What's your Tone? - Psalm 28

Dillon smells. Dillon smells really bad. This is mostly because he thinks that Martin guitars sound better than Taylor guitars ... which is false (opinion based). Needless to say, every guitar has a distinct tone - Martins are known for being dark, full, and bluesy whereas the Taylor guitar (cheaper) are known for their well-rounded range, and rich sound. It's amazing to think of all the things that play a role in the making of a quality guitar - professional guitar makers have even studied the effects of different woods on the overall sound of the instrument. Even more so, those three little knobs in the picture below also play a huge role in how an amplified acoustic guitar will sound. We're not even going to talk about all the important components to a guitar, but there are so many things to think about when it comes to buying [or making] a guitar - fret board, woods, action, shape, glues, bolts, etc. There's just an unbelievable amount of things that goes into the making of a rich sounding guitar. Luckily, as Christians, the choice of our spiritual "tone" is much easier - as there is only one choice that truly outweighs the competition. Do you have an attitude that resonates beneficially with people that surround you? Does your live "sound" like Christ's? Are you using the right materials (reference: the Bible), or are you filling your life with worthless junk? The question today is - what's your tone? Psalm 28



Verses 1-5 Sometimes when I read the Psalms, I get really confused - it almost seems at times that David, the king of kings (other than Jesus), is crying like a baby. Why would the manliest of men be in such a questionable state? When I cry, I hide my face, but David shows himself openly - what in the world is going on? The answer is pretty simple, and we'll form it into a question - what's David's tone? Even though kings David was probably one of the most powerful men to roam the Earth, he knew one who was more powerful - the Living God. The tone here is one of desperation - "God, I know I can't do this, but you can!" David is a man who recognized that he could not answer his own prayers, that he could bring contentment to his own heart (or others for that matter), or that he could protect himself from evil. What a mighty man of God - found where? On the floor crying for God. Are you getting the picture here? Jesus was found once washing the disciples feet - talk about "practice what you preach." Jesus also said that we are to humble ourselves if we are to be exalted (Luke 11:14). The fact of the matter is that you cannot bring about spiritual success in your life unassisted. If you try, you will fail. Paul constantly talked about the death he experienced - but he was still alive at the time (obviously) ... what? He said that it was not he who lived, but Christ in Him (Gal 2:19-20) - because Paul recognized the truth of Christ's preaching ... he understood king David's tone - that God is the answerer to our prayers, the strength in our weakness, the light in our darkest our, and the Father to all who come to him. My dad changed my oil on Saturday - because I'm a loser, and he does it 13422034502754 times faster than I could ever do it. I wish that in my life I gave more control to God - that I would trust Him to work in my life 6423984392834 times better that I could ever. This is just the first tone of two - one of humility, desperation, and need. Do you have it?

Verses 6-9 The second tone is one of praise, but it will never come before the first one. Even to obtain salvation, the Bible talks of a repentant heart - joy comes at the price of self-sacrifice. Even so, the man who a few verses was crying, has come to the realization that God is all of those things in his life that he had asked for. It takes a big heart to humble yourself, but God rewards those who do with a heart filled with joy, peace, patience [insert the rest of the fruit of the spirit]. I just love how this Psalm ends - start with a tone of desperation and end with joy in God's fulfilled promises. So we go back to the beginning - what's your tone? Are you desperate for God? Are you hungry for the word? Are you living a life in pursuit of an intimate relationship with an interested creator? If so ... Are you living in joy? Are you abounding in happiness? Have you found shelter in the God that calls himself our rock and shelter? I leave you with this ...

Let Him "be your shepherd and carry you forever"

There is an illustration that talks about history when shepherds would brake their sheep's legs when the sheep disobeyed or did something stupid. The shepherd would then carry the sheep until the wound healed. The picture shows us, the sinner, being brought close to God in order to learn to stay near to Him. I don't know about you, but I never want God to put me back down (even if i'm "not a sinner anymore") ... I want Him to carry me forever.


See you later!
-Chris