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The Word of God says:

Psalms 121:1-2 (KJV)
¹ I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh my help.
² My help cometh from the LORD, which made heaven and earth.

My reflections on the Word of God:

As I read this Psalm the key words that dominate the Psalm is protector and protect. As the Psalmist prepared to make the journey up to Jerusalem to worship at the feasts he was mindful of the source of his help. Others who did not worship the Lord may have also looked to the hills for their god, but the pilgrim-psalmist looked beyond the hills to the maker of the hills.

In preparation for the journey to Jerusalem the Psalmist thought about the journey, and in his contemplation he pondered the question “from whence cometh my help”.

Psalms 121:1 (AMP)
¹  I WILL lift up my eyes to the hills [around Jerusalem, to sacred Mount Zion and Mount Moriah]—From whence shall my help come?

There is a sense of great confidence when you are able to look beyond the mountains, and find solace in knowing that He who made the mountains is your source of help. There is a sense of confidence and blessed assurance when you know that the creator God is your protector.

Isaiah 40:26-31 (KJV)
²⁶ Lift up your eyes on high, and behold who hath created these things, that bringeth out their host by number: he calleth them all by names by the greatness of his might, for that he is strong in power; not one faileth.
²⁷ Why sayest thou, O Jacob, and speakest, O Israel, My way is hid from the LORD, and my judgment is passed over from my God?
²⁸ Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard, that the everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary? there is no searching of his understanding.
²⁹ He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength.
³⁰ Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall:
³¹ But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.

My prayer in response to the Word of God:

Our Father in heaven, my dear Father, I praise and thank You for the peace that floods my soul when I contemplate the wonders of Your almighty power. Father God, I thank You that I have a source of help that is beyond this world. The creator God, the maker of heaven and earth, and the maker of me, is my help. When I look to God for help, I can rest in the assurance that “My help cometh”.

This Is My Father’s World (Click on link below for lyrics and midi):

http://www.digitalhymnal.org/dhymn.cfm?hymnNumber=92

The Word of God says:

Psalms 120:5-7 (NASB)
⁵ Woe is me, for I sojourn in Meshech, For I dwell among the tents of Kedar!
⁶ Too long has my soul had its dwelling With those who hate peace.
⁷ I am for peace, but when I speak, They are for war.

My reflections on the Word of God:

The Psalmist did not physically live in the land of the people he describes. He lived among His own people. However, the point he is making is that those who were suppose to be God’s people were not behaving like God’s people.

Our circumstances today are not unlike the circumstances that the Psalmist faced. Believers of every age have had the challenge of living among unbelievers in the world, and also among professed believers who live like unbelievers.

The Apostle Paul in his letters admonished the believers he wrote to by comparing their behavior to Gentiles, meaning those who were outsiders, which meant the unsaved.

Ephesians 4:17 (NASB)
¹⁷ So this I say, and affirm together with the Lord, that you walk no longer just as the Gentiles also walk, in the futility of their mind,

What I have learned from this Psalm is that God sometimes does not change our circumstances in answer to our prayers for deliverance. He could change our circumstances without our help. However, God has another plan, and I have found His plans to be better than my plans.

God’s plan involves changing the man. To change you God’s needs your help. To change me God needs my help. Before God can give us the peace we want He must give us endurance. Living among the ungodly in the world and the church will either make you a peacemaker or a war maker. God with your help can give you peace, but you must learn to be patient with people.

Hebrews 12:14 (HCSB)
¹⁴ Pursue peace with everyone, and holiness—without it no one will see the Lord.

Romans 12:21 (HCSB)
²¹ Do not be conquered by evil, but conquer evil with good.

My prayer in response to the Word of God:

Our Father in heaven, my dear Father, I praise and thank You for Your lovingkindness toward Your children, and the desire that You have to form our lives into vessels that will be pleasing in Your eyes. Father God, I pray that we will be obedient children, and cooperate in the child training that You want to provide us so that we may experience the blessings of patience, piety, and peace.

