Step Behind the Shield

My nephew and I were playing catch in the backyard the other day. We had a fuzzy ball and two round paddles with some sort of Velcro-type material stretched across to ensure that if the ball gets anywhere near your hand, it's sure to stay. 

It's a fun game, one I myself enjoyed when I was four, but it wasn't long before my imaginative little opponent decided something else would be even more fun. 

"I know!" he cried, holding up his velcro-paddle, "Let's play shields!" 

He then proceeded to rattle off a series of simple statements which turned out to be a set of very complicated rules. --After all, when you let a four-year-old make up the rules, they are subject to frequent and unannounced change. But basically, we pretended to "blast" one another, while using our "shields" to protect us from our adversary's blast. And somehow, he always happened to win...

The next day, I came across a verse that mentioned a shield:

"Every word of God is pure: He is a shield unto them that put their trust in Him" (Proverbs 30:5)

As Christians, we know that God is our shield. There are lots of verses that talk about God being our refuge, our fortress, our shield, basically our protector in every sense. But what stood out to me about this verse is the first phrase. How does God's word being pure connect to the thought that God is our shield? 

Well, the first connection that springs to mind is the fact that God's Word is His Word. It is an extension of Himself. He Himself is our shield, but His Word is a part what He uses to shield us. 

I did a quick search on the word "shield" in the Bible, and found this verse:

"He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under His wings shalt thou trust: His truth shall be thy shield and buckler." (Psalm 91:4)

Notice that it said that God was the One who would be giving that protective cover, but His truth would be both shield and buckler. I think we all know what a shield is: it's something that protects, that intercepts an attack that otherwise would harm. I looked up "buckler" in my 1828 Webster's dictionary and found the following definition: 

"Buckler: A kind of shield, or piece of defensive armor, anciently used in war. It was composed of wood, or wickers woven together, covered with skin or leather, fortified with plates of brass or other metal, and worn on the left arm. On the middle was an umbo, boss or prominence, very useful in causing stones and darts to glance off. The buckler was four feet long, and covered the whole body."*

I'm no Hebrew scholar, but I was intrigued by the use of these two words which appear to mean the same thing. I looked up both words in my Strong's Exhaustive Concordance, and found that, while it is appropriate to translate either word as both "shield" or "buckler", the two words are actually very different, indeed. 

The word translated "shield" meant to protect "as if guarding by prickliness", (think hedgehog) while the word translated "buckler" meant, "something surrounding the person. i.e. shield, buckler." 

The word translated "shield" in Proverbs 30:5 was yet another word for shield, but in the manner of "the scaly hide of the crocodile". 

This information gives us an even deeper look at how God's Word protects. As an extension of God our Protector, it is tough and impenetrable, like a scaly crocodile hide. Its truth protects us both by offensively "prickling" up to keep the enemy at a distance, and by defensively surrounding us with its defenses to keep the enemy's attacks from touching us, no matter which angle his forces bombard. 

This reminds me of Ephesians 6:16.

"Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked."  

Now, you might not see how this is related, since it is faith that is called the shield in this passage, and because the Word of God is included in this list as "the sword of the Spirit" in the very next verse. The connection comes when we remember Romans 10:17, which says, 

"So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God"

The foundation of the faith which quenches the fiery darts of the wicked is the Word of God itself. According to Strongs, the Greek word used here means "a large shield (as door-shaped)." Think of yourself surrounded by a shield that is tough, prickly, and specially designed to guard the door of your heart by quenching even the most destructive dart Satan could throw. 

And as Proverbs 30:5 reminds us, the purity and truth of God's Word is the bedrock on which that foundation rests. Because God's Word is true, we can trust what it says: because we can trust what it says, we can trust in the God it proclaims. Our trust then prompts us to yield ourselves to His protection, to step behind the shield.

So, dear reader, what are you waiting for? Open your Bible. 

Step behind the shield. 

*Webster, Noah. American Dictionary of the English Language. New York: S. Converse, 1828.  

3 Ways Christians Can Help America

On this 244th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, our nation is in the midst of several kinds of turmoil. For Bible-believing Christians, it can be discouraging to look around and see our country pushing away God, His Word, and everything we stand for. 

