Psalm 30:6-7

Psalm 30:6-7 ESV
As for me, I said in my prosperity, "I shall never be moved." [7] By your favor, O LORD, you made my mountain stand strong; you hid your face; I was dismayed.

Oh my, how many of us can say "Amen," to this?

I take special not of the words, "my mountain."  

I have to admit it's convicting because it never was, "my mountain," it was His.

But isn't that common to our struggle?  When things are going well we get a little tunnel vision.  We see us and ours and my and mine and we do not look to Him as constantly as we need to.  We get a little cocky about things and our duties to and for Him slip on our priority list.

Of course the opposite is true as well.  When He hides His face (or seems to) we run the danger of curling into a little ball in the corner and doing nothing in terms of our duties to and for Him.  

Perhaps this is why we need to be a little more tough on ourselves when it comes to our duties.  I'm no proposing some legalistic, rigid, heartless process but rather a commitment to pray and study, etc. daily and intentionally.  

We eat, we go to the bathroom, we go to work, we pet the dog - we do so many things regularly.  Perhaps we need to begin to view (and pray for help to) our "duties" as not quite so lofty and unreachable.  Maybe we need to see these duties as simply the common and simple things believers do.  Which, I am coming to believe they are.

Though we have a special privilege in these things they are not unusual to the believer - or shouldn't be.  

Recently I spoke with some friends and we all were "feeling" kind of numb in our walks.  The temptations was to do something "special" for Him.  But we realized that He is the  one who does the special things - we are simply called to do simple things.  Pray, study. worship, give, encourage, comfort ---- simple things.

If, and he has, God has put His Spirit in us to reside forever then we have all we need in terms of right and ability to engage these duties.  Regardless of our "feeling" when engaging in them we should be about them.  It's hard when we don't "feel" like doing them or they don't make us "feel" better but that in no way decreases the value of them.

Father, it is so easy for us to be tempted to try to bargain with You.  It is so easy to wonder what we need to do to get on Your "good side."  We know this is a deception, a trick Satan wants us to fall for and we really need Your help to fight it.

We struggle with Your assurance of our salvation and our needs here.  Our needs here have a nasty habit of overwhelming us and keeping us from knowing the "joy of Your salvation."  We don't know what to "do" about this - so we ask You to do what needs to be done.  

Whether we need a change of heart or mind, we ask You to heal and help us to engage You in the ways You have provided - regardless of how we "feel."  You know our deepest need and indeed you know our true hunger.  Please keep us from being seduced by opportunity and despair into doing nothing.  Help us - make us - faithful in as much as we can be right where we are.

Amen.........