January 30, 2013 He Has Been Good to You

Read Psalms 11-15 He Has Been Good to You Psalms 13 1 How long, O LORD? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me? 2 How long must I wrestle with my thoughts and every day have sorrow in my heart? How long will my enemy triumph over me? 3 Look on me and answer, O LORD my God. Give light to my eyes, or I will sleep in death; 4 my enemy will say, “I have overcome him,” and my foes will rejoice when I fall. 5 But I trust in your unfailing love; my heart rejoices in your salvation. 6 I will sing to the LORD, for he has been good to me. HOW MIGHT you feel that God has forgotten you? Those feelings come when a friend suffers from serious disease. Or perhaps you deal with depression, and you can’t seem to enjoy life. Maybe you are trapped economically, and no end of the bills is in sight. Will God keep you in those places forever? I can’t answer how God will release you from harm. The psalmist here was writing from a foreign land where God had sent his people into exile. He missed God’s presence and wondered if God be with them again. Then look at his attitude change. When he expressed his trust in God, he began to praise God. He had not seen the end of the exile, but he focused on God’s love, salvation and goodness. This praise attitude is a great thing to have in your heart. Praise him for his love, and you will feel his love. Praise him for his goodness, and you will feel good with him. Praise him for his salvation, and your heart will sing to the Lord. Yes, freedom from your sorrows begins when you center your life on God’s eternal goodness for you. Live with a song of grateful love in your heart for your God who saves and makes new. It’s True! How good it is to say good things.