Dismayed...Yet...

 

“…but when You hid your face, I was dismayed. To You, Lord, I called; to the Lord I cried for mercy: What is gained if I am silenced, if I go down to the pit? Will the dust praise You? Will it proclaim Your faithfulness? Hear, Lord, and be merciful to me; Lord, be my help.” (Psalm 30:7b-10, NIV)

Upon reading Psalm 30:7b-10, wonder arises about what David dealt with when he wrote this psalm. Could it come from a difficult time he had before this psalm’s writing? Why did David beg for God’s mercy? What did David mean when he wrote these words? Effective Bible study involves reading the entire chapter from which a passage comes and its surrounding chapters. Let’s study this passage and Psalm 30 in its entirety.

Whether a devotional guide gives these memory verses to read and meditate upon or you find Psalm 30:7b-10 on your own, the depth of David’s dismay is obvious. David perceived, though erroneously, that the Lord departed from him, leaving him to handle his hard times alone. He said it seemed like God hid His face from him (vs. 7b). For that reason, he experienced dismay and fear. Without the Lord, who chose, anointed, and protected him throughout his life, David knew his adversaries would have defeated him. He also realized God would not have used him as His king to unify His people, Israel.

Verse eight shows the depths of David’s despair. David considered God had ignored him. He felt like God’s mercy had left him and he was alone. To this, David pled to God in verses nine and ten. He reasoned with God in verse nine. David reminded God, as if God needed reminding, that if he was silenced by death, he could not praise God and proclaim His faithfulness. In verse ten, David begged God for mercy and help.

If a person reads just verses 7b-10, despair could overtake him. A reader facing difficulties would gain no strength or trust in a faithful God. Instead of gaining strength to endure, the person might experience discouragement and hopelessness. Yet, readers must consider the whole chapter.

When reading the whole chapter from its beginning, the introduction to the chapter should be read because it gives the reader a first impression of the intent, topic, or scope of the chapter. The introduction to Psalm 30 shows David wrote the psalm as a “dedication of the temple”. This introduction causes a question to arise since David did not build the temple. David’s son, Solomon, built it. How can this psalm be for a dedication if it has a dismayed David pleading with God at its center? Remember, a Bible passage must be read in context with the entire chapter.

After reading the chapter at least once, a student of this psalm should consider a Bible commentary or other scholars’ teachings on the text. Samuel Barth of the Jewish Theological Seminary studied and wrote about this psalm in his article titled Psalm 30: Dedication of the ‘Inner Temple’ (Psalm 30: Dedication of the “Inner Temple” - Jewish Theological Seminary. Barth gave two possibilities for how this psalm, that includes David’s dismay, could be a dedicatory psalm for the temple. He first stated that Psalm 30 leads the reader to go from the mental study of God’s word to soul praise of who God is and what He has done throughout the ages.

—From mental study to soul praise—

For today’s particular study, Barth offered a second possible reason for the Psalm 30 introduction: a dedication of the temple. He stated the “temple” in the introduction is not a physical earthly structure. Barth wrote, “The psalm is not about dedicating any earthly structure, but that each individual might be seen as a bayit (the Hebrew word for vessel.) that can, if we so choose, be dedicated to the service of God.” This means each person who sees himself as a vessel God can use gives his life to God to become a temple dedicated to Him.

--not an earthly structure but a bodily structure--

Barth’s second thought about the introduction to the psalm is what we will consider today with this study of Psalm 30. David’s dismay in verses 7b-10 is not intended to discourage a person, but to lead a person to God and cause the person to worship Him. How can that be since the middle verses, usually considered the main point of a chapter, cause discouragement in people? How does David’s dismay lead a person to dedicate himself to God for His purposes?

How does a reader shift from feeling discouraged by Psalm 30:7b-10 to worshiping God, as David’s introduction intends? Consider the verses before and after verses 7b-10. With verses 1-7a, David praised God for redeeming him from situations and enemies. He recited as a reminder for himself and his readers who God had been in his life. David praised God for who God is and for His faithfulness to and favor upon him. He reminded himself and the readers that he never needs to fear; his life was a testimony of who God is and what He had done: He is good, faithful, almighty, and provider. By recalling what God had done for David, it would lead people to recall for themselves who God had been in their lives and what He had done in their lives. These people could praise God for redeeming them, like David did. People could dedicate themselves as God’s temple for Him to use, like David did.

