Author Archives: Maggie

Response – Psalm 116

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So what is our response to God in our lives, giving us by his mercy the ability to breathe, to love, to long? What is our response to a God who has provided a way of salvation and freedom from our sins? 

What is our response to a God who considers being with us as “precious?”

O LORD, I am your servant;
I am your servant, the son of your maidservant.
You have loosed my bonds.

I offer to you the sacrifice of thanksgiving
And call on the name of the LORD.
I will pay my vows to the LORD in the presence of all his people,
In the courts of the house of the LORD,
In our midst, O Jerusalem.
Praise the LORD!

For myself, I cannot help but bow in submission, in humility, for what he has done in my life. I’m still trying to wrap my head around his love, and I’m sure I never will. He has loosed my bonds to sin, creating in me a new person. I owe him my self, my being, and as a person redeemed, I owe him my service.

I think of Psalm 123:2 – Behold, as the eyes of servants look to the hand of their master, as the eyes of a maid to the hand of her mistress, so our eyes look to the Lord our God, until He is gracious to us.

I also offer thanksgiving and faithfulness. I think of being faithful to my integrity, the things I feel deeply about that make me who I am and connect me with who God made me.  

And I think of doing it publicly. I know a lot of people think “religion” is personal. They are afraid of the “show” or hypocrisy. Maybe they are afraid of being judged by others as too religious or not enough. But this isn’t a competition, and there should not be judging. Each person stands on their own before God. He is the one who sees Christ within us. 

I feel it is important to go public with our faith. We are the “witness” others see God. I’m past the point of speaking in public, so my little blog is my public platform. It gets my faith from secret thoughts to where it belongs, on the forum of the world. I think of the childhood song, This Little Light of Mine, and it’s empathic, “Hide it under a bushel? No!”

So I’m going to say the words God gives me until that “precious” moment in his sight.

In the meantime, keep reading…

Precious – Psalm 116

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Precious in the sight of the LORD
Is the death of his saints.

What a mystery! How can death be “precious?”

But somehow it is. I claim this verse at funerals. I can’t say I understand it, but I claim it.

In God’s perspective, the moment of separation for us from our loved one that hurts so much, is the moment of sweet reunion for God.

After all, he created us to be in fellowship with him, walking in the garden, created in his image, being a part of himself and his joyous creation. But that was ruined by sin, and ever since then, has put us in two worlds. 

Jesus unites us by giving us the Holy Spirit, our comforter. But there is still continual sin we contend with daily. We will not be one with God, able to truly walk with him in freedom and light, until we shed this earthly body.

But dying means separation from mankind, from friends and family, from all we have known here on earth. It means letting go of the only community we know, the only love we know, flawed as it might be. It means letting go of our life work, our passions, our possessions, of what remains undone. It means letting go of what we have done right and wrong, with no ability to improve or correct.

Dying, from a human side, is awful. There is no hope. No redemption. Game over.

Dying from a spiritual side is amazing, mystifying… 

All sin is removed as far as the East from the West. No more separation from God, our creator. No more pain or tears or fear. Freedom like Adam had in the Garden of Eden. Such close fellowship with the Godhead, three in one, that we will never long for the idols, the imitations, we made in human life.

That’s from our side, but think of his… since creation, since your creation, God has been longing for you to come home to him. He’s walked with you daily. He’s seen your successes and failures.  In his grace, he’s given you strength to fulfill passions, and in his discipline, he’s given you correction when you needed it. All of it was with the day in mind he knew was coming, planned so carefully, so purposefully, when he would hold you in his arms as one of his sheep, that he was there for you every minute of your life.

And on that day, in the midst of that reunion, he calls it “precious.”

I can’t help but think of a new father holding his baby for the first time. Precious. Unbelievable. Full of awe. So many emotions. What was separated is together, with a future of life together. The pain is over; there is new life. What was created and hidden is now with its maker. It is “right” but more than right, it is “precious.” 

God considers, God feels, the moment of my reunion with him as “precious.”

Mercy – Psalms 116

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Years ago I wrote a poem about the “edge” of death, literally, in my cancer journey. Psalm 116 has been a mainstay in my perspective and echos the Psalmist feelings as he peers over the edge and as I continue to cry out to the Lord..

I love the LORD, because he has heard
My voice and pleas for mercy.
Because he inclined his ear to me,
Therefore I will call on him as long as I live.

I have a perspective on life I did not have before the cancer journey. Why he would be sparing me and not others, I don’t understand. It is pure mercy.

And because of that mercy, I know each day, each week, each month, each year is a gift for me to give back to him.

