psalms

Growing By the Stream

/ pastorpete51 / 6 Comments 
But his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree
planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers. 
Psalm 1:2-3 ESV

Having spent most of my career working on trees, I learned that the American Sycamore is the largest deciduous tree in North America. Though its wood is not very good for furniture or firewood, its multi-colored peeling bark and beautiful open branches make it a tree that people love. One of the other amazing things about the sycamore is its choice of habitat. In regions that are heavily forested, you may travel for miles without spotting a single one. But when you come to the riverbank, you will find hundreds. That is because God has built into its DNA the desire to send its roots out along the edge of the rushing waters and deep into the soil around that stream.

Photo by JMarc Sire on Pexels.com

In today’s verse, David paints us a picture of a person, who by meditating on God’s word can be like just that Sycamore. He chooses to live, not just in the same general area as the stream, but right on the edge. This is not just a, “I’ll stop by on Sunday for a sip or two.” lifestyle. This is a, “When I wake in the morning, the first thing I need is to hear is God’s voice.” relationship. The sycamore grows to be the largest by its daily dependence on the river. Secondly, the sycamore grows in such a way that it never withers. Even when the surrounding countryside is decimated by drought it just keeps growing and, “Its leaf also does not wither.” We need this kind of fellowship with Jesus when we are going through tough times. Without being daily immersed in God’s promises, we may hold on to being a Christian, but lose the fruitfulness and the joy. We need the kind of fruitfulness that doesn’t stop even during times of war, earthquakes or political upheaval. It doesn’t stop, because its source flows from the throne of God in Heaven! Last of all, God promises that anyone who remains rooted and meditating on His word, will prosper. This doesn’t mean money in the bank, safety in disasters or acclaim by others. This prosperity is the ability to do everything that God calls us to do today. Has God asked you to bake a cake for your neighbor, fix your grandmother’s car or visit a friend in the jail? He will help the cake to rise, give the ability to change the brakes and at the check in window at the prison, give favor with the guards. God does this, without any special performance on our part, because His blessing comes by grace that flows from Calvary. He asks us to be like that tree by fully trusting in Jesus Christ, not just for salvation but for everything in life. Then we can grow by the banks of the river of His word and remain delightedly rooted forever in Him!

Deep Calls to Deep

/ pastorpete51 / 2 Comments 
Deep calls to deep
    at the roar of your waterfalls;
all your breakers and your waves
    have gone over me. Psalm 42:7 ESV

My wife and I used to love a T.V. series called, “Numbers”. For those not familiar with it, the story line revolves around two brothers. One is an FBI special agent named Don and his brother Charlie, who is a brilliant mathematician. Don likes to kick in doors and catch the bad guys, while Charlie loves to hang out in his garage and work on equations on a blackboard. In each episode, Don needs Charlie to help solve a crime using that mathematical mind in some interesting ways. Charlie will come in, gather the evidence, then with some neat special effects, we are treated to the inner working of Charlie’s mind as numbers, geometrical shapes and algebraic equations flit across the screen. Though I hate math, I can identify with Charlie, though my thoughts would flit across the screen as notes rather than numbers. And as a lifelong musician and a lover of music, I have become intrigued by the various musical directions given in, many of the Psalms. Phrases such as “to the tune of The Lilies” (Psalms 45 & 80) or with stringed instruments, (4, 54, 61 and others), make me wonder what these passages actually sounded like. Many different instruments are recommended, such as Trumpets, flutes, cymbals, and an eight stringed harp. Other Psalms simply say, “a song” which may mean they were sung a cappella.

Now this all may sound nit-picky, but I believe that what God wants us to know through those tiny details is that He wants to connect with all kinds of people in a million different circumstances with music. You could almost call music the language of Heaven. Job mentions a moment when the morning stars sang together. Isaiah tells us that “the trees of the field shall clap their hands” (Isaiah 55:12) and in Revelation 5:9, John tells us of people in Heaven singing, “a new song”.

Everywhere, in situations of grief as well as victory, in gratitude for blessings as well as when we cry for help, God has music that will cry out to him, from “deep to deep” In those times, God gives us a language, that can carry our words as well as a melody that will express our hearts even when words fail us. Music is not only a wonderful gift; it is a staircase that our prayers go up to speak to our Father. Notes are like the shaft of an arrow that drives us towards God’s target as well as the point that sinks His message into our hearts. Music is the breath of God that fills our sails and drives us across the ocean and an anchor in a storm, when we don’t know if we can hang on another minute. No, we will not learn how the Psalms originally sounded on this side of Heaven, but we can know that the God who gave them music, loves us enough to give us our own melody as we travel the road, He has called us to walk today.

God’s Dinner Music

/ pastorpete51 / 14 Comments

I will sing of your love and justice; to you O Lord I will sing praise! Psalm 101:1 NIV

My saying with our family, is “Media and meals don’t mix.” That is with the exception of music. One of my most detailed childhood memories is of my step-dad playing, Beethoven’s Ninth symphony or Benny Goodman on the stereo at suppertime. After 60 years, I can still feel Bababa-boom through my feet and hear the high notes on Goodman’s clarinet.

God invented music long before heaven and earth were created. I believe that the first thing He taught the angels was how to sing Holy-Holy-Holy! Jesus Himself sang after the Last supper and in today’s verse David tells us that the song He sings is of God’s love and justice.

Music is special. Maybe that’s why so many generations, from ancient Hebrew festivals to 18th century English pubs have resonated with songs while they ate and drank. Music has the power to bring our minds and bodies into unity around its melodies and rhythms. We need to ask ourselves “What kind of music are we listening to at our dinner times?” Are we choosing the sounds of football, the boink-boink-boink of video games or the tapping out a reply to some text message, or are we listening to the symphony of heaven? When we do, our hearts our minds can be filled with God’s dinner music and our lips with His praise!