Psalm 20
Sunday, 12th January 2020
Rev Daniel Poon
“May the Lord answer you in the day of trouble; May the name of the God of Jacob defend you; May He send you help from the sanctuary, And strengthen you out of Zion; May He remember all your offerings, And accept your burnt sacrifice.”
When Psalm 20 was written, Israel was facing a very difficult time. They were surrounded by the enemies. Then the king called all the priests and commanders to gather at the Holy Temple, and proclaim God’s greatness.
All the commanders and priests didn’t leave the king and their people. Even though they were in the time of trouble, they were willing to follow their leader and trust in God. As the people gathered, they encouraged their leader. They proclaimed God’s greatness and faithfulness together, and reminded their king that he was not alone.
Rev Daniel taught us that during the time of trouble, we should be like a child of God, instead of complaining or asking God to hear what we have to say, be still and know that God still rule and reign.
“May He grant you according to your heart’s desire, And fulfill all your purpose. We will rejoice in your salvation, And in the name of our God we will set up our banners! May the Lord fulfill all your petitions. Now I know that the Lord saves His anointed; He will answer him from His holy heaven With the saving strength of His right hand. “
God is always with us, His blessings are already there for us. From the situations and people around us, we can see God is still with us. Just like the king mentioned here, even when facing the enemies, he saw the people around him and believed that God was with them. God has appointed His leader, therefore can we submit to our leader and know that only God can choose our leaders.
“Some trust in chariots, and some in horses; But we will remember the name of the Lord our God. They have bowed down and fallen; But we have risen and stand upright. Save, Lord! May the King answer us when we call.”
What do we rely on? Look around at the things and people we follow, do they help us to trust God more?
Today God has put us in this church, He doesn’t want us to be like a pot plant, but to be like a tree, planted by the stream of water. This is our home, in good times and bad times, our home never changes. We should not look for places that always make us happy and comfortable, but we should go to where God wants us to go to offer our sacrifices.
Rev Daniel encouraged us to commit in our family and to grow together, shine like Jesus shine!