More About Jesus (Click on link below for lyrics and midi):

http://www.biblestudycharts.com/SH_More_About_Jesus.html

The Word of God says:

Psalms 120:3-4 (NASB)
³ What shall be given to you, and what more shall be done to you, You deceitful tongue?
⁴ Sharp arrows of the warrior, With the burning coals of the broom tree.

My reflections on the Word of God:

The Psalmist asked an interesting question, “What shall be given to you, and what more shall be done to you, you deceitful tongue?”

The Psalmist chose not to fight his own battle against those who launched false accusations against him with malice in their hearts. He took his problem to the Lord in prayer, and the Lord answered his prayer.

Psalms 120:1-2 (NASB)
¹ In my trouble I cried to the Lord, And He answered me.
² Deliver my soul, O Lord, from lying lips, From a deceitful tongue.

Psalms 120:3 (NLT)
³ O deceptive tongue, what will God do to you? How will he increase your punishment?

The answer that came back to the Psalmist was a description of what God would do to punish the evil doers. The Psalmist did not have to fight his own battle, God, the mighty warrior, would fight his battle.

Psalms 120:4 (NLT)
⁴ You will be pierced with sharp arrows and burned with glowing coals.

It is interesting to note that the weapons that God used against the evil doers were their own weapons. Notice how the bible uses the image of arrows and fire to depict the lying words of the evil doers who used malicious lies as weapons.

Psalms 57:4 (NASB)
⁴ My soul is among lions; I must lie among those who breathe forth fire, Even the sons of men, whose teeth are spears and arrows And their tongue a sharp sword.

James 3:6 (NASB)
⁶ And the tongue is a fire, the very world of iniquity; the tongue is set among our members as that which defiles the entire body, and sets on fire the course of our life, and is set on fire by hell.

My prayer in response to the Word of God:

Our Father in heaven, my dear Father, I praise and thank You that we don’t have to fight our own battles against those who would use the weapon of false words against us. Father God, I pray that You would tame my tongue, and tune my heart to sing only the wonderful words of life.

Wonderful Words of Life (Click on link below for lyrics and midi):

http://www.biblestudycharts.com/SH_Wonderful_Words_of_Life.html

The Word of God says:

Psalms 120:1-2 (NASB)
¹ In my trouble I cried to the Lord, And He answered me.
² Deliver my soul, O Lord, from lying lips, From a deceitful tongue.

Psalms 120:1-2 (NIV)
¹ I call on the Lord in my distress, and he answers me.
² Save me, O Lord, from lying lips and from deceitful tongues.

My reflections on the Word of God:

Today I am beginning a journey of reading through Psalms 120-134. These are the songs sung by God’s people as they took the journey up to Jerusalem to the house of God.  As I read through these “Songs of Ascent” I will be looking for key nuggets of truth to reflect upon, and to make application to my life.

By comparing the two versions of our focal passage we can see that the verb used can be past tense, as in the NASB or present tense as in the NIV. In the past the Psalmist had called upon God in his time of trouble, and the Lord answered him. I certainly can join with the Psalmist in saying a hearty “Amen”.

The experience of previous prayers answered gives the Psalmist confidence in calling upon the Lord in the future. Well, the future becomes the present for the Psalmist. He is currently facing distress in his life. He identifies the cause of his distress as “lying lips and from deceitful tongues”.

When we have trouble in our life we have at least two options. We can take matters into our own hands, and make a mess of it. The better option is to do what the Psalmist did. He took his troubles to the Lord in prayer.

The Psalmist had the faith in God and the confidence in God to take His troubles to the Lord. What trouble do I have in my life today that I can take to the Lord in prayer? Have I trusted my troubles to the Lord in prayer in the past? If so, what has been my experience with prayer? There are some things in life that only God can deliver us from. Have you got any giants in your life that you cannot handle in your own strength? If so, take your troubles to the Lord in prayer.

My prayer in response to the Word of God:

Our Father in heaven, my dear Father, I find it a delightful privilege and pleasure to come to You in prayer. I thank You for the gift of faith that allows me to trust in You. Father God, I am so thankful for past answers to prayers. You have been so good to me. We have seen Your almighty hand reach down and touch my life, and the lives of my spouse, my children, and my friends.

