When asked to preach at a conference the Lord led me to Psalms 107. As i read I kept hearing…
It’s in the cry…
What’s in the cry? I asked…
I am, my power, my glory, all will be shown in the cry.
What cry? …
Your hearts cry… When you let go and let me do what I need to do I will rescue…
It’s in the cry…
I said wow that’s good stuff, I’ll save that, again he said,
it’s in the cry…. Now I knew he was trying to tell me something, when he says it a few times, you better listen.
Ok Lord, let me read it again. I read, and re-read and re-read Psalms 107, then I saw it, I could feel it, the cry, my cry, your cry, our hearts cry… It Is in the Cry…
He is in the Cry…
Then I started to cry…
Let’s begin, turn to:
Psalm 107
1 Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his love endures forever.
2 Let the redeemed of the LORD say this— those he redeemed from the hand of the foe,
3 those he gathered from the lands, from east and west, from north and south.
In verse 1 & 2 of Psalms 107 tells us to Give thanks to the Lord, Give praise to the Lord, give honor to the Lord, for he is good…so before I continue let me pray and do exactly what David is requesting.
Dear Lord, I acknowledge who you are. My creator, my savior, my redeemer,
Lord you have brought us all from so many places. Not just physical locations, but different places in our lives, in our spiritual lives. You have gathered us from the east, west, north and south, to show us something this today. To teach us what it truly means to cry out to you.. Lord you said it is in the cry… so Father God I ask you to show us now.
In Your Name….. Amen….
We are going to look at 4 different groups of people who cried out to the Lord, and because I am too excited to share this with you and my heart is leaping even now, I’m gunna dig right in…
Hold on, this is gunna be good…..
The 1st group ‘The Wanderers’ (Direction)
4 Some wandered in desert wastelands, finding no way to a city where they could settle.
This is the group who has lost their way. They walk through life without true direction or a deep sense of belonging. They go from church to church, fad to fad, job to job or relationship to relationship. They are up and down. Here today and gone tomorrow. Through hurts or a series of wrong choices they just go through live a little numb only seeing what they want to see and they just continue to wander through life. No peace, no rest, constantly searching, and never settling.
5 They were hungry and thirsty, and their lives ebbed away.
They long for something more but do not know where to turn. They have an attitude of, “this is all there is, this is all I deserve.” They can only see what is in front of them. They are hungry and thirsty but never stop long enough to do anything about it and their lives just continue ebb away. Their hope is slowing fading… everything they have tried in their life can not satisfy them. They are never content and on the verge of exhaustion.
But…..Here’s the first Cry…
6 Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble, and he delivered them from their distress.
7 He led them by a straight way to a city where they could settle.
He heard their Cry and answered them. At the last moment, as they are fading away, they cried out.
Charles Spurgeon writes:
‘Some men will never pray till they are half starved, and for their best interests it is far better for them to be empty and faint than to be full and stouthearted. If hunger brings us to our knees it is more useful to us than feasting; if thirst drives us to the fountain it is better than the deepest draughts of worldly joys; and if fainting leads to crying it is better than the strength of the mighty.’
Deliverance always follows prayer, when we cry out he will hear. Even when we are weak, faint, he hears our cries.
He didn’t just show them the way out, He delivered them and led them by a straight way, for there is only on way.
We always seem to take the long way home. But when we stop long enough to admit we are lost and cry out, he will lead us to a place where we can settle, where we can belong, lay down roots, be nourished and grow.
There is a joke about men never stopping to ask for directions. At Women’s camp there was a team building game some went through. It was called the ‘Blind Maze’ you were blindfolded and led to a rope maze where you were told to follow the rope until you reached the exit. You were repeatedly told that if you need help to stop and raise your hand and someone would help you. Round and round the women went. Passing the same tree, going around each other and no exit to be found. One by one they would raise their hand only to have the one in charge whisper in their ear to take off their blind fold and to silently follow them to a spot to watch others. What the women saw brought tears to their eyes. They watched women continue to go around and around, they knew others were asking for help but not them, they could do it on their own. The only way out was to stop and admit they needed help.
It’s kind of like the blind maze. We just go round and round and if we would only stop to ask for help…we would be able to see clearly that our journey is not has hard and treacherous as we think.
Now here is our part…
8 Let them give thanks to the LORD for his unfailing love and his wonderful deeds for men,
9 for he satisfies the thirsty and fills the hungry with good things.
When we are delivered from the desert times in our lives we need to praise Him. When your friends or family are delievered from their desert times in their lives, we should praise the Lord with them. For he satisfies the thirsty and fills the hungry with good things…
When we CRY out, his power and glory will be shown. He will hear us from his holy hill and answer us…. Psalm 3:4
The 2nd Group ‘The Prisoners’ (Deliverance)
10 Some sat in darkness and the deepest gloom, prisoners suffering in iron chains,
11 for they had rebelled against the words of God and despised the counsel of the Most High.
12 So he subjected them to bitter labor; they stumbled, and there was no one to help.
The thought of sitting in darkness and the deepest gloom speaks of isolation, it brings a sense of fear, abandonment and hopelessness. Death… the weight of their situation is like a prisoner in chains.
