Devotional: Did you hear?

You will arise and have compassion on Zion, for it is time to show favor to her; the appointed time has come.  Psalm 102:12

We are, at the time of writing, on the edge of a big property move. In light of this, Lyn and I have been discussing the difference between knowing a principle and having a rhema word about a place. This is where Psalm 102 comes into the picture. It appears that things are not going well for the psalmist, and then in verse 12 he says this:

You will arise and have compassion on Zion, for it is time to show favor to her; the appointed time has come.

My question is this: “Is this the appointed time for us, for The Institute, for the Johnson household, to have a place, a campus?” The rest of the psalm shows me seven reasons as to why the psalmist thought it was the appointed time.

1. They had a love for place.
   For her stones are dear to your servants; her very dust moves them to pity.
2. It was not just about them, but as always in kingdom things, it was about the nations.
   The nations will fear the name of the Lord, all the kings of the earth will revere your glory.
3. God responds to the prayers of destitute people.
   He will respond to the prayer of the destitute; he will not despise their plea.
4. God wanted the next generation, the one who had seen the parents go through hard times, to not get disappointed with God. Let this be written for a future generation, that a people not yet created may praise the Lord
5. It is in God’s nature to release prisoners, to set captives free. The LORD looked down from his sanctuary on high, from heaven he viewed the earth, to hear the groans of the prisoners and release those condemned to death.
6. Giving them a city created a place of worship.
   So the name of the LORD will be declared in Zion and his praise in Jerusalem when the peoples and the kingdoms  assemble to worship the Lord.
7. It would establish God’s multi-generational purposes.
   The children of your servants will live in your presence; their descendants will be established before you.

This still doesn’t answer the specific question, of course, but it creates a backdrop against which we can lean into God to hear his whisper. I am excited to listen for God’s specific word against a background of hope. In the end, God’s ways are above our way, but we can make his job difficult when our un-renewed minds do not have his good as the back-plain for our decision making.

Reflections

• Do you believe it is time for God to show you favor?
  
  
• In which specific areas have you already seen his favor? How can this be a signpost to you of future favor that he intends for you?