November 6, 2024

This Week…Psalms 139:11 and 12

SeekingHimLogo

 If I say, “Surely the darkness will hide me
    and the light become night around me,”
even the darkness will not be dark to you;
    the night will shine like the day,
    for darkness is as light to you.

Psalms 139:11 and 12

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This week, here on the Seeking Him devotional blog, we have continued along in our series on this this wonderful psalm, Psalm 139. Our devotional writers have reminded us that even when we ‘are in the dark’, God still sees us.  Here are a few of their thoughts….

In God Sees, Tina wrote about the fears we all have concerning our sins…

We all have that secret sin...you know…the one that, if someone discovers it, we feel they will never love or respect us again.  As believers we can be truly terrified of being found out.  But what if what we thought was a horrific secret wasn’t so bad after all?  What if  all we had to do was confess it to God and ask Him for help us to overcome it?

You see the evil one has a way of playing with our minds.  He makes us think we can’t change.  He makes us think that life is hopeless.  But it is not hopeless.  God created us and He has a vision, a purpose for us.

In God Sees All, Ann reminded us that it is just not possible to hide anything from God….

Our God sees everything and we cannot hide anything from him. He is omnipresence and omniscient (all-knowing).  Indeed darkness and light are all His—He created them.  He is the one who separated darkness and light (Genesis 1).

The good and the bad things we do are bare in the eyes of God.  Therefore whatsoever we do, let us be Christ-conscious not man-conscious.

If I Say, Surely the Darkness will Cover Me

SeekingHimLogo

 If I say, “Surely the darkness will hide me
    and the light become night around me,”
even the darkness will not be dark to you;
    the night will shine like the day,
    for darkness is as light to you.

Psalms 139:11 and 12

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Click this link to listen to a beautiful rendition of this passage.

The Verses Project
written by Gatlin Elms

 

 

 

 

God Sees All

SeekingHimLogo
If I say surely the darkness shall cover me
even the night shall be light about me.

Yea the darkness hideth not from Thee
but the night shineth as the day
the darkness and the light are both alike to Thee.
Psalms 139:11-12

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Our God sees everything and we cannot hide anything from him. He is omnipresence and omniscient (all-knowing).  Indeed darkness and light are all His—He created them.  He is the one who separated darkness and light (Genesis 1).

The good and the bad things we do are bare in the eyes of God.  Therefore whatsoever we do, let us be Christ-conscious not man-conscious.

He who conceals his sins does not prosper
but whosoever confesses and renounces them finds mercy.
Proverbs 28:13

Then the man and wife heard the sound of the Lord God
as He was walking in the garden in the cool of the day
and they hid from the Lord God among the trees of the garden.
Genesis 3:8

We cannot hide from God. We are all bare in His sight.

Woe to those who go to great depths to hide their plans from the Lord
who do their work in darkness
and think, Who sees us? Who will know?
Isaiah 29:15

God is always everywhere; and so hiding ourselves is impossible. (See  Isaiah 30:1).

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Dear Lord, forgive us our sins for any time we do not involve You in our lives. When we do that we have failed, Lord, because You are not with us.  Teach us today to involve You in any plan we have and help us fear You more than anything else.  May we be Christ-conscious and not man-conscious.  In Jesus’ name, I pray.  Amen.

God Sees

SeekingHimLogo

 If I say, “Surely the darkness will hide me
    and the light become night around me,”
even the darkness will not be dark to you;
    the night will shine like the day,
    for darkness is as light to you.

Psalms 139:11 and 12

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We all have that secret sin...you know…the one that, if someone discovers it, we feel they will never love or respect us again.  As believers we can be truly terrified of being found out.  But what if what we thought was a horrific secret wasn’t so bad after all?  What if  all we had to do was confess it to God and ask Him for help us to overcome it?

You see the evil one has a way of playing with our minds.  He makes us think we can’t change.  He makes us think that life is hopeless.  But it is not hopeless.  God created us and He has a vision, a purpose for us.  We need to have the faith to find it, to search for it.

Sometimes we need help along the way.  A person we can work through our thoughts with and verify what we find about ourselves in Scripture.  Always look for a Christian therapist or a friend who has come through similar circumstances.  They will have insights and certain helps for us to help us  walk through our journey to a whole life.

As in the Old Testament when the two prostitutes brought the baby to King Solomon, he used the wisdom God endowed him with to discern the truth (see 1 Kings 3:16-28).  How many of us would have thought to threaten to cut an infant in half to see which mother would beg for the child’s life?

As we struggle with our humanness and our inability to always follow God with our whole heart we must remember—He knows our heart. He knows we want to serve Him and love Him just as He loves us.