The sad thing is, these prisoners put themselves in this situation. They turned from God. They knew him, It said that they rebelled against the words of God and despised His counsel. So they heard his words and chose to go in another direction. And Look where it led them….
Some sat in darkness and the deepest gloom alone, prisoners suffering in iron chains. They were in bondage because of the choices they made. They labor and work and stumble with no one to help. There is no rest while in bondage, no pity or sympathy, because no one is around to help.
My heart aches when I think of the deeper meaning of ‘darkness and the deepest gloom….’
What lurks in the dark? Every nightmare imaginable begins in the deepest gloom. Fear, dispare, isolation, and no one to help you fight off the unseen enemy that you allowed in…
Oh, but here’s the second CRY….
13 Then they cried to the LORD in their trouble, and he saved them from their distress.
14 He brought them out of darkness and the deepest gloom and broke away their chains.
HE Saved Them From Their Distress……
He Brought Them Out….
He brought them out, again he did not show them the way out. Uh, the door is over there…
He brought them out personally, and he broke away their chains.
Now because of their CRY deliverance is released. The cry of one at the end of their rope is heard. The cry from within, from pain and helplessness is heard and they are saved. Their chains are broken and they are made free.
15 Let them give thanks to the LORD for his unfailing love and his wonderful deeds for men,
16 for he breaks down gates of bronze and cuts through bars of iron.
Again he is so worthy of our praise. Deliverance has happened, chains have been broken, gates have been torn down.
When you think in the physical about bronze or iron these metals are made to last. It is a process to break down or cut through and not an easy process…
I see this as an act of pure love. He will go the distance, in an instant, to free you from your bondage. A fathers love to rescue his child despite the obstacles in front of him. But deliverance began with a cry…
When you CRY out with your heart, He will hear you from his holy hill and answer you.
Psalm 3:4
The 3rd Group ‘The Punished Rebels’ (Healing)
17 Some became fools through their rebellious ways and suffered affliction because of their iniquities. (Their sins)
18 They loathed all food and drew near the gates of death.
Again this is a self made group. Because of their rebellious ways they suffered. They were sick and dying. They walked through life with a rebellious attitude and were suffering to the point of dying. Their Sin had taken control of their lives. One sin can lead to a life of a downward spiral. Like a disease. Eating you from the inside out, until you are at a point that nothing can satisfy, They loathed all food and drew near the gates of death.
We rebel against truth, we got it all handled, we can do better, God isn’t doing it, so I will. We feel our life fading away and yet…we continue in our sin, pride, arrogance, or ignorance, until we turn completely away from our basic need to survive… Him…He is all we need…but remember…
He’s only a CRY away!
19 Then they cried to the LORD in their trouble, and he saved them from their distress.
20 He sent forth his word and healed them; he rescued them from the grave.
He personally spoke life into them and saved them. His word brings us life. They loathed all food…
John 6:35 Says, Then Jesus declared, “I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty.
They loathed all food, including him. Oh but when we cry out… He will send forth his word and heal us and rescue us from the grave.
21 Let them give thanks to the LORD for his unfailing love and his wonderful deeds for men.
22 Let them sacrifice thank offerings and tell of his works with songs of joy.
The difference in this “give thanks’ compared to the last two, is now they are being told to also give something back. It’s not just enough to just give praise with words, but now we need to also give praise through our actions.
To give thank offerings and tell of his works with songs of joy.
When we give thanks and praise in both words and action, it honor’s Him and lets other know the things he has done in our lives.
We are so me focused at times we forget the giving back part.
Oh Lord I need you, I’m dying, and I can’t do it anymore! Oh thank you for saving me….Then we move on. Until we need him to get us out of our next mess.
No, we are required to do something. To give thank offerings and tell others of what he has done in our lives.
Just move….Give Thank Offerings to him for what he has done in your life…
When you CRY out with your heart, He will hear you from his holy hill and answer you.
Psalm 3:4
The 4th Group ‘the Christians/the church goers’ (Salvation)
23 Others went out on the sea in ships; they were merchants on the mighty waters.
24 They saw the works of the LORD, his wonderful deeds in the deep.
25 For he spoke and stirred up a tempest that lifted high the waves.
26 They mounted up to the heavens and went down to the depths; in their peril their courage melted away.
27 They reeled and staggered like drunken men; they were at their wits’ end.
To understand this completely we have to look deeper to the “merchants on the might waters”
Those who sailed in biblical times had a deeper understanding of the mysteries of God. “His wonderful deeds in the deep” they had experienced and seen things that only those who sailed could truly understand and those on land could only imagine… Seamen, because of their surroundings (being surrounded by water) were more observant to God’s wonders. They were thought of as‘ones to be listen to’ because they had seen and experienced things most would never be able to. When you went to sea it was for business, not pleasure,
As a Christian we to can experience all of God’s glory and power, when we are working for his kingdom, taking care of business.