But we are neither hopeless nor helpless. We can fight back by doing the three things God has us here on earth to do. 

1. Pray

God has instructed us to pray for our nation. The most commonly quoted verse regarding prayer for a nation is 2 Chronicles 7:14, where God tells Solomon: 

"If My people, which are called by My name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land."

Although this verse is a promise from God to Solomon, and specifically concerning the Jewish people, that same God is our God, and we are His people. He does answer when we pray, He does want us to seek His face, and He does want to forgive sin. So, I definitely think it is appropriate to use this verse as a reminder of the heart God wants behind our prayers, and of the loving attitude He has towards His people. 

We should also pray for America because of 1 Timothy 2:1-4

"I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men; For kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty. For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior; Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth."

This brings us to the second way we as Christians can help our country:

2. Give the Gospel

The answer to all the turmoil we see in our nation today is the gospel. Our nation will only change if individual citizens change, and God is the only One who can change the individuals. What our nation needs is for people to accept Christ as Savior and know the peace that forgiveness brings. 

3. Live the Gospel

How are people going to see that God has the power to deliver them from their guilt, shame, anger, fear, disappointment, addiction, worry, bitterness, or anything else, if we don't show them by living in the power of the gospel ourselves? 

Romans 6:4 says, "Therefore we are buried with Him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life."

Because Christ is risen, we have newness of life; not just in heaven, but right here, right now. That newness of life should characterize our daily lives. --After all, we are the light of the world. Matthew 5:16 says "Let your life so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven."

We can help America by simply being the Christians God wants us to be, praying for our nation, and sharing the gospel. 

So, as you celebrate the founding of our nation, remember that the future of America depends on you and me and our relationships, both with God and with our fellow Americans.

Why Church is Important (even when it doesn't feel like church)

I don't know what church looks like for you these days, but likely, it looks different than it's ever looked before. As our church has begun the process of reopening, I know many of us have struggled to get back into the routine of "in-person" church. 

For some, the challenge has been to break away from the pull of comfort. Inertia can be difficult to overcome, whether we've gotten used to sleeping in on Sundays, or having a cup of coffee in our pajamas while we watch a livestreamed service. The struggle to break away from comfort is real. 

And why is it a struggle to go from couch to church service? Because comfort feeds our flesh, and Satan most definitely does not want us to break away from a habit our flesh enjoys. 

But that's not the only challenge these days. For many, the greatest challenge is that church just doesn't feel like church anymore. 

In our state, the coronavirus restrictions require us to have no more than 25 people in the same room, which necessarily limits how many people can interact with each other. We are also required to wear masks when inside the building, which, again, makes things very different. There are no hugs or handshakes, no passing of an offering plate, there's no choir, and any special music is prerecorded. 

I have heard many people say that they wonder if it's even worth going to church, if this is what church is going to be like. Perhaps we should all just stay home and watch the service on our couches.  Why put ourselves through all the effort of showing up, if it's not going to feel like church?

In thinking through this for myself, I realized there were two basic questions that needed to be answered: What is the purpose of church, and can that purpose still be fulfilled with the regulations that are in place?

To answer the first question, I checked my initial thoughts against what Ryrie had to say in his Basic Theology. I came up with three purposes for meeting as a church. 

1. Church is for the purpose of corporate worship. Honestly, I think this might be what is tripping many of us up. Satan wants us to think church is for us, when really, church is for God. Whether singing, reading from God's Word or hearing it preached, telling our friends about an answer to prayer, or even giving, every part of our church experience should be focused on God. Worshiping together is a major function of the church. 

2.Church is for the purpose of fellowship. Now, this is where most of us will get teary-eyed, thinking about all the fellowship we used to have at church before the pandemic.  And it's true, our fellowship is somewhat limited by all the rules and regulations, but I was convicted by Ryrie's description of what fellowship is all about: 

"The goal... is to increase the health, strength, commitment, and numbers of the body"*

With this in mind, think about what you're missing. Is it the opportunity to strengthen, nurture, or build a fellow Christian up in the Lord? Or are we just missing chatting with our friends about our week? 

