Psalm 57 ~ Be exalted, O God, above the heavens! Let your glory be over all the earth!

Psalm 57

Be merciful to me, O God, be merciful to me,
for in you my soul takes refuge;
in the shadow of your wings I will take refuge,
till the storms of destruction pass by.
2 I cry out to God Most High,
to God who fulfills his purpose for me.
3 He will send from heaven and save me;
he will put to shame him who tramples on me. Selah
God will send out his steadfast love and his faithfulness!

4 My soul is in the midst of lions;
I lie down amid fiery beasts—
the children of man, whose teeth are spears and arrows,
whose tongues are sharp swords.

5 Be exalted, O God, above the heavens!
Let your glory be over all the earth!

6 They set a net for my steps;
my soul was bowed down.
They dug a pit in my way,
but they have fallen into it themselves. Selah
7 My heart is steadfast, O God,
my heart is steadfast!
I will sing and make melody!
8 Awake, my glory!^{[my whole being!]} 
Awake, O harp and lyre!
I will awake the dawn!
9 I will give thanks to you, O Lord, among the peoples;
I will sing praises to you among the nations.
10 For your steadfast love is great to the heavens,
your faithfulness to the clouds.

11 Be exalted, O God, above the heavens!
Let your glory be over all the earth!


Do you just ever get overwhelmed. I do.

[Pity Party - all are welcome ~
Several trips to the doctor, unusual for us. For both my husband and me. Inflamed lymph node for me, antibiotics zapped it. Worrying about Edward. More worrying about Edward. Even his eye vessels broke over the proposed trip to the surgeon. Some dizziness for me - too much sitting and fretting. An inflamed tooth next. An angry neighbor, who frankly is a returning pain. His hurt feelings and missing insurance deductible over an act of HIM. (Thank HIM for having a calm, witty, assured lawyer for a brother and calm insurance company.) An arborist who talks for an hour and half, saying little really with an exorbitant bill. Does the younger generation think fifty means senility? It rarely does.

More and different yard issues. A yard man who is going to get fired for his surly attitude and poor work. I tried there. Interviewing multiple gardeners and tree people.

Wondering about getting prayers for Edward. Getting his disc golf buddies to nag him. Getting his mom and his brother and my kids to nag Edward.

A trip to the local authorities for a local issue, with their sympathy. A trip to Dallas over an Estate and Guardian issue - with more court sympathy. Fretting over Estate work. Dealing with grumpy. Having your eighty year old mom call and talk about sex.

Missing two days of volunteering to deal with surprise issues - like the trip to the dentist for the gum becoming nuclear. Hearing about a rape and attempted murder. Trying to get the victim to go to the authorities. Hearing sad news. Knowing the media doesn't print how many people collect std's from a trusting, casual encounter. Hearing about a young mother crying because Chlamydia killed an eight week, in utero, loved baby. Seeing a rare sexual parasite show up as positive for two clients. Hearing a client cry because her ex-boyfriend has infected two people in a month with herpes with silence.

Listening to a mom tell about expecting her grandchild. That daughter weighed one pound at birth, years ago. And as a one pound human being, pulled out her own respirator to live. To announce - no oxygen for me. The doctors told my friend, she seems determined, lets see if what she can do - that infant one pound girl was right - she didn't need that oxygen.

Trying to collect tax information and non-returned calls.

Meeting new people with joy. Having your feelings stepped on, hard. Having our younger son go off to Germany for work and not hearing a word for eight days. Seeing the Facebook Message where your husband fears you son was "Taken". Having your older son talk to you four times in two days over this, with patience.

Going out in the sunshine and seeing Edward win a Disc Golf tournament by placing in the money. With our friend who frequently runs over to help us fix something. That was quite a tournament, put on with loving people at their own spread, feeding seventy people. Did I say home-made desserts and a beautiful garden? It's like our friend said, the disc golf community spreads every where and the people are so nice. Edward's surgeon knew two doctors and two other people who play.

Getting a flat tire on the way to be the Cupbearer at Church.  Having someone loan you their tire pump! Having someone else from Church, Family of God, help you for twenty minutes get their can of Fix a Flat to work in the Church Parking Lot. Thank God.

 The Lights are On, everyone relax  Thus Endeth the Pity Party.] 

Then.

They set a net for my steps;
my soul was bowed down.
They dug a pit in my way,
but they have fallen into it themselves. Selah

Don't we do this ourselves? Selah. Rock. Pause. Consider.

We get a choice. You can put your worries into the hands of the One who cares for you. And you can continue to fret. Endlessly. And suffer. My Grandmother Anita, that fierce prayer warrior did.

Or you can decide to do this:

Psalm 37:5
Commit your way to the LORD; trust in him and he will do this

Matthew 6
25 “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? 26 Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? 27 And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? 28 And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, 29 yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 30 But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? 31 Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. 33 But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.

Anxiety? Prayer. Look at the birds. They get outside and they work at exercise. Consider the lilies of the field, enjoy seeing nature. Go look for that gift of the skies, announcing His glory. God has not brought us this far to drop us on our heads. Prayer as a last resort? That's a joke. We are talking to our Eternal Father in conversation - that is a joy. This, of course, is our first step.

We can aggravate ourselves ~over when to turn the other cheek, when to judge someone else, when to speak up, when to remain quiet. When to go for glory, when to want a quiet life. Adding more trouble to life.

Simplify. Mercy over sacrifice. Justice with Mercy. Walk humbly with the Lord. Strive for justice. Love the LORD, honor Him with your decisions.

And you have to get to the point, where its too big for you to decide. Even the disciples worried. You get bored with your own worries. And you have to remember Robin Williams, "Swing at the Good Pitches!"

All these things can be reduced to this. When we pray, this is going to occur ~

Luke 6
21 “Blessed are you who are hungry now, for you shall be satisfied.

“Blessed are you who weep now, for you shall laugh."


Blessed Lord Jesus, Thank You for Your words on laughter. Amen.

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