Therefore

Love you all, praying for you,
 
I just love God’s Word.  It has more truth, and more understanding, more wisdom and more success than you could ever imagine!  Psalms 32:6 – Therefore, let everyone who is Godly pray to you while you may be found…  This is a command as well as an invitation.  Any time you see the word therefore, ask what it’s there for?  The verses just prior explain it… When I kept silent, when I treasured and covered sin in my heart – when there was deceit in my spirit, when I kept a cesspool of sinful desires hidden in my heart, my bones wasted away.  I groaned all night long because Your hand was heavy upon me day and night - the conviction of the Holy Spirit and the correction of the LORD…  Then (finally) I acknowledged my sin to you (I admitted that I was guilty of this) and stopped covering up my iniquity – stopped leaving a place for it in my heart, and in my time schedule.  I said to myself, I spoke it out loud, I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the LORD (And I did).  And you forgave me of my sin!  You forgave and removed by your forgiveness the guilt that my sin caused.  Because of this… Therefore… let everyone who is Godly pray to you.  Praise you, yes.  Thank you, yes.  Bring our petitions to you, yes… But therefore, let everyone who Fears God, who respects God, say to themselves, “I will confess my transgressions to the LORD.  Let them pray and do that!  Confess their transgressions, no longer hide iniquity in their heart.  And He will forgive you of your sin, and remove by His forgiveness the guilt of your sin.  And THEN, the last half of Psalms 32:6 comes into play… Surely when the mighty waters rise, they will not reach him.  When the storm comes, when calamity strikes, that can sweep away a lifetime of work, a lifetime of savings, a lifetime of provision… you will be kept safe.  Then the very next verse. Psalms 32:7 – You are my hiding place; you will protect me from trouble and surround me with songs of deliverance.  This verse is tied directly to the previous verses.  He’s your hiding place, not just when you’re desperate, when calamity is upon you.  He’s your hiding place when you don’t hide sin in your heart.  When you’re not hiding something else.  When you acknowledge your sin, confess your transgression, remove the incubator, the cesspool of sinful desires in your heart… When you think differently (reject them) and turn from it.  And say you will confess your transgressions to Him.  When you remove the idols, and altars, and Asherah poles.  When you speak out loud, “I might sin tomorrow, but by your grace – not today!  When you remove the places that give way to evil, when you plan ahead, recognize where the dangers lie – at twilight, on that street, going towards her house… and you choose right now a different path than that one.  When you choose PRISM in God’s Word throughout the day, and follow the PiVAT God set for you, when you praise and declare and choose His way out, and His Grace to say “NO” to the first step in the wrong direction – not just the sin it leads to.  When you get moving on the path He has chosen for you – the path that leads to light and life, what He told you to do in this hour!  When you activate your mouth towards righteousness with His Words on your lips, when you choose to speak life and faith and humility and kindness.  When you are already preparing in your mouth and mind the next righteous and gracious response.  Then He is your hiding place.  And then He surrounds you with songs of deliverance.  When the mighty waters rise, they will not reach you.  You will be safe in His dwelling, hidden and protected in Him!  Praying that you will pray to Him while He may be found.  That you will thank Him for that overcoming Grace, and use it!  Declare that you are choosing it!  Praying that you will get busy doing what He told you to do.  I might sin tomorrow, but not today.  I might sin tomorrow, but by His grace that I choose right now, Not Today!  I’m not going anywhere near those places.  I’m going His way!  I’m busy on His path, and I’m leaving those shackles behind.  You know where your weakness are.  What are they?  Grumbling and complaining? Fear or Fret, worry or doubt?  Lust or greed?  A critical spirit? Pride or discontentment?  Unkindness? Not predisposed to be gracious to others.  If you keep walking in the same path, you’ll keep arriving at the same destination.  Proverbs said – all at once he followed her like a ox going to the slaughter, like a deer stepping into a noose, little knowing it would cost him his life…  But really, it wasn’t all at once.  He forgot to speak the Word of God when He got off of work.  And declare that He would obey God fully in the Grace God provides.  At twilight He would have been busy with what God had planned for him, not what the devil was enticing him to.  He walked down the wrong street at that time…  All a recipe for death and destruction.  God has better for you.  You’ll keep living the way you live, until your speak with your mouth, God’s Word, at the right time – before hand – and commit to choose His grace to overcome – to walk in a different direction, than that sin or immaturity that’s been a habit recently.  God’s grace is bigger than anything you face, any temptation, any bad habit, any selfish act.  Declare His Word – and what you will do, and then do it.  God will take you higher, what used to be a weakness will become a strength, and what the devil used to trip you up in, he’ll have to find something else.  Because this one is over!  Praise God.  Pray to Him while He may be found.  He has victory for you! 
 
Love you all,
dad