The Pilgram Path

O Lord, how many are my foes! Many are rising against me; many are saying of my soul, "There is no salvation for him in God."I cried aloud to the Lord, and he answered me from his holy hill.

Psalm 3:1-2, 4

Answer me when I call, O God of my righteousness! You have given me relief when I was in distress. Be gracious to me and hear my prayer! In peace I will both lie down and sleep; for you alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safety.

Psalm 4:1, 8

O Lord my God, in you do I take refuge; save me from all my pursuers and deliver me...I will give to the Lord the thanks due to his righteousness, and I will sing praise to the name of the Lord, the Most High.

Psalm 7:1, 17

Why, O Lord, do you stand far away? Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble? O Lord, you hear the desire of the afflicted; you will strengthen their heart; you will incline your ear

Psalm 10:1, 17

An observation about the Psalms (just a sampling posted above)that ask “why?” and “how long O Lord?” – these are legitimate questions resulting from not knowing. Why are enemies attacking? How long will this continue? When will you look on us with favor? etc. They ask these questions but what they resist doing is taking out their unsurety on others.

They don’t bombard their fellow brother or sister with frustrated remarks, angry tirades, or passive aggressive complaints. They take their unsurety to the LORD. Sometimes they get resolution, other times they’re left in the unsurety of their situation. But whether they get an immediate answer or are left in their wondering, they don’t treat others with disdain and they look to the LORD with trust. They know that they’re unsure of their situation, but they’re not unsure of the LORD.

Nowhere in Holy Scripture is knowledge and understanding a prerequisite for the faithfulness of God’s people. As unsettling as it is to experience unsurety, it is sometimes the place where we need to be in order to rely on the Lord, to trust his ways, and to be reminded that we’re not always called to “know” but are always called to be faithful.

Pray to our Heavenly Father, thanking him for his faithfulness. Ask Him to give you/us strength in his Holy Spirit to be faithful to our calling in King Jesus. Ask for the empathy and sympathy to see this struggle playing out in the lives of those around you/us so that we might encourage one another in Christ.

Grace and Peace in Jesus Christ our Risen Lord, Pastor Peter