They Glow

They Glow

Psalm 34 is a Psalm about deliverance.  David was in a very difficult situation where he allowed his fear to drive him to make some very poor decisions.  We all can relate.  We allow our circumstances, which are truly precarious, to become bigger than our God.  We have lost our job.  We are facing a health crisis.  One of our children is struggling.  Difficult situations that can drive our fears to control us.  We lose sight of our loving Father and his ability and desire to deliver us.  We make decisions driven by fear and panic.  David panicked.  David used his own abilities and own wisdom to try and extricate himself from the situation.  Yet, God in his grace and mercy delivered him anyway. David extols the greatness of God and calls for the people to join him in praise to the God who always delivers.  He calls on them to not allow fear to lose sight of the bigness of God.
This Psalm is full of great thoughts.  Many of them you will recognize: “Magnify the Lord with me”, “Taste and see that the Lord is good”, “Keep your tongue from evil”, “The Lord is near the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit”, and “Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but he Lord delivers them out of them all”.  I would encourage you to take the time to read the whole Psalm.  The promises found there are sweet and uplifting.
Let me share one more promise found in verses 4 and 5, “I sought the Lord, and he answered me and delivered me from all my fears.  Those who look to him are radiant, and their faces shall never be ashamed.”  God has promised to always deliver us.  From our fears and from all difficulties.  In his time, in his way, and either here or there.  He may deliver by bringing us through the deep waters, he may deliver us by supernaturally intervening, he may deliver us by bringing us to himself, he may take away our fears, but he will always deliver.  This is a promise we must trust.  Even better, we must trust him who made the promise. He cannot lie and his love drives him to deliver his children. David shares that we believe that so completely that it changes us from the inside out and we find our faces full of joy.  We are beaming.  We glow.  We are radiant with the truth that our God will deliver.  We do not seek to make it glow...you just glow.  That word for radiant is used in Isaiah where is speaks of a mother’s face who has just set her eyes on a child that has been lost for a long time.  She can’t help herself.  The joy of seeing her child causes her to just glow.  Her whole person has been changed.  Her shoulders are not longer stooped, her cheeks are hurting because she can’t stop smiling, and her eyes are full of laughter and joy.  Those who look to God in the midst of any difficulty or calamity, those who fully trust his willingness and ability to deliver, glow in the same way.  Circumstance do not dictate their face, God does.  It is then that people are drawn to them and want to know their secret.  It is then that they are given the opportunity to share a good and great God.
Sound a little too good to be true?  David wants to assure us that these promises are real.  God promises, through David, that “their faces shall never be ashamed”.  God will not let you down.  He will keep his promises.  If God promises to always deliver, then he will.  He is almighty God.  He never slumbers, he never grows weary, and his love is never exhausted.  He will not allow us to be ashamed.  His deliverance may not be what we expect or can even imagine, but it will be real.  His deliverance may seem to be delayed, but it always comes at his perfect time.  Keeping our hopes, trusts, and eyes fixed on him will cause our life to glow with the radiance of his glory. We will rejoice in the truth that the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit (II Cor 13:14) will be with us.  God is with us and he will deliver us.  
Imagine you are aboard the S.S. Minnow for a three hour tour.  The weather starts to get rough.  Things look as if all is lost.  The skipper and the crew do an amazing job and save everyone’s life but you are ship wrecked on a deserted island.  Those with you panic.  The wealthy couple bemoan all that they have lost.  The movie star is worried that her fifteen minutes of fame will be over.  The scientist is fascinated by the idea of rescuing himself.  The other girl is simply afraid and shivering.  But you have special knowledge.  You know, without a shadow of a doubt that you will be delivered.  You know your rescuer is on the way.  You settle in and find yourself enjoying the beautiful beach and the rest from the daily stresses.  Things may be difficult but they are only temporary.  Deliverance is coming and until then you will live in the joy of that truth.  Trusting God does not make every difficult circumstance a sunny beach, but trusting will produce peace which will produce radiance.  God will deliver, you can count on him.

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