Song of Providence

INTRODUCTION

GOOD MORNING & TURN WITH ME… (PSALM 121)

TRACK #2 OF A 15 SONG PLAYLIST

Given by God to the Hebrews as they journeyed from their homes to Jerusalem 3x a year according to the festivals commanded by God in the book of Exodus.

Jerusalem - Highest Point

Uphill Ascent to met with God

OUR JOURNEY

We live a life upward toward God.

Jesus followers are considered pilgrims, sojourners, exiles, aliens, immigrants, strangers living in a foreign land - long for our true home, our true Kingdom.

The themes in these songs remind our minds and hearts of what is true.

Music speaks to both the mind and the heart

Intellect and emotion

My prayer is that these themes convict, encourage, and strengthen us on the journey to God.

NEED FOR HELP...

DO YOU ASK FOR ASK?

GO INTO A STORE - HOME DEPOT

Do you ask for directions

My kids have asked me why I don’t just ask someone after they become frustrated with wandering up and down the aisles of the store.

MARRIAGE

Fighting, not getting along, can’t seem to resolve the issue on your own - do you ask for help?

PERSONAL STRUGGLES

Anxiety, depression, lust, loneliness, greed, gluttony, etc.

WITH EYES CAST DOWN AT OUR SURROUNDINGS, WE CAN BECOME OVERWHELMED...

EVERYDAY STRUGGLES - HEADLINES TRACKED THIS WEEK

CDC finds Corona virus kills more hispanic and black children than white youths

Wildfire smoke is cause a new public health crisis on the west coast

Hurricane Sally threatens record flood.

Boston University teacher killed in elevator accident

RESPONSIVE READING

TODAY SONG...

Is for the anxious and afraid. When all the voices of fear and accusation come rushing in - where do we look?

BIG IDEA

In our need, we rest in the powerful arms of God, who guards us forever. 

SINGER

I lift my eyes up to the hills.

From where does my help come?

My help comes from the Lord,

who made heaven and earth.

SIDE #1

He will not let your foot be moved;

he who keeps you will not slumber.

Behold, he who keeps Israel

will neither slumber nor sleep.

SIDE #2

The Lord is your keeper;

The Lord is your shade on your right hand

The sun shall not strike you by day,

nor the moon by night.

ALL TOGETHER

The Lord will keep you from all evil;

he will keep your life.

The Lord will keep your going out and your coming in

from this time forth and forevermore.

WE NEED HELP

“I LIFT UP MY EYES...”

WE NEED HELP!

The first step is admitting your need help

Counselors and Pastors all over the world will tell you that same thing - we need to admit that our problems are beyond our personal resources.

Josh Moody, Journey to Joy

The idea that you can always fix everything yourself has caused the breakdown of more marriages, the heartbreak of more people, and the disaster of more businesses than perhaps any other idea on the face of the planet. Pride might be the first casualty of failure, but pride is also failure’s common cause. “Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall” (Prov. 16:18).

But if it is important to admit that we all need help from time to time, then it is also very important that we go to the right place to find help.

WHERE DO YOU LOOK

“WHERE DOES MY HELP COME FROM?”

2 SCHOOL S OF THOUGHT

Rather than an either/or, I want I to see a both/and

(1) MOUNTAIN OF IDOLS

THE WALK

It would take 2-3 days to travel the 60+ miles from Galilee to Jerusalem

Atop the hills you would see shrines and altars and idols - false gods carved by human hands

THE SITES

As heat from the sun bears down, your feet hurt - maybe you feel a bit sorry for yourself - you see a grove of trees, shade

Sacred prostitutes offering temporary temporary comfort in the name of a Canaanite god.

Maybe you say no initially but the hours grow long, and your feet grow tired.

Hill after hill you see people resting, enjoying themselves. At the time this Psalm was written the hillsides were overrun with popular pagan worship.

You quietly sing to yourself...

I lift my eyes to the hills, from where does my help come from?

From idol lies or God?

My help comes from the Lord…!

HOPE MISPLACED

The road of following Jesus, we must not stop or turn our eyes from the true source of our hope.

2018 105 Experts were asked “what gives them hope for the future?”

Temple of young people - maybe the next generation will be different than every generation that has come before them

Temple of Technology - “technology can bring us together, enhance our relationships, and connect us...”

Just think about how well everybody gets along on facebook and twitter

Temple of Equality & Social Justice -

Temple of Intellect -

Temple of Human Ingenuity -

Temple of Human Kindness & Compassion -

Process:

Lift your eyes from the hopelessness and hurts that surround us

You see these false temples upon the hills - You see these places where experts have placed their hope. You see others gathered there and seemingly happy and content as you continue the difficult journey of obedient surrender.

Does my hope come from there? - NO!

(2) MOUNTAIN OF GOD

THE DISTANT SIGHT

When you ask yourself one more time - How much longer...

You see the final Ascent

You lift your above above the hillsides of false worship and behold the mountain of God.

Where does my help come?

“My help comes for the Lord!!”

Who made the heaven and earth!”

Our help doesn’t come from the mountain. It doesn’t came from carving made by human hands. Our help doesn’t come from our own efforts, our own comfort, our own ability.

Our help comes from God - the God who made the mountains and made me.

THE PRESENT & FUTURE HOPE

A SONG OF PROVIDENCE

MORE THAN JUST TRUST IN GOD

Trite, minimalistic comfort that merely says to ‘Trust in God.’

Rather, we we feel the firm foundation of God’s providence beneath our feet.

DEFINE PROVIDENCE

The foreseen care and guidance of God over his creation

OUR GUARDIAN GOD

This Psalm of Ascent also becomes a Song of Ascent - written in a stair-step technique where the last last word in a line became the first first in the next line - lifting us higher and higher with each step.

