Thoughts on a Rainy Evening...

Do not fret because of evil men or be envious of those who do wrong;

for like the grass they will soon wither,
like green plants they will soon die away.

Trust in the LORD and do good;
dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture.

Delight yourself in the LORD and he will give you the desires of your heart.

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

He will make your righteousness shine like the dawn,
the justice of your cause like the noonday sun.

Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for him;
do not fret when men succeed in their ways,
when they carry out their wicked schemes.

Refrain from anger and turn from wrath; do not fret—it leads only to evil.

For evil men will be cut off,
but those who hope in the LORD will inherit the land.

A little while, and the wicked will be no more;
though you look for them, they will not be found.

But the meek will inherit the land
and enjoy great peace.

- Psalm 37:1-11 (NIV)

Rain on the street...outside my apartment.

As I sit here and ponder on this passage that Larry Boss used as part of his sermon yesterday, I am listening to the rain falling outside...there is something so peaceful about it. I feel like I am in my own little world at times like these. And it is the perfect background for my thoughts.

Once again, as happens often when I sit in the service at church, I started out listening to the sermon and was quickly distracted by my own thoughts on the passage being used. Seems God often takes parts of the sermon and lots of His Word and preaches a totally different sermon just for me, in my heart. I have been pondering on it all day today and decided that, with the backdrop of the rain, it was worth writing about. Here are some of those thoughts, and convictions...

Do not fret because of evil men or be envious of those who do wrong...

...Refrain from anger and turn from wrath; do not fret—it leads only to evil.

I have been doing just that lately...fretting. About a number of different things. I've been fretting about finances, about what certain people might be telling others about me (lies), about a number of things....and the fretting has led to frustration which in turn has turned to anger at times. And anger has caused me to say things I probably shouldn't have...to make assumptions that are probably not true. I have to say I was rather convicted by this fact.

Which brings me to the next part...

Trust in the Lord and do good...

...delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart...

...Commit your way to the Lord, trust in Him...

...Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for Him.

Trusting...something I have always struggled with...along with being still, waiting patiently....Pastor Larry used imagery in his sermon yesterday when referring to the phrase "Commit your way". He said that it meant take those things that you carry, take them and place them literally in the lap of the Lord. I pictured a scene from my childhood, when I'd be visiting my grandparents. My papa has always had "his" chair...a large lazy-boy style recliner. He could always be found there. And countless times I would climb up onto that chair, onto his lap, and talk to him about anything and everything. While I know that is very familiar imagery in terms of God, I get the same sense when I think about the idea of committing things to God and waiting on him...delighting myself in Him. There is safety in that, freedom. And so I sat down last night, thought about those things that weigh heaviest on my heart, wrote them down and then "climbed up into my Father's lap" and placed those thoughts and things in His lap. They are his to take care of...and while His timing may not be my timing, His is the RIGHT timing and all I just have to trust that in HIS perfect timing, the desires of my heart will be realized.