Paulson Post

What do you do before sleep? There are various ways of going to bed. Some people will like to read in bed and finally you will find them sleeping with an open book on their chest. Some people watch TV and doze off to sleep, the remote still in their hands. Some may have their earphones plugged in and the iPod still playing. However, there a number of people who go to bed fighting thoughts that wage war in their heads. The psalmist who penned Psalm 4 talks about two such people because their thoughts while going to bed are different. While Psalm 3 is generally considered as a morning Psalm, Psalm 4 is considered as an evening Psalm. That means, a Psalm where the psalmist gathers his thought before retiring to bed. The psalmist has been facing immense opposition from his enemies. His main worry is the plot of his enemies to spoil his reputation. He seems to be a man of some standing in the society, may be a king or a person of reputation. However, the plot is to spoil his reputation in ...

Isaiah 50:10-11 gives two options for those want guidance. One is to depend on the leading of the Lord even though it is darkness around. The other is to light up one's own flares and find the way through. "Who among you fears the LORD and obeys the word of his servant? Let him who walks in the dark, who has no light, trust in the name of the LORD and rely on his God. But now, all you who light fires and provide yourselves with flaming torches, go, walk in the light of your fires and of the torches you have set ablaze. This is what you shall receive from my hand: You will lie down in torment." Flares don't last long and they light up only the surroundings. Since it lights up the darkness for a while and then dies out, those who venture into darkness with them may find themselves deep in darkness when the fuel of the flare is gone. Such people may end up groping in darkness. The other option for those who are in darkness is to trust in the Lord. Trying to walk in our o...

As a little boy I have seen mother hens protecting their little chicks. The chicks are small balls of flesh and feather that so tender that looks like fur on them. They will be around the mother exploring their world and gobbling worms mother has found for them and chirping happily. It is a noisy scene. As soon as the mother hen detects the presence of a predator bird it makes a particular sound. It is a warning and the little chicks run to find shelter under the wings of their mother. The mother sits firmly on the ground protecting her little chicks who has sought shelter inside her wings. There is absolute silence; not a single chick dares to make a sound. Singing under the wings is dangerous! Moreover, it takes a lot of courage to do that when the predator bird is still hovering over. One of the powerful imageries of the Bible is that of God as the mother hen who protects his children under his wings in times of trouble. Boaz uses this imagery when he talks about Ruth joining th...

Faith loves to perch on scarecrows. Scarecrows are placed in farms to scare the birds away. Birds avoid the farms where they find a scarecrow, even though the scarecrows only have a very remote resemblance to human beings and are unable to do any harm. The wise birds are wise enough to know that they are just hay for the body, a broken pot for the head and stay where the farmer placed them. They also know that wherever there is a scarecrow there is something to be eaten; nobody places a scarecrow where nothing is grown. Instead of being scared away they love to land on the scarecrows and enjoy the feast. That's the difference between faith and fear. The psalmist declares that when she is afraid she will trust in God (Psalm 56:3-4). "When I am afraid, I will put my trust in you. In God, I praise his word. In God, I put my trust." However, this faith makes her to challenge the frightening situations, "What can mortals do to me?" (Psalm 56:11 and also Psalm 56:...

In contrast to his own vulnerability and the nothingness of his enemies, stands the tall, strong, stable rock: God himself. That vision of God, the source of our strength should be what keeps us moving forward. Life can be sometimes very cruel. The psalmists who penned the 150 psalms of the Old Testament expressed their pain and anguish in metaphorical language. How does one express the vulnerability and instability of ones life in times of opposition? The psalmist who composed Psalm 62 compares it with a leaning wall and a tottering fence. His life is like a wall that is about to collapse or a fence that is about to fall (Ps 62:3). He is unable to stand the winds and currents that are against his life. To add to his misery he has enemies who are trying to take advantage of his vulnerability. These are people who are trying to usurp him. Probably, the psalmist could be a ruler who is loosing popular support among his own people. His position is too vulnerable. The people close to him ...

God expects us to be fully submitted to his will. Sometimes, we will have to go through difficult times. We cannot get out of this before God's time and by our own means. This is what we learn from the life of Zedekiah, the last king of Judah. Babylonians who defeated Judah in 597 BC had made him king. In fact he was their puppet king. Usually the reign of kings in the Bible mentions their achievements and failures, in the case of Zedekiah, there is no mention of anything that he did. The account in 2 Kings (Chapter 24-25) only mentions only one thing he did. "Now Zedekiah rebelled against the king of Babylon" (2 Kings 24:20). Then there is a long description of how the Babylonians retaliated to this rebellion by their vassal kingdom, how they besieged the city of Jerusalem, Zedekiah's flight, capture, punishment, imprisonment, the destruction of the temple of Jerusalem and the city, second exile. This king could not anything for his people. Only complete the destru...