Psalm 143:5-6:
5 I remember the days of old; I meditate on all Your doings; I ponder the work of Your hands. 6 I spread forth my hands to You; my soul thirsts after You like a thirsty land [for water]. Selah [pause and calmly think of that]!
David is not only calling out to the LORD in this Psalm, he is encouraging himself in the LORD! He had a habit of doing this (1 Samuel 30:6)! When he says in verse 5 that he was remembering the days of old, he wasn't remembering past failures. He said "I meditate on all YOUR doings"! He was remembering that every time he called on the LORD, he was delivered! Then in verse 6 he gives us the key for standing on the Word, waiting on the LORD, staying strong in faith and maintaining expectant hope and eager anticipation for the answer! David said LITERALLY: "my soul -- after YOU" or "my soul -- for YOU"! Thirst is not in there, but is implied by the phrase "thirsty land". But those 4 simple words say so very much! My soul, it's MY CHOICE! No one else can make it for me! "After YOU"! The soul of a person is the mind, emotions and will! When we renew our minds with the Word of God, we are in position to keep our emotions under OUR control and to make wise and Godly decisions! The VERY BEST decision we can ever make is to go all out AFTER GOD! "After You" is a Hebrew preposition which means: toward, for the purpose of, belonging to. Make it YOUR top priority in life to go all out after HIM, and HIS way of living your life!
In John 3 we see God's plan of Salvation for all mankind! He so greatly loved and dearly prized the entire world that He gave His Son to pay the price for our sin. The only sin that was not taken care of by the Blood of Jesus of Nazareth is the sin of rejecting Him! Is there any reason YOU can't receive Jesus of Nazareth as YOUR Lord and personal Saviour right now? Read John chapter 3 again and then prayer this prayer, believing in your heart, and you WILL be saved!
Almighty God, I am a sinner. I believe that Jesus Christ came to this earth, died on the cross for me, was raised from the dead, and is now seated at Your right hand. I accept and receive Jesus Christ as my personal Saviour and I invite Him to come into my heart and become Lord over my life. I thank You now Father, for welcoming me into Your family. You are my Father. I am Your child. Jesus is my Lord! Amen.
When John was told that Jesus was also baptizing, he said this to his followers in John 3:30-31:
30 He must increase, but I must decrease. [He must grow more prominent; I must grow less so.] 31 He Who comes from above (heaven) is [far] above all [others]; he who comes from the earth belongs to the earth, and talks the language of earth [his words are from an earthly standpoint]. He Who comes from heaven is [far] above all others [far superior to all others in prominence and in excellence].
We must make that same statement about our lives! We want the Light of HIS Life to shine through us, rather than our flesh nature! Here is a song from Hillsong's A Beautiful Exchange CD called "You":
In 1 Samuel 12-13 Samuel is reminding the Israelites of all that the LORD their God had done for them, delivering them time after time after time. Then he said this in verses 12-13:
12 But when you saw that Nahash king of the Ammonites came against you, you said to me, No! A king shall reign over us -- when the LORD your God was your king! 13 Now see the king WHOM YOU HAVE CHOSEN (emphasis mine!) and for whom you have asked; behold, the LORD has set a king over you.
Samuel then warned them that if they and their king followed after the LORD, it would be well with them. If not, then the hand of the LORD would be against them! Keep reading!
Shalom in Him
