Psalm 56:8 by guest author Helen Draye
Psalms 56:8 NLT "You keep track of all my sorrows. You have collected all my tears in your bottle. You have recorded each one in your book."
None of us enjoy experiences that cost us tears and often the enemy tries to use these experiences to discourage us and tell us what a mess we've made of everything.
Have you been there?
Well, God reminded me of these verses, whilst sharing with a friend who is going through a hard time.
It’s so encouraging to see how the Psalmist turned it all around and instead of letting the enemy gloat over the situation he was able to see what God was accomplishing through it!
What a blessing that the Psalmist shared these things and how we can read ourselves into the same victory that God intends for His children because Jesus has paid the price already for our victory!
The enemy IS already defeated!!
PSALM 56 GNBUK
A Prayer of Trust in God
"1 Be merciful to me, O God,
because I am under attack.
my enemies persecute me all the time.
2All day long my opponents attack me.
There are so many who fight against me.
3When I am afraid, O LORD Almighty,
I put my trust in you.
4I trust in God and am not afraid.
I praise him for what he has promised.
What can a mere human being do to me?
5My enemies make trouble for me all day long.
they are always planning how to hurt me!
6They gather in hiding places
and watch everything I do,
hoping to kill me.
7Punish them, O God, for their evil.
defeat those people in your anger!
8You know how troubled I am.
you have kept a record of my tears.
Aren't they listed in your book?
9The day I call to you,
my enemies will be turned back.
I know this: God is on my side —
10the LORD, whose promises I praise.
11In him I trust, and I will not be afraid.
What can a mere human being do to me?
12O God, I will offer you what I have promised.
I will give you my offering of thanksgiving,
13because you have rescued me from death
and kept me from defeat.
And so I walk in the presence of God,
in the light that shines on the living."
Hallelujah! We can be people of victory!
Pastor Colin Urquhart loved to remind us:
"There is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus!”.
If we are "in Him" we can live in His victory through every experience!
He used to demonstrate this using a book, and if you have something enclosed in the pages of that book you are included wherever the book goes and in whatever happens to the book.
We are secure in Him! Hallelujah! Amen
Prayer
Further information: A short history of tear bottles
Tear bottles were prevalent in ancient Roman times, when mourners filled small glass vials or cups with tears and placed them in burial tombs as symbols of love and respect. Sometimes women were even paid to cry into "cups", as they walked along the mourning procession.
In the Old Testament of the Bible, a reference to collecting tears in a bottle appears in Psalm 56:8 when David prays to God, "Thou tellest my wanderings, put thou my tears in Thy bottle; are they not in Thy Book?" David is referring to the belief that God keeps a record of human pain and suffering and always remembers our sorrows.
Tear bottles reappeared during the Victorian period of the 19th century, when those mourning the loss of loved ones would collect their tears in bottles ornately decorated with silver and pewter. Special stoppers allowed the tears to evaporate. When the tears were gone, the mourning period would end.
In some American Civil War stories, women were said to have cried into tear bottles and saved them until their husbands returned. Their collected tears would show the men how much they were loved and missed.
The tear bottle tradition has endured for more than 3,000 years. Tear bottles, or lachrymatory, were common in ancient middle Eastern societies. Even today they are still produced in that region. Tear bottles were prevalent in ancient Roman times, when mourners filled small glass vials or cups with tears and placed them in burial tombs as symbols of love and respect. Sometimes women were even paid to cry into "cups", as they walked along the mourning procession. Those crying the loudest and producing the most tears received the most compensation, or so the legend goes. The more anguish and tears produced, the more important and valued the deceased person was perceived to be.
Today, lachrymatory tear bottles are given on many occasions - to show joy and delight upon the wedding of a friend or the birth of a new child. To convey love and admiration between a mother and daughter, representing the tears that have been shed between them. To express sympathy upon the loss of a loved one. Tear bottles communicate feelings that few other gifts can. And what's so wonderful is that unlike flowers, a tear bottle will last for years and be a precious and powerful reminder of your love.
Guest author/blogger Helen Draye
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