Father God, since You have been so faithful in the past, I come in faith today to Your throne room of grace, and ask for Your blessings in the lives of my family and my friends in whatever giants they are facing in their life today.

Tell it to Jesus (Click on link below for lyrics and midi):

http://www.biblestudycharts.com/SH_Tell_It_to_Jesus.html

The Word of God says:

Psalms 62:1 (NASB)
¹ My soul waits in silence for God only; From Him is my salvation.

Psalms 62:5 (NASB)
⁵ My soul, wait in silence for God only, For my hope is from Him.

My reflections on the Word of God:

There are some things in this life that can only come by waiting on the Lord. The psalmist learned the lesson of the limitations of human strength, and the almighty power of God. There is a time to pray, and cry out to God. However, after we have prayed there is a time to wait on God. Yes, there is a time when we should stop talking and simply wait on God.

We don’t like to wait. I remember hearing the trite saying, “weight broke the bridge down”. The words sound alike, but obviously they are different. However, even in humor we can sometimes find a nugget of truth. Sometimes our problems are too weighty for us to bear, but they are not too big for the Lord.

Psalms 62:2 (NASB)
² He only is my rock and my salvation, My stronghold; I shall not be greatly shaken.

The Psalmist found in the Lord a solid rock on which he could build his life. He found in the Lord a reliable source to whom he could turn in his time of need. He found in the Lord a God who was bigger than any mountain he would ever face in his life. David found in the Lord all that he needed. He learned to trust in the Lord with his whole heart, and he learned to wait on the Lord patiently and silently.

Psalms 62:5-8 (NASB)
⁵ My soul, wait in silence for God only, For my hope is from Him.
⁶ He only is my rock and my salvation, My stronghold; I shall not be shaken.
⁷ On God my salvation and my glory rest; The rock of my strength, my refuge is in God.
⁸ Trust in Him at all times, O people; Pour out your heart before Him; God is a refuge for us. Selah.

It is not easy to do what David did. David said, “Trust in Him at all times”. However, a further reflection will reveal that you could be in no better hands than to be in the hands of the Lord. When your times are in the hands of the Lord He will give you perfect peace as you learn to trust in Him, and to wait silently upon Him.

Psalms 31:15 (NASB)
¹⁵ My times are in Your hand; Deliver me from the hand of my enemies and from those who persecute me.

Isaiah 26:3-4 (NASB)
³ “The steadfast of mind You will keep in perfect peace, Because he trusts in You.
⁴ “Trust in the Lord forever, For in God the Lord, we have an everlasting Rock.

My prayer in response to the Word of God:

Our Father in heaven, I praise and thank You that You are the rock of our salvation. There is no god like the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. You are the almighty tower that we run to, and find shelter in the storms of life.

Lord, help us by Thy almighty power to learn to wait silently, to wait continually, and to wait expectantly upon the Lord our God. Lord, help us to remember “That power belongs to God”. Father, have mercy upon us we pray.

Psalms 62:11-12 (NKJV)
¹¹ God has spoken once, Twice I have heard this: That power belongs to God.
¹² Also to You, O Lord, belongs mercy; For You render to each one according to his work.

We Have an Anchor (Click on link below for lyrics and midi):

http://www.biblestudycharts.com/SH_We_Have_an_Anchor.html

The Word of God says:

Psalms 60:4-5 (NASB)
⁴ You have given a banner to those who fear You, That it may be displayed because of the truth. Selah.
⁵ That Your beloved may be delivered, Save with Your right hand, and answer us!

My reflections on the Word of God:

These verses appear in a prayer that David prayed to the Lord for help. David was already engaged in battles against two enemies from the north. Then a third enemy mounted an attack from the south. What David faced is not uncommon. How often has it been in your experience that when you overcome one or two obstacles in your life that another one comes upon you?

One of the things that gave David comfort was his recognition of the truth that God loves him, and that God loves His chosen people Israel.  The recurrent theme of the bible is that God loves people, and that His heart is tender toward all of the people of the world.

