Psalm 39

I said, I will take heed to my ways, that I sin not with my tongue: I will keep my mouth with a bridle, while the wicked is before me. I was dumb with silence, I held my peace, even from good; and my sorrow was stirred. My heart was hot within me, while I was musing the fire burned: then spake I with my tongue, LORD, make me to know my end, and the measure of my days, what it is, that I may know how frail I am. Behold, thou hast made my days as an handbreadth; and mine age is as nothing before thee: verily every man at his best state is altogether vanity. Selah. Surely every man walketh in a vain shew: surely they are disquieted in vain: he heapeth up riches, and knoweth not who shall gather them. And now, LORD, what wait I for? my hope is in thee. Deliver me from all my transgressions: make me not the reproach of the foolish. I was dumb, I opened not my mouth: because thou didst it. Remove thy stroke away from me: I am consumed by the blow of thy hand. When thou with rebukes dost correct man for iniquity, thou makest his beauty to consume away like a moth: surely every man is vanity. Selah. Hear my prayer, O LORD, and give ear unto my cry; hold not thy peace at my tears: for I am a stranger with thee, and a sojourner, as all my fathers were. O spare me that I may recover strength, before I go hence, and be no more.

Isaiah 40

verses. 10,11 Behold, the Lord God will come with strong hand, and his arm shall rule for him: behold, his reward is with him, and his work is before him. He shall feed his flock like a shepherd: he shall gather the lambs in his arm, and carry them in his bosom. and shall gently lead those that are with young.
verse.18 To whom then will ye liken God? or to what likeness will ye compare unto him?
verse 25 To whom then shall ye liken me, or shall I be equal? saith the Holy One.
verses 28-31 Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard, that the everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not neither is weary? there is no searching of his understanding. He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength. Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and young men shall fall: But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary and they shall walk, and not faint.

It always amazes me to compare the three elements of, God's strength, our weakness, and his care for us.
Great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised.

If you Believe, can you tell me why?

Recently I had an opportunity to attend a baptist heritage conference. Dr. Ted Alexander was speaking about our forgotten baptist heritage. What he told us about baptist history was 90% new to me! I who claimed to be a baptist, could only have hoped, at best, to give a vague explanation of why I was a baptist. Looking further into what I believed, I found that this was the case in many areas of my "faith". While on many subjects I was firmly convinced of what I believed, I could not comfortably explain this faith to an unbeliever. Sure, I could give some generic answer to a question here, and there, and then feel smug until they asked for a real, genuine and specific answer. Then I had to "hem and haw" and beg God to forgive me for my lazy study habits.  If I correctly interpret I Peter 3:15, we are commanded to be ready to tell why we believe what we believe. If I do not do this, I am not simply making a choice not to do "extra study", I am in direct violation of God's word. I have been challenged and convicted to study to not only know better what I believe, but also to be able share why, with others. I would hate to someday stand before my God, and find out that I had turned men away from the gospel with my lack of care about my faith. We have a glorious Saviour, who in his love has given us his written word, that our frail minds may better know Him and how to show, in some small way, our thanks for so great a salvation. How can we be so hardened to such matchless grace, as to neglect the study of so precious a book? Let us pray for, and encourage one another to study diligently the Holy word of the Lord who loved us, and gave himself for us.