Ponder Anew What The Almighty Can Do!
The tyranny of the urgent seems to drive most of our lives in America. We are constantly trying to beat the clock to that next appointment, meet that next deadline, and even make that green light! We rush around as if what was happening in our lives and what needed to be done was the most urgent thing in the universe. How do we gain perspective? Years ago when I was under the hammer of the urgent, I would check myself with another phrase, “Consider the universe”.
This phrase would set me into a sequence toward calm. I trained my mind to stop and visualize the universe and then take my visualization from the universe to our solar system and then to planet Earth. By then I had at least stopped gulping my coffee and began to consider the North American Continent and then the United States of America.Continuing my progression from magnanimous to small next I would consider the State of Colorado where I was living then the city (Denver), the street, the building, the floor, the office and finally the desk that I was occupying.By going from the inconceivably huge to my tiny space it helped me to realize that my stressors were small in comparison.The picture of the universe that I kept on my desk was my reminder that my current frustration or task was not urgent enough to rob me of my peace.
I often wonder what God thinks of us as we scurry about with our urgent. I wonder what He thinks of my 15 hour work days or my endless lists of things that must get done. Actually, I don’t wonder at all. His Word is very clear on what is urgent and it isn’t my lists and my 15 hour work days. Things that are urgent to Jesus are loving Him with all my heart, soul and mind and seeking first His kingdom and His righteousness because He promises that “all these things will be added unto those” who follow His Word. His urgency is to help the poor and needy, to bring comfort to the comfortless, and to proclaim the Good News in a world where good news is scarce.When I face next Monday, my prayer is that God’s urgency will prevail.
Will you join me in making that your prayer? May we ponder anew what the Almighty can do if we but let Him. I challenge us to look at what is urgent in our lives. If it isn’t what God finds urgent, may we break the tyranny of it. May we take His yoke upon ourselves and learn of Him for his yoke is easy, without urgency, without tyranny and it definitely leads to peace.
Psalm 150:2
Praise Him for his acts of power; praise Him for his surpassing greatness.
Praise to the Lord Almighty (All verses)
Joachim Neander 1680
Praise to the Lord, the Almighty, the King of creation!
O my soul, praise Him, for He is thy health and salvation!
All ye who hear, now to His temple draw near;
Praise Him in glad adoration.
Praise to the Lord, who over all things so wondrously reigneth,
Shelters thee under His wings, yea, so gently sustaineth!
Hast thou not seen how thy desires ever have been
Granted in what He ordaineth?
Praise to the Lord, who hath fearfully, wondrously, made thee;
Health hath vouchsafed and, when heedlessly falling, hath stayed thee.
What need or grief ever hath failed of relief?
Wings of His mercy did shade thee.
Praise to the Lord, who doth prosper thy work and defend thee;
Surely His goodness and mercy here daily attend thee.
Ponder anew what the Almighty can do,
If with His love He befriend thee.
Praise to the Lord, who, when tempests their warfare are waging,
Who, when the elements madly around thee are raging,
Biddeth them cease, turneth their fury to peace,
Whirlwinds and waters assuaging.
Praise to the Lord, who, when darkness of sin is abounding,
Who, when the godless do triumph, all virtue confounding,
Sheddeth His light, chaseth the horrors of night,
Saints with His mercy surrounding.
Praise to the Lord, O let all that is in me adore Him!
All that hath life and breath, come now with praises before Him.
Let the Amen sound from His people again,
Gladly for aye we adore Him.
