Heralds Digest

  “In You, O Lord, I put my trust; Let me never be put to shame.” ‭‭Psalms‬ ‭71‬:‭1‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ Trust with little or no threat demands diplomacy; but total trust attracts total threat. And for the psalmist’s total trust in the Lord, the threat from the enemies paints the end game of shame. Whereas, there is actually no game of shame with total trust in God. The total threat is an undeniable evidence of a believer's total trust in God. “ Yes, and all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution ” (‭‭II Timothy‬ ‭3‬:‭12‬). Unfortunately, the desire for good living rather than godly living in Christ Jesus attracts compromises in the believer's relationship with the principals in his world. By reflecting on Uriah’s total trust in God, it is possible for anyone to be distracted by the painting of the seeming shame in total threat from the likes of king David. Actually, total trust in God will never ever bring shame; believers can only be tempted to play games with t...

  “But I am poor and needy; Make haste to me, O God! You are my help and my deliverer; O Lord, do not delay.” Psalms‬ ‭70‬:‭5‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ Poverty and vulnerability are like twins. They are hardly separable. In fact, poverty and a strategic discouragement of economic empowerment policies are mostly adopted by superiors, who are obsessed with the mindset of keeping others in perpetual servitude. Needless to say, graceless help is simply manipulative and unholy. Therefore, the psalmist cried out to God to hasten with His help in order to avoid the pit of manipulation set by the enemies of his soul. Notwithstanding, it is only the human mind that tricks the poor and needy into the concept of delayed hope, and the consequent vulnerable heart. Holy help simply demands holy hands and the lifting up of the souls unto God. Great things happen when believers pray to God alone for help, even when it appears nothing has changed with the prevailing circumstances. Holy help with holy hands can neve...

  “The heart knows its own bitterness, And a stranger does not share its joy. The backslider in heart will be filled with his own ways, But a good man will be satisfied from above.” Proverbs‬ ‭14‬:‭10‬, ‭14‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ Material riches and worldly entertainment can create a lively environment for entertainment and a feeling of happiness, but the heart always knows the lack of true satisfaction in all these things. There is always a void in the heart of man that cannot be filled by a stranger, but can only be satisfied by its Creator. Unfortunately, most hearts prefer dishonesty and deceit to sincerity and openness before God. When the preacher was inspired to declare that “ The heart knows its own bitterness, And a stranger does not share its joy ”, he is alluding to an honest heart. This heart must be holy, open, noble, expressive, sincere, and truthful to every inspiration from God. Whereas, a dishonest heart is deceived by the offerings from his worldly interactions, an honest heart...

  “For God will save Zion And build the cities of Judah, That they may dwell there and possess it. Also, the descendants of His servants shall inherit it, And those who love His name shall dwell in it.” ‭‭Psalms‬ ‭69‬:‭35‬-‭36‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ Everyone can relate with the psalmist’s self-reflection on the plight of Zion - a city fallen from grace and the glory of God. But not everyone can relate with the power of humility, redemption, and restoration if Zion shall return in praise. It is evident that the self-reflection on the depravity of the fall of man can only produce the undeniable story of hopelessness. There is still hope in God for Zion, because the Creator and Redeemer God is the ancient Architect of love and restoration. Notwithstanding, it takes faith to believe that no mess can match the mercy of God. But with faith, we can all relate with the psalmist’s gracious revelation “ For God will save Zion And build the cities of Judah, That they may dwell there and possess it. Also, t...

  “Deliver me out of the mire, And let me not sink; Let me be delivered from those who hate me, And out of the deep waters. Let not the floodwater overflow me, Nor let the deep swallow me up; And let not the pit shut its mouth on me.” ‭‭Psalms‬ ‭69‬:‭14‬-‭15‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ If the thesis produced from David’s experience in the mire and deep waters was rightfully graded, it would have attracted more than Ph.D or D.Sc. degree. Obviously, one of the objectives of his deep drench is the mastery of the circumstances on the field with the ability to float, swim, and fly. Likewise, the deep drench in life offers the test pads for the development and distribution of innovative ideas. And the most amazing part of the deep drench experiences is the fellowship with God, the author and finisher of believers’ faith. “ Deliver me…let me not…let me…and let not the floodwater, pit, deep, etc ” is primarily the expression of a sweet fellowship between a believer and God. The fellowship with floodwater, pi...

  “Let not those who wait for You, O Lord God of hosts, be ashamed because of me; Let not those who seek You be confounded because of me, O God of Israel.” Psalms‬ ‭69‬:‭6‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ The danger of living for self glory is not just the shame of failure; the pursuit of self glory undermines the parade of the glory of God. It implies that, unlike the lies of the enemy, there is no risk of failure for those who wait for the Lord and the performance of His promises. Unfortunately, whenever we seem to accept helping God out, we are actually aiming to protect our interests in self glory from failure and disappointment. Believers can truly learn the art of waiting upon the Lord from David, who waited ceaselessly for the fulfillment of God’s promise to reign as king over all Israel and Judah. Even after king Saul resisted God’s plan unto his shame, Abner selfishly continued to wear the regalia of pride against the counsel of God for over 7 years until his destruction. All this while, David ha...

  “Much food is in the fallow ground of the poor, And for lack of justice there is waste.” Proverbs‬ ‭13‬:‭23‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ If content creation is problem solving, then problems are blessings in disguise. Unfortunately, today’s societies and families are encouraging the upbringing of children with a wrong value set - e.g, wealth generation through cash creation, rather than content creation. Even parents who struggled to escape poverty would rather prefer suffering to generate the cash-based wealth to spoil their children’s character of dignity in labour, discipline, and problem solving skills. Consequently, the dignity in labour, self-discipline, and integrity are quickly eroded without being mindful of the lack of justice committed for the upcoming generations. When the scriptures say “ Much food is in the fallow ground of the poor ”, it awakens the sense of responsibility in man. It implies that the primary purpose of every fallow field in a believer's life is simply the offering of...