Ah! So THAT'S Where That's At!

As much as I love Scripture and the study of God’s Word; as much as I have “hidden it in my heart”; as much as I desire to “walk before the Lord in the land of the living”, still, I am not very good at “chapter and verse.”

I know “what” it says - I just may not be able to tell you where to find it. (Thank goodness for “search functions!”)

This week as I come to Psalm 56 in my “weekly study” of the Psalms, once again I find myself saying, “So that’s where that’s at!”

Psalm 56 is titled “A psalm of David, regarding the time the Philistines seized him in Gath.” You remember Gath - that’s where the “Anakim” lived... you know, the big people. Goliath was from Gath…

Several years after David slew Goliath, he was hiding from Saul, and the place that he went to hide was in Gath - talk about jumping out of the fat into the fire! (You can find this story in 1 Samuel 21.) And this Psalm is his cry for deliverance, and his statement of faith.

The first section of the Psalm records David’s cry in which he says, (verse 3) “When I am afraid, I will put my trust in You.”

And then in verse 8 he says, “You keep track of all my sorrows. You have collected all my tears in Your bottle. You have recorded each one in Your book.”

“You have collected all my tears in Your bottle…” This word for “bottle” is not some little ointment bottle, or perfume bottle, but the word for a wineskin; a big bottle. He has them all - every silent whimper, every wail, every body-shaking sob - He has them all!

Last week I gave the message at a funeral for a church member. (See previous post) In it I read the words to the song, “Does Jesus Care?” And we saw that yes, He does!

May He bless and comfort you today.

Does Jesus care when my heart is pained
Too deeply for mirth or song,
As the burdens press, and the cares distress
And the way grows weary and long?

Refrain

Does Jesus care when my way is dark
With a nameless dread and fear?
As the daylight fades into deep night shades,
Does He care enough to be near?

Refrain

Does Jesus care when I’ve tried and failed,
To resist some temptation strong;
When for my deep grief there is no relief,
Though my tears flow all the night long?

Refrain

Does Jesus care when I’ve said “goodbye”
To the dearest on earth to me,
And my sad heart aches till it nearly breaks,
Is it aught to Him? Does He see?

Refrain:
Oh yes, He cares, I know He cares,
His heart is touched with my grief;
When the days are weary,
the long nights dreary,
I know my Savior cares.

Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing

Sometimes I think of the great hymns of faith. We sing them weekly (or is that weakly :-) in our Church services. Do we ever really think about the words we sing? Take for instance the hymn “Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing.” Let us look at the words as they speak to us…

Come!
Oh, Thou overflowing Fountain of every conceivable blessing
Put my heart in tune to sing Your grace;

Your streams of mercy Lord, they are never ceasing - they go on and on…
They call for songs of my loudest praise.

Oh Father, teach me some melodious sonnet,
The kind sung by those flaming tongues of the Saints above.

Praise the mount - Mount Moriah - I’ve fixed my eyes upon it,
It is the Mount, the place, of Your redeeming love.

Here I raise my Ebenezer; - my place of memorial
It is here, by Your great help I’ve come; I could never have come alone…
And I hope, and have faith and believe, that by Your good pleasure,
Safely to arrive at home in heaven.

Jesus sought me when I was a stranger,
when I did not want to be found, He came searching for me.
I was wandering from the fold, the place of safety of God;

And He, in order to rescue me, yes ME! from danger,
Bought me with the payment of His own precious blood.
(That gives me chills just thinking about it!)

Oh to Your Amazing grace, how great a debtor
Daily - every single day - I’m constrained to be!
Let Your goodness,
like a fetter, a binding, a chain of love,
Bind my wandering heart to Thee.

Oh my God, I am so prone to wander, Lord, I feel it; I know it.
I am so prone and apt to leave the God I love.
HERE! Here’s my heart,
Oh God, please take it and seal it,
Seal it for heaven and for Your courts above…

The next time you sing the hymns of the saints - listen to the words…