Bourland Family Blog

"Let all the earth fear the LORD; let all the people of the world revere Him. For He spoke and it came to be; He commanded and it stood firm. The LORD foils the plans of the nations; He thwarts the purposes of the peoples. But, the plans of the LORD stand firm forever, the purposes of His heart through all the generations."
Psalms 33:8-11

HAPPY BIRTHDAY BELLA!! Today is Bella’s 20th Birthday! As you know from reading this blog that she is on the mission field in Guatemala and her mom and I could not be more proud of her. Everytime she calls we hear new growth in the LORD but what He is revealing to her on almost a daily basis. As our first child she is being an awesome model of God’s provision and sovereignty on our lives when we let Him be the LORD of our purpose and desires. Happy Birthday sweetheart! I love you sooo much!

Today is also Palm Sunday – the celebration of the day our LORD Jesus Christ rode into Jerusalem and was praised at the King of Israel with worship and singing “Hosanna! Blessed is He Who comes in the name of the LORD! Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David! Hosanna in the Highest” It is awesome to see how this points back to the Psalm today…David’s true kingdom, he belonged to, was the LORD’s and his singing in the Psalms is even passed down to the nation through generations to be sung as Jesus rides into the city on His triumphant entry. Today we celebrate this acknowledgemetn of who Jesus is; the LORD God of Heaven who has been given the inheritance of all things. In Jesus we too have received this inheritance. There is so much to praise and worship in Him today as we enter Holy Week.

"I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you and watch over you. Do not be like the horse or the mule, which have no under­standing but must be controlled by bit and bridle or they will not come to you. Many are the woes of the wicked, but the LORD's Unfailing Love surrounds the man who trusts in Him." 
Psalms 32: 8-10

Guatemala Update: Today Marianne and I did a Coffee Plantation Tour on ATVs with another dear couple, I was a ton of fun and super informational. This took most of the day but on our way back to our Hotel, we stopped by Starbucks for a cold drink and was able to see Bella for a few minutes to give her a big hug and say our goodbyes until May when we see her again. We have a Cultural walking tour through Antigua tomorrow and head back home on Wednesday morning.

I, the LORD, will Instruct you and teach you the way you should go,

• In this Psalm, David is giving us words from the LORD in regard to what God can do for us and how we should respond.
• Right here in God’s word we have divine instruction and teaching. It is God through His word that teaches and in structs. In His counsel, He also watches over us.

Don’t be like the horse or the mule who must be controlled by bit and bridle.

• As we have been going through Biblical counseling training to become counselors, we have talked about this lack of understanding. More importantly I think this is a lack of Godly fear. You go through the motions because someone told you to but there is no true understanding (internalization) as to the WHY.
• Someone I was counseling awhile back would go through the motions of behavior modification but the repentance was never there, Because of this lack of fear, they had many woes.

But! the LORD’s unfailing Love surrounds the man who trusts IN Him.

• We come to the separation in wisdom. Control without understanding is not a cooperative relationship. Placing our trust in the LORD means fearing the disappointment our actions cause the LORD. When we put our faith and trust in Him, we are spurred on to turn a 180 degrees from the sin before us.

Application:

• In my walk to be more like my Savior, I crave to honor the One Who gave up so much for me. I want to be in a place of dependence where I feel the Love of God surround me and receive His instruction, teaching, and counsel. Only then will I be able to be an instrument the LORD uses to teach, instruct, and cause others.

"Sing to the LORD, you saints of His; Praise His Holy name. For His anger lasts only a moment, but His favor lasts a lifetime; weeping may remain for a night, but rejoicing comes in the morning." 
Psalms 30:4-5

Guatemala Update: Last night was our final night with Bella and the rest of the ‘racers’ for this Parent Vision Trip. It was a very special evening. It started with Bella and the other racers washing the feet of their parents in gratitude and love and then a time of us reading a ‘Blessing’ over our racers. It was wonderful and emotional. I am so proud of Bella and who the Lord is shaping her to be.

