A Psalm For a Dark Night - Part 2

Thanks everyone willingly part without money we give a donation to revision is different because what you're getting with her right and lasting impact. 1125 puts it this way generously. Those who refresh others who themselves be refreshed.

So if you fall being generous refreshing with a true solid guy with your text at all.how you use the free Christian media. Why does the Bible say you can count it all joy when your life feels like it's out of control because God is always in control and Turning Point of the Jeremiah continues his look at the trials of life and considers why a loving God allows his children to please her as the conclusion for the dark Knight while were living out the truth of what I read one time. It goes like this, never doubt the darkness what God has revealed in the light when we go through difficult times like were going through right now.

They often just forward to the truth which is every time from the word of God. That's white, were not giving you a lot of pious points of positive thinking were taking a right to the Scriptures and telling you here's what God wants you to know in a time like this in the special inspirational series. We are making available to all of you who will help us during this month with the gift of any size.

A brand-new book 300 pages called shelter in God.

Your refuge in times of trouble. This book was put together rapidly quickly when this began to unfold so that we would have something for you that you could be encouraged by and blessed by and so if you will send us a gift of any size to Turning Point during the month of June and simply say please send me the book shelter in God.

It will be on its way to you. We have the center warehouse were ready to ship them as soon as we hear from you. We want you to have this hope in this help as soon as possible. Today were going to return to our lesson where we were working our way through Psalm 71. How do we get through a dark night when we go, what do we say to whom we appeal our case we know that don't way. We come to God and we come to God first of all, through prayer and then we open our eyes and our heart and our lives to receive his word. Let's receive his word today. Psalm 71 we say pastor Jeremiah that's reality of trials. The result of trials in our life when we do with someone has said the psalmist filled with great praise and great complaining all at once, and I don't know if that's true, but I know that after you get past David saying what it really was like in his own life.

He takes the high road shows us a direction and I hope if you don't hear anything else I say you, write down these few things because I believe these are critical to all of us. We don't have a theology of adversity in the church these days. We've got all of this prosperity gospel that's so permeated all the stuff we do now. We have posited this in positive that how many of you know that as much as you'd like it to be. Life just isn't always positive. Sometimes the positive things get interrupted. I'd like it to be positive and I'm a very positive thinker, to tell you something if you don't have a plan going into adversity, you won't do very well with it sooner or later. All of the spaces of one kind or another unexpected, unannounced, uncharted, unplanned, what you do. Let's follow through with David and his plan of operation notice. First of all, the response to his trials. He remembered the character of God. Notice again. The first three verses notice what he said in you, oh Lord, I put my trust. Let me never be put to shame. Deliver me in your righteousness and cause me to escape. Incline your ear to me and save me be my strong refuge to which I may resort continually you have given the commandment to say before you are my rock and my fortress.

Whenever we face our trials.

We need to remember who God is. Sometimes we get so focused on our trials. We forget that we need to go back as believers and focus on the character of God. It's interesting to me that is take your pan and you go through this Psalm and you market carefully. David filled his whole prayer here.

His whole psalmist filled with references to the very character of God himself. For instance, he remembers the glory of God. In verse eight in verse 18. He talks about the power and the strength of God.

In verse 22, which is a very special part of the song he says in verse 22 that he will remember the faithfulness of God, and your faithfulness. Oh my God. And here's the thing that really surprised me. And if you could see my Bible you see that I'd written over these words in this Psalm. Five different times in Psalm 71 David talks about the righteousness of God. You will find it in verses 115 and 16, 19 and 24 in each of those verses.

David refers to the righteousness of God. When I first saw that I thought why I'll tell you why I began to understand that one of the things that comes under assault. Whenever we face trials as believers is the righteousness and goodness of God, and David understood that the one thing you must do when trials were swirling around his head with his own children were denying him and not honoring them. The one thing we must never forget was that he had a God who was righteous and good could be trusted and he would never allow that thought ever get out of his mind and over and over again. He talks about the righteousness of God, my friend. We have a God can be trusted. We may not understand what's going on in our lives. And there are many things that have happened to me and to you that I can't give a rational human explanation that I can laid at the feet of Almighty God, and say with all my heart he knows what he's doing and make no mistake, he didn't make any mistakes someone and sent this to me was packed on a little thing and inserting the card and it was a quotation from a man by the name of Alan Redpath who years ago was the pastor of the Moody Church.

