God Provides

When I was a kid, my family took a vacation to Disney World in early October. Well, during that time, Disney staff begins setting up for Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party. I don’t know how many of you have been there, but Main St USA is a busy busy place. It is easy to get lost right as you’re entering or leaving the park. I, in all my 10 year old wisdom, was frustrated and walking ahead of my family when we suddenly got separated. I remember standing on a curb after realizing that my family was not behind me, and I was almost in tears. I was asked to move by a member of the staff setting up for the party and I did but couldn’t get the words out that I was lost. I thought, surely if I stay here I’ll either see them or they’ll see me, but I couldn’t keep the thought of what would happen if I got left there in Disney World forever. Finally, I see my dad in his giant, loud, Hawaiian shirt standing by the emporium and I ran over to him and hugged him and cried. He had the response any father would likely have, ‘Bailey what is wrong with you, you scared me! I love you so much!’ and he hugged me so hard I thought my eyes were going to pop out of my head. In the moment, it might be really hard to see how this is encouraging, but any time a question has ever come into my mind if my parents love me, I can think of all the moments like this through my life. My dad loved me enough that he would have done anything to be sure that I made it back to them. He has provided for me in the middle of the hardest times of my life. This story reminds me of the encouragement that I have received from my earthly father. How much greater is the encouragement that I have received from my heavenly Father, especially in how he has provided through my lost moments and the darkest moment?

In our passage, verses 14 through 16 sound like really victorious verses, “The Lord is my strength and my defense, he has become my salvation. Shouts of joy and victory resound in the tents of the righteous: ‘The Lord’s right hand has done mighty things! The Lord’s right hand is lifted high; the Lord’s right hand has done mighty things!’” Normally, in our every day life as Western Cultured, twenty first century Christians, this kind of praise is reserved for when everything is good and when we are riding high on the goodness of life and how good things are going for us. Rarely do we give this kind of praise to God when we are sad or things are rough. Blessed be your name when the suns shining down on me and the world’s all as it should be, right? It’s much harder to sing the second part of the verse, blessed be your name on the road marked with suffering, though there’s pain in the offering. Pause

The encouragement here comes from the context of the passage. The psalmist here is praising God for the ways that God moved in times that were difficult. The author mentions a time when they were besieged and completely surrounded by his enemies, The Bible Commentary in the Wesleyan Tradition on Psalms says it was an inescapable and painful foe to face. The psalmist acknowledges that victory in this battle does not come from human hands, the victory comes from Yahweh alone. Yahweh himself provided for the psalmist in a difficult time of life, and rather than ask God why he was allowed to be attacked, he praises for the way that he has been saved.

God provided this victory and the psalmist assures that people understand that. When we are in the middle of a battle, seemingly surrounded on every side, do we thank God for how he has already provided or do we spend time lamenting on the situation we are in? Do we thank God for how he is going to provide? Do we have faith that God is going to provide for us in the middle of our storm? Personally, I know there are times when I spend too much complaining about the situation I’m in. Last year, I struggled a lot with my mental health and the feeling of loneliness. Honestly, I still struggle with that. I felt incredibly anxious and afraid at all times, I felt sad at all times and I spent a good time last year asking why. I spent too long allowing these feelings to fester and grow into feelings that I should not be where I was, that I shouldn’t be at CFOT. I didn’t give these feelings to God and did not thank him for his provision that had already come and that would come. Something that came to mind and was present in my life in April or May was the phrase, always remember the days that you prayed to be exactly where you are now. How true that is, regardless of the situation I might have been in at the moment, I had prayed to be here and God has been faithful thus far. God was faithful even in the middle of that hurt, and he is certainly present now.

I wonder, how often we spend questioning the places that God leads us instead of asking how he is going to move in our current situation and use it for the glorification of his kingdom. Do we look at the battle around us and the enemies on all sides, or do we, like the psalmist, praise God for how he has already moved and how he will move in the future? Do we praise God because the battle does not belong to us, it belongs to him? Do we give the victories to God and the good to God or do we choose to perceive them as things we have done for ourselves? Along with that, I wonder if we miss out on the beauty and blessings that God could put into our lives when we hoard these good things as something that we think we have done for ourselves.

The psalmist finishes the song with, “You are my God, and I will praise you; you are my God and I will exalt you. Give thanks to the Lord for he is good; his love endures forever.” God’s love does not endure only when we perceive everything to be okay and going smoothly. God’s love endures always, he always encourages, and is continuously providing for us.

As we move into a time of response, I want to share three lines with you from the song His Provision, “my Lord has made provision for the day of my despair,” “my every need is answered by God’s providential care,” and “Of the everlasting arms of Love I’m daily made aware.” The Lord provides always and we can take encouragement from how he has already done so and from the knowledge that he will continue to do so. Do we daily remember his arms of Love and thank him for it? If you have been questioning the Lord in times of distress, turn your face to the Lord and I challenge you to turn your questions to praises. This place of prayer is always open, if you are in need of encouragement from the body, find someone to pray with. If you are in a place where you can give encouragement find someone to encourage. Give a word of encouragement to at least one person before you leave this place today.