Today we (Mariannd and I) start out little getaway together before returnng home. We will be changing hotels for the last 3 nights and have some sightseeing activities planned before returning home on Wednesday.

A Wonderful Relationship:

• The Psalmist gives us such amazing insight in these 2 verses,
• The saints of the LORD sing to Him and praise His Holy name.
• We may disappoint and even anger the LORD, but that lasts such a short time compared to the favor we have from Him over a lifetime because we are His children. As a father, I identity with this.
• In our emotion that follows the circumstances and situations of our lives, we may be sad for an evening but our Joy in the LORD follows in the morning.

Application:

As children of the Lord who have been adopted into God’s family, due to the perfect sacrifice of Jesus, we have God the Father’s favor for our whole lives, When we fall, we can bank on disappointing the Father, but just like I can’t stay angry at my girls when they have done something wrong, my Father in heaven is just as quick to return to the favor He has for me. Likewise, when I understand and embrace the hope I have in eternity, I may be sad for an evening but that hope in eternity quickly turns to joy the next morning. As a Saint of the king, I will sing to and praise His name!

"The voice of the LORD is over the waters; the God of glory thunders, the LORD thunders over the mighty waters. The voice of the LORD is powerful; the voice of the LORD is majestic." 
Psalms 28:3-4 

Guatemala update: Now that we know what Bella’s fever is, we have joined her as much as we can while she rests. We have talked, laughed, and enjoyed each others company. Marianne and I ventured out for some shopping and a stroll around the town which was nice and relaxing. Bella got word from Adventures In Missions that she has been accepted into their CGA program this coming fall. This was an amswer from the LORD to her for her to continue on the Missions focused work He has her on. Below are some pics from our walk yesterday.

His Voice:

• This whole Psalm talks about the power of the VOICE of God. The the Audio Picture of the power of God’s voice rolling or peeling across the water is so awesome.
• Water is such a chaotic force and the ocean can be so power­ful to bring even the largest ships under its control and thumb… but Gods voice rises above and rides the chaotic sea. It is important for us to take this picture and understand that God is above any problem life can throw at us.
• When the LORD speaks, things come into existence that were not there before. The raging seas become calm and the glory of the LORD’s voice brings-every one and everything prostrate before Himself.
• So… that’s all it would take for God to call in the end of times and bring about the Revelation version of Gods Kingdom.

Application:

• God’s voice is majestic and powerful. His right hand brings wrath but His voice brings His presence reverberabing through creation. God’s voice is available to us today (thorugh His Spirit and His Word) but it is only when I have clothed myself in the righteous­ness of Christ (when I confess and repent of my sin) that I can hear it. When I have created the “Whisper Booth” (those sound proof boxes they make for vocal recordings) of sin that keeps me from hearing the sweet soothing voice of content, peace, correction, and truth -> I only have one voice to focus on, the voice in my Jeremiah 17: 9 heart.

"Do not drag me away with the wicked, with those who do evil, who speak cordially with their neighbors but harbor malice in their hearts." 
Psalms 28:3 

Guatemala update: with Bella’s fever continuing, we took her to the Urgent care here in Antigua and did not get back to our hotels until close to 1:00AM this morning. We have a diagnosis- it is “Mono” or Mononucleosis. She just needs rest and water. The sweet gift has been a beautiful time getting to serve her and spending lots of special time sharing and connecting on her adventures so far.

Heart searching:

• When I read today’s passage this verse caused me to sit and reflect on whether I could admit to being the person described in this verse.
  • MALICE: The intention or desire to do evil; ill will.
• I cringe to think I could call my admittance to this as evil but ‘ill will’ resonates.
• There have been times in my life where I have kept up appearances but have, in my heart, felt differently than I was portraying myself.
• David identifies this person as ‘wicked’ and I am convicted that I can sometimes manage my behavior and outward appearance well, but the inside is seething with animosity.
• This is a really hard thing to confess here, but I have to call it what it is and God’s Word, right here, is pretty clear.

