Songs of Summer; Week 4, June 3, 2018

Recently I took our grandkids to an ice cream shop.  We got our goodies and sat down outdoors at a picnic table to enjoy them.  Our grandson, Forest, finished his ice cream (stuffed with gummy worms) quickly.  Apparently he didn’t get his fill.  He happened to spot a gummy worm on the ground that someone else had dropped earlier.  He reached down, grabbed it, and was about to eat it when I said, “No!” 

 

It broke his heart.  He welled up with tears and began to cry.  He couldn’t understand it.  There was a perfectly, delicious gummy worm that he had found fair-and-square.  Now here I was, Grumpy Grampa, denying him the delight of eating it!  He didn’t know that it was dirty and covered with germs.   From his preschool perspective, this was grossly unfair. 

 

Little did he know what I had planned.  On the other side of the “no” was a giant “yes.”  I scooped him up in my arms and carried him to the window of the shop for a gift of a whole cup of fresh, clean gummy worms.

 

I think the Lord must look at us much like I looked at Forest that afternoon.  He wants the best for us.  But He sees us digging in the dirt for polluted pleasures.  He must say to Himself, “If only they could grasp what I intend for them!”

 

I also think we tend to view the Lord much like Forest must have viewed me that afternoon.  We think He is aiming to rob us of pleasure, happiness, and joy when the exact opposite is true.

 

Psalm 37 drives these lessons home in an unforgettable way.  Join me there for this morning’s message.

 

Songs of the Summer

“Gummy Worms and God”

Psalm 37:1-4

 

1. Disillusioned with the Lord

Fret not yourself because of evildoers; be not envious of wrongdoers! For they will soon fade like the grass and wither like the green herb (37:1-2).

 

1. The cause of disillusionment
2. The cure for disillusionment

2. Dependent on the Lord

Trust in the Lord, and do good; dwell in the land and befriend faithfulness(37:3).

 

1. Rely on the Lord
2. Receive from the Lord

3. Delighted in the Lord

Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart (37:4).

 

1. The command to delight in the Lord
2. The consequence of delighting in the Lord