PSALM 39 Now a Witness

NO STRANGERS IN HEAVEN !
There, "others" become our brothers and sisters,
as you and they are seen as vital members of the
One Body of Christ,
Christlike gentleness replaces all aggressive thoughts and behaviour.
Loyalties to sports teams, street gangs, armed militia, clans and cliques
political parties, sectarian orders, lodges, associations and social castes.,
all disappear totally.
As we read Psalm 39,  we see that God recognizes that our outcry is an act of trust
Psalm 39:8 ERV   " Don't let me be treated like a fool.".
Down here,  The enemy need not be a hostile political force plotting against David.
It may be the one who has mocked David by refusing him hospitality (1Sam 25:39)
David's daughter Tamar was very badly treated by her half brother Amnon.
The prayer " Do not make me the scorn of a fool" Psalm 39:8 NRSV
is the prayer of the people of God who have been badly treated by "wicked fools"

Our lives down here "speak" as part of the body of Christ.
Our lives  "speak" revelation of the love of God.
the voice of the Trinity speaks through our attitudes and through
what is actually accomplished in the world, through our lives.
In Moses, David, and all the good Samaritans..,  The Trinity spoke,and still speaks,
  like Facebook messages, delivering God's word down the centuries,
Psalm 39:4 ERV
How long will I live
Let me know how short my life is.
We play our short lives on  stage which is in full view of the hosts of heaven
where all are our brothers and sisters.
Mark 12:25 ESV
For when they raise from the dead, they neither marry nor are given in 
marriage, but are like angels in heaven.
We are encompassed about by so great a cloud of witnesses.
Hebrews 12:1 KJV
Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud
of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily
beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us.

Luke 15:  7 and 10 KJV
I say unto you, that likewise joy shall be in heaven over one sinner
that repenteth, more than over ninety and nine just persons which 
need no repentance.
10 Likewise I say unto you, there is joy in the presence of the 
angels of God, over one sinner that repenteth.

Christ's life in us is evident.
Our prayer, in the power of the Spirit;
our goodwill and generosity in the love of Jesus;
Our every act in the will of our heavenly Father.
is a witness to heaven and earth and all eternity.

so that through the church the manifold wisdom of God
might now be made known to the rulers and authorities
in heavenly places,                                         Ephesians 3:10 ESV

PSALM 38 Now in Steadfast Love

In Psalm 38, the psalmist is praying and telling God that he feels
Pitiable     Abandoned     and   Betrayed.
He does not rebel. He knows that he has made serious mistakes,
He has made wrong decisions.  His accusers are justified
because his behaviour has been bad.  So he suffers in silence,
knowing it has been his own fault.
Socially he is at rock bottom. It has even affected his health.

This   could be the story of a person who has run away from
their responsabilities ;  a person who has damaged his life
and his family through drink , or debt,  through gambling or
drugs,  through embezelment, fraud, dishonesty, theft, with or
without violence, leading to prison, mental breakdown, and,
homelessness .  This sounds terrible,.......really bad,.......but
when someone becomes vulnerable, unless they get really timely
help and very good advice, the decline from manageable
problems to depression, loss of dignity and self respect , can be
rapid and shocking  to the victim.  Such circumstances can isolate
people from those who might have been any support.

We must not abandon such a person, but come quickly to their aid.
as a "Good Samaritan", first to sympathize with their grief and
exhaustion, then to release them from their traps.
Homelessness is a trap.  Debt is a trap.
Hunger is a painful trap. Dependence is a trap.
Lack of good health can be a very restricting trap.

With the mind of Christ, we can appreciate the shock of
bereavement or natural disaster, like fire or flood,
becoming redundant, or becoming bankrupt or loosing good health.
But it does happen every day to ordinary men and women,

In Psalm 38 NCV the psalmist prays;-
22,   Do not abandon me, O LORD;
        my God, do not remain far from me.
16    I place my hope in you, O LORD:
        You, O LORD, my God, will answer for me.
10   O LORD, all my longing is known to you
       and my sighs are not hidden from you.
23   Come quickly to my aid, O LORD, my Saviour.

In his prayer the psalmist expresses his hope.
When we find that we are the victim,
we can turn with the psalmist to the one true God
We have an anchor that keeps the soul
Steadfast and sure when the billows roll.
An anchor for the soul, firm and secure  Hebrews 6:19 ESV. .
And when it is our turn to be the "Good Samaritan,"
in the love of Jesus, may we appreciate the distress of the downtrodden
then as the people of God, may we be strong in the Spirit,
and minister well  with a good heart to see that they (the downtrodden)
are set free from the causes of their distress.