It takes very little to make one comfortable.”
–Louis L’Amour (Under the Sweetwater Rim)
“Then they were glad because they had quiet, and he brought them to their desired haven.”
–Psalm 107:30 (RSV)
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Psalm 131, what a psalm and prayer to begin the month of December with! It speaks of a quiet and calm spirit, a trusting soul, and a simple faith.
1 — LORD, my heart is not haughty, nor my eyes lofty; neither do I concern myself with great matters, nor with things too profound for me.
2 — Surely I have calmed and quieted my soul, like a weaned child with his mother; like a weaned child is my soul within me.
3 — O Israel, hope in the LORD from this time forth and forever. (NKJV)
What a simple pronouncement of faith. It was John Bunyan who said, “Hope is never ill when faith is well.” If our hope wavers or despairs it is because we are weak in our faith. Perhaps our faith is weak because we hope and put our trust in the wrong things. If that is so, it is idolatry. Listen, there are things that you’re never going to have in life, places you’re never going to go, and dreams that are never going to be fulfilled. The things once thought important are no longer attainable for one reason or another. As David implies in this psalm, let go of things that do not matter, things that hold you down, things that are not really all that important. In other words, get rid of self-centeredness and focus on God.
Focus not on the things that you cannot control, but on God and the things that are under your control. There is a great little prayer that AA use, but it is fitting for all of us. “Lord, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.” David purposes to be still and quiet before God. He waits upon the Lord in calm expectation–He is there. Like a child who has been weaned, he still must depend upon his parents to bring him proper nourishment. He still must trust his parents for everything. As Steven Lawson points out, “This is to be the position of the believer, quietly submissive and trusting in God.”
Lawson writes, “Childlike trust always has an element of hope. As a person trusts in God, a positive confidence in God regarding the future floods his soul.” Our hope is in the Lord, that must also be where our faith rests. The foundation of faith and hope is found in Romans 8:28, “And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.” (NKJV) I recall the words of the grand old hymn:
“My hope is built on nothing less, than Jesus’ blood and righteousness;
I dare not trust the sweetest frame, but wholly lean on Jesus’ name.”
–Edward Mote
Our contentment is not in circumstances or material goods, or gain in our career. Our contentment is to be in the Lord. Our hope must be based in Him from this time forth and forever. J. Oswald Sanders said, “There is no conceivable situation in which it is not safe to trust God.” God is always worthy of our full trust.
“He came down to earth from heaven
Who is God and Lord of all,
And his shelter was a stable,
And his cradle was a stall:
With the poor and mean and lowly
Lived on earth, our Savior holy.”
–Cecil Frances Alexander
——————————–
Psalm 131, what a psalm and prayer to begin the month of December with! It speaks of a quiet and calm spirit, a trusting soul, and a simple faith.
1 — LORD, my heart is not haughty, nor my eyes lofty; neither do I concern myself with great matters, nor with things too profound for me.
2 — Surely I have calmed and quieted my soul, like a weaned child with his mother; like a weaned child is my soul within me.
3 — O Israel, hope in the LORD from this time forth and forever. (NKJV)
What a simple pronouncement of faith. It was John Bunyan who said, “Hope is never ill when faith is well.” If our hope wavers or despairs it is because we are weak in our faith. Perhaps our faith is weak because we hope and put our trust in the wrong things. If that is so, it is idolatry. Listen, there are things that you’re never going to have in life, places you’re never going to go, and dreams that are never going to be fulfilled. The things once thought important are no longer attainable for one reason or another. As David implies in this psalm, let go of things that do not matter, things that hold you down, things that are not really all that important. In other words, get rid of self-centeredness and focus on God.
Focus not on the things that you cannot control, but on God and the things that are under your control. There is a great little prayer that AA use, but it is fitting for all of us. “Lord, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.” David purposes to be still and quiet before God. He waits upon the Lord in calm expectation–He is there. Like a child who has been weaned, he still must depend upon his parents to bring him proper nourishment. He still must trust his parents for everything. As Steven Lawson points out, “This is to be the position of the believer, quietly submissive and trusting in God.”
Lawson writes, “Childlike trust always has an element of hope. As a person trusts in God, a positive confidence in God regarding the future floods his soul.” Our hope is in the Lord, that must also be where our faith rests. The foundation of faith and hope is found in Romans 8:28, “And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.” (NKJV) I recall the words of the grand old hymn:
“My hope is built on nothing less, than Jesus’ blood and righteousness;
I dare not trust the sweetest frame, but wholly lean on Jesus’ name.”
–Edward Mote
Our contentment is not in circumstances or material goods, or gain in our career. Our contentment is to be in the Lord. Our hope must be based in Him from this time forth and forever. J. Oswald Sanders said, “There is no conceivable situation in which it is not safe to trust God.” God is always worthy of our full trust.
“He came down to earth from heaven
Who is God and Lord of all,
And his shelter was a stable,
And his cradle was a stall:
With the poor and mean and lowly
Lived on earth, our Savior holy.”
–Cecil Frances Alexander