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My God is…Drawing me up from a desolate pit Psalm 40:1-3

21 Oct
Left December 2010 - Right October 2013

Left December 2010 – Right October 2013

Psalm 40:1-3 – I waited patiently for the Lord;

he inclined to me and heard my cry.
He drew me up from the desolate pit,
out of the miry bog,
and set my feet upon a rock,
making my steps secure.
He put a new song in my mouth,
a song of praise to our God.
Many will see and fear,
and put their trust in the Lord.

I waited patiently for the Lord

Three years ago I was talking to my friend and reflexologist, Lynn, and told her that I thought 2013 was going to be a good year for me. I just had a feeling that something was going to change in 2013. I didn’t know what it was going to be, but I really felt it was going to be good and a big change. I think I thought it was going to have something to do with my blog. Would I be discovered? Would I actually work toward my goal of being an author/speaker? That wasn’t it (although there are a few months left!). I waited patiently to find out what kind of change would be coming my way.

He inclined to me and heard my cry

For most of my life I have been insecure. I have thought that I don’t quite measure up. I struggled with self-worth and still have a tendency to talk poorly about myself. I am the butt of my own jokes. I minimize my accomplishments and maximize my failures. I have always had a strong relationship with the Lord, but things have been changing for me. When we made our move to Oregon, I packed on the pounds. This was no surprise. It was a sort of cycle I had. Whenever we moved I would lose weight before the move and put it on as the stress of moving, meeting new people and such would become overwhelming. This move was different. It was the first time we were moving someplace with no end date. We didn’t know when or if we would ever move again. I think I felt settled for the first time in a long time. It didn’t happen right away, but as I gained friends and became comfortable in my surroundings, I was finally in a position to work on getting past some things I’d been holding on to for too long.

He drew me up from the desolate pit, out of the miry bog, 

Even now, thinking about the pain and sadness I felt almost everyday brings tears to my eyes. There were a lot of things that had to change. God led me to a counselor. She was amazing, and just what I needed. I confessed more of my life to her than I had revealed to anyone. God shed the baggage from me. God taught me to forgive fully and allow those who love me to love me without me doubting their truthfulness. God also supplied me with a doctor and we worked on balancing my hormones and getting me healthy. God gave me the opportunity to reduce my hours for work. God allowed me to connect more with my family, friends and those who needed my support.

He put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God.

For years (37 or so) I was not enjoying all the Lord had given me. I probably still don’t have it down totally, but God is still working me towards righteousness. So what was so big about 2013? What changed? So many things changed that led up to 2013, but in 2013. Starting in January I began the quest with my friend Carol to take care of ourselves and lose weight. I have lost almost 50 lbs (49.7 to be accurate). People ask me how, and sadly my response is a lot of exercise and Weight Watchers, but the truth is without God I could not have done it. It is all those things He changed in my heart that led up to this place. I didn’t think I could ever weigh this weight again. I don’t think I’ve been this weight since my sophomore year in college.

Many will see and fear, and put their trust in the Lord.

Full confession. When I was writing this blog post, most of it was full of “I” did this or “I” did that, and suddenly I realized I was not praising God. I was praising myself. The truth is I don’t believe it was me alone. I believe the Lord has been with me each and every step from counselor to weight loss. God is the source of all that is good in my life. I pray that my life does bring glory to God. That people will see the work the Lord is doing in my life. They will see the transformation and know that God is the reason and maybe, by the grace of God they will put their trust in Him. Oh that I should be so blessed as to know the Lord had used me in that way. That really does make me cry (in a good way).

 
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Posted by on October 21, 2013 in My God is drawing me up from a desolate pit, Psalm

 

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My God is…inclined to me Psalm 40:1-3

01 May

Psalm 40:1-3 I waited patiently for the Lord;Jesushuggingcryinggirl
he inclined to me and heard my cry.
He drew me up from the desolate pit,
out of the miry bog,
and set my feet upon a rock,
making my steps secure.
He put a new song in my mouth,
a song of praise to our God.
Many will see and fear,
and put their trust in the Lord.

