My siblings
Sometimes, we can’t help but compare and wonder at God’s plans in/for our lives. It may not seem to match others’ lives, and it may be a promise to carry us through a specific season. Consider Today’s Holy Nougat.
Psalms 34:16-17 CEB
[16] But the LORD’s face is set against those who do evil, to eliminate even the memory of them from the earth.
[17] When the righteous cry out, the LORD listens; he delivers them from all their troubles.
Set Against … Listens
Siblings, it feels as if we are transported back into that defining moment in Joshua, when the Children of Israel were asked to choose their path. Both situations garner God’s reaction: obliteration of one’s existence, or listening and responding to our cries positively. David already had the answer. Stay with God, Who will listen and respond to our heart’s cries. Put like this, it seems immediately clear which path is best. But we know that sometimes it isn’t as straightforward.
A not-so-fun, though apt example is to be found in Job’s story. A man of God, a humble and honest man, a man of integrity, whose entire life crumpled in 2 – 3 fell swoops. The weirdest, perhaps the hardest part, is that YHWH seemed unconcerned about Job’s plight. In fact, in the divine council, it was God Who bragged on Job before Job’s calamities (see Job 1-2). Under the circumstances he faced – loss of property, business, children – it would be understandable if he decided to take a journey on the ‘wild side’.
Self-Check
What helps us to remain in Christ against the odds?
Application
But, that decision came with caveats. In the popularised, albeit infamous words of Job’s wife, opting for the way of the world came with death. That’s exactly what David said happens to evil folk. Death, not necessarily in the physical, but in the spiritual. Total obliteration. Whether we’re hearing ‘curse God, and die’, or are being offered simple ways to ‘solve’ the crises we face; we must determine if we will choose that path that leads to death.
If we opt for righteousness, it may look more like the Valley of Shadows than the way we believe God has for us. Nevertheless, we have the assurance that in the Valley, God’s rod (correction and defence) and staff (protection, healing, and direction) will keep us going. And, like the beloved sheep in that psalm, we know that when we cry, God hears and responds.
So … what is our choice, are we opting for God Who listens, or do we opt against God to discover God’s wrath?
Point to Ponder
It may be worth considering the options before us at this time. What is our choice? Do we believe that God listens and will respond to our cries?
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May all we seek be found in Christ
