Trivia:
You all are so smart, Yes, the holes in the Swiss Cheese are called eyes. You may be asking just Why do these eyes primarily appear in Swiss Cheese? Well these holes primarily appear because of the special bacterial culture of Propionibacteria which forms from the small microbes which are left there from the hay and grass that the cow digests especially before the dairies pasteurized the milk. Since today pasteurizing is required, these props are added back into the cheese after that process and then it is placed in warm rooms to encourage the production of carbon dioxide therefore developing these bubbles, eyes, and therefore developing cheese to the proper consistency. Too much? Ok.
Challenge:
Psalm 71:1-6 "O Lord, I have come to you for protection; don't let me be disgraced. 2 Save me and rescue me, for you do what is right. Turn your ear to listen to me, and set me free. 3 Be my rock of safety where I can always hide. Give the order to save me, for you are my rock and my fortress. 4 My God, rescue me from the power of the wicked, from the clutches of cruel oppressors. 5 O Lord, you alone are my hope. I trusted you, O Lord, from childhood. 6 Yes, you have been with me from birth; from my mother's womb you have cared for me. No wonder I am always praising you!"
Bear with me for a few minutes will you? Here is the writers conclusion, even in old age--and may I go on to say especially in this age-ing --we are in need of the Lord's renewing work in our minds and He will keep us from what many times is prevalent in all of us as we age, confusion. But our Lord will undergird us as we draw near to His protection.
Now David leads us through all of these challenges that we must go through, by reminding us of where we should be drawn to, by recounting for us just where our ultimate protection comes from. Verse 2,3 draws our thinking to our Gracious Father's protective care, Safety, Rescue, Right mindedness, listening to our needs, being our rock of safety, our impenetrable fortress that we can draw to and hide in.
In this life many times younger people are guided to think that if they change places where they live, or go to live in a warmer climate, or find a cheaper place to live, or when they get older, all the battles, and struggles will be won. But here is a tip spoken from the old Arkansas farmer for all of us to remember, "It ain't heaven 'till heaven." We all will face hardship regardless of the period of time that we are living in.
After coming to that conclusion, we come to this brilliant conclusion in Verse 5 "O Lord, you alone are my hope." Then He promises that when we come to be guided in this way then we will gain this place of confidence and rest.
Finally, we are reminded of our Lord's continuous presence and care for us in verse 6, "You have been with me from birth; from my mother's womb you care for me." Just think, before you understood, or could even think to care about your existence, He, God was taking care of you. Who you would be, what color your eyes would be, how tall you were going to be, etc. All of these details where His concern for you.
David ends this thought "No wonder I am always praising you." When we stop to make the effort to recognize where our hope comes from, we come to the realization of just why we should be hopeful. After all our loving, faithful Heavenly Father was there at our very creation, so surely He is worthy of our trust and hope. RIGHT?
SO GO WITH GOD for He will carry you through, be your place of protection, and giver of strength and wisdom for TODAY, and TOMORROW, and yes even FOR the REST of YOUR LIFE.
Verse 1 "O Lord, I have come to you for protection;" and we end in Verse 5 being reminded with these words "O Lord, you alone are my HOPE."