Tag Archives: Psalm 40:3

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Embrace the Trial – Part 1

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“Honey, I think we need to go to the hospital!” This was a statement I had heard four times before, as we anticipated the arrival of each of our wonderful children, God has blessed us with. This day, I found myself on the other side of this statement—I was actually saying these words!

At times, in life, we find ourselves looking squarely into the head-on collision of an unforeseen trial that may appear overwhelming in its uncertainties. What do you do? How do you respond? Is there purpose? How can we know? The list of questions seems daunting as we ponder the endless possibilities.

The words, “embrace” and “trial,” when put together, seem so foreign and contrary. Yet these two words were on my mind. A “trial” speaks of a hardship, something unwanted and unsolicited. An “embrace” speaks of warmth and love. For me it brings memories of my mother’s loving embrace—something I long for. So, how can these two words coexist in the same thought?

As I began the process of coming to grips with this current trial, the phrase, “Embrace the trial,” kept repeatedly coming to mind. It was something I couldn’t get out of my head. Soon I found myself taking this before the Lord to find His purpose of this seemingly contradictory phrase. What the Lord showed me was both refreshing and humbling. The fog began to burn off with the view before me coming into focus. And then with great clarity this purpose statement came to rest at the forefront of my mind. “Embrace the trial—that I may know Him and glorify Him.”

In the process of coming to grips with this trial, a dear friend of mine challenged me to write a poem. Naturally, I laughed at the thought. Actually, I think I laughed out loud when he said it. Writing isn’t my area of expertise, although I enjoy sharing God’s truths through the written word. Later that evening, I found myself actually considering his challenge.

So, with pen in hand I began to pour my heart out on the page. I was amazed at how therapeutic I found the process, as it was good medicine for my soul. What came out was the struggle of the trial expressed in a conversation with my loving, heavenly Father. I was amazed at how easily the words flowed. With the recurring line “Embrace the trial,” God has been reassuring me of His love, like the tender reminder of a father encouraging his son to embrace what is best, despite the painful process. With His gracious Word of truth, He was reminding me to trust Him because He is trustworthy. Paul states, “Faithful is He that calleth you, Who also will do it” (1 Thessalonians 5:24). Through these words He continues to remind me of His sovereign purpose of conforming me into the image of His dear Son.

God’s GOAL for me is to KNOW HIM, in order to GLORIFY HIM, as I am changed to be LIKE HIM. This is His goal for every soul in every trial. This is the purging process—the crucible of affliction that God, in His loving providence, sees fit to bring about the change that He desires. It has been said that this is the process by which the Spirit of God, takes the Word of God and transforms us into the likeness of the Son of God.

Paul writes about this process of change, saying, “But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord” (2 Corinthians 3:18). We are changed into the same image that we spend time gazing on. The challenge is to spend time gazing upon the image of the Son of God found in the Word of God so as to be “changed into that same image from glory to glory.”

I love the results, David writes of in Psalm 40:3, that God brings about. He writes, “And He hath put a new song in my mouth, even praise unto our God: many shall see it, and fear, and shall trust in the LORD.” In my case, “He has put a new poem of praise in my mouth.” My prayer is that those who read it shall “worship and shall trust in the LORD.”

Here is what the Lord spoke to my heart about. My prayer is that it will be a special blessing to you, wherever you find yourself, whether needing to embrace a trial or simply continuing life’s journey.

“Embrace the Trial”

“Why me?” The question often asked, when confronted with a trial.
But is this the right one to be asked, facing the upward mile?

“Embrace the trial,” God says to me, “and fight not My design.
My way seems hard, the road unsure, when questioning the line.”

“My fight is not with You, my God, but why my path so hard?
My Lord, is this the best for me, Your frail and weary child?”

“Embrace the trial,” my Lord responds, “Surrender to My way.
Truly it’s for your best, you’ll see, My blessings’ on its way.”

“But Lord, this path is quite unclear and only if I knew,
The length of time to see it through I’d surrender all to You!”

“Embrace the trial, my dear child, I want what’s best for you.
I love you more than you can know, just trust Me, this is true!”

“But why, O Lord, is this so hard for me to yield to You?
If only but a glimpse of view to bear this burden through.”

