“I have called upon You, for You will hear me, O God; Incline Your ear to me, and hear my speech. Show Your marvelous lovingkindness by Your right hand, O You who save those who trust in You From those who rise up against them. Keep me as the apple of Your eye; Hide me under the shadow of Your wings, From the wicked who oppress me, From my deadly enemies who surround me.”
Psalms 17:6-9 NKJVListen, love, adore, protect
We are surely living in hectic times. So much is happening around us, that it is really hard to keep up. Surviving from day to day has become an all consuming mission, as it is getting more difficult to get by.
We are in a period where events in one part of the world have direct effects on others, as our tiny blue planet seems to be getting smaller and more intimate.
In the midst of it all, one can be easily distracted from what is truly important, and come to the conclusion that life is impossible and no one cares.
I have learned that my Faithful Father cares for me. In my own times of doubt, He breaks through and reminds me that He is aware and always near. As I read through Psalm chapter 17, I encountered my notes I had jotted down in my old bible so many years ago.
“He listens, He loves us, He adores us, He protects us.”
He is God and He always listens. I have had many times where my anguished cries were all I could muster, as events and situations in my life threatened to overwhelm me.
I took great comfort in knowing that He hears me. I have come to having even greater comfort in my knowledge that I can fully trust Him in the bleakest of moments. I know when I cry out to God, he hears.
“I sought the Lord, and He heard me, And delivered me from all my fears.”
Psalms 34:4 NKJVThere have been times when I have felt so rejected that I was not sure if I had the will to live. Before Jesus, my life was precarious, as wavered between life and eternity. The great salvation afforded me settled the matter, as I learned of the One who loved me so much that He gave up the glory He knew with the Father, to save a sinner like me.
No matter what I face, I know that I am loved. And, it is more even than that.
When you are in Christ you are the apple of His eye. That figure of speech refers to that little reflection in one’s eye of what is being gazed upon. God is fully aware of everything in your life, of every need, of every joy, of every pain. He is watching on your best day and your worst.
“O Lord, You have searched me and known me. You know my sitting down and my rising up; You understand my thought afar off. You comprehend my path and my lying down, And are acquainted with all my ways. For there is not a word on my tongue, But behold, O Lord, You know it altogether. You have hedged me behind and before, And laid Your hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; It is high, I cannot attain it.”
Psalms 139:1-6 NKJVBecause He is fully aware, He is also mindful of my need for His protection. Those of us who call upon the name of the Lord face the rejection of a sinful world. In church and out, we are surrounded by people who hate God, and by extension, hate us. But have no fear. They hated Jesus before they hated us. In Christ we have protection.
Sometimes He protects us from the greatest enemy of all: ourselves. His word is like a mirror for us, letting us see within and without, that we be made mature, perfect for every good work.
“He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High Shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress; My God, in Him I will trust.” Surely He shall deliver you from the snare of the fowler And from the perilous pestilence. He shall cover you with His feathers, And under His wings you shall take refuge; His truth shall be your shield and buckler. You shall not be afraid of the terror by night, Nor of the arrow that flies by day, Nor of the pestilence that walks in darkness, Nor of the destruction that lays waste at noonday. A thousand may fall at your side, And ten thousand at your right hand; But it shall not come near you.”
Psalms 91:1-7 NKJVThere is no downside with God. If the worst of this life were to come about, know that all that man can do to you is kill the body. This life but a vapor, quickly dissipating. Let us consider the glory that we will have with Jesus in Heaven.
You too can have the confidence that God listens to you. He is ready to hear your prayer for His forgiveness. He has already demonstrated His love, in that Jesus came to live as one of us, live completely sinless and then die on the cross for our sins.
“But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”
Romans 5:8 NKJVTHE PRAYER CHAIR IS OPEN! Send me your requests!
Listen, love, adore, protect
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Musings from an idle mind 
We are so small and he is so big. Praise our great God and Savior!
Psalms 94:11 (ESV) the LORD–knows the thoughts of man, that they are but a breath.
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