4-19-2019

Good Morning All,

      Psalm 23:4; “Even though I walk through the dark valley of death, because you are with me, I fear no harm.  Your rod and your staff give me courage.”

    Did you ever watch a scary movie or read a scary book when you were a child?  How did it go?  I remember the first couple of times I watched a scary movie; it was a Vincent Price one and I didn’t turn the lights off for two nights.  Every noise made me jump.  It is funny how the night makes our fears alive.  Here, in the wintertime, a forced air furnace house will creak and crack each time the furnace kicks on.  During the daytime, we hardly notice, but at night; it sounds like footsteps in the hall: it could be an axe murderer!!

     The night always brings about our greatest fears.  The sounds we hear but we don’t know what made them; we can’t see them and make us wonder what is out there.  This is part of the reason why the Bible always equates God with light and the devil with darkness.  It is an analogy which we readily understand.  We can get lost in the dark, very easily, and the darkness heightens our sense of loneliness.  It is at night that we often struggle the most.

     It is at night that the “worries” strike with a vengeance.  How do we pay all these bills?  Why is my child suddenly struggling in school?  How do we fix the car right now?  What will I do if we don’t get any more moisture this year than last?  Why doesn’t my spouse love me like they used to?  My health, my parents’ health, my spouses’ health just isn’t what it should be.  When the “worries” start, especially at night, the devil and our old sinful nature loves to attack. 

     One thing about the devil, he knows no mercy nor does he ever show any.  He sticks the knife in, twists it about, pours salt on the wound and then he starts all over again.  This is what the Psalmist was experiencing when he wrote our verse.  He knew fear, fear of being killed.  He had enemies all around him.  It was a scary situation.  He was outnumbered and facing suffering.  But he knew where to go for help; he knew God.

     God is here to rescue you as well.  He comes to you in his Word and he listens to you in your prayers.  The Spirit will cause us to remember all the things which Jesus said to us.  This is part of the reason why reading the Bible regularly is so helpful.  The Holy Spirit uses those special passages to bring us comfort and to remind us of where our hope comes from.  God encourages us to pray so that we can express our fears and our desires.  So, when we face those nights or days filled with the “worries” take a few minutes and yearn for God in the night.  Look to him for your comfort and hope; don’t look to yourself or any other worldly support.  Any other support will only fail.  Only God, whose love and mercy exceeds our every need can keep us safe and give us peace.

Dear Father, we yearn for your Holy Spirit to comfort us and give us peace.  Keep us secure in your arms and give to us your peaceful rest which only you can deliver.  In Jesus’ precious name we pray.  Amen

God’s Peace,

Pastor Bret