The snares of death emcompassed me;
the pangs of Sheol laid hold on me;
I suffered distress and anguish.
Then I called on the name of the LORD:
“O Lord, I pray, deliver my soul!”

 Let me say, this journey has not been a walk in the park. I suffer physical pain, especially with each broken bone and/or surgery. And the emotional side of wondering if each holiday, each visit with family and friends, is difficult. It’s even harder with each sin, wrongdoing, that injures myself or others. So I call on the Lord to free my soul so that I can live rightly in the health and freedom he has given me for today. Because…

Gracious is the LORD, and righteous;
Our God is merciful.
When I was brought low, he saved me.
Return, O my soul, to your rest;
For the Lord has dealt bountifully with you.

I don’t know why I am here when so many others have gone before me. I can only believe it’s because of his mercy, his vision for my life. It’s certainly not because I deserve more than others, am more talented, am more valuable. I am the “simple” who has been brought low. And my rest, my only rest, is in him.

For you have delivered my soul from death, 
My eyes from tears, my feet from stumbling.
I will walk before the LORD in the land of the living.

The chapter goes on, which may be for another day, but I can’t help but camp on the last statement as my mantra. Each time he gives me a new day, each time he delivers me from what is to come, from pain, from fear, I claim from him the strength to…

Walk before the LORD in the land of the living.

Valiant Living – Psalm 108

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My heart is steadfast, O God!
I will sing and make melody with all my being!

Psalm 108 is another Psalm with lots of questions and exclamations. It starts with the claim, “My heart is steadfast.”

Oh, don’t I wish?

I’m much more like James, “for the one that doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind.” (1:6) 

A steadfast heart holds tightly to the Lord.  It’s not meandering around, looking for its own solutions, trusting in others for salvation.

Right now we’re under a hurricane watch. We’ve been up and down the last week with each update of where it is headed, how strong winds will be, evacuation or no evacuation, on and on. It’s barely replaced the Covid updates of where it is headed, how devastating the numbers will be, flee or don’t flee, on and on. And then there are all the politics of an election year…don’t get me started! 

I told a friend I think my “panic button” is broken! 

What I need is a steadfast heart holding tightly to the Lord through the storms of life.

I’ll be grateful when the hurricane is over. And I’ll be grateful for a Covid vaccine.  I’ll really be grateful when the election is over. But in all cases it’s the knowledge of who is fighting for our salvation that steadies us. God may enable man to predict the storm, but he is helpless to stop it. God may enable doctors to develop a vaccine, but we should never replace God with the superiority of man or any government. 

Oh grant us help against the foe
For vain is the salvation of man!
With God we will do valiantly;
It is he who will tread down our foes.

Valiant living – what a concept!

Sum of “Some” – Psalm 107

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Oh give thanks to the LORD, for he is good,
For his steadfast love endures forever!
Let the redeemed of the LORD say so
Whom he has redeemed from trouble…(v1-2)

How do you digest a long Psalm like Psalm 107?

Thankfully, the Psalmist helps us, first with his beginning. It’s the motivation for him to write the Psalm as well as our introduction to the Psalm. And it’s his conclusion wrapped up in the introduction — it’s God’s steadfast love that redeems us!

And how do we get in trouble?

Some wandered into desert wastes,
Finding no way to a city to dwell in; (v4)

Mankind was not made to live in isolation, physically or emotionally. We need others in our lives.

What does God do?

For he satisfies the longing soul, 
and the hungry soul he fills with good things. (v9) 

How else are we in trouble?

Some sat in darkness and in the shadow of death,
Prisoners in affliction and in irons,
For the rebelled against the words of God 
and spurned the counsel of the Most High. (v10-11)

Some of us are caught in darkness brought on by rebellion, resulting in punishment as society rejects what we have done.

What does God do?

He delivered from their distress.
He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death,
And burst their bonds apart. (v14b-15)

And what other kinds of trouble needs redemption?

Some were fools through their sinful ways,
And because of their iniquities suffered affliction. (v17)

And some of us are suffering the results of our sin that we have gotten away with – you know, those little ones like gluttony, alcoholism, hatred, lust and so on which eat us up from the middle out.

He sent out his word and healed them, 
And delivered them from their destruction. (v20)

And how about one more “some” that really hits home?

Some went down to the sea in ships,
Doing business on the great waters; (v23)

All of us who are trying to gather wealth on our own, going up and down with the stock markets, watching our retirement funds dwindle, this is for us…

He delivered them from their distress.
He made the storm be still,
And the waves of the sea were hushed.
Then they were glad that the waters were quiet,
And he brought them to their desired haven. (v28b-30) 

The sum of “some” equals all of us. We have all sinned. We need to call on his name. We need his redemption.