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Father, help us work on our trust in You.  Help us to know Your love is unconditional.  Thank You for the opportunity to live for You.  Give us a passion to see past our sins knowing that You have so much more for us.  Let us strive for Your goodness and mercy in all that we do, and to bring the strongholds to You so together we can defeat them.  In Jesus’ name, amen!

You are with me in the darkness

SeekingHimLogo

 If I say, “Surely the darkness will hide me
    and the light become night around me,”
even the darkness will not be dark to You;
    the night will shine like the day,
    for darkness is as light to You.

Psalms 139:11 and 12

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Dear Lord, how grateful we are to know this Truth that even the darkness is not dark to You!  Even before time, when You spoke into being the earth and the stars, there was darkness…but not to You!  Truly You separated the dark from the light and spoke into being day and night!  You are the Almighty, the all-powerful, the Everlasting God.  You and only You could do this!  And we are so awestruck and amazed!  May we hold this Truth in our minds and hearts when we are tempted to think we can be separated from You by the darkness of this world…that darkness is as light to You!  You are our Great God, the Creator…we love You and adore You!  And praise You praying in Jesus’ name.  Amen.

Charles Spurgeon penned the following prayer…
“If I say, Surely the darkness shall cover me.
Dense darkness may oppress me, but it cannot shut me out from thee, or thee from me. Thou seest as well without the light as with it, since thou art not dependent upon light which is thine own creature, for the full exercise of thy perceptions. Moreover, thou art present with me whatever may be the hour; and being present you discover all that I think, or feel, or do. Men are still so foolish as to prefer night and darkness for their evil deeds; but so impossible is it for anything to be hidden from the Lord that they might just as well transgress in broad daylight.

Darkness and light in this agree;
Great God, they’re both alike to thee.
Thine hand can pierce thy foes as soon
Through midnight shades as blazing noon.”

(quoted from Charles Spurgeon, Treasury of David)

You Are Light in the Darkness

SeekingHimLogo

 If I say, “Surely the darkness will hide me
    and the light become night around me,”
even the darkness will not be dark to you;
    the night will shine like the day,
    for darkness is as light to you.

Psalms 139:11 and 12

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All Sons and Daughters
written by Jason Ingram, David Leonard, Leslie Jordan
You give life, You are love
You bring light to the darkness
You give hope, You restore
Every heart that is broken

Great are You, Lord

It’s Your breath in our lungs
So we pour out our praise
We pour out our praise
It’s Your breath in our lungs
So we pour out our praise
To You only

You give life, You are love
You bring light to the darkness
You give hope, You restore
Every heart that is broken
Great are You, Lord

It’s Your breath in our lungs
So we pour out our praise
We pour out our praise
It’s Your breath in our lungs
So we pour out our praise
To You only

All the earth will shout
Your praise
Our hearts will cry
These bones will sing
Great are You, Lord

This Week…Psalms 139:7-10

SeekingHimLogo

Where can I go from Your Spirit?
Or where can I flee from Your presence?
If I ascend into heaven, You are there;
If I make my bed in hell, behold, You are there.
If I take the wings of the morning,
And dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea,
Even there Your hand shall lead me,
And Your right hand shall hold me.
Psalms 139:7-10

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This week, here on the Seeking Him devotional blog, we have been reminded of the Truth that we are always in our wonderful God’s hand.  Our devotional writers have shared this understanding with us in the devotions that they have written.  Here are a few of their thoughts….

In Divine Presence, Ann wrote about the comfort of knowing we are always in His care….

“A child of God can never move beyond God’s care, guidance, and supporting strength.  He is with us in all situations in whatever the present and the future brings.

‘Can anyone hide in secret places so that I cannot see him?’ declares the Lord.
‘Do not I fill heaven and earth?’ declares the Lord.
Jeremiah 23:24

His Divine Presence shows us the following:

• with God’s presence we are assured of being protected, strengthened, and well taken care of
• fullness of Joy
• we need to have the fear of the Lord

In Hold Fast, Tina shared by the example of the Apostle Paul how God’s hand holds us, guides us, leads us….

“God had plans for Paul.  We may not see what our path is, but God does. Being trained by the best rabbi and becoming a Pharisee, Paul would know how to explain the plan of salvation in easy, simple terms, or be able to speak for hours defended why Jesus is the fulfillment of these scriptures. I mean, who else is God going to tell (as he did to Ananias):

But the Lord said to Ananias,
‘Go! This man is my chosen instrument
to proclaim My name to the Gentiles and their kings
and to the people of Israel.
I will show him how much he must suffer for My name.’
Acts 9:15-16

Can we be used in this way?  Yes, we can.  All we have to be is willing subjects to go and preach the Word, teach where we can, and spread the good news to all people as God opens those doors.  Who will answer the call?  Pray, seek, learn…and God will use you for His purpose.”

