Are you as close as the birds?

Psalm 84:1–12 (ESV): 

1  How lovely is your dwelling place, 

O Lord of hosts! 

 2  My soul longs, yes, faints 

for the courts of the Lord; 

  my heart and flesh sing for joy 

to the living God. 

 3  Even the sparrow finds a home, 

and the swallow a nest for herself, 

where she may lay her young, 

  at your altars, O Lord of hosts, 

my King and my God. 

 4  Blessed are those who dwell in your house, 

ever singing your praise! Selah 

 5  Blessed are those whose strength is in you, 

in whose heart are the highways to Zion. 

 6  As they go through the Valley of Baca 

they make it a place of springs; 

the early rain also covers it with pools. 

 7  They go from strength to strength; 

each one appears before God in Zion. 

 8  O Lord God of hosts, hear my prayer; 

give ear, O God of Jacob! Selah 

 9  Behold our shield, O God; 

look on the face of your anointed! 

 10  For a day in your courts is better 

than a thousand elsewhere. 

  I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God 

than dwell in the tents of wickedness. 

 11  For the Lord God is a sun and shield; 

the Lord bestows favour and honour. 

  No good thing does he withhold 

from those who walk uprightly. 

 12  O Lord of hosts, 

blessed is the one who trusts in you! 

Even the birds are loved, protected and cared for by God and can make their way as close to God as to His courts and altar. These are inner, intimate spaces and the birds have freedom of access as well as proximity to God. Yet these creatures have no understanding of the significance or privilege it is to be able to enter the temple let alone get so close! Yet they still have permission to enter and abide there. 

As people, those made in His image, God invites us to have the same boldness and freedom to get as close to Him as the birds can. You can not only approach the altar; the place of sacrifice, forgiveness, celebration and gratitude, but you can abide there. You can live from a place of comfort and safety knowing that all your sins are forgiven. They are all dealt with by Almighty God’s sacrifice of His son. You have permission to enter God’s dwelling place and you can get as close as you like, just ike the birds. You can be one of the blessed who not only visit but, ‘dwell in your house, ever singing your praise’! You can live from a place of acknowledging and resting in the sacrifice of Jesus, the freedom, love, security and forgiveness this brings. The power of knowing and dwelling in the truth that Jesus has made a way for you to enter into God’s presence, not just as a one off, but that you can even live in His presence forever, is something that deserves celebrating every day. This truth never changes, and God wishes you to feel welcome and as free as the birds; to come, live and increase in His presence. Come and make your ‘nest’ in the midst of God’s dwelling place, and build your family on the altar for it is a place of protection, certainty and joy. The sacrifice of Jesus provides you with hope and forgiveness, love, security and comfort, what more could you want than the promise of proximity to God for you and your family?

This psalm also talks about the courts of the temple which is the place of community. This is a chance to gather with others, listen to teaching and participate in worship. If you are living acknowledging and appreciating the presence of God in your life, you also have the freedom and the privilege of celebrating, worshipping and gathering with a range of other believers. Not only is it good for you to have an intimate relationship with God as at the altar, but you are also free to build relationships with other believers who learn and teach the scriptures, encourage and provide for one another, eat, sing, praise, pray, play and talk to each other! The courts are as accessible to the birds as the altar, and so you have the opportunity to participate in community. God has given you a home, and He has given you a family of believers with whom you can grow and enjoy life with.

What a joyful privilege it is to be welcomed and free to explore God’s own home like the birds - exploring and resting in His presence. Nowhere else could be as safe, comforting or exciting as that. ‘the Lord bestows favour and honour. No good thing does he withhold from those who walk uprightly’. God will take care of you when you come to Him, you are safe with Him and you won’t lack good things when you live your life close to Him. You cannot know His favour, honour, protection, love or greatness from a distance - it is from the altar and the courts - in His dwelling place that you experience these things in great measure. How close are you to God? and His people? 

‘For a day in your courts is better than a thousand elsewhere.’

Is God's presence enough?

23 A Psalm of David. 

1  The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. 

2  He makes me lie down in green pastures. 

He leads me beside still waters. 

3  He restores my soul. 

He leads me in paths of righteousness 

for his name’s sake. 

4  Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, 

I will fear no evil, 

for you are with me; 

your rod and your staff, 

they comfort me. 

5  You prepare a table before me 

in the presence of my enemies; 

you anoint my head with oil; 

my cup overflows. 

6  Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me 

all the days of my life, 

and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord 

forever. 

This psalm has been very relevant for me personally over the past year. As a family we have been journeying through a great tragedy and when it first happened God gave me a picture. The picture was of me in a dark place. It was dark grey, a place where you couldn’t really see what was going on around you or where you were going, but I saw someone there, a distant figure and I knew it was Jesus. The picture reminded me of this psalm as the place in my mind looked to me like a dark valley. Many times over the past 12 months I have had this image and been reassured of God’s presence during the darkest times. 

