Sunday in the Psalms: Where Are You Safest?

 

PSALM 16

Keep me safe, my God, for in you I take refuge.

I keep my eyes always on the Lord. With him at my right hand, I will not be shaken.

—Psalm 16:1, 8 NIV

Scrolling social media can make you feel like you’re swinging from left wing to right and back again, barely hanging on. I read a lengthy post warning that if the U.S. military sets foot on Greenland, the remaining UN member states will be obligated to band together against the United States. Immediately following was a post admonishing us Canadians to stand with the United States because if it goes down, we go down.

As an author of novels set during World War II, I think of the days when 18-year-olds were drafted. I try to imagine my grandson and his friends being called up. It seems unfathomable today. How would they respond? Would they lay aside the war games on their screens to fight a real one? Would they even care enough about their country to fight? Who are we relying on to protect us? Oh, how quickly one’s thoughts can turn to chaos, fear, and anxiety. 

I closed my phone and turned to my scripture for the day. The words that met me in the sixteenth psalm felt like a balm of truth. Only one true source of safety exists. I recalled missionaries stating, “The safest place on earth is in the center of God’s will.” Regardless of what’s going on around us—wars, rumors of war, threats, disasters, violence, disease, deprivation—the truth stands. Keeping our eyes on the Lord is our only real refuge. It will never fail.

 

Action Step: Next time you feel yourself becoming anxious about the news or warnings on social media, try unplugging and focusing on God’s Word.

Sundays in Psalms: Making It Right

                      PSALM 15 

Lord, who may dwell in your sacred tent? Who may live on your holy mountain?

The one whose walk is blameless, who does what is righteous,
    who speaks the truth from their heart;

—Psalm 15:1-2 NIV

I returned home from the office supply store and checked my receipt. Because of a mix-up when I refunded one set of pens and purchased another, I realized I owed the store a couple of dollars. It would have been easy to let it slide. But I knew living with the guilt would not be worth it. I returned to the store and paid the difference—to the clerk’s surprise.

In Psalm 15, David asks who is qualified to live with God. The answer appears to describe a perfect person. It’s easy to read those words and decide outright that no one qualifies, because none of us has perfectly succeeded in that long list. Others might read those words and see themselves as righteous while easily pinpointing others who are not—particularly people in the public eye and in leadership positions. Yet David himself fell short in some big ways, and he was a king.

David, of course, knows only the basic behavior-based system of the Old Covenant, where those who have pleased God with this kind of performance can expect blessing from God. It’s about a person’s overall character—not that they never mess up, but when they do, they admit it quickly and make it right instead of covering it up. Although our righteousness comes from Christ alone, He can make us people of character and integrity.

Question for Reflection: Last time an error left me on the winning end of a financial transaction, did I make it right?

Sundays in Psalms: Fight or Flight?

 

PSALM 14

The fool says in his heart, “There is no God.”

You evildoers frustrate the plans of the poor, but the Lord is their refuge.

—Psalm 14:1, 6 NIV

A commotion on the sidewalk in front of my house drew me to the window. One young man shouted threats and obscenities to another, while another man and a woman stood by, hollering at them to stop. A stroller stood to the side. Not knowing who belonged with whom, I grabbed my cellphone and hurried out the front door. I announced that I was calling the police, my heart pounding as the fight escalated. Two toddlers in the stroller strained to see what was unfolding. I grabbed the stroller handle and pushed the children down the block and around the corner, hoping to at least prevent their witnessing this if I couldn’t stop the fight. Of course, I prayed the entire time.

In hindsight, I believe the first man was on a drug that can result in unprovoked violence. He eventually settled down enough to continue down the sidewalk, still yelling, while the woman with him followed and the two with the stroller carried on the opposite way. I wanted to invite the woman into my house for her safety, but feared for my own. I'll probably forever wonder how I could have handled that better.

This psalm describes perfectly what happens when God is not acknowledged. It would seem hopeless if not for the concluding verses that inspire hope that God will ultimately restore justice. David calls for both introspection and a commitment to seeking God while living in a corrupt world.

 Question for Reflection: When confronted with the evil in our world, am I more likely to hide or to stand up and fight?

Sundays in Psalms: Feeling Forgotten?

 

PSALM 13

How long, Lord? Will you forget me forever?

    How long will you hide your face from me?  —Psalm 13:1 NIV

At 53, I was diagnosed with a chronic lung disease called Bronchiectasis, complicated by Mycobacterium avium complex (MAC Lung Disease). I was told, “You won’t die from this, but you will die with it.” Fifteen years later, I’ve managed to continue life ordinarily—at least to those outside my household. Only my husband sees how much I sleep and hears how much I cough. Only God knows how often I release similar prayers to the one David prayed in this psalm. We don’t know what sort of infirmity David suffered, but all of us can relate to his conviction that God has abandoned him. When we’re suffering from pain and fatigue, when we’ve prayed for healing but not received it, when we’re waiting for answers that do not come—it’s easy for our frail human emotions to fall into despair. And why shouldn’t we? If God ever truly did turn his back on us, despair would be the only appropriate response.