Transitioning from verses 1-7a onward into verses 7b-10 enables David and his readers to carry the joy from the first section of the psalm into the challenging days. With the joy and reminder of God’s faithfulness and mercy to them, they would feel more able to endure whatever hardship they would meet. Verses 7b-10 also become reminders to the readers and hearers of God’s redeeming David from his dismay and distress. They would be enabled to remember and rejoice because of God’s faithfulness to them. God, through this psalm, reminded David of His own great mercy, faithfulness, and favor towards him. He also reminded His children over many millennia since David’s time. From the first part of Psalm 30, God brought to mind His triumph over His children’s struggles so they would remember to trust in and praise Him. Because of God’s victorious triumph and who He is, a child of God can praise God more readily and choose to dedicate himself to Him, to be His living temple.

Psalm 30:11-12 tells of what God did inside of David. God changes not only circumstances; He changes the heart, mind, and spirit of each person who calls on Him. In this psalm, David went from wailing to dancing with joy when remembering God’s great favor, faithfulness, and mercy towards him (vs. 11). He sang praises to God and reminded himself never to stay silent, but outwardly to praise God. God’s redemption of David from his dismay caused his heart and mind to praise God, his body to dance, and his spirit to be renewed in faith. God can and will effect this change in His children's hearts, minds, spirits, and bodies when they call upon Him, like He did in David. David cried out to God and God heard and responded with His presence, help, guidance, and strength. When any of God’s children cry out to Him, He will respond to them similarly so that they dance with joy in praise to God. God’s redemption of His children from struggles can cause that person’s heart, mind, spirit, and body to praise God and dance with joy. They can experience a renewed faith in Him.

David did not intend the middle section of Psalm 30 to cause dismay to its readers and hearers. He meant for it to tell of God’s goodness to him and to all who seek Him in humility. This psalm’s purpose is to lead hearers and readers to recall God’s faithfulness, favor, and mercy even when times seem dark. David’s psalm causes each person to renew hope in God and praise Him—to renew his dedication to God as His temple.

The temple of God within each of His children is what they dedicate to God whenever they praise Him or pray to Him. From this temple within each of God’s children, the psalm elicits hope as they remember God’s faithfulness to David and themselves. Remembering God’s love, mercy, favor, and faithfulness to them may cause them to dance with joy and lift their hands in praise, too.

This leads us to agree with Barth. Barth is correct on both his points about Psalm 30; the introduction to Psalm 30 does both possibilities, not one of the other. It causes a person to go from mind study to soul praise. It also causes the person—child of God—to renew his faith and trust in God by recalling from the past who God has been as He helped him. This latter will cause soul praise that leads to bodily praise, such as dancing with joy. Both of these, David experienced in God’s inspiring him to write Psalm 30, like we each may have experienced as we read of David’s struggle in the middle part of this psalm.

David’s psalm should cause two things to happen. The psalm, as a reminder and as a song to and about God, causes us to go from the study of our circumstances and God’s word to the rededication of ourselves as God’s children—His temple—to whom He is ever faithful. This dedication of ourselves will take us beyond ourselves and circumstances to soul praise to God and dancing with joy.

The psalms are to lead us to worship God in easy and hard times. David shows us how to praise God in hard times and praise Him later as we recall God’s actions towards and for us. Today, remember when God was by your side during tough times, and how His faithfulness helped you overcome challenges; then praise and thank Him.

If you have not become a child of God, today is the day to seek His mercy and grace. You do this by believing in Jesus as your Lord and your Savior and by confessing and repenting of your sins (Romans 10:9-10). Today, will you choose to live with God now and forever?

Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; His love endures forever. (Psalm 107:1, NIV)

 

 

Crushed But Not Destroyed

 

(photo by John Towner)

The Lord is near to the brokenhearted; He saves the contrite in spirit.

