His actions on our behalf are astounding. Psalm 66 basically starts off marveling about God's awesome deeds. And then when we get to verse 5 we see that God "is awesome in his deeds towards the children of man." So that thought--that God does awesome deeds for us and specifically for me--stuck in my mind as I read on. Then I hit verse 16 "let me tell you what he has done for me." That got me thinking about and remembering what some of those incredible deeds were. There were plenty--like giving me my husband and sustaining our marriage, bringing me to Back to the Bible for my work, and guiding me to an incredible church where I can participate and use my gifting--just to name a few biggies.
So what are some of the awesome deeds God has done on your behalf? Think about it. Then how about living out verse 16 and telling us about some of your experiences? You'll be glad you did. Tami W.
Tami,
it's so hard to read Proverbs 10 when it talks about "evil people will have their lives cut short...," when in reality; that's not accurate. My three year old son was killed by his babysitter who conitnues to live. I understand that I have no concept of God's "clock", and that in "due time" the wicked will pay. But what about our GOOD son? At only three, I have no doubt he was nothing but good. I sometimes (acutally, always) wonder if his death was to bring about change in me. There are no answers here on this earth, and I can't wait to see him in heaven. I imagine him sitting on God's knee listening to stories of old. Life isn't fair, but I hold on to the idea that God is!
I have to agree with you on those gifts, Tami. God has always provided work for me and extra funds when needed. He has also provided for me a wonderful younger brother who is very instrumental in taking care of our mother who was widowed for the second time last year. Our God is truly awesome. I sit back and wonder how God could choose to bless me. I was also blessed to be raised in a healthy Christan family. I learned very early about God's goodness and love.
20Blessed be God,
because he has not rejected my prayer
or removed his steadfast love from me!
Previously you shared scripture on righteousness. Today we know that Christ Jesus is our covering of righteousness. He is our righteousness. As long as I am faithful to confess my sin, repent and ask for forgiveness, God is faithful to forgive me and wash me from all unrighteousness. In that, God never rejects my prayer, He never removes His steadfast love from me. I can have confidence in His love because I am an adopted child of God through Jesus Christ my Lord and Savior! Praise God! Do I need another reason to rejoice or give Him praise? There are ofcourse many other reasons, but this one, I believe, is greatest.
God has blessed me with some wonderful gifts also. One of the blessings that I use every day is helping someone or just talking with someone that may need a word or some help for the day. I just thank God for loving me and blessing me. When I pray I can feel the spirit in my prayer. It makes me feel so good to know that he is listening to me and that I have developed a relationship with him. I just praise his name every day.
God has greatly blessed me with a wonderful son who I love very much. My son was the first blessing that came to my mind when I read the questions being asked. Life is so busy between my husband working full time, and me going to college as I take care of our family, but I am so thankful to God for bringing our son into our lives:)
Mike, I am so sorry...I do not know what to say about your tragedy, that is one of the most awful things that I have ever read. All that I can think to do is pray for you. God bless you.
Mike, I lift you and your son up in prayer. I can't imagine what you continue to go through. Just last night my babysitter's mother came to pull me out of church to tell me there was an emergency with my 1 year old son. I had already put him to bed before I left him with the babysitter so I was scared to say the least. It turned out it was just his leg completely stuck between the crib bars and he was fine. The ride home from church to get to my son I kept telling Jesus, 'I trust you Lord, I trust you' as scared as I was it's all I knew to do. All I had available was to trust the one who gave me life and my son's life. I think no matter what comes at us that's all we can do is trust Jesus. I think that you trusting Him even after the death of your precious son is awesome. Even in your pain you are able to shine your light on us through your testimony. You are truly inspiring and I thank you and pray for you with all my heart. God Bless you and keep you Mike.
Mike,
I'd like to share a few thoughts related to your comment.
So often life doesn't seem fair and even God doesn't seem fair. How could a young child be killed while the murderer continues to live? The psalmist faced a similar issue. In Psalms 73:2-5, Asaph writes: "But as for me, my feet came close to stumbling; my steps had almost slipped.
For I was envious of the arrogant, as I saw the prosperity of the wicked. For there are no pains in their death; and their body is fat.
They are not in trouble as other men; nor are they plagued like mankind." The whole psalm is worth reading, but, in summary, the psalmist was struggling with the fact that the godly suffered while the wicked didn't.
So how did this get resolved? The psalmist says, "But when I thought how to understand this, it seemed to me a wearisome task, until I went into the sanctuary of God; then I discerned their end" (vv. 16-17).
What the psalmist did "in the sanctuary of God" we aren't told, but we assume he worshipped and meditated on the nature of God. In the process, he came to understand his circumstances from God's perspective.
Life doesn't become "fair" until we see life the way God sees it. We see life in terms of years, God sees life in terms of eternity. What appears unfair now, will right itself in eternity.
Furthermore, we have no understanding of God's purpose. We know He allows wicked things to happen to good people. While the godly often live longer than the wicked (Proverbs 10:27) because, unlike the wicked, he or she avoids the things that shorten their life, it doesn't always work out that way. God doesn't put a protective bubble even over His own children to protect them from a fallen world. But He does promise to bring good out of evil (Rom. 8:28-29).
To try to speculate "why" God allows something to happen is an exercise in futility (although it's a very human thing to do). It would require us to know the mind of God which is an impossibility. What we can do, however, is trust that God is good, no matter what the circumstances.
Allen, Biblical Correspondent at Back to the Bible