“Be still and know that I am God.” (Psalm 46:10)  Sometimes it’s hard to be still when it feels like the sky is falling all around.  Ironically we are created to do whatever it takes to survive yet everything that it takes to survive is knowing God.

O’ how desperately we need to know God’s personality in the midst of trials.  Moses desperately needed to know too.  He begged God, “Show me Your Face!”  The Lord did something better though, He showed Moses His Personality.  He revealed who He was at the core of His being, His heart.

“And the Lord passed before him [Moses] and proclaimed, “The lord, the Lord God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abounding in goodness and truth.”  (Exodus 34:6)

What is the one thing you know about God that can keep you still in the storm?  For me, the one thing I know about God that quiets my soul is that He loved the world so much that He gave His only begotten Son so that we won’t perish but have everlasting life.

Jesus loves me is the greatest theological truth about God that I know.  There is so much of His personality still to be discovered, however, I can be still in the storm because I have heard the sound of God’s lovingkindness.

Jesus loves me this I know
For the bible tells me so
Little ones to Him belong
They are weak but He is strong.

Yes Jesus loves me
Yes Jesus loves me
Yes Jesus loves me
The bible tells me so.

“Therefore my spirit is overwhelmed within me; my heart within me is distressed. I remember the days of old; I meditate on all Your works; I muse on the work of Your hands.” (Psalm 143:4-5)

Here we find that David is overwhelmed and distressed and does three things to help him cope and I believe they will help us too.

1 – He remembered the days of old. Instead of focusing on his current circumstances he reminds himself of the former times and how God has delivered His children from distress in the past.

2 – He meditated on all God’s works. The works of God’s creation, the works of God’s miracles, the manifested examples of His grace and love.

3- He “mused” on these works. The Hebrew word for “mused” here means: to bring forth, produce, speak, complain, ponder, and sing. David probably talked of the works of God’s hands with his friends, he may have even talked to himself lol. We know that he sang songs.

“…whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things.” (Philippians 4:8)

Depending on your distress it may not be easy to find something good or lovely to think on. But there is always something good to think on when we look at the cross. As we think on (remember, meditate, and muse) on the cross of Christ I pray we find comfort not just in WHAT He did but WHY He did it.

He loves us and although we must go through distressful times we are not alone, we are not forsaken and He will never let us go. Amen and Amen.

“Now there was leaning on Jesus’ bosom one of His disciples, whom Jesus loved.” (John 13:23)

Have you ever wondered why John’s Gospel is so different from Matthew, Mark, and Luke’s?  I believe it’s because you see things differently when you hear the heart beat of God.

In this month’s Manna, The Sound of Lovingkindness, I suggested that God’s mercy is a “sound” that we can here.  This is because the Hebrew word for “mercy racham comes from a root which has the meaning of: love deeply, have mercy, have tender affection, and be to compassionate.  Yet, in Scripture, it also means womb.

A child growing in his or her mother’s womb can hear the parent’s heart beat.  Twenty-four/seven the sound of the mother’s heart beat creates a steady rhythm of love in the unborn baby’s ears.

Can you see now why John’s writings are so unique?  He knew that Jesus loved him.  He heard the heart beat of God.  What does God’s heart beat sound like to you?  Does it sound angry or disappointed because of your failures or does it sound like the Hebrew word racham and sound compassionate and tender?

Let us hear what Scripture says in Romans 5:8; “But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”  Before we had a chance to say “I’m sorry” to God, before we had the change to change, God revealed His deep love for us.

Listen to God’s heart beat.  Listen to the rhythm of His love.  May it be a sweet sound in your ear.  Amen and Amen.

“A Psalm of David. Hear my prayer, O LORD, Give ear to my supplications! In Your faithfulness answer me, And in Your righteousness.  Do not enter into judgment with Your servant, For in Your sight no one living is righteous.” (Psalm 143:1-2)

In this month’s Manna, “The Sound of Lovingkindness”, we looked at only one verse of  Psalm 143.  Therefore, I thought it would be fun to look at the rest of it throughout the month as we meditate on the sound of God’s lovingkindness.

As we read this Psalm we find David, once again, in a critical place in life and crying out to the Lord.  David reveals the reasons he believes God is going to answer his prayer.  What’s cool to me today is that these two things are found in the very nature of God Himself.  He is faithful and He is righteous.  Instead of leaning on any understanding of a promise that he had David leaned on the personality of God and asked Him to be faithful and true to His promise.

Notice his humble heart in verse two.  He’s not claiming perfection and pleading an answer based on that.  Instead, David identifies himself as a servant of a God who he knew was faithful to word.

Friends, Hebrews 4:16 encourages us to, “come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.”  Believing in His faithfulness and love may we, like David cry out, “Hear my prayer, O LORD, Give ear to my supplications and in Your faithfulness answer me.”  Amen and Amen.

This month’s Manna is a beautiful revelation of the Hebrew word for lovingkindness.  It’s also a prayer.  We pray it’s a blessing to you.

Click here to read “The Sound of Lovingkindness”

Always remember, Your view of Jesus will determine your relationship to Him.

“I have heard of You by the hearing of the ear, But now my eye sees You.  Therefore I abhor myself, And repent in dust and ashes.” (Job 42:5-6)

Nothing takes the place of knowing God personally and “seeing” Him with your own spiritual eyes.  You see, our view of God determines our relationship with Him.

In this passage, Job confesses that he had heard of God, but as of yet, had not seen Him with his own eyes.  Unfortunately this secondhand knowledge of God had limited his view of God and left Job hurt and confused by his circumstances.

Thankfully, in a seemingly harsh conversation, God revealed Himself to Job.  He didn’t give Job the answers he sought as to why he was suffering however, what God gave him was more important.  God gave Job a clear view of His Sovereignty that would forever change Job and his relationship with the Lord.

Perhaps you need a clear view of God today too?  If so please pray with me:

Reveal Yourself to us Lord we pray.  Cause our eyes to see that You are Sovereign in our storm.  In Jesus name we pray.  Amen and Amen.

One day our tears will be wiped away.  Until then let’s hang on to Jesus and our faith in Him.  Amen and Amen.