SABBATH SNAPSHOT: securi-TEA

Part of security measures at church have all of us signing in during the weekdays. The downside of that is that we live in a volatile world that requires such.
The upside is Debbie P. She "mans" the desk with her smiling face and upbeat personality. She's also the friendly voice one usually encounters when calling our church.

For me, she's also a wealth of needed info and a font of "you have to read" recommendations. Last week, she went beyond the suggestion level and loaned me the recommended book, a book of meditations on God and trouble. Taken from verses of Psalm 27, pointing to many "nuggets of wisdom that could only have come from the mouth of the Divine." (Tripp, p.17)
What a gracious act of transparency to share one's book with all it's notes and underlines.

Allow me to share some of my own notes & questions from A SHELTER in the time OF STORM by Paul David Tripp:

• The trip to where God is taking us is not an event; it's a process. (p. 58)
• God has not coated us with situational Teflon, protecting us from the disappointments and hurts of a world gone bad. (P. 69)
• Spiritual muscles---When God asks you to wait, do you think he has forgotten you or do you consider it as a time to grow in your faith? (p. 88)
• Spiritual muscles---Does waiting allow doubt, anger, discouragement, and envy to destroy your motivation to grow in faith? (p. 89)
• Someday. Is "someday" a statement of hope or just fatalistic resignation? "Someday" is what I wish would happen, but....deep down don't really think it will. (p. 90)
• Don't confuse the goodness of the Lord with the assumption that He will give you what you set your heart on. 

So many of our questions and encounters are answered from Psalm 27, as Tripp shows us the psalmist's understanding of God's Presence throughout the psalm.

Now, I just need to find a way to share this book with my Cherkasy friends who are experiencing turbulent times in "their" Ukraine, where their "adversaries are breathing out violence." (Psalm 27:12) Fear surrounds them. Schools are closed for Katya's kids. Businesses are shuttered. There is no food in the markets but there is blood in the streets. Oksana asks for prayer for her nation. Lisa's own brother, along with his friends, was prayerfully protected during a recent uprising. Masha has been a part of the occupation of Maidan (Independence) Square in Kiev since November. All of these are beautiful women I know and introduced on my 7/8/12 Ukraine Beauty blog entry. I pray Psalm 27:7 for them and the "Mercy Prayer." (Tripp, p. 60-61) and continue to encourage them to "Hope in God in a world that is broken." (Tripp, p.7) This book is full of hope.

If you love Psalm 27 as much as I do, this is definitely a book for you.