Psalm 62 I Will Not Be Moved

Daily Bible Study for Thursday September 22, 2016

By: Hanny Lynn Stearns

Fish N Loaves Ministries, Inc.

“Multiplying God’s Word Around The Globe”

Chapter Reading for Today: Please read in your Bible before proceeding. Note that most translations are considered paraphrases. The Young’s Literal Translation provides a more accurate translation since he is the one who authored a concordance. Others are helpful for seeing a different perspective, but we cannot always depend on their wording. I hope this is helpful to you. If you are studying in another version, that is fine. I am studying from the KJV, but for the purpose of this study, I will keep it with the New King James Version.

One final note: I will put the scripture in italics to differentiate from my own writing. I am adding red to the letters when it is Jesus talking – just like the Bible. Thank you.

Bible Gateway Verse of the Day

Romans 15:7

Therefore receive one another, just as Christ also received us, to the glory of God. 

Psalm 100:4

Enter into His gates with thanksgiving,

and into His courts with praise.

Be thankful to Him, and bless His name.

Song:  I Will Not Be Moved      By: Keith Moore

Psalm 62

I Will Not Be Moved

This Psalm, like all of them is so encouraging – praise the Lord! By the time we get through 150 Psalms, taking two days for Psalm 119, we should be well built up in our faith in God – Who He is and what He can do for us and through us – hallelujah! I believe that we will be greatly encouraged by the lesson today. Let’s pray…

Heavenly Father:

Thank You for Your word that brings light, hope and encouragement to Your children. Father, we ask You to speak to our hearts today. Open our spiritual eyes, ears and spirits to receive all You have for us. Lord, I ask You for the anointing to preach Your word with boldness as I ought. Give me the utterance to say exactly what You want said. Bring more and more people from all over the globe to receive Your precious holy anointed word. Thank You for Taiwan, the Ukraine, France, Germany, Morocco, Thailand, Panama, China, the Netherlands, Russia, Ireland, and of course the hundreds from the United States! Glory to Your name! Keep them coming Lord. Father, cause this message to go out across the globe unhindered and unchecked by any outside force or my flesh. Thank You for always watching over Your word to perform it in our lives when we do what You tell us to do through it. We purpose in our hearts to be doers of Your word and not forgetful hearers. Thank You in advance for the answers to these prayers. We believe we receive them and give You all the glory, honor and praise in Jesus precious and powerful name. Amen.

Like Paul, David was used mightily by the Lord to pen His desired words in what we know as the Bible. These men of God knew who they could trust in – the One True God! Praise His name forever. Today’s chapter depicts one of trusting and depending on God, waiting patiently on Him, and expecting to receive from Him. Let’s first look at another verse that talks about waiting on the Lord…

Psalm 27:14

Wait on the Lord; be of good courage, and He shall strengthen your heart; wait, I say, on the Lord!

In today’s chapter we see the encouragement to wait on the Lord. How many know that answers and solutions do not always come in five minutes? Laugh way out loud on that one saints! So many think all they have to do is ask, and POW! The answer comes. This is not always so. Sometimes the Lord will give us the answer we need in just a few moments – depending on the situation. But we really must let patience have her perfect work by waiting for the Lord to respond to us in His good pleasure. Father knows best you know. Another key point that David was used to make is that we should have an expectation - knowing that we will hear from the Lord. Look at this… 

Psalm 5:3

My voice You shall hear in the morning, O Lord; in the morning I will direct it to You, and I will look up.

This verse is showing us that God is hearing the request. Next, the Psalmist looks up – waiting on his answer. Shouldn’t that be all of us – amen?! Our Psalm today, once again, encourages us to cry out to the Lord. He wants us to. Then we wait expectantly for the answers to come. Quietly, softly, without anxiety in our hearts, we wait. Just this week I had to seek the Lord for answers about our sweet puppy Jesse. He had formed sores on his little body and was itching. We had no idea what caused this. So I asked the Lord. I did my part and prayed over him – laying hands on the sick knowing he would be healed. 

