In times of foment and uncertainty, what do we do? Consider Today’s Holy Nougat.
Psalms 37:25 CEB
[25] I was young, and now I’m old, but I have never seen the righteous left all alone, have never seen their children begging for bread.
All My Life
This Nougat makes a very bold claim. The psalmist does not say seldom or rarely, but ‘never’. Never is a very long time. To qualify, the psalmist makes it clear that s/he is not a youth. In fact, the phrase, ‘I was young, and now am old’ reminds me of the phrase, ‘from I born’. Like ‘I was young and now am old’, the phrase points the entire span of one’s life, especially as a way of underscoring a new experience or one’s experience.
But, the psalmist’s experience is nil. In his/her lifetime, s/he has never had the experience of lack, NOR seen it occur among other community members. I tell you, this is somewhat hard to hear. For when the going gets tough, keeping our eyes on God is hard. When resources are stripped to zero, we begin to ask ourselves, ‘Am I among those righteous elite?’
Self-Check
Have we ever doubted God’s ability to provide in a bad patch? What did we do?
Application
There is general consensus that this Nougat comes from a Psalm written by the ‘man after God’s heart’, David. If this is at all true, and we have no reason to believe otherwise, we will recall that his life was not easy. So, his claim is not coming from a place void of trials. Rather, he was at one time a fugitive from his king; he had been robbed of God’s blessing by his adversary, had to pretend madness while in exile … and that was all during his adult years.
A claim then, of never having seen the righteous forsaken, is bold. Yet, David stood by his word. He revisited his life experiences and recounted that not for his family, his friends, nor himself; those counted as righteous had never been forsaken by God. Nor were the children neglected.
I believe that this offers to each of us hope in times such as these. We are not beggars, nor are we forsaken by our God. Life may be Lifing, but God is, and God is faithful. Hence, the promise to Moses, the promise of Y’shua Jesus to never leave nor forsake us, is true. Let’s opt to look to Jesus in our times of distress.
Points to Ponder
What qualifies as God-forsaken to you?
Have you seen the righteous being God-forsaken in your lifetime?
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May all we seek be found in Christ