1- Help come from, My help

2- Keep Israel, My keeper

3- Guard your life, My guardian

CENTRAL THEME (6x) - “KEEP/ KEEPER”

Guards, Guardian, Watches Over, etc.

(1) MY GOD, POWERFUL GUARDIAN

NEED: “HELP”

Vulnerable, powerless, without strength, without purpose, without contribution, overwhelmed, under performing, vulnerable, weak, tired, weary traveler

RESOURCE IN GOD:

There is power in the name of YAHWEH! There is power in our God.

He made the heavens and earth

By the power of his word - God separated the land from the sky

...Trees and plants and vegetation sprouted from the ground

… birds filled the sky and fish the waters

… Animals roamed the earth at the power of God

NOW - the power is for your protective care.

The power of God is turned toward you, not against you

In the mountain of God, there is a cleft into which we can safely hide.

The strong yet tender embrace of a loving father to whom we run when the terror of night strikes fear in our heart

We run into his arms for comfort, for safety,

GOD IS OUR POWERFUL GUARDIAN

(2) MY GOD, WATCHFUL GUARDIAN

NEED:

What if I slip and fall.

What if I begin to shake with fear.

What if in my sleep the night terrors return and anxiety and fear creeps creeps back in my heart.

What if I mess up?

Can I rest and hide in the warm loving arms of God forever?

RESOURCE

God, our guardian stands watch over us.

You may slip but you will not fall.

God does not sleep. He kept his promises and covenants to the generations who have gone before us and God will keep his promises to you.

His eyes do not grow weary watching over you. his eyeslids don’t flutter with exhaustion.

He is watchful, like a father standing guard over his child throughout the night

This is also in contrast to the high places of Baal - as Elijah joked

Baal was the god of rain so maybe he had fallen asleep

Our help does not come from the mountain top, our help comes from God.

GOD IS OUR WATCHFUL GUARDIAN

(3) MY GOD, PROTECTIVE GUARDIAN

NEED

Vulnerable, exposed, unprotected - left out on an island

Alone, isolated

RESOURCE

“Shade on your right hand”

The soldier carried his shield in his left hand so this left his right side exposed

SHADE/SHADOW of the Almighty

Psalm 17:8 - hidden in the shadow of his wings

Psalm 57:1 - refuge in the shadow of you wings

God’s shade protects us from the sun and moon

SUN

Heatstroke, dehydration - this we understand well, especially in FL

Physically

MOON

Mentally

The night in the ancient world was when the mind would become unhindged from reality.

French - La Lune - Lunacy

WHOLE - All day and all night - completely and always protected.

GOD IS OUR PROTECTIVE GUARDIAN

Our shield and shade day and night. Physically and mentally.

(4) MY GOD, PERSEVERING GUARDIAN

NEED

But the journey is long

What if I grow tired?

What if my eyes become weary and fix on false hope? In my need, what if my strength isn’t enough?

What if I run the race of faith only to trip just before the finish line? Wouldn’t it be better to just give up now and save myself the pain that will inevitably come.

I just don’t know that I have the ability, the fortitude, the strength

RESOURCE

Yahweh will guard you from all evil

He will guard your life

Yahweh with guard when you leave and return all the way through the finish line.

When you trust in God

He is powerful

He is watchful

He is Protective

He will Persevere

This is our song of PROVIDENCE

CONCLUSION

GOSPEL CONNECTION

NOT SYAING...

Nothing bad will happen, all is safe - just follow Jesus and your life will be perfect

In fact, jesus said the very opposite...

"If anyone wishes to follow me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow me.” Mark 8:34

Matthew 24:9 ““Then they will deliver you to tribulation, and will kill you, and you will be hated by all nations because of My name.”

We’ve been granted the privilege to not only believe in Him but also to suffer for his sake” (Philippians 1:29)

“Endure hardships, suffer hardships, don’t be disturbed by hardships for we were destined for this

SAYING...

you will come to the end of yourself and cry out for hHELP. You will feel vulnerable and in desperate need - GOD IS YOUR POWERFUL GUARDIAN

You will trip and stumble, feel fear and concern - GOD IS YOU WATCHFUL GUARDIAN

You will feel the heat of the sun and your body grows weak, The light of the moon may cause you to question your sanity - GOD IS YOUR PROTECTIVE GUARDIAN

You may grow weary, question your resolve, feel weak and incapable - GOD IS YOUR PERSEVERING GUARDIAN

GOSPEL APPLICATION

DO YOU NEED HELP

As you come to God this morning - do you need him?

Are you just trying to power through the hardships and feelings?

WHERE ARE YOU LOOKING FOR HELP

Are you satisfied with your own opinions

Are you satisfied with the news

Are you satisfied with technology, the next generation, the goodness of people you see online

OR - do you thirst, long, desire something of sweet substance that can only be found in God.

LOOK TO JESUS!

Jesus is our Powerful Guardian

John 1:3 ESV

All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made.

Colossians 1:16 ESV

For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him.

Jesus is our Watchful Guardian

Matthew 28:20 ESV

teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

Jesus is our Protective Guardian

2 Thessalonians 3:3–5 ESV

But the Lord is faithful. He will establish you and guard you against the evil one. And we have confidence in the Lord about you, that you are doing and will do the things that we command. May the Lord direct your hearts to the love of God and to the steadfastness of Christ.

Jesus is Persevering Guardian

Hebrews 7:25 ESV

Consequently, he is able to save to the uttermost those who draw near to God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them.

COMMUNION

(1) CONFESS | REPENT

Lead in a time of confession -

Self-Sufficiency

False Idols

(2) CELEBRATE | REJOICE

Bread & The Cup

Sufficient Savior