Frank's Bible Blog

Psalm 62-- Walk Across the Street to the Lake

Just a few blocks from our house is a busy six-lane road which is a major thoroughfare for our city. During the morning and evening rush hours the street is filled with cars making their way in and out of our bedroom community near Dallas, TX. If you were to stand on the side of that road you would see a lot of movement and hear a lot of noise as thousands of commuters busily head to their destinations.

Across the street from our house is a small lake--a reservoir built years ago to control flooding in the area. You can't actually see the lake--it is hidden behind a large embankment that forms its south side. You wouldn't know it was even there unless you saw it on a map or someone told you about it.

We had been in our house about five months when my wife and I decided to walk over and explore the lake. We made our way across the large field and up and over the embankment. When we got there, we couldn't see our house. We couldn't hear any noise from that busy roadway. We couldn't see the cars that drive through our subdivision. It was calm. It was peaceful. It was pretty.

It was as if we had strolled into another world.

The challenge for many of us is that we live our lives in the fast-lane. We are so busy going and making noise that we never stop to listen or rest. We never walk across the street and sit down beside the lake.

David said in Psalm 62, "Truly my soul waits upon God" (v1). Another translation puts it, "My soul finds rest in God alone." And another, "My soul waits in silence for God only." Put these three together and you get a good picture of what David was trying to communicate in the original--he had come to the place where he would silently wait upon God and find rest in the process. He had walked across the street to the lake. He had shut out the noise, stopped the commotion and allowed himself to discover God. When he began to silently wait on God, he was able to rest because he saw that God is strong (v11), loving (v12) and rewards man according to what he has done (v12).

George Muller wrote in his 1856 work A Narrative of Some of the Lord's Dealings, "The natural mind is ever prone to reason, when we ought to believe; to be at work when we ought to be quiet; to go our own way, when we ought to steadily walk on in God's ways."

Is it time to believe? Is it time to be quiet? Is it time to go in God's ways? Is it time to walk across the street to the lake?

_________________________

Frank Banfill is an author, international speaker, and president of MaxPoint Ministries, whose purpose is to help individuals, churches and ministries reach their full potential. Please forward this blog to your family & friends. Not a subscriber? Sign up now at www.FranksBibleBlog.com.

Psalm 56--Fear Behind Enemy Lines

Imagine that you are an air force pilot and you are shot down over enemy territory.

You eject safely and begin parachuting to the ground. Already you are thinking about your next move--you have got to find a place to hide. You land in a clearing, get the parachute off your back, and begin a mad-dash toward the cover of the nearby trees.

But just before you reach them you are captured. Fifteen heavily armed enemy soldiers surround you, strip you of your weapon and gear, and march you off into the unknown.

Afraid?

Yeah, I would be. I think most would. You have never been in this situation before. You have heard about others who have been there--and what you heard wasn't very pleasant. What will happen next?

While you may never have found yourself behind enemy lines, I imagine there have been times when you were afraid. Very afraid.

You may or may not readily admit it, but there probably have been some times where you were afraid of what would happen next. Times where you were in unfamiliar situations or at a place in life that made you scared.

David in the Bible understood fear. In fact, he understood what it meant to literally be behind enemy lines, and he writes about it in Psalm 56. With men "hotly" pursuing him and attacking him (vv1-2) he needed someplace or someone to turn. He needed a forest that could hide him from the enemy. He needed protection. "When I am afraid, I will trust in you" is what he said to God.

Fear is a part of life. Fear hits even the best of us. The question is, what do you do when it does? If being scared causes you to turn to the Lord and develop a closer relationship with Him, then it can be a good thing.

David turned to God for mercy. David turned to God for strength. David turned to God to relieve his fears. "In God I trust: I will not be afraid" (v4). Fear began to dissipate when David placed his trust in God and then got a godly perspective on his situation. "What can mortal man do to me?" he asked in verses four and eleven. As Christian martyrs throughout the ages realized, man may hurt and even destroy the body, but he can't destroy the soul. God is still in charge, and He can give us peace even in the most fearful situations.

Today, remember that God hears your cries and even records your tears (v8). He knows your fears, and He stands ready to rescue you from the enemy. Will you trust Him? You have sent out the S.O.S.--now will you look to your Deliverer?

_________________________

Frank Banfill is an author, international speaker, and president of MaxPoint Ministries, whose purpose is to help individuals, churches and ministries reach their full potential. Please forward this blog to your family & friends. Not a subscriber? Sign up now at www.FranksBibleBlog.com.

Psalm 42-- Lessons from My Time in a Ford Pinto

I have vivid childhood memories of hot California summers riding in the back of my mother's Ford Pinto station wagon--the one with no air conditioning--and wishing more than anything to have something to drink.

To a young child, the few minutes drive in the heat seemed like an eternity. My thoughts were consumed with Kool-Aid, Coke, juice--anything to quench the thirst.

In Psalm 42 the psalmist describes a similar scene--no, not a young boy in the back of a Pinto--but a deer desperate to find a stream of cool, refreshing water. Likewise, the psalmist says, his soul desperately thirsts for God. His thoughts were consumed with meeting with God.

Just like the thought of a cold Coca Cola to a young Pinto-bound boy, or a cool stream to a weary deer, God was all this writer could think about.

What happens when we have that kind of fixation on the Lord? What happens when we reach the level where everything within us longs to be in the presence of God through His word, worship and prayer?

When that happens, it gives us an unusual ability to thrive in life.

Our tears of sorrow turn to joy (vv3-4).

When our innermost being is downcast, it gives us hope (vv 5,11).

When people tease us, look down on us, or even persecute us for our faith, it gives us strength (vv9-10). "Why so downcast?" the psalmists asks, "put your hope in God."