This is what it said this we know there is nothing no circumstance, no troubles, no testing that can ever touch me until first of all, it is come past God and past Christ right through to me. If it is come back far it has come with the great purpose which I may not understand at this moment but as I refuse to become panicky as I lift up my eyes to him and accept it is coming from the throne of God for some great purpose of blessing for my own heart. No sorrow will ever disturb me. No trial will ever disarm me no circumstance will ever cause me to fret. I shall rest in the joy of what my Lord is in his character is God. He knows what he's doing. Someone else wrote this to me on their card that was an answer from God to a person who was going through trials and this is the word from God. You must learn to live with the insecurities and the ambiguities of life. But know this, I am secure. I am certain I am not ambiguous in the storm. I am your rock that cannot be moved. I am your God is not what we need so we come back and we have a sense of the confidence that is ours in God and his character. Second K review the compassion of God. I haven't time to talk about this much except let's read the verses together.

Verses four through six in the first part of verse 17.

Listen to what David said deliver me. Oh God out of the hand of the wicked out of the hand of the unrighteous. A cruel man for you are my hope, oh Lord, you are my trust. Watch this from my youth by you.

I have been upheld from birth. You are the one who took me out of my mother's womb. My praise shall be continually of you and then in verse 17 that he settled God.

He taught me from my youth wanted David to he simply goes back in his memory bank and he reviews what he knows to be true that God has proven to be faithful to him throughout all of his life, isn't that a heritage that we all have. We go back and say, God, you have blasted been faithful. You've watched over me and guided me.

You gave me godly parents from the very moment I was born I was nurtured on the word of God as if it was my mother's milk and Lord you took me through the troubled teenagers when I could've gone south and you wanted me to go north and he watched over me through school and through seminary and you took me through the early days of ministry, when I could've gotten so discouraged. I want to quit God.

As I look back over my shoulder at your great compassion. Great is your faithfulness. Great is your faith every one of you has a heritage like that if you walk with the Lord for even a few weeks God has been good to you and the goodness of God that is been extended to you through your life up to this point is simply a reminder to you that God is good he is compassionate and that he cares is not going to change in the middle of your life. What he has been doing faithfully throughout eternity. Third, psalmist gives us another key for dealing with trials. He says rejoice in celebration to God. I didn't see this at first but then all of a sudden it began to just explode and what I'd like for you to do so. Maybe it will explode in your mind is in the Psalm in verse six, eight, 14 and 15. In verses 22 through 24. Now watch this.

In the midst of a Psalm one David is pouring out his heart to God over the trouble he's had with his son, Adonijah, and crying out to God because of absolute terrible pain he feels in his heart is prayer is filled with worship and praise you say where is it pastor let's read this out loud together. This is from the Psalm.

Let's read together. My praise shall be continually of you let my mouth be filled with your praise and with your glory all the day but I will hope continually and will praise you yet more and more my mouth shall tell of your righteousness and your salvation all the day for I do not know their limits.

Also with the loot. I will praise you and your faithfulness. Oh my God to you. I will sing with the harp, O holy one of Israel, my lips shall greatly rejoice when I sing to you in my soul which you have redeemed my tongue also shall talk of your righteousness all the day long, for they are confounded they are brought to shame who seek my hurt baby just lifts up his voice and praise to God. Ruth the harm skulking has written a book called tell me again Lord, I forget, and in her book she wrote this little poetic prayer about praising difficult times. It goes like this Lord just today I read that Paul and Silas were stripped and beaten with wooden whips again and again the rod slashed across their bare backs, but in their desolate dungeon. Their feet clamped in stocks they prayed they sang they praised in this musty midnight of my life Lord imprisoned in the dungeon of confusion bound by chains of anguish help me please help me to pray to saying to praise until the foundation shakes until the gates fling open until the chains fell off until I am free to share the good news with other chain bound prisoners.

That's what we should pray in the midst of the dark Knight more. Don't ever let me stop praising you say what I don't feel like it if you know what I was going through.

The last thing in my mind is praising God don't usually feel like praising God in college he wore to the hospital but you do it out of obedience to the Lord, and you watch what God does when you do it. Praise not only benefits God it benefits the one who offers it is a wonderful thing to see how this is a part of David's plan. Then in verse 18. David says that you should renew your consecration to God can tell you what of all the things I read in this chapter. This is the one that stoked my fire you go through things and you wonder well you know is this the end of the ministry. Is this the end of the road is God finished with all this.