Application:

Moving forward, it will not be enough to manage my behavior or outward perception. I must carefully examine my heart and not have a shred of evidence that would cause me to be convicted of being ‘Wicked’.

"I am still confident in this: I will see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the iving. wait for the LORD; be strong and take heart and wait for the LORD." 
Psalms 27: 13&14

Today is day 3 with Bella in Guatemala. She has been sick ever since she arrived from South Africa. We got her some anti­biotics the first day we were here and we think it is helping. However, in true Bella fashion she is wanting to keep going and even went out with us to the Ministry service we did yesterday. Today she is staying in bed so the rest of the week she can be in better form. Just a side note- the full run of antibiotics we got for her was $6.00 and over the counter.

I am still confident.

• David’s humanity shines right here. I can totally hear him coaching himself in an internal dialog with this Psalm.
• I need to learn from what David is saying. “I WILL see the goodness of the LORD”. but the verse doesn’t stop there → it goes on to say “In the land of the living.” The land of the living is the place our heart and mind are when our hope and faith are connected with who God is and where He is going.

Wait!

• “wait for the LORD” ->The LORD’s timing is perfect, our timing is suspect. When I am seeking the LORD’s direction in my life I must wait on His answer and guidance.
• While I am waiting I must “be strong and take heart”. I must be strong in my patience and self-control and take heart by listening to the hope and faith the LORD has given me in my sanctification. Taking heart means to grow in confidence that the LORD will come through.
• .. And finally I am encouraged by David to wait… again. Waiting is obviously the virtue that David needs to remind himself the most to do.

"One thing I ask from the LORD, this only do I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all of my life; that I might gaze upon the beauty of the LORD and seek Him in His temple. In my day of trouble He will keep me safe in His dwelling, He will hide me me in the shelter of His sacred tent and set me high upon a rock." 
Psalms 27:4&5

Wouldn’t it be fitting that the time and place that I run into these verses would be when we are visiting Bella on the MIssion Field in Guatemala. These are her life verses and we have prayed them over her for all the years of her life. The time here has been so awesome!! I have included some pictures below of our time here so far.

One thing I ask for and seek.

• That I would dwell in His house all the days of my life; to see His face, and seek Him there,

In days of trouble

• I am kept safe when I am in an intimate relationship with Him.
• He will hide me in the shelter of His sacred tent. I think this is Jesus. His sacred tent is the justification in His son that I don’t deserve but that I have access to because of my acceptance of this free gift.

After all of this He sets me high upon a rock.

• Verse 6 says: “Them my head will be exalted above the enemies who surround me.”
• One way to apply this is to see that when I am in the right relationship with Jesus and the Father, the Holy Spirit reveals all the enemy positions around me.
• I can walk forward in life with all the situational awareness that Heaven has to offer. I then only need to listen to what the Spirit is telling me and act appropriately on that information,

Who shall ascend the hill of the Lord? And who shall stand in his holy place? He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not lift up his soul to what is false and does not swear deceitfully.
Psalms 24:3-4 [ESV]

Verse 3: Who SHALL ascend and stand in His holy place? -> I love the explicit declaration that whoever meets the following criteria SHALL ascend and stand.

The Attributes:

He who has clean hands and pure heart -> This person must be innocent inside and out. Innocent in actions and their minds…including their motives.

He who does not lift up his soul to what is false and does not swear deceitfully. -> False worship is one interpretation (from NIV). The person allowed entry into the holy place must not worship an idol or offer oaths in the name of a false god. Additionally, it is pointing to someone who does not lie or make promises they have no intention of keeping.

The Takeaway:

At first blush this is depressing because we are inherently sinful and even though I am a born again Christian and devoted to Jesus, I will fall. So, I don’t think the Psalmist is saying these things are a self-righteous declaration as much as it is a solemn admission of dependence on the merciful grace of God. I SHALL ascend and stand in the holy place because I am cleansed by the precious blood of my Savior when I confess and repent of my sin. Because of the redemptive work of God through Jesus, I am able to meet these qualifications.