BH Bulletin - Wednesday 21 April 2021

Thought for the Day by Alex Forrest ​(Voluntary Staff Worker)

Psalm 69
​1 Save me, O God,
    for the waters have come up to my neck.
2 I sink in the miry depths,
    where there is no foothold.
I have come into the deep waters;
    the floods engulf me.
3 I am worn out calling for help;
    my throat is parched.
My eyes fail,
    looking for my God.
13 But I pray to you, Lord,
    in the time of your favor;
in your great love, O God,
    answer me with your sure salvation.
14 Rescue me from the mire,
    do not let me sink;
deliver me from those who hate me,
    from the deep waters.
15 Do not let the floodwaters engulf me
    or the depths swallow me up
    or the pit close its mouth over me.
16 Answer me, Lord, out of the goodness of your love;
    in your great mercy turn to me.
17 Do not hide your face from your servant;
    answer me quickly, for I am in trouble.
18 Come near and rescue me;
    deliver me because of my foes.
30 I will praise God’s name in song
    and glorify him with thanksgiving.

I love this Psalm. The fear in David’s words is so strong here. Drowning, sinking, suffocating, flooded. It’s like his life is fading away, sinking below the depths with nothing to grab to stop his fall.
Many of us are familiar with the story of David’s life. The stress and hardships he endured, the hot water he got himself in, the injustice he suffered. He’s been through real hardship. We often think we can’t compare our own struggles in modern, leafy, 21st century Hove to those this BC Middle-Eastern King went through. But I think we can.
Awful situations are awful situations. Whether that’s being hounded down by a wayward king or a family bereavement. Whether it’s having to battle a giant or battling an addiction. Whether that’s dealing with the guilt of an adulterous affair or dealing with the fallout of being made redundant. Our pain and sorrows are real and are serious and can feel as hopeless as David’s.
In those moments when your throat is parched, when your eyes fail you, when you are weighed down by guilt, you might start feeling that we are drowning in this world, crying out for help, but nobody’s hearing us. But someone is hearing us. Someone is there ready to help us.
So, in those times, pray to God. He is the hand that pulls us out of the water, the one who rescues us in his love, who answers us with his sure salvation. He meets us in our trouble and promises he will rescue us. When we are struggling to breathe, submerged under the currents, waves crashing around us, he reaches into the water and drags us coughing and spluttering to the shore.
So, give him the glory he deserves. If someone did all this for you, you’d never stop thanking them. Never stop thanking and praising God for his salvation and rescue given to us in Jesus. 

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Baptism Service

If you've become a Christian and weren't baptised as a baby, then we'd love you to be baptised, and we've arranged a Baptismal service for 4th July. It'll be by immersion and be a big occasion for us as a church! Want to know more? Do have a word with Phil, Ben, or if you're in KO, you might like to talk to Stephen.

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Off The Fence