And then with loving, gentle voice, the pain He cuts right through,
“My Son will come alive in you, when yieldings’ what you do.”

“Look up and see your Savior’s face, and gaze upon My Word.
In time, you’ll be the change I see, committed to your Lord.”

“Look up and see My eyes of grace, I look from up above.
Fear not, My child, the pain you feel is sent because I love.”

“Rejoice! My mercy never fails, enduring to the end.
My grace you’ll find sufficient in humility you bend.”

“The best is not the question ‘Why?’ but better yet, just ‘Who?’
For when you see Me, Who I am, you will surrender too.”

“So, embrace the trial, My dear child, My best is what you’ll see,
Beyond the suffering you feel, My Son they soon shall see.”

In case you were wondering…No, I’m not through having this conversation but I am truly grateful for how we have begun. I know the road ahead will be marked with areas of failure and repentance. I know there will be times where I am tempted to misplace my trust. I know there will be times that I will need to refocus my perspective on my loving Savior’s face and the purpose that He is seeking to accomplish. The bottom line is that I know that I will need to “embrace the trial,” time and time again in order to achieve the goal for which God has purposed. His will is for me to know Him, in order to glorify Him, as I am changed into the image of His Son. By God’s grace and with the prayers of His saints I will “embrace the trial—that I may know Him and glorify Him.”

Can you relate? It is very possible that you have had a similar conversation with the Lord. Or maybe it is time to have this conversation with our good and loving God. I want to encourage you to read over and meditate upon the truths of God’s Word, then take Him at His Word. I want to encourage you to “embrace the trial.”

“Look up and see God’s eyes of grace, He looks from up above. Fear not, God’s child, the pain you feel is sent because He loves.” And then “Rejoice! His mercy never fails, enduring to the end. His grace you’ll find sufficient in humility you bend. So, embrace the trial, God’s dear child, His best is what you’ll see, beyond the suffering you feel, God’s Son they soon shall see.”

Silencing the “Sin Detector”

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It’s the middle of the night and you are enjoying a restful night when a high-pitched, piercing sound suddenly breaks through the quiet, stillness and startles you awake. You realize that the smoke detector has been set off by the presence of smoke in your home. But instead of addressing the issue you pull your pillow over your head and try to return to the peaceful rest you had been enjoying just moments before.

Would you ever do this? The answer is obviously “NO!” The situation needs immediate attention.

Unfortunately when it comes to sin, we often are guilty of covering our head in hopes that the piercing noise of our conscience will quiet down and go away. Why do we do this?  Why do we insist on covering our heads and plugging our ears instead of addressing the problem? The problem is not our conscience but sin that has set of our conscience. What then is the remedy? How are we supposed to Biblically address our internal “sin detector?”

Many Christians live defeated lives simply because of failing to Biblically confess their sins and in turn live their lives filled with the noise of guilt—a guilty conscience.  How hard would it be to live in a home while the smoke detector is sounding constantly? How stressful would it be to try to carry on conversations and lead a normal life? How productive would a person be in this environment?

Often we try to quiet our conscience by engaging in something to try to distract us from thinking about our noisy soul—our guilty conscience.  Just as we would never go and remove the battery to silence the smoke detector in order to remedy the problem we must learn to stop trying to silence our conscience by any other means than God’s way—the Biblical way.

Consider with me Psalm 51 as we look to Biblically address our “sin detector.” The title of gives us some insight into the circumstances surrounding this psalm; “when Nathan the prophet came unto [David], after he had gone in to Bathsheba.” Nathan comes to King David and says, “Thou are the man!” (2 Samuel 12:7)

Has your conscience ever called out to you in a piercing voice, “You are the man/ woman!”?

Here in Psalm 51 we see a “Precious Truth” regarding the confession of sin.  What does true confession look like? It begins with action—turning toward God and considering Who He is and what is He like. When we sin we turn away from God and separate ourselves from Him.

Isaiah tells us what our sin does to our fellowship with God. He says, “Behold, the LORD’S hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither His ear heavy, that it cannot hear: but your iniquities [sins] have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid His face from you, that He will not hear.” (Isaiah 59:1-2)

In order to be in right fellowship once again we must turn back to Him in repentance. This is what we see taking place here in Psalm 51. David cries out to the Lord saying, “Have mercy upon me, O God, according to Thy lovingkindness: according unto the multitude of Thy tender mercies blot out my transgressions [willful disobedience].” (Psalm 51:1)

Question to answer: “Who is God and what is He like?”

