Reflections on the Immediate


Psalm 27
1The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?
2When evildoers assail me to eat up my flesh, my adversaries and foes, it is they who stumble and fall.
3Though an army encamp against me, my heart shall not fear; though war arise against me, yet I will be confident.
4One thing have I asked of the Lord, that will I seek after: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and to inquire in his temple.
5For he will hide me in his shelter in the day of trouble; he will conceal me under the cover of his tent; he will lift me high upon a rock.
6And now my head shall be lifted up above my enemies all around me, and I will offer in his tent sacrifices with shouts of joy; I will sing and make melody to the Lord.
7Hear, O Lord, when I cry aloud; be gracious to me and answer me!
8You have said, “Seek my face.” My heart says to you, “Your face, Lord, do I seek.”
9Hide not your face from me. Turn not your servant away in anger, O you who have been my help. Cast me not off; forsake me not, O God of my salvation!
10For my father and my mother have forsaken me, but the Lord will take me in.
11Teach me your way, O Lord, and lead me on a level path because of my enemies.
12Give me not up to the will of my adversaries; for false witnesses have risen against me, and they breathe out violence.
13I believe that I shall look upon the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living!
14Wait for the Lord; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the Lord!

I know we’re supposed to examine Psalm 67 today. I’ll save that for next week for it simply didn’t meet the need for today. Psalm 27 is my “go to” prayer when the world is an unmanageable place. This morning we again mourn the loss of our safety in the United States. Two men who should not be dead are; killed by seemingly panicked policemen. Five policemen are killed and numerous others are injured as a misguided person with a gun takes control of Dallas. It shakes our world and we are forced to look around and wonder from whence our protection can possibly come. The evil inside of our hearts is pouring out and we are helpless to stop it.

David’s words in this prayer hit the mark for me every time the foundations of this earth shake. Should someone seek to harm me, even to the point of death, I cannot be separated from God. Even should someone seek to harm those I love (which is a greater fear yet) I know that those who are found in Christ Jesus are safe and secure for all eternity. That moves me to tell as many people as I can that Jesus loves them and died for their sins. That is the only true security and it is the ultimate security. The Apostle Paul knew these facts too. He wrote about our place of total safety and wrote about it in Romans.

Romans 8:37–39
37No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, 39nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Today I lift up this psalm as a prayer for those who mourn the loss of their loved ones. Today I lift up this psalm for our entire nation as we try to come to grips with the fact that we have left God behind and believe we no longer need Him as our final Leader. We’re wrong about that and the events of yesterday prove that once again. When evil men get to do evil things we cannot turn to ourselves for answers because we don’t have any. We can only turn to God. I feel a little frustrated today, because my words do not capture the power of our Almighty God. My own frustration is petty and small compared to the greatness of God and the power of His love for us, shown in the blood of Jesus Christ for the sins of the world. We can rely on nothing else.

1The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?
2When evildoers assail me to eat up my flesh, my adversaries and foes, it is they who stumble and fall.
3Though an army encamp against me, my heart shall not fear; though war arise against me, yet I will be confident.

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