Psalm 75 – Approachable

I’ve enjoyed being married to an author and communicator. It’s interesting to me to see how people interact with Jen depending upon how they know her. If you were to watch those who first met Jen through one of her books or from the audience of a conference she was speaking at, you’d think she hung the moon (Which I’m pretty convinced she did). It’s fun to listen to the emails that come to her saying “I know Jen probably isn’t the one who checks all the emails” as if she has a team of assistants doing it for her. It’s flattering to see women at the “signing” table, wanting to grab a quick picture with her, and give their 15 second expression of how much they appreciate her work.

It’s fun to hear the stories because to me, to her kids, and her friends, she’s just Jen. The gal we love, adore, and appreciated just as much even before the first book was published. To us, it’s no surprise her fan base is growing. We’ve been fans for years. The more you know her, the more comfortable you are around her, the more you know you can be yourself, the more you know you can trust her, the more you know… she’s just Jen. (Sorry Jen, if you somehow found this, I know you’re embarrassed that I’m even writing this.)

Each of us has experienced our own level of “celebrity status”. Most of us with crowds like our third grader’s classmates, because we brought the cup cakes. Regardless of who’s expressing it, it feels good to be appreciated. And it feels good to express appreciation to others… especially those we hold a high opinion of.

In Psalm 75, the Psalmist gives us some insight to how we can interact with a really big God. It reminds us that we don’t have to be star-struck or deal with a personal assistant whose job is to keep you from wasting His time.

“We give thanks to you, O God, we give thanks, for your Name is near; men tell of your wonderful deeds.” – Psalm 75:1

I was captured by this phrase, “Your Name is near”. So I did some research on why the Psalmist chose to use the word “near”. What I found is that it’s also the Hebrew word commonly used for “neighbor” and is meant to communicate a close physical proximity in where we intentionally take residence. Its root means “to cause to approach” or “to be approachable”. So it’s not just talking about a neighbor… it’s talking about a good neighbor… an approachable neighbor.

This is the gift of God. That who He is… all He has done… and that His name literally represents a close proximity and personal presence. That closeness is because HE caused it and because He willed it. No wonder Jesus calls us to remain in Him. It’s His very nature to do the same. It’s the reason He came to earth and put on skin.

I’m thankful today that we don’t just have a God of the universe, we have a personal God, who is close and who we can call daddy. A God who is approachable. What does that change? Everything. And as the Psalmist says (twice in one verse), we should give thanks.

2 Sam 7 - Ready, Shoot, Aim

“I’m gonna do this Lord, please bless it.” That’s out of order. However, we’ve all been tempted to do it that way. In fact, most of us have probably done things this way more than the other way. Maybe accidentally and we realized it later. Maybe it was intentional, whether consciously or subconsciously. Either way we tend to get our Spiritual cart before our Spiritual horse. That’s not good.

“After the king was settled in his palace and the LORD had given him rest from all his enemies around him, he said to Nathan the prophet, "Here I am, living in a palace of cedar, while the ark of God remains in a tent."

“Nathan replied to the king, "Whatever you have in mind, go ahead and do it, for the LORD is with you." - 1 Samuel 7:1-3

I’ve seen this passage of scripture used out of context a ton. “Whatever you have in mind, go ahead and do it…” It’s similar to the Proverb that says, “Commit to the LORD whatever you do, and your plans will succeed. Our biblical interpretation and personal application is easily influenced by our heart intention. There are a ton of assumptions that aren’t seen in the words themselves, but if we look, the heart is obvious.

What David had in mind was to bring glory to God. What David had in mind was to chase after the very heart of God. What David had in mind was the perspective of an amazing journey that was at the center of God’s will. What David had in mind was only the best for the chosen nation of Israel. It was not about David, it was about God.

We know that directly after this the Lord reveals that it was not His desire that David move forward with the building project. So what was this all about? Once again, it's about the journey, about the willingness of the heart, the perspective of a man dependent upon God's presence, and the willingness to put his plans on hold (if not entirely change them), even plans to please God, when God leads elsewhere.

2 Sam 6- Pursuing Presence

God’s presence is not only great, but it's also extremely important. Sometimes we forget how much we need it. I don’t know how we can do that, but we do. My prayer today is for God’s obvious hand in the church. I pray for continued evidence of His Spirit. I’m so thankful when God shows up. What a gift. When He’s there, you just can’t explain it with words, there’s just no doubt He’s there. We need to take it more seriously when He doesn’t show. That’s not a good thing. And there’s probably a reason why.

I got an email from a visitor to Austin New Church this morning that was more encouraging than they can ever know. In the first paragraph was a short sentence that I pray we hear every week. “We all felt moved by the Spirit at ANC.”

“Now King David was told, "The LORD has blessed the household of Obed-Edom and everything he has, because of the ark of God." So David went down and brought up the ark of God from the house of Obed-Edom to the City of David with rejoicing. When those who were carrying the ark of the LORD had taken six steps, he sacrificed a bull and a fattened calf. David, wearing a linen ephod, danced before the LORD with all his might, while he and the entire house of Israel brought up the ark of the LORD with shouts and the sound of trumpets.” 2 Samuel 6:12-15

Thank you Lord for continuing to inhabit the praises of your people. May it always be about You and You alone. May we place YOU at the center of everything we do and pursue. Amen.