This morning I opened my Bible and just prepared to read whatever jumped out at me. I know, that doesn’t sound very spiritual, but sometimes it really can be. I wasn’t doing it out of laziness, just wanted to see what was on God’s heart. This is what I landed on.
I love the Lord, for He heard my voice; He heard my cry for mercy. Because He turned His ear to me, I will call on Him as long as I live. The cords of death entangled me, the anguish of the grave came upon me; I was overcome by trouble and sorrow. Then I called on the name of the Lord: “O Lord, save me!” The Lord is gracious and righteous; our God is full of compassion. The Lord protects the simplehearted; when I was in great need, He saved me. Be at rest once more, O my soul for the Lord has been good to you. Psalm 116:1-7
The Psalm continues, but I want to stop here for now.
I was struck by several key elements right from the start. Did you notice how David says, because God heard him and saved him, he would continue to call on Him forever? If you continue to read Psalm 116 in its entirety, you will see him mention repeatedly how he will continue to call on the name of the Lord.
This made me wonder, have you ever called on God for help? Have you ever experienced an answered prayer? Well, if you have, then shouldn’t you continue to call on Him? I wonder if some of us receive a portion of the salvation promise and then think, “I got it from here. I can do this alone now.” Well, I’m sorry friend, that’s simply not true.
As I’ve grown and matured in Christ, one thing that’s struck me is, I lean on Him more and more, not less and less. As I grow more intimate with Abba, I actually call on Him more frequently. I invite Him into everything I do. Seriously, everything. You might be shocked to know the frequency of my calling on Him, or the scenarios. I literally call on Jesus in every moment. Do you? Should you? I believe the answer is yes.
As I’ve felt the glory of answered prayers, it’s only provoked me to interact with Him more and more. I like searching out God’s heart. When I don’t see a prayer answered, at least not answered how I thought it would be, I begin to press in further to discover what I may have missed. I don’t usually feel let down, although, yes sometimes I do. But most often I feel intrigued and drawn into Him to discover what His heart is for my situation. God is mysterious. Largely because He is infinite, and we are not. He can be everywhere at one time and we cannot. But isn’t that part of His glory? Isn’t that a portion of His beauty? I love God. I love all the things I know about Him, and I cannot wait to discover more.
I will leave you with another portion of Psalm 116…..
How can I repay the Lord for all His goodness to me? I will lift up the cup of salvation and call on the name of the Lord. I will fulfill my vows to the Lord in the presence of all His people. Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of His saints. O Lord, truly I am Your servant; I am Your servant, the son of Your maidservant; you have freed me from my chains. I will sacrifice a thank offering to You and call on the name of the Lord. I will fulfill my vows to the Lord in the presence of all his people, in the courts of the house of the Lord- in your midst, O Jerusalem. Praise the Lord. Psalm 116:12-19
365 Days in the Presence 