–Kenneth Pratt  (Return to Willow Falls)

       “Even there Your hand shall lead me, and Your right hand shall hold me.”

                    –Psalm 139:10 (NKJV)
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I heard this song sometime three weeks ago and it continues to flow through my mind.  Since that is the case, it must mean that I need it, and since I do, I reckon someone reading this needs it as well.  Don’t just sing along, which I know you will if you know the song, but contemplate the message.  It’s a great one by Albert E. Brumley.

          “As I travel thru this pilgrim land
          There is a Friend who walks with me,
          Leads me safely thro’ the sinking sand,
          It is the Christ of Calvary;
          This would be by pray’r, dear Lord, each day
          To help me do the best I can,
          For I need Thy light to guide me day and night,
          Blessed Jesus, hold my hand.”

The first thing we should notice is that we are traveling through this land.  We are not wanderers, drifters, but pilgrims.  That means we have a destination in mind, a place where we plan on ending up, homesteading if you will.  No matter the terrain, the Lord is there.  I think of the Malpais in New Mexico.  What a dreaded place, a place where a guide is needed.  I also recall the time I was in the woods and went through a stream and stepped in quicksand.  Oh, blessed Jesus hold my hand and guide me through the malpais of life.  In the sinking sand of morals and corruption around me–guide me.  I’ll do my best, but I need Your help.

          “Let me travel in the light divine
          That I may see the blessed way;
          Keep me that I may be wholly Thine
          And sing redemption’s song some day;
          I will be a soldier brave and true
          And ever firmly take a stand,
          As I onward go and daily meet the foe,
          Blessed Jesus, hold my hand.”

“Thy word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path,” says the words of the Psalmist (Psalm 119:105, NKJV)  In the darkness that looms over us, in the fog of the evil that surrounds us, we can see the “blessed way” because the Holy Spirit uses the word of God to light our way.  When the attacks come, whatever kind they may be, let me stand firmly upon the “Rock of Ages,” the firm foundation, and not quaver nor cower, but rush on to meet the foe.   Right now I smile as I recall the words of that great Sioux chief Sitting Bull, “It is a good day to die.”  This is so much more true for the Christian, for “to die is gain” as Paul said.

          “When I wander thru the valley dim
          Toward the setting of the sun,
          Lead me safely to a land of rest
          If I a crown of life have won;
          I have put my faith in Thee, dear Lord,
          That I may reach the golden strand,
          There’s no other friend on whom I can depend,
          Blessed Jesus, hold my hand.

                    Jesus, hold my hand,
                    I need Thee ev’ry hour,
                    Thru this pilgrim land
                    Protect me by Thy pow’r;
                    Hear my feeble plea,
                    O Lord, look down on me,
                    When I kneel in pray’r I hope to meet you there,
                    Blessed Jesus, hold my hand.”

No matter what season of life, whether is be the exuberance of youth or the endurance of one who has seen the years, we must hold on to the hand of the Lord.  In fact, it is the opposite; He holds our hand.  We may at times in our life struggle against that hand, but He never lets us go.  I remember when I had to pull my kids at one time or another.  It may be because they were being stubborn or simply the fact that they needed help, the fact is that I held onto them.  Jesus does the same to us.  In our journey to that final destination that He has for us, He protects us along the way.  We have faith that He will hold on to us no matter life’s situation, no matter the battle or the storm we rest assured that He is holding onto our hand.

                         –Elmer Kelton  (Jericho’s Road)

       “I lie in the dust, completely discouraged; revive me by your word.”

                         –Psalm 119:25 (NLT)
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I want you to take time to really contemplate and meditate upon the following verses.  Remember, we worship in spirit and in truth.  Truth is reality–reality is your life.  Therefore, we are to worship with our lives–a living sacrifice.

          .7  Truly the light is sweet, and it is pleasant for the eyes to behold the sun;
          .8  But if a man lives many years and rejoices in them all, yet let him remember the days of darkness, for they will be many.  All that is coming is vanity.
          .9  Rejoice, O young man, in your youth, and let your heart cheer you in the days of your youth; walk in the ways of your heart, and in the sight of your eyes; but know that for all these God will bring you into judgment.
        .10  Therefore remove sorrow from your heart, and put away evil from your flesh, for childhood and youth are vanity.
                         –Ecclesiastes 11:7-10 (NKJV)

