“But I trust in you, O LORD; I say, “‘You are my God.”
– Psalm 31:14
Hi James and Ellen,
Have you ever been confronted by another kid – or by a guy or gal, for doing something that you did not do? Have you ever been criticized by another kid – or by a guy or gal, for saying something that you did not say? Have you ever been condemned by a kid – or by a guy or gal, for wanting to live ethical and moral lives? Have you ever felt like you are no more than a piece of broken pottery because no kid – or a guy or gal, wants to have anything to do with you because another kid – or a guy or gal, initiated a false rumor about you to defame you? Have you ever felt like you have been totally abandoned by other kids – or guys or gals, because a kid – or a guy or gal, planted mistruths about you to demean you? Have you ever felt like every kid – and guys and gals, are conspiring against you to physically and emotionally disparage you? Why do you think that a kid – or a guy or gal, will at times do whatever he or she can do to ruin the life of another kid – or a guy or gal? Why do you think that a kid – or a guy or gal, will at times have another kid – or a guy or gal, convey in one way or another an obvious aversion of him or her? Why do you think that a kid – or a guy or gal, will at times be bullied by another kid – or by a guy or gal? David’s seven bros were all older than him. Because David was the youngest boy in his family, David was stuck with having to care for his dad’s flock of sheep. Even after a God assigned prophet planet Earth spokesman – who was Samuel, was told by God to anoint David to be the second positioned king to rule over His specially chosen guys and gals who lived in the land of Israel, David still honored his earthbound dad by continuing to care for his dad’s flock of sheep. After David became a hero among his people group of guys and gals – who were the Israelite people group guys and gals, when he used his pet sling to fling a smooth river stone into an enemy people group’s giant’s forehead – killing the bad dude, David did nothing to usurp the role that Saul had as Israel’s first positioned king as he ruled over the guys and gals who lived in the land of Israel. Even after Saul had himself killed and after David was officially positioned as the next king to rule of the guys and gals who lived in the land of Israel, David still had to deal with jealous adversaries, arrogant blowhards and incompetent challengers who . . .
What do you do when things get difficult for you? What do you do when everything goes wrong for you? What do you do when everyone is against you? When the day arrived when David had even his best friends turn their backs on him, David scribed a psalm song. This psalm song – Psalm 31, is a prayer. When David came to realize – because of a powerful, growing conspiratorial movement to get rid of him and that his friends had dumped him, David turned to God to . . . verse 14 says, “But I trust in you, O LORD; I say, “‘You are my God.”’” David knew that God was his only refuge, fortress and safety net from arrogant, self-righteous guys who were trying to shame him, entrap him and/or slander him. Do you think that there is anything more insidious than being personally attacked by a self-appointed, self-righteous kid – or a guy or gal, because of being a Christ-follower? Do you think that there is anything more comforting than knowing that God will come to your rescue when you are being hated by a kid – or a guy or gal, whose avowed security is in worthless idol gods that have been manmade made from wood, stone, clay and/or metal or when you are being plagued by a kid – or a guy or gal, whose self-prescribed avocation is to cause you constant soul anguish or when you are being assaulted by a kid – or a guy or gal, whose self-allotted role is to one way or another find ways to permanently damage your Christ-follower testimony.
Your grandpaa believes that every Christ-follower guy, gal and kid has experienced, is experiencing and will experience – in one form another, what led David to scribe this prayer psalm song. How David humbly and honestly entreated or pled with God through the words of this psalm song is how God really wants to be implored or pleaded with by His specially elected guys, gals and kids. God wants to hear His specially elected guys, gals and kids telling Him to turn His ear to hear what they are saying, to come to their rescue, to save them from their enemies, to guide them from danger, to protect them for the sake of His name, to free them from temptations, to show them mercy, to take away sorrow and grief from their eyes, souls and bodies, to give them strength when their bones become weak, to remove contempt from their lives, to hear the slander that is being concocted against them and to shine His face on them. How is God attesting and manifesting His grace in your lives? How is God affirming and asserting His love in your lives? How is God establishing and maintaining His hope in your lives? As much as your grandmaa and grandpaa are wishing that their bodies did not ache as much as they do these days, that the work environment in the Adventure in Missions was not as stressful as it is at times and that that the United States of America future was not as murky as it is right now, your grandmaa and grandpaa know that illnesses, relationships and unknown are drivers that God uses to keep the attention of your grandmaa and grandpaa focused on Him. Just as David continually had God unfolding active life testings to get David to refocus his trust in Him, your grandmaa and grandpaa are trusting that you will always know what to do when God embroils you in interactive life lessons to school you on His mercy.
Psalm 31 (1114)