May 19 - Reading 47: Psalms 136, 139

“You are familiar with all my ways. Before a word is on my tongue, You, Lord, know it completely.” (Psalm 139:3-4)

Today’s focus verses are some of the strongest statements in Scripture about the intimate knowledge God has of each one of us. Can we even begin to imagine that, before we even speak a word, He already knows it completely! Even though it is beyond our ability to grasp or understand, that doesn’t make it any less true.

This truth can help us face the unknown in our lives, particularly the uncertainty of our futures between now and the moment we are received by Jesus into heaven.

The Holocaust survivor, Corrie Ten Boom, had many moments of fear in the face of an uncertain future. In The Hiding Place, she shares the story of her father’s response when, as a child, she tearfully told him of her fear of his death: “Father sat down on the edge of the. Narrow bed. “Corrie,’ he began gently, “when you and I go to Amsterdam — when do I give you your ticket?’ I sniffed a few times, considering this. “Why just before we get on the train.’ “Exactly. And our wise Father in heaven knows when we’re going to need things, too. Don’t run our ahead of Him, Corrie. When the time comes that some of us will have to die, you will look into your heart and find the strength you need — just in time.’”

Corrie also shares this encouragement: “When a train goes through a tunnel and it gets dark, you don’t throw away the ticket and jump off. You sit still and trust the engineer.”

As we read Psalms 136 & 139 to the Lord today, let’s remember that our Engineer is totally trustworthy. He already knows whether or not what we fear will ever happen. If it does, He will give us the strength to face it. Nothing is a surprise to Him. He alone knows every detail of every day of our lives. He alone can be trusted with all of our moments from now until we see Him face to face.