Again Charles Spurgeon writes:
The Lord sends some of his saints to the sea of soul trouble, and there they see, as others do not, the wonders of divine grace. Sailing over the deeps of inward depravity, the waste waters of poverty, the billows of persecution, and the rough waves of temptation, they need God above all others, and they find him.
We know that this scripture is not just about sailors. It is spiritual in nature for us today. We have seen all the wonderful deeds in the deep and yet when a test of our faith comes, our courage melts and we staggered like drunken men and give up.
It does not mean we have done anything wrong. For He spoke and stirred up a tempest. He tests us.We strive to live a good life. To follow His words, his commands, and still we are faced with tragedy, waves and storms. We too lose hope and stagger and fall. Drunken people fall. They don’t see clearly. Their eye sight is distorted. Their brain does not send the correct signals.
When officer Ellis did his presentation at our church and we were asked to play catch with ‘Beer Goggles’ on, a simple game of catch with a tennis ball became a game of find the ball without tripping over people or our own feet. Our perception was distorted. And if we take our focus off of who He is in our lives our perception of where we are and our surroundings is distorted.
We as Christians know all this and yet when we are tested with the ups and downs of life we stagger like drunken men. We lose sight of all his wonderful deeds throughout our life? Our perception is distorted and we do not see all the blessings, all the beauty and majesty that makes God, God in our lives…
OHHH, But the CRY…The deep cry of a heart at its wits’ end….
28 Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble, and he brought them out of their distress.
29 He stilled the storm to a whisper; the waves of the sea were hushed.
30 They were glad when it grew calm, and he guided them to their desired haven.
They lost hope, they staggered and fell and when he heard their cry the waves were…h u s h e d….
He guided them to their desired haven. Their desired haven…. He heard their cry and answered them. He stilled the storm to a w h i s p e r….. When we cry out in the midst of our storm…Peace will come…
31 Let them give thanks to the LORD for his unfailing love and his wonderful deeds for men.
32 Let them exalt him in the assembly of the people and praise him in the council of the elders.
Again we are told to move and give back…
Picture the show the deadliest catch. Some of the storms they went through were incredible, but when they return home safely and are now docked, anchor let down, and safely of land, Oh the rejoicing begins, well in their case the parting starts, but the stories are being told of the close calls, the storms they faced,
Now for us we should do the same, no parting though, but rejoicing and telling other of what the Lord has brought us through. The raging storm that was hushed because of his word…
During worship you can look around and see faces of people that look like this…Thank you Lord, Thank YOU! And you can also see this… Oh, that’s nice…
Are you kidding me? Lord I know where I’ve been and what you have brought me out of… I praise You!! Exalt the Lord!!! Praise Him!!! Worship Him!!!! In the assembly of the people Praise Him! At your Church praise Him! At your Work praise Him!!! In the council of your elders, your peers, your family Praise Him, Exalt Him!!! Lift him up. He calmed the storm in your life. Praise Him…
When rebellious people don’t repent and turn from their ways, remember:
33 He turned rivers into a desert, flowing springs into thirsty ground,
34 and fruitful land into a salt waste, because of the wickedness of those who lived there.
When he hears our cries:
35 He turned the desert into pools of water and the parched ground into flowing springs;
36 there he brought the hungry to live, and they founded a city where they could settle.
37 They sowed fields and planted vineyards that yielded a fruitful harvest;
38 he blessed them, and their numbers greatly increased, and he did not let their herds diminish.
But we change just like the wind and as a result of our actions look what can happen:
39 Then their numbers decreased, and they were humbled by oppression, calamity and sorrow;
40 he who pours contempt on nobles made them wander in a trackless waste.
But when we cry out from here…He will hear
41 But he lifted the needy out of their affliction and increased their families like flocks.
42 The upright see and rejoice, but all the wicked shut their mouths.
43 Whoever is wise, let him heed these things and consider the great love of the LORD.
Look at all the Lord has done, can do, will do, if you would only cry out.
It’s in the Cry….
2 Chron 7:14 says
If my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, will forgive their sin and will heal their land.
It is in the cry…the deep cry from here…inside. When we cry out from here…things begin to happen. His Glory and Power are revealed….in the cry…
If you are wandering through life aimless, tired, hungry for more but don’t know which way to go, Cry Out!
If you are in bondage, blinded by the dark circumstances that surround you and feeling alone and hopelessness…
Cry Out!
If you feel like you are dying inside and have lost your desire to fight…You believe that what you have done has caused the trouble you are in. You have turned away from Him, from truth.
Cry Out!
If you have lost your courage your hope and the waves in your life are more than you can stand…
Cry Out!
With every Cry you are admitting your utter dependence on him.
With every Cry you are giving glory to his worthiness, and acknowledging your un-worthiness,
With every Cry you are giving glory to his perfections and acknowledging your imperfections.
With every Cry power is released, direction is given, eyes are open, chains are broken and storms are calmed.
There is power in Cry…
Amy Grant says:
When we pour out our miseries, God just hears a melody, beautiful the mess we are, the honest cries of a broken heart are better than a hallelujah…
Direction, Deliverance, Healing, and Salvation all begin with the cry…