I looked at this and this is what it says now. Also, when I am old and gray-headed watch this God. Do not forsake me. Here it is. Until I declare your strength to this generation and your power to everyone who was there, I took that as my marching orders for the rest of my life to declare God's strength to this generation. We have an awesome God. You know that God can get lost in church.

Did you know that people go to church every Sunday dinner, never hear anything about God I've gone to church and not heard anything about God I've gone to church is well known, and I had my fill of television services all the time I was gone where you could hardly know if God was there because nobody ever talks about God, don't ever want to go to church without telling people about how strong and awesome is our God, and then last but not least, David says you need to reclaim your confidence in God and the future. Notice verse 21 you shall increase my greatness and comfort me on every side of please hear me carefully in myself. I don't have any greatness for God to increase what is talking about here is his influence and his opportunity to make a difference. He says increase my greatness and comfort encourage me on every side. Did you know that trials are meant to improve us and you know that there are meant to harm us. Trials are meant to improve us to make us better men and better women, so that by God's grace we can accomplish more and our influence can be greater than it was in the past God doesn't send those things into our lives to totally destroy us and we can us so that we can have any impact for him.

First Peter chapter 1 verse seven that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire may be found to praise and honor and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ, one worse recently that verse was away from you all in on the card you wrote these words, which I think maybe from one of his books, but I Capt. this is what it says when God permits his children to go through the furnace he keeps one eye on the clock and his hand on the thermostat is loving heart knows how much and how long a man is not a wonderful thought. God knows what he's doing when he sends trials into our lives. The psalmist said in Psalm 119 before I was afflicted, I want to stray but now I keep your word. It is good for me that I've been afflicted that I might learn your statutes every time you go through a trial. You should be asking God why you can waste a lot of time there because he's not going to tell you is not going to just open the heavens and say why did this in order that instead of asking why wanted to ask what Lord, what do you want me to learn in this process it will totally change the perspective that you have your difficulty Lord what James 13 says, consider it all joy, my brother and when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. First Peter 510 says the God of all grace with called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus. After you have suffered a while, make you perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you. To him be glory for you see the relationship. I understand now why heard when I was a younger man but God is greatly used someone until he crushes it just always pray to be the exception and I don't have any exceptions, you know I used to pray for let me have a ministry without feeling the pain before I left to go away for six weeks I get all our staff together. I read to them something that I have found in some notes that I discovered that very week was from the life of Charles Henry Spurgeon great preacher of another generation. This is what was such an encouragement to me.

I don't know if you ever heard much about Spurgeon's life, except for his greatness.

He accomplished more in his lifetime than most people never accomplish in two lifetimes and he died at the age of 57, but Spurgeon went through terrible terrible times in his life prolonged bouts of depression and anxiety and all sorts of common problems is psychological and physical ailments were so crippling that frequently he was confined to bed for weeks, but Spurgeon came to see these problems as part of God's working in his life. His sufferings enabled him to comfort and encourage those who were similarly afflicted. He discovered that his periods of depression invariably preceded a time when God blessed his ministry in a larger way. Depression actually became. Said Spurgeon, a sort of John the Baptist for him, heralding a mighty outpouring of God's spirit. Here are his own words. This depression comes over me whenever the Lord is preparing a larger blessing for my ministry. The cloud is black before breaks the scouring of the vessel has fitted for the Masters use fasting gives an appetite for the banquet.

The Lord is revealed in the backside of the desert while his servant keeps the sheep and waits in solitary Charles Haddon Spurgeon this psychologically frail man published over 3500 sermons authored 135 books and was regarded as the outstanding preacher of his generation, God is up to something when he sends difficult into our life disable pastor Jeremiah suppose that isn't the way it happens for you. Suppose this disease continues to ravage your body and you are just here for a short time and you're on the go or you know what I win either way and in my life or in my death. Whatever God designs. He will give glory and honor to his name. If I keep my focus right however tough that may be, you know there are a lot of pastors in this country gone through a lot worse than I have and are going through it right now a lot of friends that I know who if I mentioned their name, you would know that I want to tell you about one of them as we close today. Her name is Carol Carlson and she wrote this. Listen carefully Left the house that Thursday with a smile and a bear hug for his mom and 18. Life was great. He had graduated from high school with honors and had a good job working in a toy factory before starting college. The night before he had gone to church and heard a message from two verses all things work together for good in everything give thanks, Kent was in a thankful mood, especially for the airplane. He and his dad had just purchased. His dream was to become a missionary pilot in the future looked bright with promise. Thursday night he called home, and he said mom I'm just going out and practice a few touch and goes hold supper for me. I'll be home by nine. He never came home in a clump of trees at the edge of a little country airport was the crashed plane and the bodies of His buddy Rick one moment in time changed our lives on that warm June night.

