HEAD(hed), (n.) 1. the top part of the human body or the front part of an animal where the eyes, nose, east and mouth are. "Your brain is in your head." DIBS(dibz), (n.) 2. a thick, sweet syrup made in countries of the East, especially the Middle East, from grape juice or dates. [Arabic "debs"]--World Book Dictionary, 1976.
Sometimes the news comes quick. Sometimes the news comes slow. No matter how or when it comes, grief travels in the wake of the news. Grief is heavy, weighty, a burden, especially when it involves someone deeply loved. Grief is not meant to be carried alone. It’s too heavy and may last a while—and that’s ok. That’s what family and friends are for, to share the load. Jesus stood outside the tomb of his friend and wept but He did not weep alone. It was a deep, human moment. “ Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted ” (Matt 5:4). If anyone knows how we feel in grief, it’s Him. But His grief did not linger long, as at the mention of his name, Lazarus came forth. We are not meant to dwell in grief, but should leave room enough for it. Let it run its course. Like the song says, “ Every Storm Runs Out Of Rain .” Another song says, “ The storm We will dance as it breaks The storm It will give as it takes And all of our pain is washed away Don't cry or be afraid Some things...
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Confidence Leads to Thanksgiving.
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“What is this confidence that you have?” These are the words of an invader. The Assyrian army has seized all the fortified cities of Judah and is now on the doorstep of Jerusalem. The Assyrian king sent three generals to speak with Hezekiah, not face to face, but to shout public humiliations over the wall. Listen to them strip every ounce of hope in the hearing of the people, “You say (but they are only empty words), ‘I have counsel and strength for the war.’ Now on whom do you rely, that you have rebelled against me? . . . Have I come up without the Lord’s approval against this place to destroy it? The Lord said to me, ‘Go up against this land and destroy it.’” (see 2 Kings 18-9-19:37)
I am firmly convinced that when J.R.R. Tolkien wrote The Battle of Helm’s Deep in “The Two Towers” he had the Assyrian invasion in mind. Peter Jackson did a fairly good job capturing the scene for us:
Yes, I think that is fairly accurate (even of the Assyrians).
Psalm 46 was composed during this very time, when then enemy was camped on the doorstep. The sense of the Hebrew in the first verse reads, “God is our refuge and strength, abundantly available for help in tight places.” I don’t like being in tight spots. They stress me out. I don’t do stress well.
The structure of Psalm 46 is beautiful: God is our refuge. He is at the top of the list as the bottom-most foundation. While everything around is falling apart, God remains unshakable, immovable. Hezekiah takes the letters of the invaders and spreads both them and himself out before God where he prays to God, His confidence. That very night, the Assyrian generals met Hezekiah’s confidence when 185,000 Assyrians met the angel of the Lord. Sennacherib, king of Assyrian, retreated.
The psalmist (and Hezekiah) placed their confidence in God because He does not move. The earth moves. Water is patient in its work, and the mountains fall down, but the water only bubbles and retreats in laughter when it is done. Men trip over stones that were once mountains and every mountain of a man falls.
God as refuge is the dwelling place for all who need protection and strength. Think of it: a city is made up of people, so all the people who abide in God will not be moved, even as enemies rage through the night. God will help and night turns to day.
We can take our confidence in God, our refuge. Think for a moment about His mighty work on our behalf: He destroys His enemies, causing their warring to cease, rendering bow, spear and chariot useless. He tells His enemies, “STOP and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.”
Oh, yes! Give thanks because our God is with us, we who dwell in Him who is our refuge. The God of Jacob is our stronghold.
“Keep constant guard over your perceptions, for it is no small thing you are protecting, but your respect, trustworthiness and steadiness, peace of mind, freedom from pain and fear, in a word your freedom. For what would you sell these things?” EPICTETUS, DISCOURSES, 4.3.6 b –8
Legend has it that the astronomer Ptolemy (1st century A.D.) suggested that falling stars were caused by the gods moving in the heavens, thus knocking stars out of their places. Somehow people reasoned that that if the gods were moving, they must be getting close to earth so they would lift their "prayers" or "wishes" (literally, "desires") whenever they saw the stars falling in hopes the gods would notice and grant a favorable answer. But how does one wish on falling star? Once you see it, it's gone before the wish or prayer can be made! The answer is simple: meteor shower. That's how to get your wish. Mrs. Ann Hodges had a wish fall right into her lap. Sort of. In 1954 Mrs. Hodges was sleeping on the couch when a 8 1/2 pound meteorite fell through her house and into her living room where it bounced off the radio and struck her left hip leaving her with a bruise. Not sure what she was wishing, but that's not how to do it. Epictetus hel...
