Shalom,

Psalm 56 shows how David handled tests and trials. This Psalm is a record of his thoughts and feelings when he was seized by the Philistines. He faces the very real "facts" of his situation in verses 1-2 and 5-7:

¹BE MERCIFUL and gracious to me, O God, for man would trample me or devour me; all the day long the adversary oppresses me.

²They that lie in wait for me would swallow me up or trample me all day long, for they are many who fight against me, O Most High!

⁵All day long they twist my words and trouble my affairs; all their thoughts are against me for evil and my hurt.

⁶They gather themselves together, they hide themselves, they watch my steps, even as they have [expectantly] waited for my life.

⁷They think to escape with iniquity, and shall they? In Your indignation bring down the peoples, O God.

But then he reminds himself of the "Truth" of God's Word and His promises and remembers the times that God has delivered him before in verses 8-13:

⁸You number and record my wanderings; put my tears into Your bottle--are they not in Your book?

⁹Then shall my enemies turn back in the day that I cry out; this I know, for God is for me.

¹⁰In God, Whose word I praise, in the Lord, Whose word I praise,

¹¹In God have I put my trust and confident reliance; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?

¹²Your vows are upon me, O God; I will render praise to You and give You thank offerings.

¹³For You have delivered my life from death, yes, and my feet from falling, that I may walk before God in the light of life and of the living.

Verses 3-4 show what our mind set should be:

³What time I am afraid, I will have confidence in and put my trust and reliance in You.

⁴By [the help of] God I will praise His word; on God I lean, rely, and confidently put my trust; I will not fear. What can man, who is flesh, do to me?

This is what we should pray and believe and then stand strong in faith, trust and confidence that the One, True, Most High, Living, Almighty God of the Bible WILL come through for us EVERY time we trust in Him! Remember that He is rarely early but NEVER late! AMEN!

I have really been blessed going daily through the Acts of the Holy Spirit this time. I have learned something new or in a new way every day! The "new thing" I learned or actually just realized today was that even though it was prophesied over Paul what would happen to him if he went to Jerusalem (Acts 21:10-14):

¹⁰While we were remaining there for some time, a prophet named Agabus came down from Judea.

¹¹And coming to [see] us, he took Paul's belt and with it bound his own feet and hands and said, Thus says the Holy Spirit: The Jews at Jerusalem shall bind like this the man who owns this belt, and they shall deliver him into the hands of the Gentiles (heathen).

¹²When we heard this, both we and the residents of that place pleaded with him not to go up to Jerusalem.

¹³Then Paul replied, What do you mean by weeping and breaking my heart like this? For I hold myself in readiness not only to be arrested and bound and imprisoned at Jerusalem, but also [even] to die for the name of the Lord Jesus.

¹⁴And when he would not yield to [our] persuading, we stopped [urging and imploring him], saying, The Lord's will be done!

....and these things DID happen. That IS how Paul happened to be on the ship headed for Rome. Then he was shipwrecked on the Island of Malta. He spent the three months here preaching the Gospel and healing the sick. When he finally gets to Rome he is able to stay with his guard and not in prison. He ministers the Gospel to the Jews in Rome where some believe and some do not. Then he declares that he will take the Gospel to the Gentiles in Acts 28:28:

²⁸So let it be understood by you then that [this message of] the salvation of God has been sent to the Gentiles, and they will listen [to it]!

And then we see this in verses 30-31:

³⁰After this Paul lived there for two entire years [at his own expense] in his own rented lodging, and he welcomed all who came to him,

³¹Preaching to them the kingdom of God and teaching them about the Lord Jesus Christ with boldness and quite openly, and without being molested or hindered.

I was amazed to realize that even though Paul WAS put in chains and was in custody on his travels, he always had the opportunity to minister the Gospel. Then when he finally makes it to Rome, he spends 2 years in his own home preaching and teaching without interference! How many "prisoners" do you know that live in their own house and go about their business? I felt the same way about this that I felt when I realized that the entire book of Job took place over a 9 month period! How very much there is for us to learn in the Word of God if we just dig in!

In Exodus we see Moses receiving the Law from the Lord. Notice how orderly and very plain things are laid out here. If our court systems would get back to the basics of the Word of God and enforce the laws, we would most certainly see far less crime than we do now. Where the standards and boundaries are allowed to become "cloudy", the people lose restraint and respect for themselves and others. God's plan is and has always been the very best plan for mankind! Continue reading these things in Exodus with that in mind and you won't find it boring at all! You will have more insight in what to look for in an elected leader and also a greater appreciation for the fact that we are no longer under the Law, but under grace in our personal lives! What a blessing to have the Holy Spirit living IN us and the Word of God to instruct us! AMEN!!!

Shalom in in Him!