I had suddenly found myself walking ‘through the valley of the shadow of death’, unsure of how I had got there and no idea how to get out. Yet in the midst of it God kindly showed me that He was present. He had not left me alone, and as long as I kept looking to Him, He would guide me through. I often recalled this picture and would say to God, “Thank you for being with me, I don’t yet feel your comfort, but I know it will come because you are with me”. This is a promise of this psalm and was the assurance God gave me as I had to endure this season. God did not say it was all going be ok, that it would soon be over, or that there was an escape from this turmoil, but His promise was of His presence and that was enough. Is God’s presence sufficient for you? No matter what storms, trials, adventures, triumphs or celebrations you are going through, are you assured of God's presence? This psalm shows how God is alongside you no matter what season of life you are in; a time of rest, one of provision, healing, suffering, death, direction, temptation, abundance or celebration. No matter your situation, God's 'goodness and mercy' are present. They will always be present because He is with you if you choose to live your life with Him.

Being someone that follows God doesn’t mean that your life life is easy. Read this psalm again if you need proof of that! God doesn't promise that He will sort out all of your problems and the issues of life, but He does assure you of His constant presence and His grace and mercy. Sometimes you will have to walk through valleys that you never expected, and at times you are bathing in the sunshine in fields that you never knew could hold such blessing. You experience both because life has twists and turns. You will make mistakes, you live around people that don’t always get it right and there is an enemy. So be prepared for valleys and darkness to come as well as fields, feasts and green pastures. You are not immune to experiencing trouble if you dedicate your life to following God. Yet you do have a mighty, powerful, loving Father that has always got your back. He will always be there with you in whatever you are experiencing. Sometimes you’ll get hurt, sometimes you’ll know relief, sometimes you’ll know comfort, rest and joy, but always you can know His presence.

If you contemplate the truth of God's never-ending presence and support in your life, then your hope, peace, comfort and confidence in every circumstance will grow. No matter what highs or lows you experience, whether you are in the depths of fear and pain or enjoying abundance and provision, God is there with you. He is always looking out over you, leading you, and helping you. His everlasting love is with you and as you learn to apply that truth, hope, peace and comfort will grow in your life.

Psalm 127 - part 1

As you enter a new year, have you thought about what are you worried about this coming year? Are you concerned for your family? Your community? Your nation? Your life? finances? security? Work? 

Take comfort as you read the following psalm;

127

A Song of Ascents. Of Solomon. 

*1* Unless the Lord builds the house, those who build it labour in vain. Unless the Lord watches over the city, the watchman stays awake in vain. 

*2* It is in vain that you rise up early and go late to rest, eating the bread of anxious toil; for he gives to his beloved sleep. 

If you are starting off the year worried, pause to consider, are you letting God build into your life? Or are you striving under your own power and inspiration? 

‘Unless the Lord builds the house, those who build it labour in vain’. It may be something good or positive that you are trying to build, but is God in it? Is He in command and are you doing the part He wants you to? If not, then you are basically wasting your time. Going round in stressful circles and not achieving much. God wants to be allowed to take the stress, the time frames, the projections, hopes and aspirations and show you what He can do. You don’t need to do it all or try to fix everything. For God knows what will succeed and what will fail, so surely it is a good idea to get His take on things. If you are fed up of your, ‘labour in vain’, then why not invite God into what you are trying to build and see what He can do with it all. As you begin this year, before you make those resolutions, why not take time to consider is it in vain, or is God helping and motivating you? 

It may not be work, finance or making something in life that you’re concerned about, what about safety and security? The same goes for those aspects of life too. God is the best watchman - He doesn’t fall asleep or get distracted. A watchman looks out and spots trouble coming, checking the security and safety of what they have responsibility for. God can be a watchman for you. It doesn’t mean that trouble is going to disappear, but you can rest assured that God is there watching and expecting. Therefore you can rest. You can relax and rest as eventhough you do not know what is going to happen, you can have the assurance that God does and He is ready and waiting. There is no point losing sleep over the things that you are worried about but can do nothing to change, instead ask God to watch over the things that concern you. Having sleepless nights and troubled thoughts is in vain - it doesn’t change anything other than the fact you will be tired and grumpy! How about this year, give yourself a break from stress and worry and hand things over to the faithful watchman who can guide, protect and look after each person that you care  about.

Oh, v2, I am sure many will be living this right now, ‘anxious toil’. Christmas is known as a time when many overspend, and January a time when people regret it. In the world at present it is also a time of financial uncertainty, increased bills, unknown income. A time when people look at their bank balance and wonder how on earth they are going to be at zero at the end of the month let alone have money leftover. Yet here in v2, we are clearly told not to worry and stress about it. We can work ourselves into ‘anxious toil’, trying to burn the candle at both ends just trying to make ends meet, puzzling over the bank balance or working hard to try and earn a bit more, the reality is even then we don’t always manage to make it work. What does working like that achieve? Anxiety, tiredness, stress, sickness; ‘anxious toil’. This verse tells us it is futile. Instead we can know rest and sleep even when we are concerned about work, bills etc.

