It was my typical Monday morning routine. The alarm goes off at 5:00 AM and I agonize
about leaving the warm bed for the cold air of a five-mile run with my running
buddy. Hesitantly, I decide I can’t let
him down and begin to get ready for the exercise that awaits. I arrive at our designated meeting area and
wait for his arrival. When the clock
hits 5:40 and he is still not there I vacillate between excitement that I do
not have to run, and frustration that I left sleep for nothing (I realize later
I missed his text saying he could not make it due to his son being sick all
night). Ultimately, I have a decision to
make- run by myself or return home and continue with the other parts of my
daily routine? I choose the latter, skip the run, and head back to the house.
As I turn the car back on, I hear two men harkening back to
better years in the USA, and how we are on a path for economic calamity and
ultimately all of us will be taxed into oblivion because of our out of control
government. It really is just the
message you want to hear first thing Monday morning!
Trying to pick myself up from that edifying message I arrive
back at my house, find my Bible and open to the day’s reading; actually I open
to the prior two days’ reading as I had inexplicably missed those days. What I find was exactly the antidote needed
to the doomsday message from the radio.
Psalm 56:11
“In God I trust and am not afraid.
What can man do to me?
Psalm 57:1
“Have mercy on me, my God, have mercy on me, for in you I take refuge
in the shadow of your wings until the disaster has passed.”
Here is what I know.
All of us are facing obstacles, fears, depression and calamities that we
feel are bigger than us. It is easy to
be terrified of those things. Maybe it
is the “certain” economic collapse of the world’s economy, maybe it is the fear
that a wayward child brings, or the fear of a medical issue or a personal
financial crisis. Who knows what it is
for you, but I hope Psalm 56 jumps off the page at you like it did for me. In God
I trust and am not afraid. What can man
do to me?
When we look at our problem(s) it is easy to fear! Problems are scary. They can feel overwhelming and
debilitating. However, despite how our
problems make us feel they are not greater than God. In this Psalm we are called to trust God
(look at Him) and when we do, fear will subside, and we can confidently ask, “What can man do to me?”
As we turn to Psalm 57 we see the psalmist cry out for
mercy. I think David is crying out for mercy because he knows God is just to do
as He wills and thus he is calling out for God’s protection as Saul pursues
him. David feels his life is in danger.
Maybe you feel your life, or at least your purpose for living, is in danger
also. David’s model is one we would do
well to follow. David cries to God, for He is the giver of
life. We would do well to do the same. The verse goes on however; not only does
David cry out for mercy to the One who can give mercy, but he makes a simple
and profound statement about where he will hide in the midst of the
disaster. David chose to hide in the
shadow of God’s wing. He did not hide in
broad daylight. He did not cry out for
mercy and then live as if providing a blueprint on how the danger could find
him. He protected himself from the enemy.
In his case the enemy was Saul.
In your case and mine it could be negative self-talk, listening to the
wrong people or messages or failing to surround yourself with the truth of God’s
word. David hid in the shadow of the Almighty
and found rest. What a lesson for me and
for you. When disaster is upon you do
not ‘hide’ in broad daylight, but hide in the wing of Christ. He is trustworthy. He will keep you from fearing. He is safe!
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