[Saturday, October 21, 2006 . an extract from darlene's webby]

an extract from darlene's webby

guys, you MUST read this!! it's so awesome!!

personally i realli realli love darlene's ministry, n i try to go to her webby everyday, not just for her evergrowing insights to psalms, but also to just see the works tat she's been doing. i tell u, this is a MARVELLOUS woman of God. Lord... i want this kind of woman... *point point. thank You!!

ok, anyway, the below extract is from her views on psalms 74. read on bros n siss!!

PSALM 74:1-23(TODAY’S NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION)
A MASKIL OS ASAPH

1.O God, why have you rejected us forever?Why does your anger smolder against the sheep of your pasture.
2.Remember the people you purchased long ago, the tribe of your inheritance, whom you redeemed – Mount Zion, where you dwelt.
3.Turn your steps towards these everlasting ruins, all this destruction the enemy has brought on the sanctuary.
4.Your foes roared in the place where you met with us; they set up their standards as signs.
5.They behaved like men wielding axes to cut through a thicket of trees.
6.They smashed all the carved panelling with their axes and hatchets.
7.They burned your sanctuary to the ground; they defiled the dwelling place of your Name.
8.They said in their hearts, “We will crush them completely!”They burned every place where God was worshiped in the land.
9.We are given no signs from God; no prophets are left, and none of us knows how long this will be.
10.How long will the enemy mock you, God?Will the foe revile your name forever?
11.Why do you hold back your hand, your right hand?Take it from the folds of your garment and destroy them!
12.But God is my King from long ago; he brings salvation on the earth.
13.It was you who split open the sea by your power; you broke the heads of the monster in the waters.
14.It was you who crushed the heads of Leviathan and gave it as food to the creatures of the desert.
15.It was you who opened up springs and streams; you dried up the ever-flowing rivers.
16.The day is yours, and yours also the night; you established the sun and moon.
17.It was you who set all the boundaries of the earth; you made both summer and winter.
18.Remember how the enemy has mocked you, Lord, how foolish people have reviled your name.
19.Do not hand over the life of your dove to wild beasts; do not forget the lives of your afflicted people forever.
20.Have regard for your covenant, because haunts of violence fill the dark places of the land.
21.Do not let the oppressed retreat in disgrace; may the poor and needy praise your name.
22.Rise up, O God, and defend your cause; remember how fools mock you all day long.
23.Do not ignore the clamor of your adversaries, the uproar of your enemies, which rises continually.

This is an instructive Psalm of Asaph… so we are to learn from the timeless story of the faithfulness of God.

There have been so many times when the people of God have felt forsaken… or when circumstances seem like God has gone deaf to your plea…. Can it be possible that we become forgotten in the heart of God?? Impossible! In fact, the very groan of humanity was the very sound that echoed enough within the heart of God, and with that, Calvary became a reality.

So what do we do when the stretch of‘where is God’ is almost too much to bear? Well, this is where the true journey of faith starts, because remember, faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things unseen. Unseen hope….. doesn’t sound like much, but as I‘ve said before, it’s enough that you can hang your life from it.

One of my beautiful friends has been fighting a real battle for a few years now, and at times I will tell you, it was ALMOST too much to bear… but just this week, we received news that the battle is finally over… and she told me a couple of weeks ago, that the way she has grown through this trial, she wouldn’t change it for anything! Big words, Big God. Even the faith of a mustard seed is enough.

This is where this psalm starts to change. This is not an ordinary battle. The psalmist is asking God to intervene as this is now way out of his control… the psalmist starts to ask the Lord questions about those who come to the house of God and start to rise up… in fact, they come and absolutely cause havoc, eventually burning the house of God to the ground! The enemy is not known for showing respect or regard for the things of God… the house of God being no exception.

The psalm describes the idols filling the place of worship , the enemy mocking anything that resembles worship or sacrifice…. you can hear the angst in the writing, the humiliation experienced…and the cry.. ’GOD – MOVE by Your mighty hand!’ There is one thing when there is trouble coming in from the outside, but trouble from the inside is the worst. Trouble from anything or anyone that is in close proximity is the trouble that has the ability to burn the deepest.But the thing about the enemy that would come to destroy the church… well, try though he may, the Kingdom of God gets stronger and stronger. The cruelty explained in this psalm was deliberate, sincere and deep-seated.. set about to destroy the works of God. But persecution is like fuel on a Kingdom fire… it just seems to burn brighter if we take courage, and don’t lose heart.