John 3:16 (KJV)
¹⁶ For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

No matter how long the day or how dark the night, the undeniable truth is that God loves you and sent His Son to die for you. David could pray with confidence that the banner of God was over His people, and that He had promised to defend them with the almighty power of His right hand. Like David, you and I can defeat any foe when we rest in the truth that His banner over us is love.

Song of Songs 2:4 (NASB)
⁴ “He has brought me to his banquet hall, And his banner over me is love.

Romans 8:37 (NASB)
³⁷ But in all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us.

Ephesians 1:5-6 (NASB)
⁵ He predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the kind intention of His will,
⁶ to the praise of the glory of His grace, which He freely bestowed on us in the Beloved.

My prayer in response to the Word of God:

Our Father in heaven, my dear Father, I praise and thank You that Your banner over Your people is love. I thank You that because of Jesus, and what He did for us on Calvary, that we are accepted because Jesus is loved by You, and because He is beloved by You that we are also beloved by You.

Faith Is The Victory (Click on link below for lyrics and midi):

http://www.biblestudycharts.com/SH_Faith_Is_The_Victory.html

The Word of God says:

2 Corinthians 5:1-5 (NASB)
¹ For we know that if the earthly tent which is our house is torn down, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.
² For indeed in this house we groan, longing to be clothed with our dwelling from heaven,
³ inasmuch as we, having put it on, will not be found naked.
⁴ For indeed while we are in this tent, we groan, being burdened, because we do not want to be unclothed but to be clothed, so that what is mortal will be swallowed up by life.
⁵ Now He who prepared us for this very purpose is God, who gave to us the Spirit as a pledge.

My reflections on the Word of God:

Today we have added one additional verse to conclude our look at this passage with the theme of how God shapes and refines His people. Our focus today will be on verse five.

In our present state of declining mortality no matter how troubling it may be to us as we are going through it is not without a divine purpose. In our humanity and in our weaknesses God uses our lives for His divine purposes.

2 Corinthians 4:7 (NASB)
⁷ But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, so that the surpassing greatness of the power will be of God and not from ourselves;

The ever present hand of God in our life and in our death should be a source of great comfort to us while we yet live and serve our Lord. The God we serve has His hands upon us, and we are dear to Him and beloved by Him. The evidence of His concern and favor is the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives.

2 Corinthians 3:18 (NASB)
¹⁸ But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit.

2 Corinthians 1:22 (NASB)
²² who also sealed us and gave us the Spirit in our hearts as a pledge.

My prayer in response to the Word of God:

Our Father in heaven, my dear Father, words fail me in my feeble attempt to express gratitude for what I have read in the scriptures today. Oh how blessed I am to be loved by God, and to have the triune God living in my heart. Lord, I thank You that because of Jesus, and what He has done for me, that I presently enjoy the privilege of being a child of God, and the best is yet to come.

Draw Me Nearer (Click on link below for lyrics and midi):

http://www.biblestudycharts.com/SH_Draw_Me_Nearer.html

The Word of God says:

2 Corinthians 5:1-4 (NASB)
¹ For we know that if the earthly tent which is our house is torn down, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.
² For indeed in this house we groan, longing to be clothed with our dwelling from heaven,
³ inasmuch as we, having put it on, will not be found naked.
⁴ For indeed while we are in this tent, we groan, being burdened, because we do not want to be unclothed but to be clothed, so that what is mortal will be swallowed up by life.

My reflections on the Word of God:

In this passage Paul compares the state of living in his earthly house, and living in his heavenly house. When the Apostle Paul thinks about his earthly condition he longs for heaven.

What Paul faced in his life and in his ministry is the same thing that all of God’s people face. Paul had to face his mortality, and we each have to face our mortality. Paul’s present life was wasting away, and the time of his departure from this world was drawing near.

2 Corinthians 4:16 (NASB)
¹⁶ Therefore we do not lose heart, but though our outer man is decaying, yet our inner man is being renewed day by day.

2 Corinthians 4:11-12 (NASB)
¹¹ For we who live are constantly being delivered over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh.
¹² So death works in us, but life in you.

When we come to the place in our life where we have to face our mortality we have the example of how Paul faced his mortality. In our focal passage Paul said twice that he groaned. In verse two he said “in this house we groan”, and in verse four he said “while we are in this tent, we groan”. Paul’s groaning was not a groan for death, but a groan for glory.