3. Church is for the purpose of meeting physical needs through giving. There are lots of passages I could quote on this one, but I want to point out that this isn't just about weekly tithes and missions giving. This is about that one single mom who comes to church burdened because she doesn't know how she will pay her rent. She asks for prayer, and after the service, a church member puts an envelope in Pastor's hand with just the amount she needed. --That's not going to happen over livestream. 

But let's assess each of these: I'm going to use my church's situation as an example, just because that's what I'm familiar with. 

First of all, can we still worship together? You could say, the answer is "yes and no". No, we can't all of us worship together in the same room. But yes, we can worship together. In our case, each group can have up to 25 people worshiping together. But even on Wednesdays when we're only livestreaming,  and there's just three of us sitting in the sanctuary, it's still church. Remember, Jesus said, "For where two or three are gathered together in My name, there am I in the midst of them." (Matthew 18:20) 

So can we justify the effort of coming to church even if our group ends up with only two or three people? Certainly!

Next, there's fellowship. Can we still increase the health, strength, commitment, and numbers of the church? Again, the obvious answer is "yes, but not as much as usual." However, we make the most impact on those with whom we have a relationship. Much of our interaction at church tends to be with those we're familiar with. But now that we have smaller groups, and people thrown together who usually may not have interacted as much at church, we have an even greater opportunity to fulfill the purpose of fellowship. We will naturally find ways to communicate with our particular friends, but what about others in the church? This limitation (and it is a limitation) of fellowship could actually be turned into a great opportunity. The dividing up of God's people could actually lead to greater unity when we come together later on.  So, is it worth the effort to seek to strengthen and nurture those with whom we "do church" each week? Definitely! 

Finally, meeting physical needs through giving. While we don't pass a plate around at our church, there is still a way to give in person. But of course, there is still online giving, so why should we make an effort to be at church because of giving? It is because of instances like I mentioned above. In the course of fellowshipping, we often discover needs that people wouldn't have told us of otherwise. Perhaps it is a need God will prompt us to pray about, or perhaps He will prompt us to meet that need, but my point is, meeting together gives the church an opportunity to find out about needs so that God can use the church to meet them. Is this still possible in a smaller group? Of course it is! In fact, people might be more comfortable sharing needs in a smaller group. 

If you still need an answer for the question of why church is important when it doesn't feel like church, go back to the first point again. Church is about God. Church is important, because God is important. Surely honoring Him is worth the effort!  

* (Ryrie, 499)

A Sinless Response to Suffering

This week I began reading through the book of Job in my time with God, as I do at least once every year. It's amazing to me just how rich a book this is, and how often it gets overlooked by Christians who label it as one of the "hard" books, right up there with Leviticus and Ecclesiastes. I won't say it's necessarily easy to read 37 chapters of anguish of soul, but there is so much for us to learn about God and our own trials through this account of Job's experiences. 

This time, as I read through the first two chapters, I was struck by what God said about Job's response to suffering. 

God allowed Satan to test Job's faithfulness by taking away all he had: livestock, servants, wealth, and, worst of all, his children. He was left with just his wife and the three servants who had escaped to bring Job word of what had happened.

Think about the enormity of his loss.

Now look at his response:

"Then Job arose, and rent his mantle, and shaved his head, and fell down upon the ground, and worshipped, And said, Naked came I out of my mother's womb, and naked shall I return thither: the Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord." (1:20-21)

First, he acknowledged his grief. He rent his clothes and shaved his head, as was customary in the culture of the day. But then, in his grief, he fell down upon the ground and worshipped. 

He acknowledged God's right to take what He had given Job in the first place. He did not blame God, he did not even ask why. He just surrendered to God's will. 

And then he praised God. 

What a remarkable thing to do. I don't know if I would think to praise God in light of such grief and loss, but that is what Job did. And lest we think he was somehow harmfully repressing his emotions, look at God's view of Job's response:

"In all this Job sinned not, nor charged God foolishly." (1:22)

Job sinned not.

Right there, in the midst of a magnitude of loss most people will never even come close to experiencing, Job responded sinlessly. He did not blame God, he did not argue with God. He simply accepted what God had allowed and chose to praise Him in the midst of his grief. Though Job was a sinner, just like you and I, this was one thing God said he did right.