How? By knowing that you are ‘his beloved’ and He wants to give you a break. If you are one of God’s children, then you are his beloved, and as someone dearly loved and cared for, you can trust that God has got it all in hand. He can give you rest from anxiety and toil when you really trust Him. Know who you are to Him, then that will give you peace and comfort. Your situation may not change, but when you trust God to love you, then you will find rest. Not just sleep, but the rest you need from the stresses and strains of life too. 

These first 2 verses show that there is nothing too big for God. He can handle your dreams, your prospects, your household, family, work life, finances, safety and protection. God can take care of all of it. Are you trusting Him to?

Are you a disciple or part of the crowd?

I have been struck by the above question as I have been reading and pondering on the lives of Daniel, Hananiah, Azariah and Mishael in the book of Daniel. 

From the moment we meet these guys, as teenage boys, exiles in a foreign land, they have demonstrated dedication in being disciples of God. Despite the fact that they had experienced; the loss of their home, culture, lifestyle, family, and traditions, they kept following God. Even when the rest of those exiled with them, and the community surrounding them were doing otherwise. 

These four lads were not the only Jewish boys captured and brought to Babylon to be trained and educated in Babylonian life, there were others. There were other exiles, also in a similar life stage, with equable background, upbringing and lifestyle, yet these four young men continued to stand for the faith they had despite the fact that everything else in their life had change. These four recognised that even if everything else changed, God didn’t. 

They expressed this in the everyday decisions they had to make. In making their own decisions despite what the prevailing culture taught and demonstrated, in spite of what their peers were doing, or what was expected of them. We see this from the very start when they are faced with the array of food offered to them - the very same food that the king ate, and the same wine the king drank. I am sure most of the crowd were kind of excited by this prospect - the opportunity to see and taste foods they never dreamed of, even food that would not be allowed as part of their jewish heritage. As they were no longer in their own country though, did the rules still apply? even more poignant - did they want to follow them anyway as they were away from their religious leaders and their parents? These teenager boys could make their own decisions and exercise the freedom that this exile-life allowed even in the simple matters of what to eat, and who wouldn’t want to eat like a king?!

Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah. They did not want to eat like kings. Well, they probably did, but they chose not to. Why? Because the Law told them that certain foods were unclean and not for eating, and in this Babylonian culture - how could you tell what was what? Which meats are acceptable and which aren’t? So these four dedicated disciples made a radical decision. They chose to avoid meat altogether, they requested to eat only vegetables and drink only water. How many teenagers do you know that would choose that kind of diet?

They did it because they wanted to honour God first. Above their own desires, the expectations and peer pressure. It could not have been easy for them. Can you imagine the taunting? The name calling, the tempting that must have gone on amongst the crowd of lads eating what they liked? 

The crowd were comfortable and content, eating as they liked, amongst their peers doing as expected.  Daniel and his friends were the odd ones out, living sacrificially, surrounded by temptation and teasing. 

Yet, is the aim of life to be comfortable? Is that the aim of yours? The crowd lead us to be satisfied with ourselves and accepting of one another. There’s comradeship, support and guidance. The same is true for the few disciples as well though. The question really is though - where are the crowd or the disciples leading us? 

Disciples lead us to God, the crowd lead us away. 

Jesus tells us the following in Matthew 7:13-14, ‘the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. *14*For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few.’

If you are following the crowd, it may seem comfortable and satisfying, but do you realise that they are the many going through the wide gate to destruction? The few, the disciples, following God are searching for that narrow gate because they know that way they will find life. It is not easy, but isn’t it worth it?

Daniel, Hananiah, Azariah and Mishael sought the narrow way. They did not go along with the crowd, but searched for the narrow way - we can see that throughout the accounts in the book Daniel about how they pressed into God and away from the crowd. They stuck together in their community of believers and followers of God, even through fire, death threats and persecution. The disciples of Jesus did the same.

The 12 disciples of Jesus gave up; businesses, family, lifestyle, riches, security and comfort in order to follow him. They gave up everything in their life to get close to Jesus. They were invited to be up close and personal to God himself and they chose to do it rather than be part of the ever increasing crowd. As a result, they saw; Jesus walk in water, loaves and fishes feeding thousands, demons fleeing and many healings. They saw these things first-hand because they placed themselves in close proximity to Jesus by the everyday decisions they made. The crowd heard of these stories, but they weren’t there when Jesus calmed the storm or walked on water. They didn’t hear first-hand the conversations. The disciples did. Just like in Daniel, the few got to see God in action. 

Where do you want to be? 

Are you content and comfortable in the crowd? Or are you ready and yearning to be a disciple?

It is in the everyday decisions that we can show where we are. In; how you speak to others, who you spend time with, how you manage the school/work resources, how you deal with finances, if you just go along with everyone else just because that is what everyone else is doing. Everyday you get to show where you; in the crowd or amongst the disciples.

Whichever option you choose, there’s a cost. 

Being part of the crowd may be self-satisfying, comfortable and easier, but it leads to estrangement from God and destruction

Being a disciple will mean hardship, being in the minority, estrangement from peers, but closeness to God and life. 

So, what are you going to choose today? Are you part of the crowd or a disciple?