In the Morning . . .

It’s still pretty dark outside as I sit here at my desk. My window is open and I hear the birds greeting the first light of the dawn. I’ve been rising early for many years. I often wake up before my 4:30 alarm these days. I love early mornings – everyone is still asleep and it’s my quiet time with Jesus. And coffee. These mornings set the tone for the rest of my day as I fill my mind and heart with truth and wisdom. I don’t know what the day will hold, but the Lord does and He guides me to a word that He knows I will need before I lay my head back down at the end of the day.

This morning His word speaks deep into my soul: “Let the morning bring me word of Your unfailing love, for I have put my trust in You” (Ps 142:8). On it’s own this is a sweet sentiment. In fact, it’s about to go up on the wall over my desk. But if you read the entire Psalm (and I encourage you to do so), you will notice that David is in a dark place. He is being pursued by his enemy and he says “My spirit grows faith within me; my heart within me is dismayed” (v. 4). He is running out of hope.

I get it, David. This Psalm resonates with my own aching heart. It would be so easy to slip into despair and hopelessness right now – and the truth is, I have over the past few weeks. Like Peter, I let my eyes drift from the One who called me to the waves that threaten me and I soon feel the waters start to overtake me. What hope do I have when I’m drowning? The same hope that David had: the unfailing love of God and His faithfulness. David wisely did two things: he cried out to God (vv. 1-2) and he meditated on what God has already done on his behalf (v. 5). And so must you and I.

David asked for direction (v. 8), rescue (v. 9), and to know God’s will (v. 10). That’s what I’m asking for today. As His child, you can too. Beloved, whatever comes today, God wants to remind you of His unfailing love and assure you that you can trust Him. His good Spirit will lead you on level ground (v. 10). You have His Word on it.

Waiting for the Sunrise

Psalm 130 is a cry for the Lord to rescue and redeem His people Israel. “I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, and in His Word, I put my hope. My soul waits for the Lord more than watchmen wait for the morning, more than watchmen wait for the morning” (v. 6). This is not just aimless waiting, it means “to hope in, to look for, to expect.” It’s the difference between waiting with doubt and fear of disappointment and waiting for something you are certain will come.   Notice that the Psalmist twice says he waits “more than watchman wait for the morning.” Have you ever gone outside before dawn, while the night was still black to see the sunrise? Would you have been out there if you didn’t think the sun would actually come up? We watch for the sunrise because we know it will come, and when it does it will be a glorious sight. The watchman stood guard through the night, scanning the inky horizon, knowing that when the first rays of light hit, he could go home to rest.

When we are in a position of waiting, whatever we may be waiting for, we must adopt the attitude of the watchman and trust that when the waiting is over, the sun will shine and our rest will come. We must follow the model of Joseph who put his hope in the word of God while he waited. He was confident that what God had promised him would come to fulfillment. If you know his story (Genesis 37, 39-50) you know that while he waited he served and ministered wherever he was – in Potipher’s house and even in prison. He knew that God had not forgotten him and He would be faithful to His promise.

What has God promised to you? Do you trust Him to fulfill that promise? Then spend your waiting season serving wherever God has placed you for the moment, and know that when the waiting is over and the promise comes, it will be more wonderful than you ever imagined. God never forgets His promises, Beloved. He is forever faithful, and even more dependable than the sunrise.

God Always Comes

“I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, and in His Word, I have put my hope.  My soul waits for the Lord, more than watchmen wait for the morning, more than watchmen wait for the morning. Psalm 131:3

The watchman waits with expectation.  The morning came yesterday.  It came the day before that and the day before that and all the days before.  It will come today. It is dark through the night but the morning never fails to come.

You can hope in God because He will never fail to come. He has come every time you’ve had a need. It is dark in the moment but He will come.

He will come with new mercies (Lamentations 3:23).

He will come with glory (Exodus 16:7).

He will come with redemption (Ruth 3:13).

He will come with listening ears (Psalm 5:3).

He will come with healing (Luke 6:19).

He will come with power (Isaiah 40:10).

He will come with rejoicing (Psalm 30:5).

He will come with strength (Psalm 59:16).

He will come with salvation (Psalm 62:1).

He will come with wonders (Psalm 65:8).

He will come with unfailing love (Psalm 90:14).

He will come with a sustaining word (Isaiah 50:4).

He will come with justice (Zepheniah 3:5).

He will come with resurrection power (Luke 24:1-6).

He will come with daily provision (John 21:4).

He will come with His Spirit (Acts 2:1-4).

He will come with truth (John 16:13).

He will come with the Morning Star (Revelation 2:28).

He always comes.

He comes with peace.

He comes with Joy.

He comes with promise.

He comes with even more hope. He always comes Beloved. Will you watch and wait for Him?

A Prayer for Today

This is my prayer this morning. I invite you to pray with me:

Holy Father,

This is the day that You have made, and I will be glad and rejoice in it (Ps 118:24).

