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Psalm 130:5 - Waiting With Hope In The Lord and His Promises.

Psalm 130:5 - Waiting With Hope In The Lord and His Promises.

Psalm 130:5 (NIV) I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, and in his 
word I put my hope.  

Psalm 130:5 (TLB) That is why I wait expectantly, trusting God 
to help, for he has promised.  

CONTEXT AND OVERVIEW

   As you ponder this psalm, see yourself in four different 
situations, and learn what it means to trust the mercy of the Lord.  
   In the depths (1-2). The depths of despair overwhelm you. You 
are drowning, and all you can do is cry out to God. He hears  -and 
He rescues you! 
   In the court (3-4). You are on trial, facing your sins, and 
you have no defense. The Judge pays the penalty, and you are 
forgiven!  
   In the dark (5-6). You are waiting patiently, yet it seems 
morning will never come. But the sun rises, and God gives you the 
dawning of a new day!  
   On the block (7-8). You are a slave, bound by your own sins, 
and you are about to sell yourself to a terrible master. But the 
Savior comes and purchases you and sets you free!  
   What a wonderful salvation you have! [Chapter by Chapter 
Bible Commentary by Warren Wiersbe] 

WORD STUDY

5-6 I wait ... I do hope: In these two verses, the poet repeats 
five times that his hope is in the Lord. This was a confident 
expectation in the God who is always faithful to His promises. [Nelson SB] 

5. I wait. The answer may not come as quickly as the psalmist 
would like, but because of his confidence in that word he waits 
patiently in hope. Even though the night of sorrow may seem long, he knows 
that the morning will soon break. When the dark, black clouds of 
night roll away, the bright beams of "the Sun of righteousness" will 
be seen (see Mal. 4:2). [SDA Bible Commentary] 

COMMENTARY

   Someone has described the morning quiet time as "turning the 
dial until we tune in to God's wavelength--then we get the message." 
But how do we gain the best results from our quiet time?  
   First, decide on the amount of time you want to invest in 
waiting before God. Next, take your Bible and read a portion slowly. Let 
it soak in. If some words or verses strike you, focus on them in 
meditation. They will yield up new meanings to you. Write these down.  
   After the reading, let go, relax, and say to Him: "Father, 
have You anything more to say to me?" Learn to listen. All those who 
hear God's voice on a regular basis say that it is something they 
have had to develop over time and by experience. They pause, they 
wait, and they learn after a while to disentangle their own thoughts 
from what God is saying.  
   Then speak to God in prayer. And finally, thank Him for the 
answer. He always answers--whether it is "yes," "no," or "wait." His "no" 
is just as much an answer as His "yes"--sometimes even a better 
answer.  
   Not far from my home is the River Thames. Sometimes I walk 
along the riverbank and watch small boats entering the locks from the 
adjoining rivers. To get into the Thames, these boats must enter the lock 
and wait there to be lifted up to a higher level. Our quiet time 
does that. It shuts us in with God. But then infinite resources begin 
to bubble up from below, and we are lifted silently and without 
strain onto a higher level. The lifting is the result of being shut in 
with God.  
   O Father, help me resolve to spend a quiet time with You 
every day. May my quiet time at this moment be the open door through 
which I glide out onto a higher level of life. In Jesus' name. Amen. 
Every Day With Jesus Bible with Selwyn Hughes devotional] 

   Sometimes we have to encounter God. We just have to. The 
situation is desperate, the need is overwhelming, the next step is too 
urgent, yet unclear. We need to feel God's touch, hear the sound of His 
voice, receive His answer to prayer. The crises of life drive us to 
Him, pleading for Him to intervene or even to whisper His will. In 
those moments, our souls long for Him more than sentries who wait for 
the dawn. Like watchmen on the walls, we scan the horizon for any 
hint of the rising sun. We wait for the morning. And wait some more. 
 
   During those times of waiting and watching, we need to 
remember one thing: The sun always rises. The sentries on the wall don't 
wonder whether the darkness will give way to the dawn; they only wonder 
exactly when. They don't have to fear that perhaps this time the sun 
won't rise, that maybe they will be stuck in some deep night's 
perpetual shroud. The dawn will come. It always does. It may seem slow, 
like the watched pot that seems never to boil or a long-anticipated 
vacation that seems like it may never arrive. Eventually, the darkness 
breaks and the light shines. The day of favor comes.  
   Waiting for God can be a lot like that, and if we're watching 
the clock, the wait can be awfully frustrating. But He does come. He 
breaks through like the rising sun, dispelling the darkness of our 
desperation and bringing warmth to the cold places of our lives. He responds 
faithfully to whatever prayers we've prayed with persistent faith. He 
speaks to ears that remain open. Like the watchmen who wait for the 
morning, we will see the sunrise.  
   Lord, You have seen my seasons of desperation. You know how 
I've watched for You more than the sentries long for the dawn. Reward 
my wait - my persistent, hopeful wait - with the sight tired eyes 
need to see: You. I look to You as the light that interrupts all the 
darkness in my life. [The One Year Hearing His Voice Devotional by Chris 
Tiegreen] 

PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS

   When you approach Me in stillness and in trust, you are 
strengthened. You need a buffer zone of silence around you in order to focus 
on things that are unseen. Since I am invisible, you must not let 
your senses dominate your thinking. The curse of this age is 
overstimulation of the senses, which blocks out awareness of the unseen world.  
   The tangible world still reflects My Glory, to those who have 
eyes that see and ears that hear. Spending time alone with Me is the 
best way to develop seeing eyes and hearing ears. The goal is to be 
aware of unseen things even as you live out your life in the visible 
world. (2 Cor. 4:18; Isa. 6:3; Psa. 130:5) [Psa. 46:10] [Jesus Calling 
by Sarah Young] 

Let Me show you My way for you this day. I guide you 
continually, so you can relax and enjoy My Presence in the present. Living 
well is both a discipline and an art. Concentrate on staying close to 
Me the divine Artist. Discipline your thoughts to trust Me as I 
work My ways in your life. Pray about everything; then, leave 
outcomes up to Me. Do not fear My will, for through it I accomplish what 
is best for you. Take a deep breath and dive into the depths of 
absolute trust in Me. Underneath are the everlasting arms! (Psa. 5:2, 3; 
Deu. 33:27) [Jesus Calling by Sarah Young] 

   Waiting is an inescapable part of life in this world. One of 
the hardest times to wait is during the night, if you're having 
trouble sleeping. As the darkness drags on while you're watching for the 
first rays of sunlight, you can identify with watchmen waiting for the 
morning. However, no matter how long the night may feel, dawn eventually 
comes. Since I created an orderly world, you can count on the rising of 
the sun.  
   There is much to learn from this pattern of expectant waiting 
followed by the dawning of a new day. People who are struggling with 
long-term problems may feel as if their suffering will go on interminably. 
But for My children there is every reason to be hopeful, even while 
circumstances remain dark. Relief will come! I can change situations and 
relieve suffering in an instant. Moreover, each of My followers is on a 
pathway leading to heaven.  
   Just as the night sometimes seems terribly long, yet always 
ends in dawn, so your journey through this world - no matter how long 
and hard it seems - will definitely end in Glory! (Psa. 130:5, 6; 
17:15; Eph. 3:20, 21; Isa. 60:19) [Jesus Today by Sarah Young] 

THOUGHTS TO CONSIDER

WAITING IN GENERAL

God does not spring into action on our timetable. In fact, He 
often waits to the very last moment to intervene. Why? Waiting is 
God's training ground for building strong faith. As we wait, we learn 
to trust. [Life Principles SB By Charles Stanley] 

WAITING FOR FORGIVENESS

Donald Grey Barnhouse used to picture a believer, burdened with 
a sense of guilt, appealing to God for forgiveness. The believer 
was ashamed, for he knew that he had committed the same sin many 
times before. "O Lord," he begged, "please forgive me again. I know I 
don't deserve it, as this is the nineteenth time I've committed this 
sin this month. But please, Lord, forgive me this nineteenth time." 
And, Dr. Barnhouse would say, the Lord looked up in surprise. "What 
do you mean, nineteenth?" The point this great old expositor of 
God's Word was making is stated clearly in Psalm 130:3-4. "If You, O 
Lord, kept a record of sins, O Lord, who could stand? But with You 
there is forgiveness." God keeps no record of our sins! When we 
confess, He forgives, and then our sins are gone. What a blessing! Our 
past no longer is a weight we must carry with us always. Our past is 
gone, and we can look ahead with renewed hope. Through forgiveness we 
have been cleansed! Tomorrow will be different, and through Christ we 
will win victory over sins that in the past meant defeat. [The 
365-Day Devotional Commentary] 

CROSS REFERENCES FOR FURTHER STUDY

Psalms 27:14 Wait on the LORD: be of good courage, and he shall 
strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the LORD. 

Psalms 33:20 Our soul waiteth for the LORD: he is our help and 
our shield. 

Psalms 62:1 Truly my soul waiteth upon God: from him cometh my 
salvation. 

Psalms 119:114 Thou art my hiding place and my shield: I hope in 
thy word. 

LINKS WORTH CHECKING OUT:

Importance of Choice: 
http://creationhealth.com/CREATION-Health/Choice [click on video] 

Seeking God Made Real: http://vimeo.com/31489782

Musical Devotional On Christian Living: 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OcotY5K7T0c 

Prophecies Decoded Sermon Series: 
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL1A435C5373550657