I Love the Lord Because….

I love the LORD, because He has heard my voice and my supplications.
Because He has inclined His ear to me, therefore I will call upon Him as long as I live.
The pains of death surrounded me, and the pangs of Sheol laid hold of me;
I found trouble and sorrow.
Then I called upon the name of the LORD: “O LORD, I implore You, deliver my soul!”
Gracious is the LORD, and righteous; yes, our God is merciful.
The LORD preserves the simple; I was brought low, and He saved me.
Return to your rest, O my soul, for the LORD has dealt bountifully with you.
Psalms 116:1-7

• “I found trouble and sorrow…then I called upon the name of the Lord.” How great of a feeling is this!?  Knowing that we can call on His name. Knowing that He is there…He is righteous, He is merciful.  Knowing He will save us.  I think back and I try to count how many times I call out for God’s help during the day.  From the morning when I pray for patience with my kids, to the workday when I pray for guidance when interacting with people, to the evening when I pray for energy to finish my tasks of the day.  I know I can call on Him.
• “The pains of death surrounded me,”  When I read this line of the psalm, my mind began running through all of the areas in life that we face a type of death: physical death is the first, of course; but we also face emotional death, loss of relationships, loss of jobs and income, loss of belongings. All of these can feel like a type of death, and pain accompanies all of them.
• “I was brought low, and He saved me.”  When I call on Him, He saves me. When I feel loss, He saves me.  This may not look how I expected it to, but it is always what I need.  This passage ultimately says two things: we are going to feel pain in life and we are going to feel loss, but despite this we will always be able to call to Him and He will always be there to hear our voice.

* ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ *

Let’s Pray: Dear Heavenly Father, ‘thank You’ doesn’t begin to express how appreciative we are of Your love, and of the fact that You hear us at our lowest times.  Not only do You hear us but You step in and help…You intervene and do what is best for us.  Thank You, Father.  In Jesus’ name we pray.  Amen.

Like Be the first one who likes this post!