David turns back to God and pleads for mercy—this mercy that is based upon God’s unfailing love. David relies upon what he KNOWS to be true about his God. Keep in mind that God loves to forgive—He wants to forgive us from our sin. It is important to understand who God is, what He likes, and what He dislikes.

The prophet Micah puts it this way, “Who is a God like unto Thee, that pardoneth iniquity, and passeth by the transgression of the remnant of His heritage? He retaineth not His anger forever, because He delighteth in mercy.” (Micah 7:18)

Notice that God “pardons sin”—He forgives and He does not hold onto “His anger forever, because He delights in mercy.”

Knowing that God is a merciful and forgiving God leads to a peace that surpasses all understanding (Isaiah 26:3; Philippians 4:8-9).

Next we see a request—cleansing is a work of God. David asks God, “Wash me from mine iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin.” (Psalm 51:2)  He asks God to make him clean again as his sin has defiled him.

To be “throughly” cleansed is to be washed repeatedly with intensity. Think of a washboard. Biblically cleansing comes through confession. “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:9)

What does improper confession look and sound like? The most frequent is simply, “I’m sorry!” (for what?) or “I’m sorry that you were offended!” How about, “I’m sorry that you took it wrong!” Each of these take no responsibility for our sin and places the blame on the other person.

So what is proper, Biblical confession? We first have seen two actions—a turning to God and making request for cleansing. Consider with me six steps in the confession process. The first three deal with what we acknowledge while the last three reveals the heart of true confession.

#1 – Confession of sin is acknowledging our personal responsibility.

“For I acknowledge my transgressions: and my sin is ever before me.” (Psalm 51:3)

David takes full responsibility as he “acknowledges his transgressions”—there is no blame-shifting. He says, “my sin is ever before me”—this is the reality of the memory of that sin. When properly dealt with, thus having the confidence of forgiveness, this memory will be a reminder to help to keep us from sin. But when we fail to deal with our sin Biblically it brings guilt, which is by design in order to bring us to repentance.

#2 – Confession of sin is acknowledging who I have offended. (v. 4a)

“Against Thee, Thee only, have I sinned,…” (Psalm 51:4a)

All sin is an offence against God as it is a violation of His law.  When we sin we dishonor the Lord. David was not only sorry for the consequences of his sin. He was sorry for the sin itself as he was grieved over the fact that he offended God in breaking His law. We must always confess our sin to Him as well as others we have wronged.

#3 – Confession of sin is acknowledging the extent of my sin. (v. 4b)

“…and done this evil in Thy sight: that Thou mightest be justified when Thou speakest, and be clear when Thou judgest. ” (Psalm 51:4b)

Literally the word “confess” speaks of saying the same thing. It is properly defining sin the way God defines it and NOT in the way we define it. We fail to confess when we justify or make excuses about our sin—why it was justifiable under those circumstances. Proper confession only comes when we see our sin as God sees it.

#4 – Confession of sin reveals a change of heart (v. 13)

“Then will I teach transgressors Thy ways; and sinners shall be converted unto Thee.” (Psalm 51:13)

That night on the roof top along with the days following, David was concerned only about himself (2 Samuel 11). He hurt so many people in the process. Now we see his heart has changed as he desires to be used in helping others.

One who has been restored to right fellowship with God can be useful once again in helping others be restored. This can be in the form of openness about our sin and its consequences while giving testimony of God’s mercy. A truly repentant heart will seek to help others. Consider Jesus’ words to Peter about his ministry that he would have after his denial of Christ.

Jesus says, “But I have prayed for thee [Peter], that thy faith fail not: and when thou art converted [restored/ reconciled], strengthen thy brethren.” (Luke 22:32)

The reality is that God desires to use broken and forgiven people. He sees value in those who have genuinely repented of their sin.

