“But I will sing of your strength, in the morning I will sing of your love; for you are my fortress, my refuge in times of trouble.”
– Psalm 59:16
Hi James and Ellen,
Do you know who is your enemy? Do you know who is making your lives difficult? Do you know who wants to destroy you? Is your enemy attacking you through your emotions? Does anger regularly show up in your lives to get you to say words that you immediately regret? Is your enemy attacking you through your thoughts? Does low self-esteem regularly show up in your lives to make you want to hide? Is your enemy attacking you through your health? Do health issues periodically show up in your lives to mess with your quality of life? Every guy, gal and kid who has lived, is living and will live on planet Earth had, is having and will have enemies. Enemies will emerge through life contexts. Enemies will surface from sudden calamities. Enemies exist because of an innate evil nature. Disobedience is the underlining cause for the existence of enemy players. Paul says in Romans that all guys, gals and kids are imprisoned by God into disobedience so that He can show them His mercy. Your grandpaa thinks that God – as God the Father, – in a way that your grandpaa does not understand, has designated Satan to lead guys, gals and kids into disobedience as Paul is very clear when he says that no guy, gal or kid will know who God is if he or she does not first experience the impact of sin. Satan’s disobedience squad has only enemy players on it. Satan’s team is made up of enemy minions, gofers and imps. A sin is a score for Satan’s side. Satan thinks that his side’s sin scores occurred by a guy, gal and kid will keep the guy, gal or kid from being led to and then through the faith/grace door by God – as God the Spirit, to become an obedient, faith driven team player on the Christ-follower platoon. A loss for Satan’s crew of cronies took place when every past, present and future sin of a guy, gal or kid is expunged when the guy, gal or kid is led by God – as God the Spirit, to ‘walk’ past a blood stained cross that is at the entrance of the faith/grace door and through the faith/grace door. Right after God – as God the Spirit, leads a guy, gal or kid to and through the faith/grace door resulting in his or her being redeemed because of the horrible suffering and sacrificial death that took place on that blood stained cross, he or she now has the help of God – as God the Spirit, to go face to face with any one of Satan’s minions, gofers, and imps. No guy, gal or kid can stand up against an enemy player who is on Satan’s side without the help of what Jesus – as God the Son, did when He gave up his life on that blood stained cross for His people group guys and gals – who are God specially chosen guys and gals – the Israelite people group guys and gals – who are now known as Jews, and for the guys, gals and kids who had been adopted and elected by God – as God the Father, for Himself before He created the universe including planet Earth.
Even after a guy, gal or kid has been accepted by God – as God the Father, into His Christ-follower family, Satan’s minions, gofers and imps will continue to try to win sin points from a Christ-follower guy, gal and kid by getting them to sin thinking that God – as God the Father, will let one of His adopted Christ-follower guys, gals or kids go back to their playing field where . . . even though a guy, gal or kid will sense a welcoming release from his or her accumulated sins at the very precise moment when he or she passes from darkness into light – which is when God – as God the Spirit, leads him or her through the faith/grace door and . . ., the guy, gal or kid is still going to be constantly dogged by enemy players who will do anything to get him or her to play their disobedience game again using their rules that are fine tuned to cause sin. David had enemies. David scribed psalm songs that poignantly asked God to deliver and to protect him from his enemies. After psalm songs and tunes that David scribed began to be used by the Levi tribal clan choir to sing in the temple of God in the city of Jerusalem, one of the tunes that David scribed which is known as ‘Do Not Destroy’ is used by another psalm song writer for a psalm song that he scribed. This psalm song is now Psalm 59. David’s psalm song was written at the time when Saul – who was king over the guys and gals who lived in the land if Isreal, sent guys to watch David’s house in hopes of being able to catch David there so that he could murder David. Saul had become David’s enemy. This psalm song author uses his psalm song in the same way that David did – which is to confidently ask God for His help against enemies who he refers to in his psalm song as being evildoers, bloodthirsty, fierce conspirators, wicked traitors, snarling dogs, proud and liars. Just as David was positive that God – would use His wrath to punish, bring down and consume his enemies, so did this psalm song writer. By repeating each day verse 16, “But I will sing of your strength, in the morning I will sing of your love; for you are my fortress, my refuge in times of trouble.” you will defeat your enemies.
Just because your grandmaa and grandpaa – as Christ-followers, know how to confront Satan and his cohorts, this does not make your grandmaa and grandpaa any less susceptible than what you are to the ploys that Satan uses to get them to sin. Your grandmaa and grandpaa know that their health is in God’s hands but . . . even though your grandmaa and grandpaa have been experiencing good health, they still at times allow worry to score an enemy sin point. What Satan is in denial about and what his minions, gofers and imps are oblivious to is that their motley gang has lost – that Jesus – as God the Son, won the victory for your grandmaa and grandpaa at the moment of His death.
Psalm 59 (1050)