Then I just had to stay calm and wait. Sure enough, a short while later in the afternoon I heard Holy Spirit speak to my heart and tell me to get him back on the food he had been eating before we went on a trip last week. I responded to the word of the Lord and by this morning he was already doing better – praise the Lord!

Another key point we see in this chapter today is that man’s help is useless. We must always remember that to run to people for our solutions and the wisdom we need to handle every circumstance in our lives is useless. David wrote about it. Regardless of a man’s status in life – high or low, he is of no help to us when we need the wisdom of God for how to handle a situation. Look at this…

Psalm 60:11

Give us help from trouble, for the help of man is useless.

Psalm 40:4

Blessed is that man who makes the Lord his trust, and does not respect the proud, nor such as turn aside to lies.

It is nothing short of miraculous how the Lord ties the entire Bible together! We can go all over the place in His word and see it come together in remarkable ways – glory to God! Verse two today says the same thing as verse 6. David was saying that he knew God as his Rock, salvation, and defense. He was firm in that and was not going to let anything (externally) move him. How many of us can say this? When the waves are stirring and the wind is howling, how many will stand firm putting their hope and trust in the Lord? This is what we should all grow up to do.

Yesterday I had a great opportunity to practice this when I saw our puppy with some unfavorable symptoms. I made the decision to trust the Lord and I was not going to live by what I was seeing. I decided right then and there to live by faith in my God. I praised Him and thanked Him in advance for the help and I called my puppy healed even though the symptoms were still there. I maintained my peace even though it could be upsetting to our flesh to see someone we love suffering. That just ushers in fear which is unbelief and I would have no part of it. Glory to God!

Let’s look at what Paul said when he was facing many trials in the ministry the Lord Jesus had given him to work…

Acts 20:17-24

¹⁷ From Miletus he sent to Ephesus and called for the elders of the church. ¹⁸ And when they had come to him, he said to them: “You know, from the first day that I came to Asia, in what manner I always lived among you, ¹⁹ serving the Lord with all humility, with many tears and trials which happened to me by the plotting of the Jews; ²⁰ how I kept back nothing that was helpful, but proclaimed it to you, and taught you publicly and from house to house, ²¹ testifying to Jews, and also to Greeks, repentance toward God and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ. ²² And see, now I go bound in the spirit to Jerusalem, not knowing the things that will happen to me there, ²³ except that the Holy Spirit testifies in every city, saying that chains and tribulations await me.²⁴ But none of these things move me; nor do I count my life dear to myself, so that I may finish my race with joy, and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God.

Friends, this is a shining example of how we must learn to run our race to do the work the Lord has called us to do. We have to put aside every weight that tries to hold us down. We have to resist fear. Whatever we hear the Lord tell us to do – no matter how big it may seem to us, we need to forge ahead in faith. How can we do this? By faith! We know that when the Lord tells us to do something He fully expects to pay the bill. What do I mean by that? Well, He will cover the financial costs to do what He has called us to, that is certain. But more than that, He will give us the strength we need to do it. He will provide the wisdom, the resources and the helpers that are needed. He will never tell us to do something and leave us hanging on our own to handle it!

Maybe too many of us have tried to think the matter through in our own minds and figure out how we were going to pull it off. Or we got out the calculator and tried to count up how much it would be do a job so big. Friends, leave the calculator in the drawer. When He is giving us an assignment, just trust Him one step at a time and He will continue to open up doors as we go in faith.

Let me give you a perfect example of what I mean. Every day when I come to the Lord to prepare for this Bible study, I am void of any knowledge of what He is going to want to say to us for the day. Most of the time I read the verses and see other scriptures that He is showing me when I open up other Bibles, and I am completely clueless as to where He wants to take me. It is like standing by the Jordan river every single day. I have to wade in slowly and listen carefully. Then, step by step, He guides me and before I know it the anointing is there and it all begins to come together.

And it comes together beautifully; the Lord is the Master artist. He paints a brand new picture for us every day. But if I sat here and tried to figure it out in my head, I would get nowhere. I am completely dependent on Holy Spirit to reveal the Lord’s word to me and to all of us as we do this together. I am learning right along with all of you. It is such a joyful journey too. Praise His name forever!