(Psalm 34:18, Berean Standard Bible)

This psalm of David shows us, the readers, his praise of and thanksgiving to God for rescuing him from his enemies. The story behind this psalm tells of why David has joy and thanks; God freed him from his enemies. David feigned insanity in front of Ahimelech, the king of the Philistines in Gath. Gath’s hero had been Goliath, the giant who David slew with his sling and stones. David realized the Philistines’ anger might have continued to boil because he defeated their champion. He decided his best way to escape the clutches of the Philistines in Gath was to act insane. If David seemed insane, Gath's king and people would not view him as a threat. They released David because they believed he was an insignificant threat, since he was insane. David praised and thanked God in Psalm 34 as he recalled his experience.

David often praised God in his psalms. He shared his inmost feelings with God and people who would listen his psalms. Christians and Jews often quote Psalm 34 in sermons, meditations, and songs. This psalm encourages people to hope and wait, for God's faithfulness. God is faithful and almighty.

This devotional does not walk readers through this psalm verse by verse. To help individuals focus on God, this study examines the last six verses, disregarding the problem. Circumstances do not dictate who God is; God dictates the circumstances. God uses circumstances to show Himself.

Verses seventeen through twenty-two highlight the why and who that David wrote about in the psalm. In verse seventeen, David wrote, “The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears; He delivers them from all their troubles.” In this verse, he reiterated God’s actions in verses four and seven. He exalted God because God hears and delivers the righteous. God answers their cries for help.

I sought the Lord, and He answered me; He delivered me from all my fears.

Those who look to Him are radiant with joy; their faces shall never be ashamed.

This poor man called out, and the Lord heard him; He saved him from all his troubles.

The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear Him and He delivers them. (Psalm 34:4-7, BSB)

Notice in verse seventeen, God hears and answers the righteous. These righteous are those who “look to” God and “fear” Him, the ones who follow and revere God (vs. five and seven). The righteous whom God answers follow and obey Him out of reverence. They relate to God as His children and choose to be His people. These people, the righteous about whom David wrote, are the ones from whom God hears their cries and delivers. God does this because He counts them as righteous—dedicated—unto Him.

The Lord is near to the brokenhearted; He saves the contrite in spirit.

(Psalm 34:18, BSB)

In verse eighteen, David further emphasized how God answered when He heard his cries for help. He wrote that God was near him when he felt brokenhearted and crushed with fear because of his enemies. The fear David expressed is the kind that comes from deep within a person. That fear makes a person depressed and despair. Depression and despair weigh heavily on a person so that he or she can barely move his or her feet and arms. The person can become immobilized with the weight of it. This can lead to a lack of desire for basic activities such as eating, bathing, and talking.

Brokenheartedness weighs a ton, like a boulder sitting on a person’s chest. It occurs when a person carries the weight of their circumstances within him or herself. It can break the spirit of the person and crush him or her, leaving no hope of which to hold. Yet even having felt this and because of it, David exclaimed and praised God. He praised God because He is mightier and delivers (vs. 17). David proclaimed about and praised God because He is near and saves people crushed by their circumstances (vs. 18).

David knew God hears the righteous because God is faithful to be near and save them. David praised God because God heard and delivered him from Ahimelech, the Philistines, and his earlier enemies. He knew from other times in his life that God provided and protected Him. David, having a history with God, knew Him to be deserving of proclamation and praise. He praised God because he himself followed and revered God.

Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivers him from them all. (Psalm 34:19, BSB)

Again, in verse nineteen, David wrote God delivers (saves). In verse seventeen, he said God delivers from troubles. Verse eighteen expanded to include the effect within a person of those troubles—crushing weight, causing a heavy heart and downcast spirit. In verse nineteen, David said the troubles he faced caused him to have afflictions. The troubles in which David found himself caused him mental anguish. They came from persistent evil. Yet, David learned to revere the Lord more than fear the troubles. He knew, because of his relationship with God, that God is mightier than the evil that beset his physical body, heart, and mind. David recalled God’s faithful nearness to him and His might, then resolved to continue to follow and revere the Lord. God delivered David from his enemies in the past and would continue to deliver him because His God was almighty and faithful Yahweh. God dictates the circumstances; circumstances do not dictate who God is.