But Job's testing was not over: Satan again accused Job before God, this time citing Job's health as the source of his faithfulness to God. So God in His wisdom --and yes, in His goodness, too-- allowed Satan to bring upon Job an ailment that would cause constant and intense suffering. Then, in the midst of his physical and emotional agony, his own wife tells him to "curse God, and die." Supportive, huh?

This was Job's response to her:

"What? Shall we receive good at the hand of God, and shall we not receive evil?" (2:10)

This response shows Job's unshakable commitment to the truth that God has the right to do whatever He deems best. How ungrateful we are to eagerly take His blessings, only to complain when He allows them to be removed, as if they were ours all along!

I'm reminded of a quote from Anne of Green Gables, where Marilla tells Anne, "God does not want you for a fair-weather friend". 

When suffering comes, it is easy to focus on the trial, seeing nothing but darkness around us, but Job's response shows us that when darkness surrounds us, when pain engulfs us from every direction, we can look up and find peace of heart in knowing that God is in control. 

God approves of this response as well: "In all this did not Job sin with his lips." (10)

The sinless response to suffering is to look up, acknowledge God's sovereignty, and trust His unchanging goodness. It is to surrender to God's will, and to praise Him, not just in spite of, but because of what He has given and taken away. In short, it is to trust Him.

 Fully. Completely. Stubbornly. 

Trust Him. 

"Behold, we count them happy which endure. Ye have heard of the patience of Job, and have seen the end of the Lord; that the Lord is very pitiful, and of tender mercy."

James 5:11

Psalm 37: Truth for Tumultuous Times Part 3

In the last two posts, we've walked through the first 26 verses of Psalm 37, noting how God wants us to respond to times of tumult by resting and trusting, being content with what God has allowed us, and standing firm on the certainty that God will not forsake His own.

Today, we're picking up our passage in verse 27, with the continued theme of responding to the apparent prospering of the wicked by simply doing right. 

"Depart from evil, and do good; and dwell for evermore"

It's amazing in this passage just how many times God tells us why He wants us to respond the way He does. 

"For the Lord loveth judgment, and forsaketh not His saints; they are preserved for ever: but the seed of the wicked shall be cut off. The righteous shall inherit the land, and dwell therein for ever."  (28-29)

Those are encouraging truths, to be sure! Our departing from evil and doing good should be motivated by the fact that we are God's --we belong to Him, and He will preserve us "for ever". The wicked may seem to be prospering, whether with fame, fortune, or success in driving situations or laws to further their own wicked goals, yet the wicked are ultimately acting in vain. God sees, God knows, God will judge. That should motivate us to be living in such a way that the wicked will see that we are different, because we belong to God.  

Next, God paints a picture of what this should look like:

"The mouth of the righteous speaketh wisdom, and his tongue talketh of judgement. The law of his God is in his heart; none of his steps shall slide." (30-31)

This is a good place for us to stop and check our own lives. How is your speech? Is it characterized by wisdom and judgement, rooted in the Word of God? You see, amidst the clamor and chaos of the world, our words should not just echo the din of opinions out there. We should be able to speak with authority from the certainty of the truths of God's Word. 

It is convicting to think how many words I say (or write) each day, and yet how few of those relate directly back to Scripture. I wonder what an impact it would make on our society if we as Christians began to commit to speaking God's truth instead of our opinion.  

God also gives us a portrait of the wicked. 

"The wicked watcheth the righteous, and seeketh to slay him." (32)

If it feels like the wicked have it out for you, it's because it really is true. The current crises in our country have made it even more clear to me that this world really does watch Christians to try to catch them tripping up in some way. 

I'm reminded of several men in Scripture who were watched with evil intent: Daniel and Mordecai come to mind right away, and of course, Jesus, whom the Pharisees were always watching, trying to find an excuse to put Him to death. 

Jesus explained this phenomenon when speaking to the Pharisees,

"Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh it of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it." (John 8:44)

Before salvation, sins such as lying and hatred and even murder were natural to us all, for we were sinful human beings, serving Satan. Once saved, the Holy Spirit indwells our hearts and does battle with our sin nature. With God's empowering, we can have victory over the sin which once was just a way of life. The wicked seek to destroy us because Satan seeks to destroy us. Darkness cannot coexist with light, truth cannot coexist with lies. That is why the battle rages. 

