Summer Road Trip ‘08
Day Eight: Psalm 8:3-4
Star Gazing

“When I look at the night sky and see the work of your fingers-
the moon and the stars you have set in place-
what are mortals that you should think of us,
mere humans that you should care for us?”

Today’s journey feels more like tonight. We’re “traveling with the top down” and the sky is the limit. Sometimes we feel overwhelmed with the struggles of this life, but tonight we are overwhelmed with the vastness of God’s creation. It is so BIG and we are so small.

We are so small and yet God cares about us more than all the rest of His creation combined. Think about it, Jesus died for you and me! We are the only part of His creation that turned it’s back on Him, determined to fight His will (sin), and yet God still cares for us!

God’s greatness can only be measured by the vastness of His creation and the depth of His love and care for you and me!

“O LORD, our LORD, the majesty of your name fills the earth!” (vs.9) And our hearts we might add!

Enjoying the Journey!
Pastor Paul

Summer Road Trip ‘08
Day Seven: Psalm 7:10-11

“God is my shield, saving those whose hearts are true and right. God is a judge who is perfectly fair.”

While sitting behind the wheel watching the scenery pass by it’s easy for me to begin to make judgment calls on what’s happening outside my own life. I like to feel in charge and part of being in charge is getting to pass judgment on God’s judgments. I don’t always approve of how God is handling either the situations or the people around me. Why is it that the ones I believe are “good” are facing the toughest circumstances? Why do the mean people tend to get away with their meanness?

I must constantly remind myself that “God is a judge who is perfectly fair.” (vs.11) Truth is, I’m not sitting is the best position to be a fair observer. I don’t see enough or know enough to make a good enough judgment.

When life seems unfair I must remember that God is always fair.

When I’m spending too much time telling God that He’s not quick enough to deal with others' sins, I must remind myself that God sees, God know, and God is dealing with them whether I “see it or not”.

“I’m thankful the Lord is just” (vs.17)

Enjoying the Journey!
Pastor Paul

Summer Road Trip ‘08
Day Six: Psalm 6:3-4
Road Sickness

“Have compassion on me, LORD, for I am weak. Heal me, LORD, for my body is in agony. I am sick at heart…”

Sometimes the journey hurts. It’s not always sunny and smooth. We are weak. We fail. We tire easily and uphill stretches wear us down.

We could spend hours describing what got us to the place where we feel ROAD SICK, but what difference would it make? The answer is to seek help from the One who can heal.

We can trust in God’s compassion. We can be assured of His salvation. Yes, there will be tears and swollen eyes from time to time, but we must never forget…

“The LORD has heard my plea; the LORD will answer my prayer.” (Psalm 6:9)

Enjoying the Journey!
Pastor Paul

Summer Road Trip ‘08
Day Five: Psalm 5:8
Listening to Wrong Directions

“Lead me in the right path, O LORD, or my enemies will conquer me. Tell me clearly what to do, and show me which way to turn.”

Surely it’s happened to you; it has to me! I’ve asked for directions only to be misled and end up where I never intended. Sometimes people misdirect my accident, it’s the ones who do it on purpose that distress me.

We’re traveling through distrustful territory in Psalms 5. All around us are proud, wicked, lying, foul mouthed people “who cannot speak one truthful word” (vs.9). Sure they will flatter us, but their goal is to trap us in their ungodly lifestyles. Don’t go there!

God promises to bless those who follow His godly directions. He leads, we follow. Our LORD gives clear direction, we must be willing to listen and obey.

One side point: we tend to seek the wrong kind of direction. We want to know the destination instead of the route. When we trust God in the moment we will find safety in the future.

Enjoying the Journey!
Pastor Paul

Summer Road Trip ‘08
Day Four: Psalm 4:4 “Road Rage”

“Don’t sin my letting anger gain control over you. Think about it overnight and remain silent.”

Today’s detour sounds more like last years Road Trip through the Proverbs. It’s a warning against Road Rage.

While traveling life’s journey it’s easy to get angry behind the wheel. Other people cut us off; still others want to change our destination. It seems everyone has an agenda that conflicts with our own. Anger is usually a sign that things aren’t going the way we wish.