Divine Presence

SeekingHimLogo

Where can I go from Your Spirit?
Or where can I flee from Your presence?
If I ascend into heaven, You are there;
If I make my bed in hell, behold, You are there.
If I take the wings of the morning,
And dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea,
Even there Your hand shall lead me,
And Your right hand shall hold me.
Psalms 139:7-10

A child of God can never move beyond God’s care, guidance, and supporting strength.  He is with us in all situations in whatever the present and the future brings.

Can anyone hide in secret places so that I cannot see him? Declares the Lord.
“Do not I fill heaven and earth?’ declares the Lord.
Jeremiah 23:24

His Divine Presence shows us the following:

• with God’s presence we are assured of being protected, strengthened, and well taken care of
• fullness of Joy
• we need to have the fear of the Lord

Should you not fear me? declares the LORD.
Should you not tremble in My presence?
I made the sand a boundary for the sea, an everlasting barrier it cannot cross.
The waves may roll, but they cannot prevail; they may roar, but they cannot cross it.
Jeremiah 5:22

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom (Psalm 111:10; Proverbs 1:7, 9:10).  Therefore we need to fear the Lord and not just do our own things in our own ways—for that is sin.  In as much as we cannot hide anything from God let us train ourselves to live a holy life which is pleasing unto God.  Hate sin and do good always.  Bearing in mind that all things are open in His sight.  Do not steal because you are alone by yourself…remember the One Who is invisible.  May the good Lord help us remain faithful in His sight in the mighty name of Jesus.

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Dear Lord, I thank You for You are the great God, the I AM WHO I AM, always present.  We give You all the praise and glory for what You have spoken to us through Your Word.  Thank You that You gave us another chance to make amends with You knowing that You are omnipresent God.  Forgive us for making You too small in our lives and living our lives pleasing ourselves alone not knowing we are grieving You.  Lord, forgive us and create in us a clean heart.  As we are starting all over, give us the grace to realize You are an ever-present God.  In Jesus’ name I pray.  Amen.

Hold Fast

SeekingHimLogo

Where can I go from Your Spirit?
    Where can I flee from Your presence?
If I go up to the heavens, You are there;
    if I make my bed in the depths, You are there.
If I rise on the wings of the dawn,
    if I settle on the far side of the sea,
even there Your hand will guide me,
    Your right hand will hold me fast.
Psalms 139:7-10

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Hold me fast.  Imagine God’s hand sticking firmly to us…no matter where we are, where we go or how far we run; once we are His, God will never leave our side.  And, my friend, this is how God intends all of His relationships to be.

In days of old, where you were born is where you typically stayed.  Perhaps you grew up in a small rural area, were educated there, and you were expected to go to work where your father worked or do the same things your mother did.  Kind of like Paul of Tarsus…Paul was born into the tribe of Benjamin.  The family’s trade was tentmaking so Paul would have to learn from his father, and he had the privilege of being chosen by Gamaliel, a famous rabbi, from whom Paul learned a great many things.

God had plans for Paul.  We may not see what our path is, but God does. Being trained by the best rabbi and becoming a Pharisee, Paul would know how to explain the plan of salvation in easy, simple terms, or be able to speak for hours defended why Jesus is the fulfillment of these scriptures. I mean, who else is God going to tell (as he did to Ananias):

But the Lord said to Ananias,
“Go! This man is my chosen instrument
to proclaim My name to the Gentiles and their kings
and to the people of Israel.
I will show him how much he must suffer for My name.”
Acts 9:15-16

Can we be used in this way?  Yes, we can.  All we have to be is willing subjects to go and preach the Word, teach where we can, and spread the good news to all people as God opens those doors.  Who will answer the call?  Pray, seek, learn…and God will use you for His purpose.

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Father, thank You for Your Word, inspired by the Holy Spirit to be written and shared by all who read and are blessed to understand.  For those who hear, let it enter their hearts to stay.  For those who do, laboring in your fields, planting, watering, and harvesting.  You give talents to each of us.  Let us use them to bring Your kingdom home.  Let Your kingdom come, Lord, let it come!  In Jesus’ name,  Amen!!

Draw Me Into Your Presence

SeekingHimLogo

Where can I go from Your Spirit?
Where can I flee from Your presence?
If I go up to the heavens, You are there;
if I make my bed in the depths, You are there.
If I rise on the wings of the dawn,
if I settle on the far side of the sea,
even there Your hand will guide me,
Your right hand will hold me fast.
Psalms 139:7-10

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Maranatha Singers
written by Teresa Muller
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Draw me into Your presence
Draw me into Your presence
Draw me into Your presence
I want to know You

For there’s life in Your presence
There is life in Your presence
There is life in Your presence
I want to know You

Where else could I go
Where else could I hide
For only in Your presence, Lord
Can I find peace of mind