In this song of praise, God speaks through Asaph. Here’s the psalm in its entirety: “Sing praises to God, our strength. Sing to the God of Israel. Sing! Beat the tambourine. Play the sweet lyre and the harp. Sound the trumpet for a sacred feast when the moon is new, when the moon is full. For this is required by the laws of Israel; it is a law of the God of Jacob. He made it a decree for Israel when he attacked Egypt to set us free.
I heard an unknown voice that said, “Now I will relieve your shoulder of its burden; I will free your hands from their heavy tasks. You cried to me in trouble and I saved you; I answered out of the thundercloud. I tested your faith at Meribah, when you complained that there was no water.
“Listen to me, O my people, while I give you stern warnings. O Israel, if you would only listen! You must never have a foreign god; you must not bow down before a false god. For it was I, the Lord your God, who rescued you from the land of Egypt. Open your mouth wide, and I will fill it with good things. (Wow! God is telling us what to do, and if we do it, He will fill us with good things. All we have to do is listen to him and stop worshiping false gods. Anything that we place before God, is a false god…money, career, hobbies, etc.)
“But no, my people wouldn’t listen. Israel did not want me around. So I let them follow their blind and stubborn way, living according to their own desires. (Wow…This is a word for each of us!) But oh, that my people would listen to me! Oh, that Israel would follow me, walking in my paths! How quickly I would then subdue their enemies! How soon my hands would be upon their foes! (Wow…how quickly God would come to our rescue, if we would simply listen, follow, and serve Him!) Those who hate the Lord would cringe before him; their desolation would last forever. But I would feed you with the best of foods. I would satisfy you with wild honey from the rock.” (Psalm 81) (God just told us in his own words, how simple and satisfying life can be, if we simply surrender, listen, and serve the Lord. Lord, you are amazing!)
Concluding Note: As I was searching for a caption to place at the top of this lesson. I stumbled across the one above, and a question entered my mind as I looked at the picture of the bible opened with the words “Speak Lord” above it. The question that came to mind was, “When is God speaking to us?” And in that moment, I realized that each and every one of us have to read His Word in order to listen to Him. God is speaking through His Word. We can’t know what He is saying without reading His Word. He is telling us who He is in His Word! He is telling us how to follow him in his Word! How do we know the paths He has instructed us to take without reading his Word? Lord, thank you for this revelation. When God is telling us to listen…He is saying, “Open your bibles and read My Word!” Wow…thank you, Lord!
Lord, thank you for your Word today! Help us refrain from being blinded by our own stubborn ways. Help us remove the scales from our eyes so we can clearly see and follow you. Help us listen to you by reading your Word, for you are ready to FILL us when we do. Lord, we love you!
May the Lord bless you and protect you. May the Lord smile on you and be gracious to you. May the Lord show you his favor and give you his peace.” (Numbers 6:24-26)
….AND MAY WE ALL PRACTICE THIS WITH ONE ANOTHER.
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