"The First Bump"

"Lest he tear my soul like a lion, rending it in pieces, while there is none to deliver." (Psalms 7:2) I hope I do not lose you, if I haven't already; but this is a wandering song, and I have made this little journey something of a picture in my mind; which is that of a big rubber ball rolling through all sorts of different obstacles. But feel free to make your own illustrations; just remember, things can get a little bouncy along the way, so you might want to adjust for that! "Lest he tear my soul like a lion"; now I wonder who David is speaking of? The first thing to notice here, is that "lest" is the continuation of verse one, which I did not get to yesterday, because it was for today. "Save me from all them that persecute me, and deliver me; lest he tear my soul like a lion, rending it in pieces, while there is none to deliver." That is how verse two begins to make sense, because the beginning of verse one, is that of David proclaiming that "in Thee do I put my trust"; which is then followed by the illustrated reason why. There is absolutely no way that we can continue down this road, without putting our full trust in God!!! "Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened unto you: but rejoice, inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ's sufferings; that, when His glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy." (1 Peter 4:12 & 13) When David is referring to his soul, he is referring to his will to carry on. What this implies, is that of trusting that God will deliver, even though that there are those that persecute him, he shall put his trust in God; otherwise, the enemy shall render his will to go on, making him believe that there is none to deliver. This is the confidence that we have in Christ: that no matter what fiery trial comes our way, we are not only protected, but we are partakers of His sufferings; making our sufferings that which shall bring glory onto Him. Again; this ability to be confident in this, is based upon our acceptance of His forgiveness; whereas, we know that we are forgiven, being washed in His blood, and that nothing can tear us from His mighty hand! Although, it is good to evaluate our lives, as we shall see; we do so with the understanding of who we are in Christ, which is that of being chosen by Him. We cannot ever forget that! Because; each and every trial that we face is for His glory to be revealed in us; refining us, and making us more into His image. If we focus our attention upon those that persecute us, then we are going to miss the blessing which was meant to be received by the trial; instead, holding things in our hearts against those that we feel have done us wrong. This is the thing about true forgiveness, in that there is nothing held against us; likewise, there is nothing that we hold against those that we have forgiven...