Whoever is wise, let him attend to these things;
Let them consider the steadfast love of the LORD. (v43) 

Today – Psalm 95

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For he is our God
and we are the people of his pasture
and the sheep of his hand.

Today,
if you hear his voice,
do not harden your hearts as at Meribah,
as on the at Massah in the wilderness. (7-8)

What a contrast! Sheep munching in pasture or hard hearts wandering in a wilderness.

We have a choice to make.

It’s not “if” he is God – he is God. We can claim science and believe theories, but that does not negate his existence. 

And it’s not “if” he is only the God of the universe – he is our God. He created us with a God awareness, a spirit, other animals do not have. He created us in his image.

And it’s not “if” we are the people of his pasture. He created earth, a beautiful pasture, for us to live in. It wasn’t our choice to be born on earth. He choose us and set us in an amazing location that fits our needs, our desires.

And it’s not “if” we are the his sheep, of his hand. He not only placed us here, but he holds us here. It’s so very personal. His hand guides, touches us, caresses us, protects us, is all around us.

The choice is “today.”

Today, how am I going to respond to his presence, to what he has given us, where he has placed us, is holding us in his personal and tender presence?

Today, if I hear his voice, how am I going to respond? When I see nature, the ruby red tomato on my tomato plant, am I going to take credit for its brilliance? Am I going to say it got here by evolution?

Today, am I going to harden my heart to the possibility that there is a God? Am I going to harden my heart and refuse to believe he is a personal God? 

The writer of Hebrews pondered the same questions of “Today,” repeating it 3 times (3:7, 15, 4:7). He wanted to make it clear that we have a choice on how we live. And if we don’t respond to all God is and gives to us, we will wander in our minds, hearts and spirits. We will not enter into the state of rest God desires for us.

I need rest from my own wanderings…

Legacy – Psalm 90

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Another word I listen for in reading Psalms is “generations.” Maybe it’s because of my cancer, but women especially have a sense of building character and truth into their children, trusting that goodness, godliness, will go on through their lives.

But men also have a sense of legacy. Often it is in the area of providing for their family. They desire to build empires, or at least possessions, an inheritance to give to their children. They desire to teach their children how to provide for themselves and their families, how to be successful.

Psalms 90 starts out with…

Lord, you have been our dwelling place in all generations.

Days come and days go, each one building on the last, each one uniquely its own. But the Lord is consistent in his character each day. He is our dwelling place, the place we come home to, rest in, rely on. He’s not just home for us, but for all our generations.

I think that’s important to teach our children, that God isn’t who we visit on Sundays, but God is who we rest in daily. 

God is home.

I remember when one of our children wandered from the Lord. They wanted to figure out for themselves where they wanted to place their faith. When we would get together for lunch occasionally, I would ask, “How are you and the Lord doing?”

After months of “Oh, Mom…” replies and getting pushed away, I was surprised one day with a “I really miss him…”

He was missed as a dwelling place, a home, where there was rest, rejuvenation, strength.

Anyway, that was a rabbit trail – what I really wanted to talk about is the last verse…

Let the favor of the Lord our God be upon us,
And establish the work of our hands upon us;
Yes, establish the work of our hands!

There is longing in all of us that what we do will last beyond ourselves; that all the mothering we do will go on in our children’s character; that the firm financial base we build will not be wasted.

So much of what we do doesn’t last. The dishes get dirty. Bills come due. We work and then do it again the next day. Stock markets come and go. Cars break down. People die.

The hope of life is that something will last; something will matter. Maybe it will be our reputation others will remember. Maybe it will be memories our grandchildren have. Maybe it will be something we have written. Maybe it will be something we handmade, or something our children were able to buy, because we gave it to them. 

We’re powerless to make things endure. We are powerless to influence how people remember us once we are gone. 

We only have today.

So we pray to the Lord to make this day meaningful, memorable, to truly “establish the work of our hands.”

A Timeless Question – Psalm 82

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Over and over again, I remember David asking God why he seems to be blessing the unjust. But in Psalm 82, I saw a twist I’ve never seen before.

God asks us why we judge unjustly…

“How long will you judge unjustly and show partiality to the wicked?”

Wow.  In the midst of these turbulent times, it’s quite an indictment. Are we showing partiality? Why? What motivates us? How are we showing partiality? Do we judge unjustly?

