Freedom – LOVE | ACCEPT

Psalm 114 ~ We Ran So Far Away

Tremble, O earth, at the presence of the Lord,

at the presence of the God of Jacob,

who turned the rock into a pool,

the hard rock into springs of water. Ps 114:7-8

The psalmist pours out his worship as he remembers the great work of God in bringing His people out of Egypt. Psalm 114 is brief but wonderfully expressive. He writes of the moment marking the birth of Israel, of the becoming God’s people.

When Israel came out of Egypt, the house of Jacob from a people of foreign tongue,

Judah became God’s sanctuary, Israel his dominion. (vv 1-2)

Do we have an equally exquisite psalm stored up in our hearts for the day we were called out from our previous bondage? In true worship of the Holy Almighty God, you and I as His people should be putting pen to paper and leaving a legacy of thanks for those who come after us. That they may read of our transition from imprisonment to freedom is the greatest motivation we can give to others, imbuing them with hope for their own situation.

Grace and Peace to you..

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Lent Spent with the Psalms, the Waiting

As modern Christians, we can scarcely imagine the cloud of darkness that enveloped the early disciples of the Lord. He had died and been placed behind the stone in the tomb. All hope had gone, at least for today. It was a test for which they were not prepared. It led to a dawn that was beyond anything imaginable.

We will have times of darkness when it seems that God is far away. He is not, but for whatever reason, His plan calls for us to endure. The advantage that we have is our distance in time. We have seen that our Lord rose and walked among us a second time before rising to His rightful throne. This day before Easter is symbolic and ceremonial. We wait and we watch. We do not allow our hearts to sink into despair in our own moments of darkness.

My heart is steadfast, O God, my heart is steadfast;

I will sing and make music.

Awake, my soul!

Awake, harp and lyre!

I will awaken the dawn.

I will praise you, O Lord among the nations;

I will sing of you among the peoples. (Psalm 57:7-9)

Grace and peace to you.

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Lent Spent with the Psalms Day Thirty Nine

But man, despite his riches, does not endure;

he is like the beasts that perish.

This is the fate of those who trust in themselves,

and of their followers, who approve their sayings. (Psalm 49:12)

We will all face death one day. Our choice in life is to wait on that day for the benefit of redemption as though Christ died for nothing but an insurance policy with us as the beneficiary or to be free today.

But God will redeem my life from the grave;

he will surely take me to himself. (v15)

You have been redeemed and set free. Will you walk up out of your self-made tomb? Will you live as a free man or woman in Christ?

Grace and peace to you.

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Lent Spent with the Psalms Day Thirty Eight

Hear, O Lord, and answer me, for I am poor and needy.

Guard my life, for I am devoted to you.

You are my God; save your servant who trusts in you. (Psalm 86:1-2)

The Cross in view and many are still waiting. The Psalmist did not have the Cross in view. He pleaded and prayed and praised and cried out for God to save him. You have the Cross in view and yet many still wait.

For God to save them.

The Cross is in view.

Grace and peace to you.

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Bear Flag Revolt 2009

Though I’ve lived in Colorado for 23 years, I remain a Californio at heart. To see the depths to which the Golden State has sunk is depressing. The once flourishing land of infinite promise which lured seekers for decades has become a moribund captive to the legislative Meerkat band that is systematically destroying the core of the state and whose rapaciousness is matched only by certain especially virulent strains of the plague. California has become divided into roving hordes of special interests who, by the very definition of the term, care nothing for the ideals and desires of the other. As is their privilege, these groups elect the pirates in Sacramento expecting them to remember that the elect are beholden to them. Divisions become deeper, battle lines are drawn, and the order for no retreat is passed along the line.

The 1846 Bear Flag Revolt was an uprising against despotism and oppression, a condition that the current residents can easily identify with. Perhaps its time for a repeat stand against the tyranny of those elected to represent but who take the election as a mandate to rule. A clean house should be restored in Sacramento and perpetual embarrassments on the national stage like Waxman, Boxer, Pelosi, and Feinstein sent home. All of this can be done by people in the same tranquility that marked the first rebellion, by the use of their vote. As the first president of the California Republic, William Ide, said “Choose ye this day what you will be!” Free men and women restoring the luster of the Golden State or servants to the plutocracy.