Follow him

DEVOTION

PSALMS

FOLLOW HIM

Ps 104:10-23

10 He makes springs pour water into the ravines; it flows between the mountains. 11 They give water to all the beasts of the field; the wild donkeys quench their thirst. 12 The birds of the air nest by the waters; they sing among the branches. 13 He waters the mountains from his upper chambers; the earth is satisfied by the fruit of his work. 14 He makes grass grow for the cattle, and plants for man to cultivate — bringing forth food from the earth: 15 wine that gladdens the heart of man, oil to make his face shine, and bread that sustains his heart. 16 The trees of the LORD are well watered, the cedars of Lebanon that he planted. 17 There the birds make their nests; the stork has its home in the pine trees. 18 The high mountains belong to the wild goats; the crags are a refuge for the coneys.  

19 The moon marks off the seasons, and the sun knows when to go down. 20 You bring darkness, it becomes night, and all the beasts of the forest prowl. 21 The lions roar for their prey and seek their food from God. 22 The sun rises, and they steal away; they return and lie down in their dens. 23 Then man goes out to his work, to his labor until evening.

NIV

Once again we are faced with the management of God over all the earth, over all his creation. Does he actually micro-manage all this or did he just set it all in motion and then let it all happen at the regular times or intervals? We know all this happens like clockwork. The mountains gather the snow during the winter months which melts each spring and flows down into the valleys to water all the needed areas for the flowers of the fields and for the beasts of the wild both drink and feast on prey that comes to the water. Each spring life bursts forth from the springs of water coming down from the mountains. Just watching the series, “Planet Earth” should give us the idea of how God established it all, even though the producer’s may have had another agenda in mind. God thought of everything, for all the plant life that need the water, all the wild beasts, the birds, the domesticated beasts of the field and yes, even for us. He waters the plants we cultivate for food. Each spring the snow or rain of the winter months make it possible for great grain harvests, including fine grape growing areas all over the earth for the making of wine to gladden our heart. That should settle the discussion over whether he intended us to enjoy the fruit of the vine. No reason to withhold some wine from our tongue, as long as not in excess, for God intended it to gladden our heart. He set the moon and sun in their place, along with the whole of the universe, for the seasons, and for the day and night. We know the moon also controls the tides, which bring much to the daily life of the earth. But the day and the night both have their reasons for those beasts that hunt by night and for the man who works by day, even though we have discovered a way to work by night. However, that may not be the way God intended for man to live. Yet we should understand at the time of this song, man did not have the lighting to work through the night. Sunup to sundown was the way it was, then rest to enjoy a glass of wine and some food of their labor. How does all this relate to us? It simply shows us how great our God is and that he thought of everything for the benefit of this place he created for us to live. It also shows us he is in control of it, that man has no control over the planet, over the mountains, the waters or the beasts who roam it. As much as some would like others to believe man is responsible for the earth, for the environment, God has it all under control. Can man chance the tides? Can man stop the night? Can he bring forth the day? Can he cover the earth with rain, or snow? Can he stop the lions from their prey? About the only thing man can do is not work, to refuse his God given role in society. Man can refuse to be productive for the benefit of others and himself. Man can be lazy, unwilling to work by day or night. Even this idea of working until a certain age, and storing up for sitting back, relaxing from work, is not the way God intended for man to live. But we think we know better than how God established it all. How futile is the thinking of man without the knowledge of God. How uninspired are man’s thoughts without the Spirit. How mundane is man’s life without the LORD. How useless is man’s existence without Jesus? But we live with joy, with peace, with contentment, with purpose, God’s purpose, with gladness of heart because we know the LORD and we are his people and he is our LORD and Savior. We have nothing to fear from man or God. We have no reason to be anxious, to be worried, and to be concerned about our life, for God established everything including our life. He set our path before us, he gives us the light to see it and he gives us the strength to walk it. His path will lead us home. All we have to do is follow him.