He (God) protects all his (the righteous person) bones; not one of them will be broken. (Psalm 34:20, BSB)

David continued in verse twenty by using a metaphor. He wrote, “He protects all his bones: not one of them will be broken.” Verse twenty does not mean the righteous will not have broken bones. David meant no part of God’s child shall be utterly destroyed—annihilated like Sodom and Gomorrah. In the end, God preserves and delivers His child. God assures him or her of his or her place in His kingdom for eternity. Evil does not defeat God and His child. God is near, protects, delivers, and saves His people. God dictates circumstances; circumstances do not dictate who God is.

Satan cannot destroy righteous people—those who follow and revere God. Paul taught people this basic tenet in 2 Corinthians 4:17. He wrote, “For our light and momentary affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory that is beyond all comparison” (BSB). Peter contributed his thoughts about this in 1 Peter.

Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial that has come upon you to test you, as though something strange was happening to you. But rejoice, you share the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed (rejoice) at the revelation of His glory. (1 Peter 4:12-13, BSB).

Expect to suffer evil in this world; it is not abnormal. As a person is afflicted, brokenhearted, downcast, and suffering, remembering who God is, what He has done, and what He promised will help that person stand strong in his or her faith. That will help him or her to endure whatever physical, mental, and emotional pain he or she experiences. God protects the person whom Jesus saved by belief in Him as Lord and Savior. This person made righteous by Jesus follows and reveres God. God calls them His own children and protects them.

Evil will slay the wicked and the haters of the righteous will be condemned. (Psalm 34:21, BSB)

Satan cannot grasp and utterly destroy the child of God. God allows the evil to slay the wicked. The wickedness they do catches them in their own web from which they cannot extricate themselves. Only Jesus can remove them by their belief in Him. The time a person has on earth is their chance to believe in Jesus. Later, he or she will be judged for their wicked actions. That judgment will be punishment, a condemning to hell. Hell is a place of perpetual and inescapable torment. The wicked will slay themselves, wrote David. He meant they will cause their own eternal death because of the evil they did in life.

The Lord redeems His servants, and none who take refuge in Him will be condemned. (Psalm 34:22, BSB)

With verse twenty-two, David emphasized God’s protection but used a stronger word than in verses seventeen and eighteen, a word not used yet in this psalm. He wrote “God redeems” His righteous child. The connotation of this word goes beyond the words he used earlier in the psalm—delivers, saves, and protects. “Redeems” would have led the Jews to recall the Old Testament understanding of redemption by offering the sacrificial lamb for sins they committed. The lamb paid, with its lifeblood, the judgment for that person’s sins. “Redeems” also reminded the Jews of the redeemer-protector of the family who safeguarded a family’s or person’s future. That redeemer-kinsman redeemed a person by paying the ransom to buy back the family land/home or to pay the debt of the person who sold him or herself into servitude. The redeemer-kinsman is the one who paid the ransom—the cost—for his kinsman to be free from bondage or to have his land/home returned to its God-given owner. The Jews sacrificed the lamb to pay the cost for their sins. Jesus’s life, death, and resurrection expanded the Jewish understanding of redemption to include eternal freedom from death and evil. The redemption Jesus gave goes beyond a debt incurred because of financial hardship or to cover sins. Peter and John spoke of the sin-ransom Jesus provided in 1 Peter 1:18-19 and Revelation 5:9.

For you know it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life you inherited from your forefathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or spot. (1 Peter 1:18-19, BSB)

And they sang a new song, saying, “Worthy are You to take the scroll and open its seals, because You were slain, and by Your blood You purchased (ransomed) for God those from every tribe and tongue and people and nation.” (Revelation 5:9, BSB)

David wrote a psalm to praise God and proclaim about His goodness and rescue of him. He wrote to lead others to know how near God is to His children. His psalm told of God’s faithfulness and might. It declared God hears his children. Through this psalm, David rejoiced in God. He recalled how God had rescued him. David gave metaphors by which to live faithfully following God. He concluded the psalm by giving a final admonition to praise God.

