It's that there is SO much! There is so much to do, finish, accomplish. There is so much to be concerned about, prayed over, considered. There is so much to be thankful for, praise God for, relish. I am a bundle of tears and laughter, pleading and praising. I have a list of things to accomplish and I have quiet moments of reflection. I am grateful and needy. I am content and creating a list of wishes. I am a mess and I am at peace. My life is currently being experienced on both ends of the spectrum.

And I admit it has me befuddled and bamboozled.

I don't necessarily want to change things, because the experiences that are hard have such amazing threads of hope and God's mercy. Perhaps God is blessing me with life from the positive spectrum so that I  am better equipped to handle the other. Perhaps this is just how life really is and I have been blessed with supernatural spiritual awareness.

I have been reading in the book of Jeremiah found in the Old Testament. The book of Jeremiah has a lot of "Life" in it. There are elements from both ends of the spectrum even though the story being told is pretty harsh. In the 29th chapter of Jeremiah are some very familiar verses:

"(v. 11) For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for welfare and not for evil to give you a future and a hope. (v. 12) Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you. (v. 13) You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart."

In the midst of "Life" this is what I see in these verses:
* God knows His plan(s). He is not making it up as He goes along.
* God's plans are always for my best and it doesn't say anything about my ease and comfort.
* God's plans give me a future, lead me to Hope. And I need me some hope!
* God's plans lead me to call upon Him, to come to Him, to pray to Him.
* God hears me! (Can I hear a Hallelujah!)
* God's plans lead me to seek Him, which is more than calling to Him. Seeking leads to finding, which causes discovery, learning, knowing.
* God can ALWAYS be found when I seek with all my heart.

My heart is encouraged because I would say I am safely ensconced in God's plans.  My days may be filled with all that "Life" can qive me, AND I am comforted with Hope, reassured that God hears me, and thrilling at the wonders I am discovering about My God.

Life is hard, and Life is good.  All praise to the One I am seeking.