Our brother in the Lord, Paul, was used by the Lord so mightily because he was willing to trust in God no matter what was happening around him. How many know that radical obedience brings “over the top” blessings! Hallelujah! He had the accusations, the “back-stabbers” and the insults, much like Jesus Himself experienced. But he was calling out to people for the salvation of their souls, much like John the Baptist…

John 1:23

 He said: “I am ‘The voice of one crying in the wilderness: “Make straight the way of the Lord,”’ as the prophet Isaiah said.”

Paul was like John. He was focused on the Lord and His work. By being so focused, the Lord was able to bring about great things for people. He created us. We left Him in rebellion. He made a way back from the wilderness through Jesus Christ our Lord – hallelujah! And then He gave the sons of men work to do so others could be brought back to the Lord through them. Paul lived to encourage the churches he had worked hard to establish by the Lord. Look at this…

1 Thessalonians 1:11-12

¹¹ Therefore we also pray always for you that our God would count you worthy of this calling, and fulfill all the good pleasure of His goodness and the work of faith with power, ¹² that the name of our Lord Jesus Christ may be glorified in you, and you in Him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Paul lived to be a blessing to others. My friends, can I tell you that this my heart and my calling as well? My heart’s desire is to be used by the Lord so He can draw the church closer to Himself. I earnestly long for others to fall so deeply in love with Jesus that they are willing to forsake all to follow Him! The riches of such a life far outweigh the hard work. Paul prayed for the churches he had been used to establish. I pray for you – the church! 

Ephesians 1 is my heart’s cry for the entire body of Christ, along with other New Testament prayers. I desire for us all walk in the knowledge of Him and what we have inherited in Him. If we just knew what we hold in our “spiritual hands” we would be knocking over every devil and mountain that tried to stand in our way! Glory to God!

Paul was under “house arrest” meaning he was tied to a rented house for two years. But there he was, preaching and teaching all who would come and listen. Not everyone is called to do what Paul did, or what I do. But we all have a calling and a purpose in the body of Christ. The Lord wants to do mighty things through us – but we must be willing and obedient. Otherwise, we miss the blessings and rewards, and so do a lot of other people that God could have used only us to touch. The question here is this. If Paul was not moved by his circumstances, and he was under arrest and confined to a house, can we not also maintain our faith in God in difficult circumstances?

Why should we allow ourselves to be moved by anything in this life? Let’s look at some more of what Paul experienced…

2 Corinthians 11:22-29

²² Are they Hebrews? So am I. Are they Israelites? So am I. Are they the seed of Abraham? So am I. ²³ Are they ministers of Christ?—I speak as a fool—I am more: in labors more abundant, in stripes above measure, in prisons more frequently, in deaths often. ²⁴ From the Jews five times I received forty stripes minus one. ²⁵ Three times I was beaten with rods; once I was stoned; three times I was shipwrecked; a night and a day I have been in the deep; ²⁶ in journeys often, in perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in perils of my own countrymen, in perils of the Gentiles, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren; ²⁷ in weariness and toil, in sleeplessness often, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and nakedness— ²⁸ besides the other things, what comes upon me daily: my deep concern for all the churches. ²⁹ Who is weak, and I am not weak? Who is made to stumble, and I do not burn with indignation?

Most of you can surely relate to some of these difficulties. This life will be full of challenging situations. I call them opportunities to put my faith in the Lord. Coming to Florida was a very difficult thing. If I had spent much time looking at the situation, I might have made a different choice. Leaving the state I had known as home for the majority of my life was deeply painful. Leaving the kids was another issue. Going to stay with relatives with whom I had a strained relationship when I had no place else to go was yet another hurdle to overcome in my mind.

But I went. I listened to the Lord, and I did not let the circumstances move me from coming to the place I would later call my “Promised Land.” Hallelujah! The things I know now about what I would have missed are beyond detailing in this study. I have been so blessed by obeying and doing what looked completely overwhelming to me.

