Father, please help me……………..

Psalm 139:1-10
New Living Translation (NLT)

 1 O Lord, you have examined my heart
      and know everything about me.
 2 You know when I sit down or stand up.
      You know my thoughts even when I’m far away.
 3 You see me when I travel
      and when I rest at home.
      You know everything I do.
 4 You know what I am going to say
      even before I say it, Lord.
 5 You go before me and follow me.
      You place your hand of blessing on my head.
 6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me,
      too great for me to understand!
 7 I can never escape from your Spirit!
      I can never get away from your presence!
 8 If I go up to heaven, you are there;
      if I go down to the grave, you are there.
 9 If I ride the wings of the morning,
      if I dwell by the farthest oceans,
 10 even there your hand will guide me,
      and your strength will support me.

Paul said, and I’m paraphrasing his words, “I know who I should be, but I act like someone else, I know what my conduct should be, but I don’t act that way, I know what is right, but still I do what is wrong, Oh Father, please help me!”

I feel like Paul today, I’m having a mighty spiritual struggle, please let me explain.

When I was driving to Birmingham Tuesday evening I was listening on XM radio, to the Glenn Beck program on Fox News. I like Glenn Beck, I think he loves our country and our God. I know he is a little far right for some, but not for me. He told a very, very frightening story which I will recount for you.

He said there is a park in New York close to where he lives and on Saturday nights in the summer they show a movie, usually an old classic film. His daughter had always wanted to take a blanket and some popcorn out to the park and watch a movie as a family. This past weekend for the first time they did, as a family. The daughter went to the park early to secure a good spot and the family joined her about time for the movie to start. When Glenn arrived, he was immediately recognized by some of the crowd in the park. His presence caused a stir in the crowd. People said unkind things loud enough to be heard. Finally one woman got up and walked over to the Beck’s and said in a loud, ugly tone, “We’re New Yorkers and we hate Republicans!” Glenn’s wife asked Glenn, quietly, “Do you want to leave?” He whispered to her, “not on your life.” The heckling continued and finally some men, who were drinking too much, spilled their beer on the Beck’s blanket and his wife blouse, laughing about it the whole time, obviously enjoying the further taunting. Only when the film was over did Glenn and his family retreat tot heir home. They did not react to the behavior of some of the crowd.

This is where I need to fall on my knees and ask for God’s help and forgiveness. This story made me extremely angry. If I had been there I would have stood up, and told people around the Becks to act like adults, to shut up, and watch the movie, and leave them alone. I’m pretty certain a fight would have broken out, and a lot of people would have gotten hurt. I wouldn’t have accomplished anything in trying to defend them, and would have only made things worse, but you can bet your life, that I would have waded into the fray anyway. I would have been even more livid than when I heard the story.

This is my dilemma, I love my country, and I want to live at peace with everyone. I wish everyone held my values and my faith, but if someone chooses not to believe as I do, I believe in their right to do as they wish, without interference from me. If you’re an atheist, that is between you and the God you don’t believe exists, that’s not my fight, but His. There are people that I have extreme disagreement with politically, but if they showed up at a Fourth of July picnic where I and my family were enjoying ourselves, I would not treat them unkind, just because I have great issue with their politics, I could still be civil and cordial, after all I’m a southerner, and a Christian.

As Psalm 139 says above, “I can not escape your spirit, oh Lord.” My problem is sometimes my anger leads me to try to escape His presence. I can’t dare do what I desire to do, and still walk next to Him. I want to live in peace, but the forces that oppose my faith and my beliefs are yelling with ever louder voices. Our country is heading for a time that the opposing forces are going to take more drastic action, than they are now, in defiance against each other. I’m fearful of that day, and even more fearful of my reaction. I know God is not a God of fear, but I am humbly on my knees before Him, asking Him to save me from myself, to teach me how to turn the other cheek.

I desire to be at peace, even with those that I have completely opposing views with. My anxiety is it appears that more and more, the world is no longer satisfied to simply have an apposing view,
they now seem to be ready to force it on those that disagree. I can only survive these, and coming times with God’s help and strength, I’m too weak, and to reactive, to do it alone.

That may be exactly where God wants me to be, recognizing I’m too weak to do it without Him.

I sincerely pray you have a wonderful Independence Day weekend with your family and friends, unopposed in your patriotism, and your faith.

the pilgrim

Footnote: The other shocking news story of Tuesday was that a VA Cemetery federal official has banned the use of the terms, God and Jesus from funerals performed there.

“In one example cited in documents filed this week in federal court, cemetery director Arleen Ocasio reportedly told volunteers with the National Memorial Ladies that they had to stop telling families “God bless you” at funerals and that they had to remove the words “God bless” from condolence cards.”
*excerpt from article on the Houston Chronicles website below.

Read more: http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/metropolitan/7635190.html#ixzz1Qr7apzg6
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/metropolitan/7635190.html