You know, if it ever seems like God has folded his arms on you, you must never fold your arms on Him… this is where your prayers and your cries, well you must know that they are never insignificant and NEVER unheard.

Listen to 2 Corinthians 4:17–18

‘For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory, while we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal.’

Keeping trials in life in perspective is one of the great secrets of life… and learning to lay hold of God until you have received the victory is another. In our quick fix age, we are not good at truly being insistent when it comes to seeing the promises of God being revealed in our lives.

When the psalmist says in verse 12.. ’You are the King from long ago, You bring salvation to the earth’… well this is a powerful turning point in the text. To remember the past miracles of grace that we have experienced again and again, you begin to realise that our all powerful Lord WILL continue to deliver us from evil, no matter how overwhelming it seems at the time. It is the Lord who has done it all….and the word refers to vast evils as various dragons confronting us from the pit of hell, but read the word… the Lord has delivered us from them all.

The psalmist starts reminding God about His former victories over the many elements faced in life... Arise O God… He is reminded of the congregation, all of the individuals who are at risk…. And continues with great stories of Jehovah’s miraculous power. Even the lands and the seas receive their boundaries from Him… and as we are experiencing at the moment…. it may have been winter, but spring is on the way!!

The last stanza of the psalm asks for the oppressed to be able to return to their land with their heads held high. As you know, the Lord has always honoured the poor, the broken and the oppressed… and will ever tend to them with absolute grace and the greatest dignity, the psalmist is so passionate about the cause of these people, and we should always take our cue from this heart decision. On your way to victory, never forget those who were broken in the battle……

And finally, the longing is clear here, that the Lord Himself would take centre stage on the battle field, ultimately triumphing over all, putting the dragon to death once and for all…That when the righteous are persecuted and innocent blood is yet again spilled, that we realise that ultimate judgment will be executed, and that the Lord will have the final say.

Well, we never said this journey was for the faint hearted….be brave, full of faith, full of grace, full of kindness….. and when being ridiculed on the battlefield… learn to lay hold of God until you are confident you have been heard.

The journey of faith… what a ride!!

Love you all so

xxxxx Darls

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cool yeah!!! from this psalms, u can see that when u remember the victories tat He has given you, you triumph. simple as tat. David did. He shot down goliath. Joshua did. n God brought down the walls of Jericho wif a shout. obstacles brought down in an instant, problems solved in less than a minute, death n life situations turned around at the 11th hour... God uses e foolish to confound the wise. yeah. but all these did not happen due to that instant... but to that CONSTANT trusting tat David n Joshua had. in the faith of e Lord, n in the power of His Majesty.

a verse i have been reading.

And let us not lose heart and grow weary and faint in acting nobly and doing right, for in due time and at the appointed season we shall reap, if we do not loosen and relax our courage and faint.

yes, sometimes it does seem hard to look n depend on Him when circumstances n problems seem so... real. but reality is not the Truth. n the Truth is tat Jesus has died for me tat i might have ALL the blessings in life, to enjoy an abundant life. a life worth living. n the only thing i can hold on to, it's not anything else... but His love. His shown n proven Love tat came n died for me. His shown n proven Love tat now sits on the right hand of God, with the only man-made thing in Heaven - His nailed-pierced hands n feet as proof n token of remembrance to our Daddy above, that yes, all is paid for. all is done. all is completed. we r made to be more than conquerors, becos He has conquered.

let's not fold our hands on Him dearest bros n siss. He can do exceedingly above all else we can think or imagine. He can, He WILL. not becos He has to due to the work done on the cross by His Son, but becos He was willing to let His Son die for u in the first place. He loves you. He loves you more than you can ever think or imagine. n when you picture tat love He has for you, that love which knows no height, no depth, no width and no breadth... you will understand why every circumstance, every name, every sin n every curse fall under His feet. cos Jesus is tat exalted. cos Jesus is tat great. cos Jesus is tat magnificent.

has God given His Son?? yes?? has my Daddy made me His own now?? YES. i say tat again. YES. now... let's believe. let it drop down into ur heart. how u r created wif wonder n fearfully made. you were made... for greater things than this.

shalom