Life itself, is like a vapor; it passes quickly.  As the old German saying goes, “We get old too soon and smart too late.”  Get on with life, but do it with common sense.  If life is worship, then let the foolishness go.  Remember the Lord in the days of your youth.  
       When it is written, “walk in the ways of your heart,” it does not mean to do your own thing.  It is not an invitation to sin, or to do whatever you think is right.  We need to heed the words of the Psalmist, “Your word I have hidden in my heart, that I might not sin against You.” (Psalm 119:11, NKJV)
       Live life so that when you stand before the Lord you will not have to try to make excuses for your life.  The heart is deceitful, therefore it must have the Word of God etched into it.  Oh, but I want to have fun–you say.  But what is fun?  And I would question, is life supposed to be fun?  Happiness is for now, but it is inseparably linked to the living Lord and how we live for Him.  We are given permission to enjoy life; it is to be there all the years of our life, however…  Perhaps the words of Walter C. Kaiser, Jr. express it better, “Be free from those injuries to the inner man that so quickly cripple the joy of life.”
       In this woke culture that is upon us do not listen to the many voices that cry out from it.   Do not be deceived, God is not mocked, therefore with your life do not mock Him.  Instead, live a life for Him.  Don’t be disillusioned at what you see around you, at what you hear, but at the same time beware of things.  Things that might drag you down.  Never forget that there is a day of accountability–in this life and the one to come.  
       At the same time don’t let life work you over; put aside vexation, “lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us.” (Hebrews 12:1, NKJV)  You know the weight.  You know what vexes you.  In life there are all sorts of weights that we tend to pick up, some lighter than others, but one day, if we don’t cast them aside, they will wear on our inner person, and if we do not repent of them they will follow you on to the day of judgment.  Life is living!  However, “life must be lived with eternity’s values in view.” (Kaiser)

                         –Lou Bradshaw  (Cain…Just Cain)

       “For You are my lamp, O LORD; the LORD shall enlighten my darkness.”

                         –2 Samuel 22:29 (NKJV)
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                    “And we know [with great confidence] that God [who is deeply concerned about us] causes all things to work together [as a plan] for good for those who love God, to those who are called according to His plan and purpose.”
                                        –Romans 8:28 (Amplified)

                    “Moreover we know that to those who love God, who are called according to his plan, everything that happens fits into a pattern for good.”
                                        –Romans 8:28 (Phillips)

The verse above is one of the most quoted in Christian circles.  However, one of the problems is that far too often we do not have the right perspective.  We cannot look at this verse and “claim it” when we are in dire circumstances or when catastrophe has hit.  We must try to see it from God’s perspective, but that is also a problem for now we only have a glimpse, we see through a “glass darkly.”  
       God is infinite, so He sees everything from the beginning to the end.  He is omnipresent, therefore He is already at the conclusion of the matter.  Think for a moment, what that means:  He is in the past, He is in the present, and He is already in the future.  Our little feeble, human minds cannot comprehend the fullness of that.  He is–I AM!–He declared.  He sees the plan, not being fulfilled, but already fulfilled for God is not limited by time.  He transcends time, and one day, time will be no more.
       I wrote all of that to get to my point for the day.  I was reading Sunday night about David with his four hundred men as refugees from Saul.  Verse 3 and 4 of chapter 22, caught my eye.  
 
               “Then David went from there to Mizpah of Moab; and he said to the king of Moab, ‘Please let my father and mother come here with you, till I know what God will do for me.’  So he brought them before the king of Moab, and they dwelt with him all the time that David was in the stronghold.”  (NKJV)

Moab!  It was a hated name.  Distant cousins of the Israelites – they came into existence because of incest.  “Thus both the daughters of Lot were with child by their father.  The firstborn bore a son and called his name Moab…” (Genesis 19:36-37, NKJV)  It was Moab that sought Balaam to curse Israel and eventually was able to get the people of Israel to compromise their standards and marry with the Moabites.  God told Moses, “An Ammonite or Moabite shall not enter the assembly of the Lord; even to the tenth generation none of his descendants shall enter the assembly of the Lord forever.” (Deuteronomy 23:3, NKJV)   Moab, stated through incest, was a thorn to Israel.
       So why did David go to Moab for the safety of his family?   Stop and consider.  Who was David’s great grandmother?  Ruth–a Moabite.  “Now they [Naomi’s sons] took wives of the women of Moab:  the name of the one was Orpah, and the name of the other Ruth.  And they dwelt there [Moab] about ten years.” (Ruth 1:4, NKJV)  The blood of Moab ran through David’s veins.  He knew that and he used it to take his parents to Moab for safety.  
       Go back to the beginning verse of today’s devotion, but be sure to keep in mind the plan of God, not just an incident or circumstance.  From the birth of Moab, until the time of David, God saw that Moab would become a refuge for the parents of David.   Oh, and also remember, that our Lord is a descendant of David–Moabite blood.  Hmmm…  Therefore, do not doubt in your circumstances.  It may not be understood, in fact, not for many years, but God is at work.  Trust Him!

                         –2 Corinthians 3:5 (NKJV)