Philippians 3:21 (NASB)
²¹ who will transform the body of our humble state into conformity with the body of His glory, by the exertion of the power that He has even to subject all things to Himself.

My prayer in response to the Word of God:

Our Father in heaven, my dear Father, I praise and thank You for the blessed hope that we have that gives us the desire to groan in our hearts for heaven. Father God, how sweet it is to look forward to exchanging this earthly body for my glorious heavenly body.

In the Sweet By and By (Click on link below for lyrics and midi):

http://www.biblestudycharts.com/SH_In_The_Sweet_By_And_By.html

The Word of God says:

2 Corinthians 4:16-5:1 (NASB)
¹⁶ Therefore we do not lose heart, but though our outer man is decaying, yet our inner man is being renewed day by day.
¹⁷ For momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison,
¹⁸ while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen; for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal.
¹ For we know that if the earthly tent which is our house is torn down, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.

My reflections on the Word of God:

The Apostle Paul was a man of God who faced a great deal of suffering in his physical body while serving the Lord in this fallen world. Paul knew that God had something stored up for him in heaven that enabled him to view his current circumstances as “light and momentary troubles”. The sufferings that Paul faced were real and painful.

2 Corinthians 1:8 (NASB)
⁸ For we do not want you to be unaware, brethren, of our affliction which came to us in Asia, that we were burdened excessively, beyond our strength, so that we despaired even of life;

Paul was able to look at his earthly circumstances with an eternal perspective. His faith in God enabled him to take his focus off of the earthly and cast his focus on the eternal. Every thing that we can see is temporary and perishing. In contrast, the things that we cannot see are eternal.

When Paul looks at life with a perspective of the eternal he was able to see the exceeding superiority of the eternal over the temporal.

1 Peter 5:4 (NASB)
⁴ And when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the unfading crown of glory.

1 Peter 5:10 (NASB)
¹⁰ After you have suffered for a little while, the God of all grace, who called you to His eternal glory in Christ, will Himself perfect, confirm, strengthen and establish you.

My prayer in response to the Word of God:

Our Father in heaven, I praise and thank You for the blessed hope that we have because we are in Christ Jesus. Father God, help us to take our eyes off of the things that are temporary and perishing, and fix our eyes upon Jesus and the things that are eternal.

Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus (Click on link below for lyrics and midi):

http://www.biblestudycharts.com/SH_Turn_Your_Eyes_Upon_Jesus.html

The Word of God says:

Romans 5:5 (NASB)
⁵ and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us.

My reflections on the Word of God:

This verse provides an uplifting conclusion to our focus on how God uses our tribulations for our good. Let us look again at the entire passage.

Romans 5:1-5 (NASB)
¹ Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,
² through whom also we have obtained our introduction by faith into this grace in which we stand; and we exult in hope of the glory of God.
³ And not only this, but we also exult in our tribulations, knowing that tribulation brings about perseverance;
⁴ and perseverance, proven character; and proven character, hope;
⁵ and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us.  (The underlined words are my emphasis).

One of the things that we know about tribulations is that they don’t last forever. We know that our troubles will eventually cease. As the Psalmist discovered in his life, “weeping may endure for a night, but joy comes in the morning” (Psalm 30:5b).

Notice all the things that really count that God gives to His people. The foremost thing that God does for those He justifies is to pour out His love into their hearts. That is what our focal verse says. Additionally, He gives us faith and hope. Our troubles last only for a season, but faith, hope, and love will last forever. That is indeed grounds for rejoicing and exulting in hope of the glory of God.

1 Corinthians 13:13 (NASB)
¹³ But now faith, hope, love, abide these three; but the greatest of these is love.

My prayer in response to the Word of God:

Father God, my dear Father, how wonderful and how comforting it is to know that our troubles don’t last forever. Even more wonderful and more comforting it is to know that the amazing gifts of faith, hope, and love will last forever.

The Love of God (Click on link below for lyrics and midi):

http://www.biblestudycharts.com/SH_The_Love_of_God.html