Oh, yeah...Wednesday. Ok.
Father, I had a rough morning yesterday. But you got me through it, and then the afternoon was made great by the good scores I got on that clerical test for the city. That lifted my spirits tremendously. Thank you for giving me the skills and keeping me alert and attentive enough to do well on that test.
Also, Father, Christi is not doing well this morning. She's having some emotional issues because her knee isn't as good as she wanted it to be by today. Please comfort her and help her know that it's going to be ok. Give her an extra-special dose of your loving hand today!
15 O mountain of God, mountain of Bashan; O many-peaked mountain, mountain of Bashan! 16 Why do you look with hatred, O many-peaked mountain, at the mount that God desired for his abode, yes, where the LORD will dwell forever? 17 The chariots of God are twice ten thousand, thousands upon thousands; the Lord is among them; Sinai is now in the sanctuary. 18 You ascended on high, leading a host of captives in your train and receiving gifts among men, even among the rebellious, that the LORD God may dwell there.
According to A Musician Looks At the Psalms, by Don Wyrtzen, this passage depicts God ascending Mt. Zion as a mighty conqueror, with thousands of chariots, and leading captives in his train. In Ephesians 4:8, Paul quotes this passage, comparing it to Christ ascending to heaven.
Our conquering Savior deserves our highest praises and adoration! He has ascended into heaven, leading us "captives" in his train. Someday, he will receive us all into his Kingdom. In the meantime, we could take a lesson from the psalmist and recount our triumphs in Christ, especially when we are feeling defeated.
1 For God alone my soul waits in silence; from him comes my salvation. 2 He only is my rock and my salvation, my fortress; I shall not be greatly shaken.
From Matthew Henry Daily Readings:
"The good counsel given is, to trust wholly in God. We must so trust in him at all times, as not at any time to put that trust in ourselves, or in any creature, which is to be put in him only. Trust in him to guide us when in doubt, to protect us when in danger, to supply us when in want, to strengthen us for every good word and work. We must lay our wants and our wishes before him, and then patiently submit our wills to his: this is pouring out our hearts. God is a refuge for all, even for as many as will take shelter in him. The psalmist warns against trusting in men. The multitude, those of low degree are changeable as the wind. The rich and noble seem to have much in their power, and lavish promises; but those that depend on them, are disappointed."
Trust only in God. He, alone, will not disappoint. I will disappoint you. You will disappoint me. It is inevitable. But God will never disappoint. If we are ever disappointed in God, then we need to adjust our desires.
You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.
In Holiness Day By Day, Jerry Bridges has a brief, yet thoughtful, discussion on what he calls the "intermediate state," that period of time between our "death and the still-future resurrection of our bodies." He cites Paul twice...2 Corinthians 5:8 (Paul says he "would prefer to be away from the body and at home with the Lord"--NIV), and Philippians 1:23 (Paul says "My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better.")
"Taking Paul's statements along with Hebrews 12:22-24, we can say that in the intermediate state we'll be with Christ; we'll be in the presence of thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly (perhaps still hearing those seraphs of Isaiah 6:1-3 who call out antiphonally, 'Holy, holy, holy is the LORD Almighty'); we'll be with all believers of all ages; we'll be perfectly conformed to Christ in our spirits; and we'll be in a state that is far better than anything we can imagine.
"It's difficult for us to visualize an existence in heaven without the benefit of our physical senses; or, for that matter, a physical brain. Yet we need to remember that God has existed eternally without a physical body. And even the angels apparently exist only in spirit (though some have assumed a physical body at times for specific purposes). Though we cannot understand how these things will be, we need to submit our minds to the teaching of Scripture and look forward to the time when we also will be with Christ, when our spirits will be made perfect, and when we'll be in a state that's far better than our best conditions on earth."
This is some deep stuff, and worthy of meditation, or chewing on. I've questioned for a long time what happens between death and resurrection. Mr. Bridges has helped me a bit, today, I think.
Help me to look back and see victories in our lives when I'm depressed or being tempted to wallow in defeat. You have shown yourself Mighty in so many ways in this family, and I will focus on that, rather than get caught up in my own shortcomings and defeats. After all, I am one of the "captives" that was led up in your train!
I am grateful for the discussion on "intermediate state." I know there is no name given this state in Scripture, and very little is given us in the way of information. However, it is good to have even the slightest bit of understanding about what we might expect between our physical death and bodily resurrection. Give us wisdom as we meditate on more difficult subjects. Help us to understand things that are deeper.
I repeat my earlier prayer for Christi. Give her comfort, and heal her knee, Father. In the meantime, help her accept your timing in the healing process.
Also, Lord, I still send up prayers for Rick Ashley. I haven't had an update on him, last I heard he was in ICU and the next 24 hours were critical. Well, that 24 hours should be up now. Ok. I just saw an update that said he will be in ICU at least another day. Lord, please take care of Rick. Give him healing and keep him free from pain as much as possible. Comfort his wife and family during this time.
HEALTH CARE
Antidepressants have risen to the top spot as the most commonly prescribed class of medications in the United States,
and are now the preferred method of treatment over discussion therapies.
A treatment tested on mice has shown overwhelmingly favorable results for a newly-developed vaccine that could
prevent breast cancer and save the lives of millions of women.
Pray for the researchers who labor to develop effective treatments for all manner of diseases.
I'm not at all surprised at the statement about antidepressants. Not at all.
Grace and peace, friends.