How thirsty are you for God today? How consumed are you with spending time in His presence? Maybe if we would be a little more consumed with God we would be a little less consumed by the pressures of life.

When is your next meeting with God?

_________________________

Frank Banfill is an author, international speaker, and president of MaxPoint Ministries, whose purpose is to help individuals, churches and ministries reach their full potential. Please forward this blog to your family & friends. Not a subscriber? Sign up now at www.FranksBibleBlog.com.

Psalm 27--What the Lion Missed Pursuing Courage

In the classic movie The Wizard of Oz, one of the characters that Dorothy met was a lion who desperately wanted courage. He ventured with Dorothy to Oz to seek courage from the Wizard. In his mind, the only way he could get courage was to have it bestowed upon him. Have you ever thought about where courage comes from? We know we can't get it from a magical wizard in a fantasy story, but how can we get it? What makes courageous people courageous? What gives the police officer, for example, the courage to venture down a dark ally alone when he suspects trouble? Or the soldier the courage to enter a terrorist strong hold? I think there are four things: training, experience, protection and determination. Both the police officer and soldier have been taught what to do in these situations. They both had past experiences, even if simulated, that gave them a feel for what to expect. They both had protection--guns, rifles, bullet-proof vests, etc. They also had the will and determination to put those three things together and in order to place themselves in harms way. In Psalm 27, David challenges all of us to have courage as we journey through life. I believe we get that courage in the same way that the police officer or solider got theirs. Our training comes when we spend time in God's house, in His presence, and as we wait on Him to teach us His ways (vv 4, 6, 11, 14). We gain experience as we daily walk with Him and learn to trust Him with bigger and bigger issues (vv 2,13). We, too, have protection--and it is much greater than vests or guns. David put it this way: "The Lord is my strength" (v1), "Though an army may encamp against me, my heart shall not fear" (v3), "He shall set me high upon a rock" (v5), and "Then the Lord will take care of me" (v10). Even with all of this, we must have the will and determination to utilize our training, experiences and protection. When we do that, then we will have courage! "Wait on the Lord; be of good courage, and He shall strengthen your heart; wait, I say, on the Lord!" (v14).

_________________________
Frank Banfill is an author, international speaker, and president of MaxPoint Ministries, whose purpose is to help individuals, churches and ministries reach their full potential. Please forward this blog to your family & friends. Not a subscriber? Sign up now at www.FranksBibleBlog.com.

Psalm 24-- Keeping the Unseen in Perspective

When I turned 40 I decided that I wanted to get a body scan--a high-tech imaging of the major body organs. I waited almost two years but eventually had it done. It was fascinating to sit with the doctor and watch the results on a computer screen. I could see what was inside of me, section by section! We don't usually think much about our heart, lungs, liver, etc. until something goes wrong. Those organs are always present with us, but since they are out of sight, we ignore them. We probably give no thought to how these organs work--we just know that they do. God is like this for many people, even believers. He is always present, but since we don't see Him we tend to forget about Him--at least until something goes wrong! Psalm 24 challenges us to always keep God before us and see Him for Who He is. First, we are reminded that everything and everyone belongs to Him (vv1-2). Second, we are told that while we have free access to God, we cannot approach Him flippantly. If we want to stand before Him expecting Him to pour out His blessing on us, then we need to come before Him in an appropriate way (v3) with purity of actions and heart (v4). Finally, we need to see the Lord as the King of kings and the Lord of lords. He is the only one with an everlasting kingdom (v9) who has never been and never will be defeated! Just because you can't see your heart doesn't mean you shouldn't pay attention to it. The same is true with God. Let's keep the Unseen in perspective.

_________________________
Frank Banfill is an author, international speaker, and president of MaxPoint Ministries, whose purpose is to help individuals, churches and ministries reach their full potential. Please forward this blog to your family & friends. Not a subscriber? Sign up now at www.FranksBibleBlog.com.

Psalm 19-- Seeing the Creator and Not Just the Creation

When you look at a beautiful sunset, observe glorious mountains, watch an ocean's waves or gander at the night's stars, what do you see? Do you see chaos and happenstance, or do you see order and design? Does what you see cause you to move your focus off from yourself and onto the One responsible for it all? Does it cause you to think about what that One might desire for your life as part of His creation? Psalm 19 is a great description of how God's handiwork not only speaks to Who God is, but how it compels us to discover His desire for our lives. God's creation (vv1-6) declares His existence and majesty to everyone in the world, regardless of their language or culture (v3). God's expectations (vv7-11) are reasonable and bring the benefits of change (v7), wisdom (v7), joy (v8), enlightenment (v8), consistency (v9) and rewards more precious than gold (vv10-11). How will we respond to God's revelation of Himself through His creation and expectations? The psalmist responded with a desire for cleansing from sin, that sin would not have control over his life (vv12-13). How would he avoid having sin in control? He would meditate on and speak the things of God (v14). When we see God for who He is, we get a glimpse of His glory and holiness. This should compel us to examine our lives, and it should move us to live godly before the Lord and this generation. If you are struggling to live holy, then examine what you spend time thinking about and the kinds of things you choose to talk about. By shifting the focus of these to the Lord, we will see our actions and attitudes take a positive shift as well. So the next time you see part of God's creation--whether a flower in your yard or a massive chain of mountains--stop and reflect. Reflect on God and ask yourself how well you are doing living up to His expectations. Allow creation to point you to the Creator.
_____________
Frank Banfill is an author, international speaker, and president of MaxPoint Ministries, whose purpose is to help individuals, churches and ministries reach their full potential. Please forward this blog to your family & friends. Not a subscriber? Sign up now at www.FranksBibleBlog.com. If you would like to share a comment about today's blog, you may do so at http://www.maxpoint.org/maxpoint/message_board.