A man is like a watermelon; you can’t most generally tell how good he is till you thump him.”
–William MacLeod Raine (Crooked Trails and Straight)
“Salt is good; but if the salt has lost its flavor, how shall it be seasoned? It is neither fit for the land nor for the dunghill, but men throw it out. He who has ears to hear, let him hear!”
–Luke 14:34-35 (NKJV)
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Sometimes the distresses of life can unnerve us. That’s one reason why the Lord doesn’t allow us to see tomorrow. We know not what tomorrow may bring, thank the Lord. However, rest assured that when tomorrow becomes today that the Lord is with you. Don’t get bound by the fear of tomorrow. An old Scottish Psalter puts it this way:
“Now save us, Lord, from slavish fear;
No let our hope be firm and strong,
Till thy salvation shall appear
And joy and triumph raise the song.”
Psalm 20 (HCSB) is a great psalm to aid us in getting rid of those fears that might enslave us. This psalm was used on the occasion of David going off to war.
1 – May Yahweh answer you in a day of trouble; may the name of Jacob’s God protect you.
2 – May He send you help from the sanctuary and sustain you from Zion.
3 – May He remember all your offerings and accept your burnt offering. Selah
4 – May He give you what your heart desires and fulfill your whole purpose.
5 – Let us shout for joy at your victory and lift the banner in the name of our God. May Yahweh fulfill all your requests.
6 – Now I know that the Lord gives victory to His anointed; He will answer him from His holy heaven with mighty victories from His right hand.
7 – Some take pride in chariots, and others in horses, but we take pride in the name of Yahweh our God.
8 – They collapse and fall, but we rise and stand firm.
9 – Lord, give victory to the king! May He answer us on the day that we call.
Have you read the first chapter of Job where he gave sacrifices for his children, just in case, they were neglectful. God sees our sacrifices and remembers them. It is also important to understand that He knows the motives behind them, and the heart that gave them. It was customary to give sacrifices before going into battle, “just in case.”
When going to face a foe you should gather as much information about the enemy as you can, about his strength, and never overestimate it. However, it is more important that you do not underestimate the power of the Lord. Raise high your banner, and be ready to add to it. Banners symbolize battles fought and victories won. Going to face the time of trouble, the foe of today, lift high the banner of the Lord and be ready to add another victory to it.
Life has a mission and there are many campaigns that must be fought until the end. Within each of those campaigns there may be several battles–battles that rage, battles of different types. It is the mission that is important and to fulfill the demands of the mission of life we must depend upon the Lord’s help and strength. If we do that we surely cannot fail.
“The life of every man is a diary in which he means to write one story and instead writes another. His saddest hour is when he compares the volume as it is with what he vowed to make it.”
–James Barrie