I couldn’t let the circumstances move me when I was persecuted at work for witnessing to a coworker by my own relatives. I couldn’t allow myself to be moved when the Lord gave me back my career in the health insurance field along with a boat load of persecution and threats. I couldn’t let myself be moved when they asked me to leave 4 ½ years later for standing up for the name of Jesus. I had no money in the bank. 

The Lord told me to “wait on Him.” I couldn’t even go get another job. He said to wait. That waiting turned into 6 months of unemployment. Still, I had to wait on Him and trust Him. Six months can be a long time with no definitive form of income – but the Lord provided. I lacked nothing all that time, nothing!

The list goes on for me. I could not be moved when my daughters refused to talk to me for years! They didn’t understand why I left Michigan and felt abandoned once again. I had to look up the Lord in expectation. He promised to restore our relationship and He did. I am still waiting on additional results in that area. Can I allow that to move me in my daily life? Absolutely not. Even when I miss them and shed a few tears, I have to quickly get it together and remember His promises – I refuse to be moved! If someone were to threaten my life in any way, I - like any Christian, could not afford to allow myself to be moved.

When the bills are piling up, the car keeps breaking down, the dog gets sick and there is more month at the end of the money, we cannot afford to let ourselves be moved. When the kids do not cooperate, the boss is harassing us and the neighbors are pitching a fit over some trivial matter – we cannot allow ourselves to be moved. Losing a job, a home or experiencing the passing of a loved one are all the things in life that can move the human soul deeply, if we allow it to. But it takes great faith to walk through this stuff and come out on top.

Is it possible? Yes, it is! This is not an unachievable goal as many might think. The greatest thing we can do for struggling loved ones is maintain our faith in God. They might get angry with us when we don’t join them in their fear and “freak out” over what is happening. But friends, doing that takes God right out of the equation. He is looking for faith in the storms of life. Anybody can coast along the smooth waters and keep their chin up and a smile on their face when things are going well. But it takes a strong faith man or woman to keep their composure and peace when the ship looks like it is going to sink.

Any time we face a battle or trial, our first place to go is God. Once we get a word from Him, we can step out on that word. Like Peter did when he walked on the water. I recently heard my pastor talk about this. We know that it takes a word from the Lord to prompt us into action. So when we get that word, our responsibility then is to take the step of faith. This my friends will activate the power of God in our situation. Hallelujah! Could Peter have stepped out of the boat and walked on the water if he had not been asked to come to the Master? 

Certainly not! We cannot just “cook something up” in our minds and try to do it without first hearing from the Lord. It is the word of God that sets the process in motion. Then, as we place our faith on it and do what He says, we see the miracles unfold right before our eyes – like the water that was turned into the finest of wines at the wedding at Cana.

It always begins with God. We can go to Him and say, “Lord, what is my solution in this?” Then we wait for His response. As I mentioned earlier, it may be a quick response or it may take time. After waiting to see my older daughter for 6 years, I had to learn a lot about waiting. I had to go on with my life and take God at His word. He had promised me He would restore us. He has shown me the word in scripture – spoken to my spirit and I had to stand on that, never wavering in my belief that His promise would come to pass – no matter how long it took.

We have studied in past days about the words of the Master. He told us not to let our hearts be troubled. But most Christians ignore His words. He said He has already given us His peace. But many choose to fret and be anxious. He said not to be anxious but to pray to Him and thank Him. But they ignore that too. One has to wonder what people are getting out of their studies? I myself have struggled greatly when it came to understanding and obeying what He was telling me about my food issues. It seemed to take a long time for His words to sink in there. And why? Because I was full of fear – that’s why.

How can a person who has seen the Lord do so many mighty and powerful things in the past be fearful when it comes to letting go of something like food? Great question! Just ask one of millions of Israelites, they can tell you. The Gentiles go right along with them too. Part of it is living more in the flesh than in the spirit and the word. Another part is focus.

