Psalms

2.4.2025: Remember

/ Chris Courtney / Leave a comment

Bless the Lord, O my soul,
    and all that is within me,
    bless his holy name!
2 Bless the Lord, O my soul,
    and forget not all his benefits,
3 who forgives all your iniquity,
    who heals all your diseases,
4 who redeems your life from the pit,
    who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy,
5 who satisfies you with good
    so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s. – Psalm 103:1-5 (ESV)

Fear, anxiety and worry are bad fruit to bear. This unholy trinity of beliefs reveal where our faith lies, and lay bare the true treasure of our hearts. After all, fear is simply worst-case scenario faith – the belief that the things that make us anxious are going to come to fruition in our lives.

Worries and cares are part of the human experience. We live in a fallen world. And we shouldn’t be surprised when life goes sideways.

When trouble comes, pray. Cast every care on God (1 Peter 5). Dig into the Bible and read His promises. Pray for others. Don’t sit and mull over your problems. Instead, think about what is good, right, beautiful, true… (1 Philippians 4).

Meditate on God’s word. Stop and remember the times in the past when God has moved in your life. Remember all He has done on your behalf. Think back to times He pulled you out of situations you couldn’t get out of yourself.

Remember when He healed you.

Remember when He filled a need in your life.

Remember how He saved you.

Remember when He saw you through a tough time.

Remember these things with humility. If your response to troubles and cares is, “I can’t believe this happened to me” or “I don’t deserve this” or “I messed up – why would God help me?”, it’s time to check our egos. If we’re not humble, we’re not able to see God clearly.

When trouble strikes, stop. Pray. Be humble. Choose to trust God and not your limited understanding, Thank the Lord for Who He is and all He has done and will do. Trust in God and, know He is with you. Rely on the Lord to take care of you. And remember – remember all the LORD has done.;

I will remember the deeds of the Lord;
    yes, I will remember your wonders of old.
12 I will ponder all your work,
    and meditate on your mighty deeds.
13 Your way, O God, is holy.
    What god is great like our God?
14 You are the God who works wonders;
    you have made known your might among the peoples.
15 You with your arm redeemed your people,
    the children of Jacob and Joseph. Selah

  • Psalm 77:11-15 (ESV)

Hang in There!

/ Chris Courtney / Leave a comment

It took years.  A lot of years.  I wish I could tell you we were patient and joyful throughout that long period.  The ride was an emotional rollercoaster with more than its fair share of hopes dashed, plans scuttled and doubts expressed.  We almost gave up.  The pain and the stress of it all were more than we could bear.

Then the day finally came.  We prepared her bedroom, slathering on layers of pink paint and hanging dresses in the closet.  Her name was Lily.

Then we got matched.  Surprise!  Our daughter was a boy.  (Pink is easier to paint over than it seems.)

Austin is the perfect match for us, and we for him.  It is as if we share DNA.  He is our son.  It all happened at just the right time, in God’s time.  Had it been any other way, things could have been a disaster.  We couldn’t see it at the time.  All we could see was our heart for a child, the desire to be parents and the anguish of disappointment.

I’m reminded of something David wrote, as he was facing warfare and an enemy he thought was overwhelming: “But I trust in you, O LORD; I say, “You are my God.”  My times are in your hand; rescue me from the hand of my enemies and from my persecutors!  Make your face shine on your servant; save me in your steadfast love!” (Psalm 31:14-16, ESV).  David knew a thing or two about waiting in anguish.  The psalms bear this out in amazing clarity.  David was waiting for God.  He was anguished.  He was frightened. 

But he was faithful.  He never gave up on God.  Even more importantly, God never gave up on David.  The faithfulness of our Lord never ceases to amaze me. 

My point is simply this: hang in there.  Whatever you are waiting on God for, hang in there.  What he has for you may not look anything like what you are anticipating.  But His will is infinitely better than ours.  Whatever you are waiting for, look to God.  Keep your focus on Him.  He will not let you down. 

Do you not know?
   Have you not heard?
The LORD is the everlasting God,
   the Creator of the ends of the earth.
He will not grow tired or weary,
   and his understanding no one can fathom.
He gives strength to the weary
   and increases the power of the weak.
Even youths grow tired and weary,
   and young men stumble and fall;
but those who hope in the LORD
   will renew their strength.
They will soar on wings like eagles;
   they will run and not grow weary,
   they will walk and not be faint. – Isaiah 40:28-31 (ESV)

Hang in there!  Wait for the Lord.  All good things come from Him in His good time.

A Simple Antidote for the Wintertime Blues

/ Chris Courtney / Leave a comment

Winter days get me down.  It’s cold and nasty out.  The walls of our little townhouse start to close in.  Even the dog and cats are little crabbier during these cold winter evenings.  If I allow it, life can easily get me down this time of year.

What I have to do is remind myself of this simple fact:

“This is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it. “ – Psalm 118:24 (ESV)

Being self-absorbed in our troubles is a dangerous place to hang out.  Boredom doesn’t help.  But the truth of our situations is simply that, despite how we feel, no matter how things look, we have cause to celebrate.  And, if we look hard enough, we can see that our blessings truly outweigh the negative in our lives. 

I look across the room at my beautiful wife, smiling and lovely, who loves me and supports me and takes such good care of me.  I would not be the man I am were it not for her.  I love her so much.

I look on the floor of our living at my beautiful four-year-old son, chatting away with his mother as he busily tends to his train set.  I think of the difficulties we endured to get him, and the great blessing that he is, and the faithfulness and grace and mercy of our loving Heavenly Father who saw us through the process, and blessed us with Austin.  He is the light in his mother and I’s life.

I look at the walls and give thanks that I have walls, and heat, and all of the comforts we take for granted.  I am sure I wouldn’t have to drive very far to find someone who does not have the basics of a home, let alone all these creature comforts.

I look at my feet, wrapped in the Indianapolis Colts / IU blanket my mother made for me two Christmases ago, and I think of my family and how blessed I am to be so loved, and how much I love all of them.

I realize how blessed I am and am amazed because, as blessed as I am, all of this pales in comparison to the great gift of God through Jesus Christ.  I am saved, and bathed in love, grace and mercy because of God’s great love for me.  I can trust the Lord with my very life.  He will never fail.  He will never abandon me.  He is all we truly need, for all good things are through Him, our Heavenly Father.

I can sit here and grumble about the cold, about my circumstances, about grievances or hurts or troubles or fears.  Or, I can look at the reality of my situation through the eyes of Truth:

“Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.” – Philippians 4:8 (ESV).