"My Times are in Your Hands"

Alistair Begg's thoughts: "In the opening verses of Psalm 31 it is apparent that the Psalmist is in anguish. As we read on he seems to find himself in a position of assurance just a few verses later, only to return to a state of distress immediately.

This cycle of pain and joy is not an unusual experience of Christian pilgrimage. In fact the recurrence of disappointment and distress is fairly common along the path of faith. Most of us are a jumble of emotions and a cross section of experiences. The good, the bad and the ugly wash over us regularly.

The key issue is what we do with these experiences. How does being a believer shape the way in which we view these events and our world?

Verse 15 of Psalm 31 reads, "My times are in Your hands."  These six words are the affirmation of the person who knows himself to be, despite disasters and difficulties, under the care of Almighty God. It is this certainty that will bring equilibrium to us in the span of events that would inflate our egos or crush our souls. I want to focus now on this phrase throughout the pages of this booklet. I have found nine truths, which emerge from the simple statement, "My times are in Your hands.""

Candy's thoughts: I found this gem of a booklet while following a link to a Study Bible with the notes of Charles Spurgeon included, as well as some recently recovered "lost sermons" of his. This Bible was edited by Alistair Begg, and so I was on the Truth for Life website, which is part of Begg's ministry. Anyway, I happened to see something else entitled "My Times are in Your Hands," also written by Begg. This is a verse that I've always taken comfort in, and so I included it with my purchase of the previously mentioned Bible.

This little brochure is great! It states truths which most believers "know," but which few believers really "comprehend" at a moment when a difficulty or tragedy is unfolding. Fear and panic are usually the first emotions that emerge, instead of comfort and assurance that God is sovereign.  I hope over the next few blog posts to summarize some of Begg's points, ones which we would all benefit from meditating upon. Until then, here is the entirety of Psalm 31 for context as we begin:

https://www.esv.org/Psalm+31/