Standing on the Promises

I love the classic hymns and from time to time, I may jot down some things that come to mind when I think of these classic words I grew up with (and maybe from time to time, some more "modern" hymns or worship music:-)

Standing on the Promises of Christ, My King, through eternal ages let His praises ring;
Glory in the highest I will shout and sing, Standing on the promises of God


Standing on the promises that cannot fail, When the howling storms of doubt and fear assail; By the Living Word of God, I shall prevail, Standing on the promises of God


Standing in the promises I cannot fail, listening every moment to the Spirit's call;
Resting in my Savior as my All-in-All, Standing on the promises of God

The tune for this song is what you might call "lively" and it fits. We aren't asked here to "whisper" our faith, but to Shout & Sing & Stand - all active, action verbs. God wants us to exhort our faith. Doesn't mean we make a nuisance, or be show-offy, like the Pharisees, but we find ways to keep it active: through prayers, devotions, worship in the corporate setting, in small groups(like a bible study) or just at home. As Psalms says "let the words of my heart and the meditation of my soul, be acceptable in your sight, oh Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer."

The second verse addresses times when we doubt, the promises are still valid. I'm living proof that the answer to your most heartfelt prayer can be a clear and resounding NO, but that doesn't mean that God is saying that you're not worthy, or you don't belong as part of the "family" or that God has turned his back on you. What it means to me is that even if I get discouraged and I step away from God for a time - He's STILL there. This time, it's God who is standing beside me.

I love verse 4. I didn't skip verse 3 because we Southern Baptists learned to count as 1-2-4. This time the verbs are more sedate actions: Listening and Resting. I'm a couch potato by nature and can spend hours, when I have the time, doing all nature of 'solitary' activities: reading, listening to music on the iPod or any number or things. I married my total opposite: My wonderful husband can't sit still longer than absolutely necessary. He has this wonderful, active mind and spirit that I love, but I just can't manage to emulate. Add to that, I'm a procrastinator, and well, you get the picture! I think after almost 19 years of marriage, we may be starting to move a litllte more toward the middle. It's like a fun game of tug-of-war...which side of the line will we wind up at?! I dont know, but Will be fun to find out!

'I cannot fail' doesn't mean that I won't make mistakes, but that when I do, I want to learn something. It's the learning that keeps me from failing. That's where the listening comes in, trying to hear what the message is from our shortcomings, and the cool thing about God is that his "messages" are custom fit for each of us.

Lastly, "rest" doesn't mean to sleep, but more to stop, to take note and simply be AWARE that there is nothing we deal with in our daily life that God doesn't want to be a part of. He is
the 'end all, be all' (or all in all) as we like to say. This time, we are standig still. Its like the verb has become a noun, and the "thing" it represents are his wonderful promises, which are as many as the stars n the sky. We can turn our concerns and joys over to the Lord, knowing he'll walk beside us as we face the day.