#5 – Confession of sin reveals a grateful heart (v. 15)

“O Lord, open Thou my lips; and my mouth shall shew forth Thy praise.” (Psalm 51:15)

Where David’s lips had been sealed in shame he now asks the Lord to open them in praise. David’s desire is to worship the Lord and tell others about God’s greatness. He sees himself as an undeserving soul whom God spared. His grateful heart is seen in the praise he gives to God as he acknowledges Him for His unfailing love and tender mercy, rehearsing these powerful truths to anyone who would listen.

“And He hath put a new song in my mouth, even praise unto our God: many shall see it, and fear, and shall trust in the LORD.” (Psalm 40:3)

#6 – Confession of sin reveals a humble heart (v. 17)

“The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God, Thou wilt not despise [treat as worthless].” (Psalm 51:17)

The “sacrifices” or worship of God that are acceptable to Him come from a “broken and a contrite heart.” This kind of heart is one that grieves being intensely broken over their own sin. It is seeing sin as God sees it and in turn being truly broken before God.

It is seeing the effects of our sin upon God as His heart is broken when He sees us choose to sin instead of obey Him. It is acknowledging that our sin was the reason that God’s Son chose to take up our cross in order to suffer and die in our place. Being “broken and contrite” is genuinely saying, “Woe is me!” as Isaiah did in Isaiah 6:5.

“Then said I, ‘Woe is me! for I am undone; because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips: for mine eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts.’”

Isaiah saw God in such a real way as to bring to light his own wretchedness in comparison.  Against the backdrop of a thrice holy God, Isaiah realized that even his most minute sin caused him to be unfit and undeserving to be able to stand in the Lord’s presence. Genuine confession reveals a humble heart that sees how unworthy I am to stand, as a sinner, in the presence of an infinitely holy & righteous God because of the perfect work of my Savior.

In all of these aspects of confession we see genuine repentance—we see the change of mind about our sin which leads to a change of life. True heart-felt confession shows change of behavior not just hollow words.

When we humbly read and receive this psalm and see God’s unfailing love, mercy, grace and His willingness and readiness to forgive the repentant soul, it will bring us to our knees in worship being in awe of the greatness of our God.

In conclusion, enjoy how the psalm ends, “Then shalt Thou be pleased with the sacrifices of righteousness, with burnt offering and whole burnt offering: then shall they offer bullocks upon Thine altar. ” (Psalm 51:19)

Be confident that God is pleased when we come to Him, His way! We can then can KNOW that the worship we offer will be worship that He accepts.

Hope that is Based upon Truth

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What gets you through the trials of life?  How do you weather the difficult, discouraging storms of life that often leave you in despair?  Often in life we feel as though we are dealt a bad hand and we struggle with the injustices of life.  We feel these are due to bad luck and sometimes we may even blame God for His part in our difficulties as if He does not love us.

In these times we feel so alone and discouraged, hopeless and full of despair because the world seems against us and God seems far from us.  These are the times in which we may lose hope and in turn “hope” that our luck will change even though we feel as though this “hope” is just a “hope and a prayer.”  In these times our hope is based upon our feelings and perceptions about life.  This is a dangerous place for us to be!  So do you just batten down the hatches and ride out the storm or is there another option?

The answer is that there is another option and it is found in God’s Word—the Bible!  God, the Creator of life has given us the guide book to life to show us His designed way to live a life of purpose and peace.  This is the life of knowing Him—not a life of religion but life because of a relationship with Jesus Christ.

Warren Wiersbe writes, “Unbelief causes us to look at God through our circumstances, and this creates hopelessness; but faith enables us to look at our circumstances through the reality of God and this gives us hope.”[i]

Instead of hoping that our luck will change let us, by faith, consider the “hope that is based upon Truth.”  Let’s consider the words of the “Weeping Prophet,” Jeremiah—a man who knew great discouragement in life.  A man who experienced the world against him yet was able to live a faithful life of purpose and hope—a life that honored the Lord.  His hope was properly defined as confidence because it was based upon truth.  Let his words encourage you.  In Lamentations 3:21 he says, “This I recall to my mind, therefore have I hope.”

He says, “This is what I remind myself of—this is what I know to be true about my God, therefore I have hope or patient confidence!” Jeremiah reminds himself of the truths of God which he recounts in the following verses.  The truths of God, as they are recalled to mind, should bring us comfort as they reassure us of God’s faithfulness, His love, His mercy, His all-sufficiency, His grace…and the wonder of it all is that the list goes on and on.