I waited patiently for the Lord

I’m not very patient really. If I ask my husband for help, and he doesn’t do it (that minute), I get frustrated. Then usually I’ll do it with a scowl on my face and a bad attitude. He’ll retort that he was going to get to it, just not that second. That reasonable, right. Of course it is, but that doesn’t stop me from justifying my impatience by telling him if I didn’t need his help NOW, I wouldn’t have asked NOW. I think that’s how I am with God sometimes as well. I don’t ask God to walk with me in the beginning of a project or activity. I wait until I’m sure I can’t do it on my own, and then I ask God for help. I don’t want any of that, “In God’s time” stuff. I want it now. I wouldn’t have asked if I didn’t want it now. Perhaps if I had included God from the beginning it wouldn’t have gone the way it went, and I wouldn’t be so desperate, or maybe it isn’t all about me, and God’s timing has bigger plans, plans I may never see, but that He uses to His glory anyway. Patience is a virtue. I need to work on waiting patiently for the Lord.

He inclined to me and heard my cry

Now I find this part of our verse (the part with the theme of the blog in it) very comforting for so many reasons.

  • My Cry – Why does the part about crying out make me feel comforted? Because it shows that I don’t have to have my emotions in order. I can cry or cry out of frustration, pain, anger or suffering. It’s not wrong to have emotions. It’s not wrong to cry out to the Lord and be true to what you’re feeling. I like that freedom.
  • He heard my cry – Another wonderful part of this section of our passage from Psalms is that God hears my cry. He hears me. He isn’t tuning me out. He doesn’t have Skull Candy ear buds in that make it possible to ignore everything that’s going on around Him (like my boys like to do when I need them to help around the house). He hears my cry.
  • He inclined to me: God leaned in to hear my cry better. He has a disposition and a tendency to helping and hearing me. He is inclined to move in my direction. He comes close to me. He comforts me. He leans in. Have you ever noticed that when things are going wrong, some people lean in and some lean out? I have. It’s really interesting who will come to your side or be inclined to you when you’re in trouble. When someone is really listening to you, they often are inclined to you. They lean in and show you with their body language that they’re paying attention. God is inclined to you. He’s paying attention.

Definition of INCLINED

1: having inclination, disposition, or tendency
2 a : having a leaning or slope
  b : making an angle with a line or plane
He drew me up from the desolate pit,
out of the miry bog,
and set my feet upon a rock,
making my steps secure.
When reading this I was reminded of my Stephen’s Ministry training (a Christian peer counseling program), I was taught that we had to be careful not to get in the pit of troubles that our care receivers were currently experiencing. We had to remain attached to the Lord so we could reach in and help, but not fall in our selves. They explained that the truth is God is who draws us out of the desolate pit and sets us back upon a rock and helps us get our secure footing back. God is inclined to us, leaning over and reaching into the pit and pulling us out.
He put a new song in my mouth,
a song of praise to our God.
Many will see and fear,
and put their trust in the Lord.
So many times people ask why they’re going through what they’re going through, and it’s never easy to answer without sounding trite or inconsiderate, but the truth is going through those tough times allows us to grow and become stronger. To know that our true strength comes from the Lord. If you ask most strong and confident people about their story, you will almost always hear some talk about some of the struggles that led them to this point. There isn’t a truly easy road in this sinful earth for any of us. Every hardship is an opportunity to grow in our faith, our perseverance and to give glory to God. After you have come through something painful, and you can see it behind you without feeling the full pain, you feel the feeling of victory. The feeling of overcoming the impossible, knowing that without God it could not have been done. We can put our trust in God and rely on Him to see us through.
What are you inclined to? 
 
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Posted by on May 1, 2013 in My God is inclined to me, Psalm

 

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