“As for me, I will behold your face in righteousness; when I awake, I shall be satisfied with Your presence.” (Psalm 17:15 Berean Study Bible)

Threats in life are part of our daily existence in this world. Sometimes, they come too close and we seek comfort.

I read my Bible the other morning with one of those threats in mind. I chose the Psalms, as they just speak the Lord’s calm in times of storm. Not having in mind to seek out any particular psalm, I just read the next one in my reading plan.

This particular song speaks of David’s enemies surrounding him on every side. It is a prayer for deliverance from the hounding evils of this world and the evil one. But reaching the end at verse 15, this psalm turned in an unexpected way and my heart just soared.

Though this psalm is of David and is prophetic of our Lord Jesus Christ’s own experiences, it is also a declaration BY Jesus about the truth that he gave His life to secure … for all of us. Because of His own sacrifice of suffering for me (and you), I, too, will one day awake in His presence.  My soul, too, shall find its REST in Him forever.

Whether I live or whether I die, I have this assurance: I will be SATISFIED when I awake in the presence of my LORD.  

Wow!  That made me close my eyes in one huge smile and hug my Bible to close to me.  Thank you Lord!  THAT was the verse I needed to hear and I didn’t even realize I had needed to hear it.

Christians sometimes say, “God ‘gave’ me this verse.” I don’t know what others may mean by that, but the reading of this verse certainly felt like a uniquely and perfectly timed ‘gift’ to me that morning.  I felt “heard”. The thing is, I didn’t even know my heart was speaking!  But God knows my heart, even deeper than he knows my mind.  He knows your heart and mind, too.  He knows our situation and our circumstances.  He is the God Who Sees.**

But more than my earthly state, God knows my need of Himself. This is His promise to me, and this is what sustains me: “I am His and He is mine!” (Song of Songs 6:3).

Paul seals it in this way:

³¹ What shall we say about such wonderful things as these? If God is for us, who can ever be against us? ³² Since he did not spare even his own Son but gave him up for us all, won’t he also give us everything else? ³³ Who dares accuse us whom God has chosen for his own? No one—for God himself has given us right standing with himself. ³⁴ Who then will condemn us? No one—for Christ Jesus died for us and was raised to life for us, and he is sitting in the place of honor at God’s right hand, pleading for us.

³⁵ Can anything ever separate us from Christ’s love? Does it mean he no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted, or hungry, or destitute, or in danger, or threatened with death? ³⁶ (As the Scriptures say, “For your sake we are killed every day; we are being slaughtered like sheep.”) ³⁷ No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us.

³⁸ And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons,^[b] neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. ³⁹ No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.   (Romans 8:31-39 New Living Translation, BibleGateway.com)

Today, I live and I wake up in the presence of Jesus every day, if I am aware of it, by turning to His Word and speaking with Him in prayer.  But one day, I will see Him face to face and there will be no written word needed, for we shall know Him as we are now known by Him (1 Cor 13:12; 1 John 3:2).  

In life, in death— “in Christ” is a win-win.

WHAT ABOUT YOU?

If you feel outside of the wonder of these promises, and you need the Lord to hear your own heart and rescue you from the wreckage of this world with its doubts and threats, head over to PeaceWithGod.net and chat with a live person who can listen to you and help you with your questions about God and Jesus.  

© July 2019 by http://www.readpsalm119.com.  Updated Feb 16, 2020. 

WORSHIP WITH ME

“The God Who Sees”, music by Nicole C. Mullen, film directed by Kathie Lee Gifford (12:38 min).  Powerful!  A walk through the Bible from Hagar to Mary Magdalene as God fulfills His Promise through Christ. ^

“I am His and He Is Mine” by Michael Lining at Michael Lining Music (YouTube; 3:55 min), Aug 14, 2015.  Recorded a capella by Michael Lining in four parts. Lyrics by George W. Robinson, 1876 (on screen in video).  

  

FOR FURTHER STUDY
** El Roi is the Hebrew name of God that means "the God Who Sees Me".  This was the name Hagar gave to God in Genesis 16:13-14.  A good devotional is "El Roi is the God Who Sees Me" by Ann Spangler, Feb 24, 2017, at FaithGateway.com.  

^ The film by Mullen/Gifford tells the stories of four people who needed God and found their satisfaction in Him:  
- Hagar (Genesis 16), 
- Ruth (Book of Ruth), 
- David and his darkest hour (2 Samuel 21:15 through 22:2; Psalm 13), and 
- Mary Magdalene (In order:  Luke 8:1-3 healed; Mark 15:40-41 at the cross, v47; Luke 23:55 and Matthew 27:61 at the Tomb; John 20:11-18 with the Angel; Luke 24:10 and Mark 16:7, one of the first to tell of the Risen Christ)

NOTE:  PeaceWithGod.net is a free ministry of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association (BGEA).