What you know, and rely on, to be true about the Lord will transform your life!

Learn to preach God’s Word to yourself instead of listening to yourself.

The “Weeping Prophet” goes on to say, “it is of the LORD’S mercies that we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not. ” (Lamentations 3:22)

Jeremiah reminds himself of God’s mercy and compassion.  The trials of life, as fires of affliction, are meant to chasten and cleanse us not to consume us. They are meant to direct not destroy.  Although sometimes we feel the only way we’ll make it out is through death but the divine purpose of God is to purge us in order to prove the reality of our faith.  Keep in mind that because “the wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23) we deserve to be consumed by the fires of affliction, yet God in His tender mercy and grace takes us through these fires to bring us forth as gold.

Truth to remember: Our God is merciful and compassionate.

“That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ:” (1 Peter 1:7)

The trials of life are the evidence of God’s faithful work in our lives to work in us His divine purpose of “conforming us into the image of His Son” (Romans 8:28-29).  Never forget the truth that all of God’s actions toward us are actions of love as He lovingly seeks to turn us back into right fellowship with Himself and for those who have yet to receive Him as Lord and Savior, He seeks to win their souls to Him.

The LORD’s compassions never fail “they are new every morning: great is Thy faithfulness” (Lamentations 3:23).  Although we at times come to the point of feeling like they have failed, yet the Lord is faithful.  He is faithful in being the living God who compassionately loves us.

The tender mercies or compassions of God “are new every morning” because God has an endless supply of mercy and we must learn to faithfully live each day as a new day.  It is because of God’s mercy that we have a new day to live for Him.

Truth to remember: Our God is faithful.

“The LORD is my portion, saith my soul; therefore will I hope in Him.” (Lamentations 3:24)

Jeremiah continues as he says, “The LORD is my portion” or the source of his strength and hope—his confidence.  Is it possible to use up this infinite source? When we are living in this truth, we can have patient confidence that God is in control and what He does is right.  This is where the “peace that passes all understanding” (Philippians 4:7) comes from.  It literally surpasses human reasoning in its ability to relieve anxiety in our lives.  Isaiah 26:3 tells us that as we stay focused on the this Source—His Truths—He promises His “perfect peace” will be a precious reality to us.

“Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed [fixed] on Thee: because he trusteth in Thee.” (Isaiah 26:3)

When we begin to realize that God is sufficient to meet every genuine need and at the same time that we lack this self-sufficiency, it should increase our dependence upon Him.  When we trust Him to be able to do “exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think” (Ephesians 3:20) is when we begin to live as He designed us to live—living a life of confidence in the Lord while enjoying the supernatural peace that only comes from the Giver of peace.

Truth to remember: Our God is ALL that we need.

“The LORD is good unto them that wait for Him, to the soul that seeketh Him.” (Lamentations 3:25)

Finally we see the goodness of God.  Stop and think of all the ways that the Lord has been good to you.  Don’t forget to include that difficult times of life where God has drawn you closer to Himself by revealing to you an area of needed change.

Truth to remember:  Our God is good.

Remember that He is the God who loves to forgive.  Those areas that He reveals to us where change is needed—sin is usually the culprit.  “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9).

“For Thou, Lord, art good, and ready to forgive; and plenteous in mercy unto all them that call upon Thee.” (Psalm 86:5)

Truth to remember: Our God is ALWAYS ready to forgive.

When you stop and consider these precious truths about the Lord do you feel your heart being lifted up? Do you begin to hear the “new song in [your] mouth, even praise unto [your] God” (Psalm 40:3)?  Confidently know the God of the Bible and enjoy the peace that only He can give.  Let Him give you peace in the storms as you rely on what you know to be true about Him. Allow the light of God’s Word to break through darkness and despair and reveal the stabilizing truths about Himself that He wants you to know and hold on to.

Trust in what the Bible says is true about the Lord.  Rely upon this transforming knowledge and “be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God” (Romans 12:2).

[i] Warren Wiersbe, “The Bible Exposition Commentary – Old Testament The Prophets”, p. 158