Name....

Psalm 9:1-20 (ANIV)
[For the director of music. To {the tune of} "The Death of the Son". A psalm of David.]

I will praise you, O Lord, with all my heart;
I will tell of all your wonders.
[2] I will be glad and rejoice in you;
I will sing praise to your name, O Most High.

[3] My enemies turn back;
they stumble and perish before you.
[4] For you have upheld my right and my cause;
you have sat on your throne, judging righteously.
[5] You have rebuked the nations and destroyed the wicked;
you have blotted out their name for ever and ever.
[6] Endless ruin has overtaken the enemy,
you have uprooted their cities;
even the memory of them has perished.

[7] The Lord reigns for ever;
he has established his throne for judgment.
[8] He will judge the world in righteousness;
he will govern the peoples with justice.
[9] The Lord is a refuge for the oppressed,
a stronghold in times of trouble.
[10] Those who know your name will trust in you,
for you, Lord, have never forsaken those who seek you.

[11] Sing praises to the Lord, enthroned in Zion;
proclaim among the nations what he has done.
[12] For he who avenges blood remembers;
he does not ignore the cry of the afflicted.

[13] O Lord, see how my enemies persecute me!
Have mercy and lift me up from the gates of death,
[14] that I may declare your praises
in the gates of the Daughter of Zion
and there rejoice in your salvation.
[15] The nations have fallen into the pit they have dug;
their feet are caught in the net they have hidden.
[16] The Lord is known by his justice;
the wicked are ensnared by the work of their hands.
Higgaion. Selah

[17] The wicked return to the grave,
all the nations that forget God.
[18] But the needy will not always be forgotten,
nor the hope of the afflicted ever perish.

[19] Arise, O Lord, let not man triumph;
let the nations be judged in your presence.
[20] Strike them with terror, O Lord;
let the nations know they are but men.
Selah


Names used to be more important than they are now. Now we use them mostly as labels, so we can tell each other apart and identify us from the crowd. But names in the ancient world were powerful because they summed up who you were, identified the outstanding parts of your character. If you had a good name, it meant that over time people had come to rely on you and depend on you. So you would treasure than name, jealously guarding its reputation.

Those of us who have come to know God believe that we can trust him. We have done so because we have trusted in him over time, and he has proved to be faithful. But that’s the trick – we have got to know him ovr time. God is faithful – that is part of his character. But this is something that it takes some of us time to realise. We need to invest timein getting to know God.

And for my cell group....

Philip. 4:6-7 Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. [7] And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

I so want to be that person, the one who doesn't have a care in the world. Not because they are lazy or shirk responsibility, but because they walk so closely to God, that they sense his heartbeat for their lives, follow his lead, and know that whatever happens they are in his will - what a place to be. Lord, I so want to be that person - help me to sense your Spirit more and more in my life....