But lest we be discouraged by this reminder that the world (and our greatest enemy, Satan) watches us with the intent to destroy, God followed this truth up with another promise:

"The Lord will not leave him in his hand, nor condemn him when he is judged." (33)

God has already won the victory over Satan, and the wicked of this world will likewise perish, but even if it seems that God leaves us in their hand in this life, we will be free from their persecution for eternity to come. In the final judgment, all their efforts to destroy God's children will come back upon their own heads, and we who have accepted Christ's gift of salvation will be pardoned and welcomed home. 

The following verse gives another admonition:

"Wait on the Lord, and keep His way, and He shall exalt thee to inherit the land: when the wicked are cut off, thou shalt see it." (34)

I think this encapsulates everything God says in this psalm about responding to the wicked. Waiting on God covers delighting, resting, committing our ways to Him, and being content with what God has allowed. It includes keeping our eyes on God, letting Him order our steps and lift us up when we fall. If I had to choose one thought to give you from this passage it would be this: wait on the Lord. 

But God is not done. There's even more to encourage us!

"I have seen the wicked in great power, and spreading himself like a green bay tree. Yet he passed away, and, lo, he was not: yea, I sought him, but he could not be found." (35-36)

Here, as in verse 25, David gives us his Divinely-inspired words of testimony. This time, he illustrates the truth of just how fragile the rule of the wicked really is. 

I am reminded of the time (long after David's reign) when Jerusalem was besieged, and the hosts of Sennacharib had surrounded the city in all their pomp and might. Yet, when Hezekiah humbly prayed for deliverance, God took care of them in one night, without the Israelites having to do a thing! (2 Kings 19) 

 No matter how mighty the wicked may seem, no matter how strong the forces of spiritual warfare may appear to be, we must always remember that God is infinitely mightier and stronger, and it is He who will triumph --who has already triumphed-- on our behalf. 

"Mark the perfect man, and behold the upright: for the end of that man is peace. But the transgressors shall be destroyed together; the end of the wicked shall be cut off." (37-38)

Here is one last contrast: The end of the righteous is peace, but the end of the wicked is destruction. This should encourage, but also burden us. As easy as it is to talk about "the wicked" and "the world" (and it is Biblical to do so), it can be just as easy to forget that both those categories we speak of are collections of individuals. The wicked are headed for destruction, and while that is obviously meant in this passage to encourage us to do right no matter what they do, it also means that each one of those individuals in the world who have rejected Christ are headed to Hell for eternal punishment. More than anything, they need us to be Christlike testimonies and bold witnesses to the saving work of Christ. 

It is appropriate to pray for God's justice to be done, for that is God's heart: "to fulfill all righteousness", as Jesus said. (Matthew 3:15)  but it is just as much a part of God's heart and nature to pardon. We should never pray for the wicked to be judged without also praying that the wicked might be saved. 

After all, that's what we're here for, right? 

This psalm of encouragement ends by bringing us back to the root of the matter: 

"But the salvation of the righteous is of the Lord: He is their strength in the time of trouble. And the Lord shall help them, and deliver them from the wicked, and save them, because they trust in Him." (39-40)

Whatever happens in this crazy, turbulent, chaotic world of ours, we can rest assured that God is at work, and that our salvation from sin as well as our victory over the wicked are not of ourselves, but of God. It is He who gives us the power to "Depart from evil, and do good".

Psalm 37: Truth for Tumultuous Times Part 2

In my last post, we saw from Psalm 37:1-15 that God wants Christians to respond to the chaos and clamor of the wicked world around us by delighting in Him, resting, ceasing from anger, and doing good.

Of course the reason we can rest in the midst of the wicked world is because we know that God is the Judge of all, and because we trust that He will make it all right in due time. If you haven't read the post, click here to read it.

The next two verses of Psalm 37 continue the theme of how to respond when the wicked are prospering. 