God chose to take one of our precious children. How does a parent exist beyond that moment will not stay in our insides ever go away. In the weeks and months to follow.

I learn more about God's love that I had in all my years of being a Christian I learned that his word speaks to our needs.

My grace is sufficient for you, and my strength is made perfect in weakness. When I felt helpless to do even the small tasks of the day, I would repeat I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. When I saw good-looking blonde kid in the street.

I would remember that Kant had underlined in his Bible, but we do not want you to be uninformed, brethren, about those who are asleep, but you may not grieve as the rest to have no hope. When I began to indulge in self-pity. I would embrace my husband rorty was suffering as intensely as I was. And remember, God said, encourage one another and build up one another. We were strengthened as we encouraged others in his little brother didn't understand why his buddy didn't come home and his big sister lost her pal and confidant were friends in the youth group at church questioned God and the kids at school asked why the grace of God not only gave us comfort, but also the urgency to reach out to others word and I grew closer together as we went to other parents would suffer the loss we develop an uncommon boldness to reach out to those who are hurting a greater tragedy than losing a child is not to know Jesus Christ personally.

How grateful we are that our children, all of them know and love him.

Life has meaning. When we have the assurance that we shall meet again Carol Carlson. I'm not trying to tell you, folks, this life is easy but I can tell you it's victorious when you know Almighty God and his son Jesus Christ.

You could go through whatever is put in front of you with the kind of power and strength that the world won't know anything about and I'm telling you, if you don't know Christ you're going into the battle without any gun you're going into the battle with no armor you're going into the battle in your own strength and you gonna fall on your face because God is the only one who can help you when trials come into your life. So I ask you today. Do you know have you met him through his son Jesus Christ.

Have you ever asked Christ to come into your life and confess your sin and said I'm going to live for God and Jesus Christ. My heart that's the beginning place, you say well I'm not in any trouble right now with this and they can be different. You have to start where you are and if God is spoken your heart and when asked you to give your heart to him today, while the Lord God is talking to friends, ran the midst of terminology. We have never thought of before. Coronavirus covert, 19 flatten the curve shelter in place when those words have no meaning, only a few months ago and they have become signposts marking out our sobering new reality healthcare systems have stumbled and retirements have crumbled, and people are dying in living assistant home soon. Foundations of modern society have cracked in ways we've never seen before and few of us thought possible, leaving a lot of difficult questions that are in our minds and hearts. That's why this book that we are making available during the month of June is so important. It's called shelter in God and it's based upon the Psalms of the Old Testament. In fact, it's based on the sheltering Psalms. That's right, there's a section of Psalms, long before this ever happened long before the covert, 19 thing if you had looked at Bible commentary or the introduction to the book of Psalms. You probably would've seen that there is a section of Psalms are actually called the sheltering Psalms where David talks about his refuge is refuge in God, like Isaiah 25 verse four where you read about being in the refuge of God will these Psalms are the basis of this book, sheltering God, it's 300 pages of exposition on the Psalms to encourage you during this pandemic you can have this book will ship it right to your home for gift of any size during the month of June.

We need your help during these days.

If you can help us keep doing what were doing and therefore you with encouraging words. But we want to make sure you get this book we are so excited to put this book in your home. So ask for your copy of sheltering God when you send your gift today and don't forget to join us as we meet together again on Monday will see that Jeremiah is message comes from Shadow Mountain Community Church with Jeremiah serves as senior pastor.

If the report is ministering to you later is not Turning Point PO Box 3838, San Diego, CA 92163 visit our website at David Jeremiah don't hold/radio shelter in God sure to encourage you in this unprecedented growth of any amount you can also download the free 7.50. Happy is not final tablet will searching still for the keywords to point ministry. The exit program resources Jeremiah.old/radio I'm very join us Monday as we continue.

This is when you live with Dr. David Jeremiah taking time to listen to families in all