The book of Psalms is a treasure chest for me as I do my best to articulate feelings and emotions regarding this life of following Jesus and loving His people. This is hard and holy work. The brutal honesty of the psalmist is refreshing with poetic cries for justice for the oppressed, marginalized, and forgotten ebbing and flowing with songs of joy, celebration, and delight in our Lord. What a breath of fresh air to find language in the Word of God to describe our own struggles as we wrestle with life, faith, and our relationship with God, the Church, and this world.
The psalmist David speaks with great lament as he pens what reminds me of a modern-day conversation discussing political systems, spiritual abuse, and social injustices. Perhaps our own prayer journals are littered with lyrics that could be pulled from this very psalm. “Where are you in this, God?” “Why do you let bad people win?” “Why do you feel so far away?” “When will you bring judgment on evil?” “Where is your justice?”
What begins in David’s frustration with the wicked and God’s seeming silence, ends with a prayer for God to intervene. Yes, evil peoeple will celebrate their own works, contradict the judgment of God, make light of God’s commands and judgments, proudly despise their enemies, persecute in cunning and manipulative ways, and lead with hypocrisy, treachery, and malice. It is inevitable that we will see these injustices in our own lives or at the very least watch others suffer with great sorrow from afar, and we will want to shake our own fists in anger.
Yet David demonstrates that we can lament with great honesty and intercede with an even greater hope that our God is going to show up in the most hopeless situations on the behalf of His people.
May we wake up every single morning with holy indignation “to bring good news to the poor….to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and freedom to the prisoners” (Isaiah 61:1). What a gift the book of Psalms offers us in teaching us how to surrender our anger for intercession as David did in asking God to show up right then and there, to appear for his people (Psalm 10:12). He doesn’t stop there! He then asks God to intervene and put a stop to the wicked schemes of the enemy (v.15). We have that same power and same Christ in us.
I reread Psalm 10 again this Saturday morning because it was not done with me – what stuck with me is what could be considered a warning about the power of our inner dialogue and thought life in leading us astray to believe lies about God, without bringing these misconceptions to God and with godly counsel. We see that the wicked person boasts in their desires and does not leave room for God in their thoughts (vs 3-4), arrogance leads to them to believe that what they’ve established is untouchable (vs 6), they think that their sin won’t be noticed (vs 11), or if noticed, they won’t be held accountable (vs 13). The repetition of “he says to himself” followed by lies and deception really got to me. There’s almost a sense of bitterness to it from the perspective of the wicked person. Another warning. And David would come to know full well the slippery, destructive slope of acting on desires without seeking counsel (Psalm 51). But God does not leave us without guidance in battling our thoughts – 2 Corinthians 10:5, Romans 12:2, and Philippians 4:8.
MERCY – beautify said. Thank you and Amen.
♥️
I love the book of psalms! I am such a feeler, and I can do relate to wrestling with some deep emotions while walking on this earth. Sometimes it’s hard to know what to do with all of these feelings. But I love to know that God can handle all of my emotions. They don’t make him uncomfortable or angry. I can be frustrated and angry about the way things are and still believe that God is good. I don’t need to seek justice, for God will meme justice happen when the time is right.
@MICHELLE P: car fix expense to be covered, and the prophetic word to come to pass. Love your advice to Taylor the other day.
@LINDA IN NC: grace to break your lease early, moving out and improvement for your husband’s condition.
@KRISTINE LOUGHMAN: safety, good sleep and fun for your adventure weekend with 14 girls. You’re so brave.
@MARGARET W: comfort for your kids and strength for you during the loss of the pet
@RHONDA J: grace for safe travels as you visit your son’s family up north, no pain and wonderful bonding times. May God bless this time greatly to build up, comfort, encourage, nurture and restore. Hugs.
@CATHERINE MCVEY: healing from cancer, grace for treatment.
@SHARON JERSEY GIRL: for Arian’s accommodation and job, and families to turn around to show compassion, support to her in such rough times.
@FOSTER MAMA: for discerning God’s voice from Satan’s, strength/grace to overcome- more than a conqueror, amen to commanding evil thoughts to get out of our head. Resist the devil and he will flee. More stamina and resilience. Hugs.
…and other she’s… I am lifting you and your dear families in prayers.
Happy Friday she’s, I love the submitting our holy indignation to the Lord every day. Every day is a posture and an intentionality. How long can we wear ourselves out being angry? Amen Natalie (thank you!!). There has been injustice within family relationships, workplaces, and churches that I have witnessed the Lord came through. The Lord is good to both the godly and the ungodly. He pursues us and also the ungodly. Indeed we were them before we became righteous through faith. And faith is by grace- that undeserving favor/goodness of God. How merciful and long suffering God is toward us and the ungodly, which God is misunderstood as slacking but He isn’t (2 Peter 3:9). I am guilty of that. I struggle most days waiting for the wheel of justice to turn. God’s patience will always surpass my human patience. Lord forgive me. May we know the heart of God, the thoughts of God that are higher than ours… “As surely as I live, says the Sovereign LORD, I take no pleasure in the death of wicked people. I only want them to turn from their wicked ways so they can live. Turn! Turn from your wickedness O people…..! Why should you die?” (Ezekiel 33:11). God did not let the wicked in the city of Nineveh die but send the prophet so that they might repent and live. And Jonah was so angry when God spared them. Oh the goodness of God can make me weep. May we have his heart, and be slow to anger. For any wicked people in our society, circles, that have caused pain, indignation, injustice, may we pray this prayer and release that holy indignation to the Lord to achieve peace… “Let the wicked forsake their ways and the unrighteous their thoughts. Let them turn to the LORD, and he will have mercy on them, and to our God, for He will freely pardon” (Isaiah 55:7). Praying over your requests as I read them. The Lord hears our prayers ladies. Happy weekend. Be blessed dear sisters.
Charlie God for clear results
Great news Charlie!