"A little that a righteous man hath is better than the riches of many wicked. For the arms of the wicked shall be broken: but the Lord upholdeth the righteous." (16-17)

It can be so easy to look around and wonder why the wicked seem to "get away with" their wickedness, and even seem better off for it, but we who try to do right just barely scrape by financially. Or perhaps it is that the wicked seem to get far more attention than the righteous. The world shouts their message, but tries to silence ours.

Whatever it is that strikes you as most unfair about our current situation, God again calls us to respond oppositely to the world. The world shouts "that's unfair!" and stamps its feet like a tantrumy child, demanding to be noticed and placated, but God calls us to be content. After all, the little we have is better than their riches, because, unlike them, we have God on our side, and He owns it all!

We can meet unfairness with contentment, because we know God, and because He knows us. Look at the next verses in our passage:

"The Lord knoweth the days of the upright: and their inheritance shall be for ever. They shall not be ashamed in the evil time: and in the days of famine they shall be satisfied. But the wicked shall perish, and the enemies of the Lord shall be as the fat of lambs: they shall consume; into smoke shall they consume away." (18-20)

God knows, and will provide for us. However the wicked seem to prosper, they prosper only for this time. They have their riches for now, but we will have ours for eternity! Again, we are reminded that God sees the wickedness of the wicked, and will judge in due time.

Next, God contrasts the behavior of the wicked and the righteous in another area:

"The wicked borroweth, and payeth not again: but the righteous showeth mercy, and giveth. For such as be blessed of Him shall inherit the earth; and they that be cursed of Him shall be cut off.

Not only are we to delight where the world would worry, rest when the world would rage, and be content when the world would demand recompense, we are also to meet the world's dishonesty and greed with mercy and generosity. Again, we are to respond to the wicked by doing exactly the opposite of what they are doing.

I admit, it is hard to be generous to a greedy or stingy person. But isn't that what God does for us every day? Notice also that our generosity is fueled by His own. We can give because we are blessed by God, and are destined to "inherit the earth". I could go down a theological and eschatological rabbit trail here, but I'll save that for another day. The point is, we can afford to be generous, because everything we have has been provided by the One whose provision is limitless! He is more than capable of refilling anything we pour out to others. As my pastor likes to remind us, you just can't out-give God!

This generosity is not just financial, though. We are to be just as generous with our mercy. The knowledge of the eventual judgement toward which the wicked are heading should provoke pity in our hearts. After all, they are hurtling headlong into the hands of the Just and Righteous Judge, whose laws they have broken. It ought to burden our hearts, to motivate us to do all we can do to seek their salvation. After all, the greatest mercy we can ever show is to point a hell-bound sinner to Christ!

I'll end this post with some of the most encouraging verses in this passage. Against the backdrop of the darkness of this wicked world, God holds up a bright gem of hope:

"The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord: and He delighteth in his way. Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down: for the Lord upholdeth him with His hand. I have been young, and now am old; yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread. he is ever merciful, and lendeth; and his seed is blessed." (23-26)

Here is a real life testimony of God's hand of blessing on the one who walks in His ways. When the world tries to trip him up, the Lord is there to catch him. When he gives generously, the Lord provides his needs. Despite the hopelessness of the world, God is there, and has promised to take care of His own.

Psalm 37: Truth for Tumultuous Times Part 1

We live in a day when society at large is clamoring for many things. I'm not here to get into politics, but I do have to acknowledge that many of the things being pushed for right now are contrary to the word of God. The outright, unashamed wickedness being applauded by the world and even some Christians is appalling to say the least. Our streets are filled with protests that end with looting and violence, hatred and bigotry are hurled by both sides of the protests, and let's not forget that a pandemic is still raging. It can seem at times like the world, or at least our part of it, is spinning out of control.

But then, there's God.

Psalm 37 is a striking call to God's people to trust Him during tumultuous times. In the very first two verses, we are encouraged to see past our fear of the wicked, and our envy of their apparent success, to the truth of God's ultimate control over the situation.

"Fret not thyself  because of evildoers, neither be thou envious against the workers of iniquity. For they shall soon be cut down like the grass and wither as the green herb."

We are also told how we should respond to times when the wicked seem to prosper:

"Trust in the Lord, and do good; so shalt thou dwell in the land, and verily thou shalt be fed. Delight thyself also in the Lord; and He shall give thee the desires of thine heart.

