Hitting the RESET Button by Robyn Henning

You know the feeling.

You go to use your Ipod, cell phone, TV, computer (pick an electronic device), and it won’t turn on….or worse…you get a blank screen.

You shriek, “Noooooo!”  If you manage to control yourself enough to NOT throw it across the room, you start looking for the RESET button.

Theoretically, this button will reset your electronic device to the manufacturer’s settings.

Yes, you will have to restore the device’s settings to what you want, but at least it’s working.

As I read through David’s Psalm 13 this morning, I realized that it was a great example of our inner RESET button.

Vs. 1-2 “How long, O LORD? Wilt Thou forget me forever? How long wilt Thou hide Thy face from me?  How long shall I take counsel in my soul, having sorrow in my heart all the day? How long will my enemy be exalted over me?”

In verses one and two, David let his emotions rule him.  He felt like God has forgotten him and had hidden His face from Him.

David was  trying to figure out his life and why his enemy was being exalted over him.  Sorrow flooded his heart and overwhelmed him.

Can you relate?  I can.

There have been plenty to times when I could not FEEL God’s presence or understand why He was doing what He was doing in my life.

My soul has cried, “Hello, Lord.  Remember me?  Are you mad at me?”

Satan wants us to fall into his trap of determining truth by what we feel or what we don’t feel.

In this case, David couldn’t feel the Lord’s presence, and since nothing seemed to going his way, his emotions were used by the enemy to make David think that God had forgotten him and turned His face away from him.

Thankfully, David didn’t stay stuck on his emotions.

Vs. 3-4  “Consider and answer me, O LORD, my God; enlighten my eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death, lest my enemy say, “I have overcome him,” lest my adversaries rejoice when I am shaken.”

He cried out to the Lord for Him to pay attention to him and answer his cries.

He asked for enlightenment which comes only from the life of God flowing through him.

The last thing David wanted is for his enemies to think that they had won.

Instead of wallowing in self pity and sorrow, David cried out in faith for the Lord to hear and answer his cries.

He knew that in himself, he had no answers.

Victory over his enemy could only come from the Lord.

I, too, have learned that I can’t defeat Satan with my own resources.

Victory over Satan is only achieved when I cry out to the Lord and use His strength to resist and rebuke the evil one.

Wallowing in negative emotions and self pity only plays into Satan’s deceptive strategies.

Vs. 5-6  “But I have trusted in Thy lovingkindness; my heart shall rejoice in Thy salvation.  I will sing to the LORD, because He has dealt bountifully with me.”

In these verses, David hit  the RESET button in his mind.

He made four deliberate faith choices.

1.  He chose to trust in God’s mercy, goodness, and kindness.

2.  He chose to rejoice in God’s salvation.  (The Hebrew for salvation is Yeshua which is the name of our Savior!).

3.  He chose to worship.  He connected to the LORD by singing to Him.

4.  He chose to remember the ways that the Lord had dealt bountifully with him.

When life’s circumstances seem to be crashing your ‘system,’ stop, drop and pray.

Choose by faith to trust in the loving mercy of God.

Rejoice in your Yeshua.

Sing aloud to the LORD.

Remember the many ways He has dealt bountifully with you.

Doing these four things hits your inner RESET button.

Your soul (mind, emotion, and will) will revert to our Manufacturer’s original settings.

Life and peace will replace sorrow and fear.

Beloved, let’s follow David’s example.

When our souls are stressed, we need to cry out to the Lord and make the deliberate choice of faith to trust Him, rejoice in our salvation, sing praises and thank Him for His many blessings!