I’m so glad David, by his example, lets us know it’s okay to pour all this out to God when we’re feeling it. To deny those emotions would only drive us further from Him, because to challenge Him with “why” and “when” means that deep down, we know He’s still listening, regardless of how we feel. That’s how David can conclude this gut-wrenching psalm in victory, declaring that he will trust in God’s unfailing love and rejoice in His salvation. 

Faith Step: When you feel forgotten or abandoned by God, tell him exactly how you feel. He can handle all our sincere questions and challenges.

Sundays in the Psalms: One Simple Prayer that Could Change Everything

 PSALM 12

Everyone lies to their neighbor;
    they flatter with their lips
    but harbor deception in their hearts.

—Psalm 12:2 NIV

With the emergence of AI-generated images, videos, and words, one never knows what to believe anymore. “I saw it with my own eyes” doesn’t mean much. Anyone can be made to appear to be doing or saying almost anything. Disturbing, isn’t it? Yet how many of us are truly transparent? We are all selling ourselves in some way, whether it’s to push a product, win a greater following, or simply to follow the standards of acceptable social behavior and good manners.

Whenever I’m asked what super-power I’d pick if I could, I give the same answer: the ability to hear only truth. Think about it. If every lie were mute, so that the only thing we heard was the truth, how much greater would be our discernment, how easy our decision-making? Political promises would change. Children’s explanations would sound much different. Even the lies we tell ourselves would be silenced, opening the door for us to receive and believe what God says about us. We’d be healthier, happier, more productive people. What a gift! Thankfully, we have Jesus. He perfectly discerns truth from lies every time. He even called Himself “The Truth.” One of the things I like to pray, especially when walking into a difficult situation, is, “Lord, may only truth be spoken in this room today. Silence every lie before it becomes audible.” Imagine what could happen if every courtroom, government meeting, church, and home were bathed in that prayer.

 

Faith Step: Try praying the prayer given above next time you’re preparing for an important meeting where it may not be easy to discern truth. See what happens.

Sundays in Psalms: Is Your Foundation Crumbling?

 PSALM 11

When the foundations are being destroyed,
    what can the righteous do?

 The Lord is in his holy temple;
    the Lord is on his heavenly throne.
He observes everyone on earth;
    his eyes examine them.

—Psalm 11:3-4 NIV

During the American Civil War, so many people died or were left wounded, orphaned, widowed, or poor. Broken in a hundred different ways. Yet good came from it, and the country survived. As a Canadian, I wonder how the rest of the world viewed the United States during that time. Since they didn’t have access to instant news as we do, many likely had no idea what was going on. Or perhaps they were too busy trying to survive to care. Maybe slave owners in other counties watched carefully to see what would happen. If the North won, the emancipation of slaves might spread to their country as well. Their foundations were being threatened. Those who were enslaved, however, would look to the leadership of the Americans with hope. An entirely new life might be possible for them and their children!

Does it feel like your foundations are being destroyed—in your country, your church, or your family? When Christian leaders fall, does your faith fall with them? When your marriage is in trouble, does that mean your life is too? When your nation is feeling threatened by internal division and outside terrorism, does it feel like there is no place to run? God assures us in Psalm 11 that He is on His throne always. He sees and knows. He is the only One we can truly run to and count on, forever.

 Question for reflection: In what ways have I experienced God’s faithfulness and power, even when life’s foundations feel like they are crumbling?

Sundays in the Psalms: Justice is Coming

PSALM 10

Why, Lord, do you stand far off?
    Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble?

You, Lord, hear the desire of the afflicted;
    you encourage them, and you listen to their cry,
defending the fatherless and the oppressed,
    so that mere earthly mortals will never again strike terror.

—Psalm 10:1, 17-18 NIV

Tune into the evening news any night of the week, and you’ll no doubt find yourself asking the same questions David asked at the beginning of this psalm. We wonder why God doesn’t deal severely and immediately with leaders who mock Him, who live without compassion for their fellow man, who believe themselves indestructible. After the initial questions, the psalmist goes to great lengths to describe the actions and attitudes of the wicked. We can easily relate, because they are no different today. We see the arrogant and boastful growing more powerful and rich. We hear lies when we crave truth. We feel helpless, yet our hearts long to see justice done. Why is this so important to us?

Justice matters to us for the same reason we are drawn to books and movies in which good triumphs over evil. We’re unsatisfied until justice prevails, because we are made in the image of God and God loves justice. He also loves mercy—as do we, at least for ourselves and our loved ones. Toward ourselves, we’d like God to extend grace. By the end of the psalm, we’re reminded that God does indeed hear the cries of the downtrodden. In His mercy, He frequently waits longer than we would like. We’re reassured that He sees, He knows, and He can be trusted to do something about it.

Questions for reflection: How much do I trust God, in His timing, to deliver justice? Where, throughout history, can I see that He has done exactly that?