We are to trust in the Lord, to continue to do good, just as He has commanded. We are to delight in Him. --Have you ever noticed how worry and delight cannot coexist? When we are delighting in the Lord, we will not be worrying about the wicked. 

Those things we worry over, those concerns and burdens, the desire for the wicked not to prosper any more; those are the hearts' desires we can trust God with. He may not do exactly what we would desire the way we think it should be done, but we do know that we can take our desires to Him, knowing that He will do what is right and best. Nancy DeMoss Wolgemuth often says that God's will is what we would choose if we knew all that He knows. We can trust God with our heart's desires.

Not only are we called to delight in the Lord, we are to commit our way unto Him,

"Commit thy way unto the Lord; trust also in Him; and He shall bring it to pass."

Again we are told to trust Him. But again, we are told the result --and it is glorious!

"He shall bring forth thy righteousness as the light, and thy judgement as the noonday."

No matter what the wicked do or say, God will never be fooled. He will one day recognize the faithfulness of those who meet the onslaught of wickedness with a consistent, Spirit-filled righteousness. I don't know about you, but to me, a "well done" from God is well worth having to bear the censure of the world.

The next verse calls us to something surprising: rest. With the wicked seeming to prosper, society applauding them and pressuring us to applaud along with them, we're supposed to rest?

But that's exactly what God says to do:

"Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him: fret not thyself because of him who prospereth in his way, because of the man who bringeth wicked devices to pass."

Notice that the way we are to rest is by waiting patiently for the Lord. I don't know about you, but I often have a hard time waiting, and an even harder time waiting patiently. Interestingly enough, when we look around at the world and see the individuals swept up in the chaos of riots, what characterizes them?

Impatience.

They want justice. That's not wrong. But they want it now. That's where the riots come from. These rioters are too impatient to wait for the due process of the law.  Our country is built upon principles and laws that make provision for the lawful pursuit of justice. Rioting is not one of them.

These concerned citizens have the right to protest, to publish their pleas for justice, their opinions about what the problem is, and their plans for a solution. In our age of technology, they can do this via poster, newspaper, magazine, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, television, documentary, not to dismiss the venerable tradition of the old-fashioned mailer. But any effort at change requires a measure of patience.

The same holds true to us as we watch changes taking place in our country and our society that serve to pull people farther away from God. We watch, we worry, we fume at times over the blatant wickedness being held up for approbation, but God calls us to rest.

Why? For the simple reason that He is the Judge of all, and will surely make everything right in the end. In fact, it's not just rest and patience that are required.

"Cease from anger, and forsake wrath: fret not thyself in any wise to do evil"

When we are resting in the knowledge of God's perfect justice, we not only will be able to rest in Him, we will "cease from anger, and forsake wrath". Did you know that impatience with God's justice system results in anger? And anger unchecked will result in evildoing.

Take the recent protests, for example. The people were protesting because they wanted justice. Yet their protests began long before our justice system even had time to hold a hearing concerning the three officers involved. They wanted "instant" justice. Sounds like impatience, right? Then, as they protested, they became more and more angry, and their anger, once unleashed, led to certain of the protesters committing injustices of their own: looting, destroying others' property, injuring, and even killing others.

This is what God is commanding us not to do in the face of injustice. We are to patiently wait for God's justice, to allow our trust in His timing to remove all anger from our hearts. We are to do good instead of evil, refusing to allow anger to make us act in a way that reflects the wicked actions that made us angry in the first place.

There is good reason for us to trust. God Himself says it:

"For evildoers shall be cut off: but those that wait upon the Lord, they shall inherit the earth.

For yet for a little while, and the wicked shall not be: yea, thou shalt diligently consider his place, and it shall not be.

But the meek shall inherit the earth; and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace.

The wicked plotteth against the just, and gnasheth upon him with his teeth.

The Lord shall laugh at him: for He seeth that his day is coming.

The wicked have drawn out the sword and have bent their bow, to cast down the poor and needy, and to slay such as be of upright conversation.

Their sword shall enter into their own heart, and their bows shall be broken."

(Psalm 37:9-15)

Take heart, weary Christian, God will act in due time!