Food, specifically sugar was an addiction for me as strong as cocaine is to the drug addict. In order for the people of God to be stable and not allow themselves to be moved, they have to focus on the Lord keenly. We have to be willing. Paul was willing. Jesus is the ultimate example of willingness. If a person isn’t willing, then they won’t make it. I understand this because I have been there. I was not willing to give certain things up. But I kept pressing in to the Lord and this allowed Him access to work in my heart. He has given me the victory! Praise His name forever!

When I finally got under some good strong teaching in the Bible, and focused on the word and what the lord was trying to say and do for me, I began to experience breakthrough. It is always available but many do not want to listen and receive. Most are content to go to church, hear a nice message and socialize, only to return home and keep doing the same insane things again and again. It is so SADD-U-CEE.

People will be used of the devil to come against us. Situations will arise. Seasons in our lives will shift and change. But if we follow the Master and other examples He gave us in the scriptures, we can learn to be strong in the Lord and the power of His might. We can learn to be unmoved by the wind and the waves that will blow into our lives. God is for us. He is with us. He wants to see us prosper and do well in this life. He wants us rich in every way, including financially so we can be used to bless others.

The church today is being called to rise up and stop letting the issues of life move us. Once and for all we need to see the great things God has done for us. We need to really realize that He is a promise keeping God. He is powerful, merciful and stands ready to assist us at every moment. Isn’t it amazing that we have one God, yet it is as if we are the only one on earth He is paying attention to? And everyone gets the same attention when they trust in Him. Glory to His name forever. I always say to Him, “Lord, I don’t know how You do what You do, but I stand amazed!” He is so good. Every plan He has for us is a good plan.

And there’s more good news. God is always the subject of good news. If we will stand strong in the Lord and do the work we are called to do, like Jesus, Paul and others, we will be richly rewarded. Today’s Psalm mentions it in the last verse. Every man will get rewarded for the work they have done. We can’t even begin to imagine the rewards that Paul must have received! Praise the Lord. Look at this…

Jeremiah 31:16-17

¹⁶ Thus says the Lord:

“Refrain your voice from weeping, and your eyes from tears; for your work shall be rewarded, says the Lord, and they shall come back from the land of the enemy.
¹⁷ There is hope in your future, says the Lord, that your children shall come back to their own border.

This was the promise the Lord gave to me regarding my children. And I still stand on it today believing that they will one day be fully restored to me like never before. The Lord is a rewarder. I left Michigan to seek the Lord and do His work. What will I get in return? Well, this for sure, and so much more I have yet to see.

But let’s forget about me and Paul for a minute. What about you? Do you want to get the rewards the Father is so eager to give you for a job well done? Will you be a wimpy (sideline) Christian just barely making it into heaven or will you prevail and not be moved? The choice is all yours my friend.

Questions:

What are the attributes or descriptions of God that are listed in this chapter?

What did the Psalmist say about the help of men?

What advice is given in today’s chapter about prayer in verse 8?

What does it mean to wait on the Lord?

List some of the trials that Paul went through?

Why do you think he was able to endure so much and still not be moved?

What are some trials you have been facing lately? Have you taken them to the Lord?

Will you let those trials move you after studying this chapter?

What does the last verse promise about our work?

What will you commit to doing differently after this study?

Who can you share this with?

There are four main points to consider from today’s study…

We can go to God in prayer and trust Him for the answers, regardless of how long it takes

People cannot help us do what only God can do

God rewards everyone for their work

No matter what we face, we do not have to let it move us

                        Let’s pray…

Heavenly Father:

Thank You once again for the reminder that You stand ready to hear from me and help me with every situation I face in life. Thank You for Your mercy and power. Thank You for being the Rock of my salvation and my place of refuge in the storms of life. Father, forgive me for the times that I allowed the trials of life to rock me. I know that with You I can do anything. From now on Lord, I want to practice standing strong in You and the power of Your might. Show me what I need to see more clearly for such a time as this. As You do, I will purpose to make the necessary changes in my life and my attitude. Thank You in advance for helping me in Jesus name. Amen.

The next time a “gusty” wind blows your way, are you going to let it move you?

And God Said… You fill in the blanks.

Isaiah 26:3

You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You.