Instead of honking our voices at those around us it’s a good idea to slow down and think about what’s really bugging us. Is it worth it to explode in rage? Will acting out our frustration make things any better.

It might be time to pull over to the side of the road and take advantage of a rest area. It always amazes me how silly my anger seems after a good night’s sleep!

“Don’t sin my letting anger gain control over you. Think about it overnight and remain silent.” Psalm 4:4

Enjoying the Journey!
Pastor Paul

Summer Road Trip ‘08
Day Three: Psalm 3:5

“I lay down and slept. I woke in safety for the LORD was watching over me.”

Road Trip or not, sometimes I have a really hard time getting to sleep at night. Contrary to my wife’s advice (stop the Diet Dr Pepper! – which I have actually), it’s usually not the caffeine that’s the culprit, it’s my TOUGHTS. My memory loves to carry on conversations with my consciousness and most of those talks take place while the rest of my body is trying to get horizontal.

Memories usually lead to worries and worries lead to fear. I’m not proud of such thoughts, just preoccupied by them. I seem to have “so many enemies; so many against me…” (Psalm 3:1). My enemies have names like Un-forgiveness, Self-doubt, Overly-concerned, the list is pretty lengthy. It’s easy to believe what they are saying, “God will never rescue him!” (Psalm 3:2).

It’s at those times that Psalm 3:3 is more effective than Sominex or Ambien at bringing a restful sleep. “But you, O LORD, are a shield around me.”

Sometimes the journey gets stressful. There is a calm that comes when I remind myself that God is my Protector; I can call out to Him. So…

“I lay down and slept. I woke up in safety, for the LORD was watching over me.”

All those worries and stresses that were keeping me awake; reality is most of them never came true and for the ones that did, God was still there protecting and watching over me!

Enjoying the Journey!
Pastor Paul

Summer Road Trip ‘08
Day Two: Psalm 2:12

“But what joy for all who take refuge in him!”

It appears we’ve hit a bumpy section of road almost at the start of our Summer Road Trip. The Second Psalm is scary; can an “angry God” be anything but scary? I don’t like to think of a Loving God having the capacity of angry, yet what is love if there is no potential for anger? (Don’t get me wrong, I don’t want to see the anger.)

Psalm 2 is all about the futility of fighting God. Nations (their leaders and their people) assume they can rule themselves without God’s guidance. They assume they don’t need God, and worse, that God doesn’t matter. They “they waste their time with futile plans” (Psalm 2:1) plotting against God and His loving design for them.

God’s anger is just; ignoring God leads to wars and strife. God's anger is not anger that comes from meanness, but anger that grows from compassion. Have you ever gotten angry at someone when they were hurting themselves and would not stop? Ever gotten angry at someone when they were hurting others?

The King referred to in the passage is Jesus Christ Himself. He is the Ruler who sits on the throne over all creation. Some day the evil rulers of this world will be brought down and everyone will bow before the Jesus Christ and declare that He is LORD.

In the mean time, it is the final verse of the passage that we should hold on to:

“But what joy for all who take refuge in him!” (Psalm 2:12)

When the bullies of this world start their ugliness, I want to be standing safely behind my LORD!

Enjoying the Journey!
Pastor Paul

Summer Road Trip ‘08
Day One: Psalm 1:6a

"For the Lord knows the way of the righteous..."

What a way to start the largest and most unique section of the Bible.

The First Psalm is both a warning and a promise to use care when you consider your traveling companions. I count at least six descriptions of the wrong kinds of people; people who will pull us off the road God wants us to travel with Him.

There is also a promise that the trip will go well and be fruitful when we keep our focus on God.

It’s the first part of verse six that jumped out at me this morning: “For the LORD knows the way of the righteous”.

God already knows the road I am traveling. He knows every bump, sharp turn, pot hole that I will face this week. I don’t have to know the future, I only have to trust God’s directions. He knows; I just have to trust.

I’m glad my Navigator is God. I’m thankful that He’s given me the road map of His WORD.

Enjoying the journey!
Pastor Paul