Pastor's Column 8/23/2026

PASTOR’S COLUMN

^13b   “The Lord always keeps His promises; He is gracious in all He does. 14  The Lord helps the fallen and lifts  those bent beneath their loads. 15  The eyes of all look to you in hope;  you give them their food as they need it. ¹⁶  When you open your hand, you satisfy the hunger and thirst of every living thing. 17  The Lord is righteous in everything He does, He is filled with kindness. ¹⁸  The Lord is close to all who call on Him, yes, to all who call on Him in truth. ¹⁹  He grants the desires of those who fear Him, ^20a He hears their cries for help and rescues them…”    Psalm 145:13b-20a, NLT                                                                                                                            

“Look At God!”

The distractions of this world that compete with our attention to God can be caustic. Like Simon Peter who in walking on water, looked away from Jesus  when he became distracted by the wind – we could sink below the surface of our own faith.  Jesus said to Peter in effect, he nearly drowned because his faith waned due to gale forces of the wind. This would not have happened if Peter had kept his gaze on Jesus. To give full attention to the Lord  comes only through first knowing who He is. Embedded  in the consciousness and instincts of the human mind is a limitation on loyalty and devotion. We were not created to be “loyal” to everyone; but our best and most redeeming confidence should be in the God who created us. This is why David inserted in the great prayer he gave upon realizing his son, Solomon, would lead in the construction of the great Temple in Jerusalem, these words: “For we are strangers before thee and sojourners, as were all our fathers: our days on the earth are as a shadow, and there is no abiding.” (1 Chronicles 29:15, KJV). This was a recognition of David’s knowledge of God and trust in Him for present and successive generations. In Psalm 145, we have a similar iteration. When we come to know God we will see His mighty works. We will not become distracted by contrary winds. We will always have the assurance that  whatever our needs are, the Lord is on the way. When we truly trust God, we will know Him and  what He does!