Nothing will touch me today that has not passed through the filter of your loving purpose.

I have awakened to new opportunities and new mercies (Lam. 3:23).

Yesterday’s failures are buried. Today is a new slate, bright and clean.

I do not face this day alone; You are present with me (Matt. 28:20).

You are my Shepherd (Ps. 23:1).

You are my Father (Matt. 20:17).

You are my Peace (Heb. 13:20).

My Comfort (2 Cor. 1:3)

My Rock (Ps 18:2).

My Strength (Ps 19:14).

My Shield (Deut. 33:29).

 

Lord, when my heart and mind are focused on You, the worries of my life seem small because You are so great. Oh, help me keep my eyes fixed on You all through the day.

Gracious, mighty, sovereign God what an extraordinary thing that You sang me to sleep last night (Zep. 3:17) and You sent me word this morning of Your unfailing love (Ps. 143:8).

I make one plea in this early hour – the angels declare that the whole earth is full of Your glory. (Isaiah 6:3). Give me eyes to see Your glory all around me today.

In the mighty and holy and perfect name of Jesus Christ, my Savior and Lord.

Amen.

Waiting for the Sunrise

How we wait is as important, if not more so, as the act of waiting itself. And whether we wait patiently or impatiently has everything to do with our vision of God.

I love this verse from the Psalms: “I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, and in His Word, I put my hope. My soul waits for the Lord more than watchmen wait for the morning, more than watchmen wait for the morning.” Psalm 130:6

It is a cry for the Lord to rescue and redeem His people Israel. The Psalmist says “my soul waits for the Lord,” and this is not just aimless waiting, it is from a Hebrew word that means “to hope in, to look for, to expect (emphasis added).” It’s the difference between waiting with doubt and waiting for something you are certain will come.   Notice that the Psalmist twice says he waits “more than watchman wait for the morning.” Have you ever gone outside before dawn, while the night was still black to see the sunrise? Would you have been out there if you didn’t think the sun would actually come up? We watch for the sunrise because we know it will come, and when it does it will be a glorious sight.

When we are in a position of waiting, whatever we may be waiting for, we must adopt the attitude of the watchman and trust that when the waiting is over, the sun will shine on our face.

So I ask you, do you trust God? Are you waiting with doubt or with expectation? Then find peace wherever God has placed you for the moment, and know that when the waiting is over and the promise comes, it will be more glorious than you ever imagined.

 

 

In the Morning

I wait for the Lord, my soul waits. And in His word, I have put my hope.  My soul waits for the Lord, more than watchmen wait for the morning.  More than watchmen wait for the morning.  Psalm 130:5-6

 If the past eighteen months have taught me anything at all, it is that waiting on the Lord is never futile.  It may be uncomfortable, it may be nerve-wracking, and even a bit frightening, but it always ends with blessing.  I have also learned that the key to waiting is to put my hope in God – not in an outcome, but in the Person.  The outcome I hope for may or may not come to pass.  But I can put my hope in God because He never fails.

 The Psalmist understood that as he talked about watchmen waiting for the morning.  The city slept as the watchman kept vigil.  His responsibility was to be alert for any possible danger.  It was an intense and exhausting job.  And he couldn’t wait to see the sunrise so he could go home to his bed.  As he stood guard in the black of night, he never once doubted that the morning would come. It came yesterday.  It came the day before that and the day before that and all the days before – all the way back to the day when God said, “Let there be light” (Genesis 1:3).  It was dark through the night, but the morning never failed to come.

 You and I can hope in God through the night because He never fails to come in the morning.   He comes just as surely as the sun rises morning and morning.   Even more than this – He is the reason the sun rises morning after morning.  Yes friend, God always comes.  No power in heaven or earth could keep him from coming, not even death. 

He comes every morning with new mercies (Lamentations 3:23).

He comes with glory (Exodus 16:7).

He comes with redemption (Ruth 3:13).

He comes with listening ears (Psalm 5:3).

He comes with rejoicing (Psalm 30:5).

He comes with strength (Psalm 59:16).

He comes with wonders (Psalm 65:8).

He comes with unfailing love (Psalm 143:8).

He comes with a sustaining word (Isaiah 50:4).

He comes with justice (Zephaniah 3:5).

He comes with resurrection power (Luke 24:1-6).

He comes with daily provision (John 21:4).

He comes with His Holy Spirit (Acts 2:1-4).

He comes with the Morning Star (Revelation 2:28).

 

He comes with peace.

He comes with joy.

He comes with promise.

He comes with faithfulness.

He comes with unfailing love.

And when you hope in Him, He comes with even more hope.

Beloved, are you surrounded by the darkness of a long night?  Put your hope in the Lord.  Morning is coming.   Like the sun that rises at dawn, He always comes.  Keep watching.  Keep waiting.  Keep hoping.  The Lord your God is coming.