Hundreds of years before Christ's birth, David spoke of Jesus' resurrection.  Because Jesus rose again, believers will too.

A happy third birthday to Pacific Breezes! 

Part 1

Today:  My Joy is not Determined by Circumstances, But by My Relationship to the Lord

Psalm 16, one of David’s psalms, is packed with life-changing truth.  This psalm was written during a time of trouble.  It is called a “Michtam of David.” He wrote another five “Michtams,” Psalms 56-60, also during troubled times.

In Psalm 16, David’s thoughts are unmistakable:

Verses 1-3 is the prayer of David’s soul to the LORD.

Verses 4-6 show the sorrows of those who follow after false gods. David’s blessings are from following the LORD.

Verses 7-8, David blesses the LORD and keeps the LORD always before him.

Verses 9-11, David sees “fulness of joy,” and “pleasures forevermore” to those who “rest in hope.”

We will focus on these last three verses (vv. 9-11).  In verse 9, David said, “Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoiceth: my flesh also shall rest in hope.”

“Therefore, my heart is glad.”
Since David is writing in a time of trouble, why is his heart glad?  Shouldn’t his spirits be down in the dumps?  If anyone had an excuse to be miserable, and share his misery with those around him, indeed it was David.  But he will not allow himself to sink to that low level of living.  He is glad!  The previous verse shows us why.

“I have set the LORD always before me: because He is at my right hand, I shall not be moved” (Psalm 16:8),

“Therefore, my heart is glad!”

No wonder David could say this.  He does not look at his circumstances in this life to determine whether he will have joy or not.  All through this life, we face uncertain times.  We never know what to expect from one day to the next, or even from moment to moment.  David shows us that the gladness in his heart is not circumstantial!  His delight is due to his relationship with his Lord!  David said of the Lord, “He is at my right hand,” the place of honor!  And David always stayed close to Him.  We need to think about this, the further away from the Lord we are, the greater our misery.

Of course, we are not talking about a literal, physical distance from God.  It is the quality of our relationship with Him that we are considering.  When we are out of the Word and not praying as we should, we are away from Him.  The result is that our souls cool down, we think less about Him, and we tend to focus on ourselves and our problems much more.  But when we are near our God, we are warmed by His love and our devotion to Him. He remains our focus.

Have you ever had a “friend” that you had to approach daily with “kid gloves?”  You could never know how they are going to respond because of their inconsistent attitude?  One day they are up, and everything is beautiful.  The next day they are down, and nothing you can do will get them out of their bad mood.  The following day they are angry with the world, and there is no appeasing them…  This says a lot about their relationship with the Lord.  It desperately needs work!  Aren’t you glad that when we go to the Lord, we do not have to wonder about how He will respond to us?  The Lord is our “Rock!”  He is unmovable and unchanging.  We keep our attention on Him because He is the One that keeps us from sinking and drowning; just ask Peter (Matthew 14:25-32).

David also said in this verse, “my glory rejoiceth.”  What does he mean by “my glory?”  Come back tomorrow as we learn more of this psalm.

Note:  As with David, when I make the right choices about my relationship with the Lord, it changes the attitude of my heart, and I want to praise Him!

Quote:
Praise God, from Whom all blessings flow;
Praise Him, all creatures here below;
Praise Him above, ye heav’nly host;
Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.[1]

[1] “The Doxology,” words by Thomas Ken, 1674.  Music is the “Old Hundredth” by Louise Bourgeous, 1551.  Copyright Status, Public Domain.