PSALM 71. LIFE LONG WONDER. We get our title from verse 7. "I am a wonder unto many, but Thou art my strong refuge." I can remember going to church as a boy with my parents, and they had a song entitled, "I'm a wonder unto many, many said I'd go astray; but they all have been mistaken, In the Faith I am today." At the time of this psalm, David was getting old, yet he had known the wonder of God throughout his life. In verse 6 David sings, "Thou art He that took me out of my mother's bowels. My praise shall be continually of Thee. By Thee have I been holden up from the womb." God was with him from the beginning of all things. Moving to verse 20, we hear him sing, "Thou shalt quicken me again and shalt bring me up again from the depth of the earth." He is singing in faith of the resurrection. From the womb to the tomb, the goodness of God is a life long wonder, and He will crown it all with Resurrection Glory. After a life of danger on every side, David anticipates increased greatness and comfort on every side. This is the believer's confidence. He can look God in the face and say, "In the end you will bring me from the very depths of the earth, and increase my greatness, comforting me on every side. From beginning to end he rejoices in the Wonder of it all. The psalm has no title as such. It is written by David, reviewing his life as it was possibly nearing its close. He describes himself as being grey headed and old. Some of us know well that we qualify for such a description. but many do not. Yet David sings out, "I'm as a wonder unto many - I still cannot make it out how I have got to this stage in my life." He also says another wonderful thing; that he has the desire to tell this generation and others to come, of the goodness of God. It is a good thing to pass on your 'WONDER' to others. William Cowper was a hymn writer who had great problems in his life. He tried to take his own life at least three times. It is surprising to discover that he was responsible for saying, "Variety is the spice of life." People often quote that as though it is the secret of a happy life. The full quotation is: "Variety is the spice of life that gives it all its flavour." But William Cowper also said, the he would be glad to get away from dropping buckets into an empty well, and growing old in drawing nothing up. There is no variety in that experience. It is my opinion that Cowper was wrong when he said that variety was the spice of life, because variety only develops the desire for more. The more you get, the more you want, The REAL SPICE OF LIFE is the WONDER of what God has done for us. That WONDER gives life all its flavour. We ought to endeavour by all means to preserve our sense of wonder. Life is worth living when you realise that there is a God in heaven who is interested in you. He does wonderful things for those who believe Him. Endeavour to keep your sense of wonder. When we were children everything was wonderful when we saw it for the first time. Some are now the children of God and He leads us from one new experience to another in His Love and Mercy. It is true that David sang, "You have shown me great and sore troubles"' but he also declares, "You quicken me again." Consider the wonder of the Goodness of God. The way the word wonder is used in the Scripture, it can mean a miracle or a sign. It is a miracle that God ever saved us. There lies the miracle wonder of God in the life of every believer. I have met nominal Christians who have told me that they have never seen a miracle. The greatest miracle is the KNOW GOD in our human experience. It is the WONDER of finding God. The day God revealed Himself to me was the day He revealed Himself IN ME. His hand touched my life. The life of every born again believer is a miracle; it is a Wonder of Saving Grace. The Miracle of FINDING GOD is true, active, alive, strong and saving. This is not a passive assent that acknowledges that God is somewhere, just like that oak tree standing in the corner of the field. God is alive, vibrant, present and real. There is the daily wonder of finding God. Our God is visible to the believer. God loves us. This is not just that God is love, but that He gives His love to us. It is wonderful to read that God loves everybody, but it means far more to each individual when it is expressed as , "God loves me!". God demonstrates His love so that I might know the wonder of it. Calvary becomes something very wonderful to every believer. Once we realise that God is real, everything in God's Word becomes a Wonder. In addition to all this, there is the wonder of God's continued goodness. The psalmist declares that from his birth God had held him up. God had taught him from his youth. God had delivered him from the lion, the bear, and the giant. The fact that he had been kept alive was a wonder unto many. In his old age the goodness of God to him was still a wonder. Now he wanted to show God's strength to the coming generation, and His power to every generation to come. Some might respond by saying, "What has God done for me?." It might be more to the point of the question was, "Why should God do anything for me?." The truth of the matter is that God often blesses you when no-one else can. The greatest blasphemy that can be uttered is to question whether God has done anything in your life. We all have much to thank God for. The majority in this world blame God for everything, and thank Him for nothing. Yet we are here by the hand of God. How apt it is that the Insurance Companies use the clause for things which happen and cannot be explained: AN ACT OF GOD. Take a look through your life again and seek out the acts of God - those things which you cannot explain. It will help you to look through your life with wonder. At one time or another we have all picked up a photo-album and looked at the family pictures. O what we looked like years ago. The first thing that strikes us is that we looked so young. As time goes bye, the pictures change. David had no photographs but there were things etched on his memory, and he could see how people around him were changing. He then became gripped with a fear that plagues all mankind; the fear of growing old. He longs for the Wonder of God's future goodness to fill his heart. He sings, "Now also, when I am old and grey headed, O God, forsake me not, until I have showed Thy strength to this generation, and Thy power to every one that is to come." It is good to open up the memory of all that God has done for you. Give thanks to God for His continued goodness. Enjoy the wonder of the goodness of God. Say, "Here I am by the grace of God!" It is the common fear of the old that they will be forgotten. It is so easy to smile at this, but in my ministry I have met elderly folk who say, "Everybody forgets you when you are old." Take Note!". There is ONE who will never forget you. He will never leave you nor forsake you. This is the Wonder of His Unfailing Love and the Glory of His Everlasting Life. We have the Wonder of God now, and for ever. Give your soul an inoculation of Wonder, to counteract the desperation of this Age. Copyright (c) 1996, Hedley Palmer. All rights reserved. ---------------------------------------------------- file: /pub/resources/text/hpalmer/psalms: ps-071.txt .