Shalom,
I know that I have said this before, but the Psalms of David are a real blessing to me! He was sometimes faced with very real, life-threatening situations. He would cry out to God with his problem, but would end up encouraging HIMSELF with what God had ALREADY done for him. What did that do? That strengthened his faith to believe that God would do it again! Psalm 13:5-6 is just another example of that great and godly attitude!
5 But I have trusted, leaned on, and been confident in Your mercy and loving-kindness; my heart shall rejoice and be in high spirits in Your salvation. 6 I will sing to the LORD, because He has dealt bountifully with me.
David MADE himself act as he would if he already had the answer! He said 'I SHALL "rejoice", the Hebrew word "giyl", which means: to spin around, to rejoice, to be glad, to be joyful; "in Your salvation", the Hebrew word "yeshuw`ah", which means: deliverance, victory, welfare, prosperity, aid, health. Then he said that he would sing to the LORD because HE had already (in the past) dealt "bountifully" with him, and David fully expected Him to do it again! This is the Hebrew word "gamal", which means: to treat a person well, to benefit someone, to bestow on, to do good, to reward. YOU can expect the same things from the Lord when YOU take Him at His Word and refuse to believe anything else! Act like you would if you could see the answer right now! Rejoice! Throw a party! THANK HIM! He loves it when we trust fully and completely in His goodness and mercy! Enjoy Hillsong's "Salvation Is Here":
In Matthew 13 we read the parable of the sower again. Jesus told of four different types of "soil". We are individually responsible for the "soil" in our lives! That refers to the heart, which is the spirit/soul combination. The spirit of a believer in Jesus of Nazareth has been recreated in the image of God (2 Corinthians 5:17). We are spirit-beings. We possess souls, which are our mind, emotions and will. We MUST renew our minds with the Word of God so that our emotions can line-up with the Word and we can make wise and godly choices! Prepare the "soil" of your heart by praying in the Spirit, spending time in praise, thanksgiving and worship, meditating on the Word and choosing to be a DOER of what you hear! Then the Word of God will come alive to you and you will understand it better than ever before! You will begin to reap the 30/60/100 fold return on the seed of the Word that you have planted in your heart!
1 Kings 11-12 is another account of what happened to Solomon that caused all of the problems that he would encounter, which are reflected in the Book of Ecclesiastes. The first 2 verses tell it all:
1 BUT KING Solomon [defiantly] loved many foreign women -- the daughter of Pharaoh, women of the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Sidonians, and Hittites. 2 They were of the very nations of whom the LORD said to the Israelites, You shall not mingle with them, neither shall they mingle with you, for surely they will turn away your hearts after their gods. Yet Solomon clung to these in love.
Verses 4 and verse 6:
4 For when Solomon was old, his wives turned away his heart after other gods, and his heart was not perfect (complete and whole) with the LORD his God, as was the heart of David his father. 6 Solomon did evil in the sight of the LORD, and went not fully after the LORD, as David his father did.
David made his own mistakes, but he ALWAYS repented and got back into fellowship with God. He NEVER worshiped any other so-called gods (idols, demons). You and I WILL make mistakes and miss it sometimes. WHEN we do, we need to go DIRECTLY to 1 John 1:9:
9 If we [freely] admit that we have sinned and confess our sins, He is faithful and just (true to His own nature and promises) and will forgive our sins [dismiss our lawlessness] and [continuously] cleanse us from all unrighteousness [everything not in conformity to His will in purpose, thought, and action].
Get immediately back into close, intimate fellowship with the One, True, Most High, Living, Almighty God of the Bible! Then you can continue to walk in the BLESSING of the Covenant you have with Him through the precious Blood of Jesus of Nazareth! What a wonderful life! HALLELUJAH!
Shalom in Him!
