Psalm 37:23, 24 - Embracing Adventure.
Psalm 37:23, 24 (NIV) The LORD makes firm
the steps of the one who delights in him; though
he may stumble, he will not fall, for the LORD
upholds him with his hand.
INTRODUCTION
The person in whom God delights is one who
follows God, trusts him, and tries to do his will.
God watches over and makes firm every step that
person takes. If you would like to have God direct
your way, then seek his advice before you step
out. [Life Application SB]
COMMENTARY PEARL
Luci Shaw tells us, "Each of us is at
risk. And each of us must learn to live with it
and even thrive on it."
Really? Thrive on risk? Isn't that for
the few who long for wild adventures? But Shaw
observes that in this age of terrorism, "dread is
almost guaranteed"; furthermore, even ordinary
tasks such as driving in traffic can make life
risky indeed.
Shaw makes these assertions in her book
The Crime of Living Cautiously, with the
subtitle Hearing God's Call to Adventure. She
highlights Jesus' parable about the timid servant
burying his master's money and asserts that Jesus
saw the servant's timidity as criminal neglect.
Does God call us to adventure? If so,
adventure by its nature requires dangerous risk.
That's one reason we like action movies! Yet it's
one thing to watch an adventure film with the
heroine on a grapevine dangling over crocodiles;
it's another to actually face our own troubles,
with their crocodilian teeth.
In these tumultuous times, how can we
confront our fears?
Over and over in the Bible when an angel
appears, his first words are, "Fear not." The angels
bring news of what God is up to. As Luci Shaw
notes in 1 John 4: 18, "Perfect love casts out
fear" (NKJV).
Life as adventure? It's a matter of
faith. The truth is, we're all plopped down in
circumstances that can threaten, dishearten, or even
overwhelm us. Yet most of us also have many good
things happening around us. Only as we see life as
an adventure from God do we experience life's
tang and purpose.
Luci Shaw asks, "Has your heart ever been
blown open by the sudden exhilarating thought,
This could be my Year of Living the Adventure?
And if not, why not?"
Father, you know how my anxiety rises
when I think about all that can go wrong! When
life seems not an adventure but a miserable
muddle, please cast out my fear. Help me to embrace
my adventure.
The LORD directs the steps of the godly.
He delights in every detail of their lives.
Though they stumble, they will never fall, for the
LORD holds them by the hand. Psalm 37:23-24, NLT
[The One Year Book of Encouragement by Harold
Myra]
CLOSING PEARL
Learning To Tune In.
One beautiful spring morning, an
experienced hiker was walking with a friend down Fifth
Avenue in Manhattan in NYC. The streets filled with
the sounds of weekday rush-hour traffic.
Suddenly the hiker stopped. "Listen," he said. "I
hear a cricket."
"That's nonsense!" his friend scoffed.
"Why do you think you hear a lowly cricket in all
this downtown uproar?"
"I'm sure I do," the hiker said. "Watch
this." He pulled a dime from his pocket and dropped
it on the pavement. Almost all of the people
nearby stopped at the sound of the coin hitting the
concrete.
"All of us are tuned in to certain
things," the hiker said to his friend. "Our ears hear
what they are tuned in to. Mine happen to be
tuned to crickets."
In a similar way we need to be tuned in
to Jesus. Praying without ceasing. Keeping
that attitude of prayer that Enoch had as we walk
with Jesus through the day and every day [Youth
SB re Mat. 13:1-23]
LINKS FOR FURTHER STUDY
Psalm 37:23, 24 - Guidance in Seeking Gods
Will.
http://www.abible.com/devotions/2020/20201114-1011.html
Psalm 37:23, 24 - Learning to Tune In.
http://www.abible.com/devotions/2020/20200220-0925.html
John 15:4, 5 - Abiding in Jesus - Learning
to Listen.
http://www.abible.com/devotions/2019/20190710-1307.html
Matthew 13:12,13 - Growing In Christ.
http://www.abible.com/devotions/2004/20040212-0852.html
LINKS WORTH CHECKING OUT
https://abible.com/links/