He then describes to us a way out…

“Give justice to the weak and fatherless; 
maintain the right of the afflicted and the destitute. 
Rescue the weak and the needy; 
deliver them from the hand of wicked.”

I’ve avoided topics around racial tensions in the US, but this hit me as a slap in the face. It’s not a political issue. It’s a compassion issue. Even more, it’s a justice issue.

Do we dominate poorer communities because they are weaker? Are there “wicked people” who get their strength from overpowering others? Is there a people, a race, who has been afflicted and destitute of their rights of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness? Are they being taken advantage of for personal gain?  

Have I contributed to this injustice? 

What is my responsibility to give justice?

So many questions come out of one pure, timeless, question. Asked over and over again through the centuries. Through every culture. Because every culture has been the same, and it hurts the heart of God. 

 How am I going to respond? What are my answers? What is God asking me to do?

I wish I had more answers. Right now I don’t. I will listen, continue to listen, to God and to others. And I trust God will show me, will show us, what heart change that is needed and what actions need to follow.

Pray with me. 

I Am Excited! Psalm 72

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There have been times when I have questioned the emotions of God – does he feel or is he emotionless, something like “the force” in Star Wars?

When I am reading scripture and come across a question, I mark a “Q” in the margin. Bob Tiede, a friend of ours, talks about “leading with questions” and I’m always fascinated with how Jesus and God’s word often asks questions so that we discover his character. 

Reading through Psalms, I decided to also mark exclamations marks. In a world where we are reprimanded for using them too much on social media and text, they are used all over in Psalms. For example, in Psalm 70, every sentence, every line is marked with an exclamation! 

In Psalm 72, all of the lines are exclamations, except for verses 12-14.

For he delivers the needy when he calls, 
the poor and him who has no helper. 
He has pity on the weak and the needy, 
and saves the lives of the needy. 
From the oppression and violence he redeems their life,
 and precious is their blood in his sight.

In the midst of all of David’s excitement about the Lord, all his power, his might, he changes tone when talking about God’s love and compassion for the needy. It’s as if he looks down from the stars, through all of his amazing creation, and sees…me.

It’s not that he isn’t excited about me. But all that pent up power, all that majesty, would simply be too much for me to bear. Instead, he comes gently, like a shepherd, like the “good shepherd” Jesus, picking me up out of the “oppression and violence” of this world and redeems my life…and even calls me precious.

Amazing…

And I can get really, really, really excited about that!!!

How about you? Remember when he picked you up and called you precious?

And to the Children – Psalm 78

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Psalm 119 is not the only long Psalm. Psalm 78 might be the next longest. But for good reason…

We will not hide them from their children,
but tell to the coming generation the glorious deeds of the Lord,
and his might, and the wonders he has done. (v 4)

So often we keep what God is doing tucked away in our hearts. After all, religion is deeply personal, right? It can divide, and like politics, it’s not polite conversation, at lease my mother taught me. Although now talking about politics has certainly become in vogue no matter what it’s division. So why not our faith?

Especially to our children, and our children’s children. Why should we?

So that they should set their hope in God. (v7)

Otherwise, what are they going to hope in? Science? Social change? Political parties? Money? Pleasure? 

When you are as old as many of us, we know those don’t satisfy. One scientist contradicts the other or new discoveries are made that fit into a “theory” that then become scientific truth. And who created creation, what scientist’s believe in? Scientists create systems that assume there is no god, setting themselves as gods.

Social change? Political parties? We may defund the police, but we still need systems of justice. A new power system always erupts. Money? Pleasure? Living for one’s self? Is that really satisfying? 

David recounts the history of Israel to the children, just as we recount our personal histories to our children. It’s the grace of God, nothing else, that I am still alive. It’s the grace of God we have any money as people have graciously supported our ministry. It’s the grace of God that we are still married after 50 years!

I love David not only tells the good parts, but the bad parts so

…that they should not be like their fathers,
a stubborn and rebellious generation,
a generation whose heart was not steadfast,
whose spirit was not faithful to God.

Have you told your kids, your grandkids, about your sin, your failure, your rebellion? We tend to whitewash the past, lest someone think negatively about us, lose respect. But we know it. And how can our kids know the depth of God’s forgiveness unless they hear about the depth of our sin? 

The rest of the chapter recounts the ups and downs of the Israelites. I’m sure our grands could not sit that long, but we can give them bits and pieces. To me it is summed up in verse 22…

Because they did not believe in God and did not trust his saving power.

Two things are essential: believe in God, trust his saving power.

When we do, life works. When we don’t, it may work for a while, but eventually it implodes.

Let’s tell that to our children…

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