David wrote Psalm 34 to lead readers and hearers to revere God and grow in their faithfulness to Him. He reminded righteous people that they need not fear the wicked. In Psalm 34:21, David stated the wicked will fall by their own evil. The traps of the wicked will catch them. Unrighteous individuals face destruction due to their choices. So, God’s children need not worry about their actions towards you. Instead, faithfully continue to follow and revere God. Verse twenty-one reminds people of what Paul taught in Romans 8:31-39, too.

What then shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare His own Son but gave Him up for us all, how will He not also, along with Him, freely give us all things? Who will bring any charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies. Who is there to condemn us? For Christ Jesus, who died, and more than that was raised to life, is at the right hand of God—and He is interceding for us.

Who shall separate us from the Love of Christ? Shall trouble or distress or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? As it is written: ‘For Your sake, we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.’ No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor principalities, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 8:31-39, BSB)

Fear not the wicked and their deeds. Instead, revere God and what He can do. Who should we praise? We praise God. Why should we praise God? We praise God because He is almighty and omniscient. We should keep our focus on God and not on our circumstances. Why? Circumstances do not dictate who God is; God dictates circumstances.

Be a righteous person by believing in Jesus and He will redeem you from your sins, then follow and worship God. Praise and proclaim about Him. Remember, the “momentary afflictions” you face are nothing compared to the glorious riches God has in store for you in heaven. Be like David and praise God during your troubles. He is still in control.

I will bless the Lord at all times; His praise will always be on my lips. (Psalm 34:1, BSB)

Have Hope

 

 

“And if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, He who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit, who lives in you.”

— Romans 8:11

 

Notice the dependent clause at the beginning of this sentence, “If the Spirit lives in you.” This statement doesn’t say, “if the Spirit can raise Jesus from death.” That happened; it’s a certainty. It says if you have believed in Jesus as your Savior, only then can you know without doubt the Spirit lives in you. 

 

With this understanding, let’s read that clause again, “And if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus lives in you.” The Spirit of God raised Jesus and, since you believe in Jesus, you have been saved by Him. So, His Spirit lives in you. 

 

That dependent clause sets the stage for the truth Paul taught to the Christians of Rome in verse 11. He wrote, ““He who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit, who lives in you.” Just as the Spirit brought back to life Jesus’ mortal body—and thereafter Jesus lives His divine provenance of eternal life since He is Deity—He will give that same life, eternal life, to you. 

 

Remember, the gift of eternal life is not given to everyone. It is given by the Spirit who resides in everyone who has believed in Jesus and has been saved from the judgment his/her sins deserved—eternal separation from God, eternal death. 

 

So, in reading this verse again, “For you who believe in Jesus for salvation, the Spirit, who lives in you, raised Jesus back to life and will also give you eternal life with God.” Don’t doubt this. Your belief in Jesus with your heart, mind, soul, and strength has given you, through Jesus’ Spirit living in you, that promise and hope to hold onto; you will most definitely live with God forever. 

 

That starting dependent clause is your clause. You are dependent on Jesus. Your life is dependent. Remain depending on Him. Keep believing in Jesus. 

 

So take heart; your situation isn’t so bad. It and future hard times can never take you from God’s hands. Your hope is secured in Jesus. The Spirit who raised Jesus lives in you and will raise you to live into eternity with Him. Have hope. Keep strong in your faith. Jesus is coming back for you.

Turning Troubles

 

“Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. Stand firm against him, and be strong in your faith. Remember that your family of believers all over the world is going through the same kind of suffering you are.”

— 1 Peter 5:8-9

 

“Stay alert” means be free from the illusions (influences) of sins. Be always cautious, watchful, and on guard, always alert for Satan’s trickery, deceit, trouble. Be calm about it and know he is out there wanting to tempt God’s children away from Him. Satan walks around you like a lion encircles sheep, looking for the weaknesses of one or more of them. He is waiting to devour you and your testimony about God to discredit you and your faith so others will not believe in Jesus. Satan wants to disconnect your close relationship with God so you live in misery and despair. 

 

The first two commands—stay alert and watch out—could be passive activities, just watch and take care. Or they could include action, like a soldier walking on top of a city’s walls continuing to see if an enemy approaches. In verse eight, Peter meant the latter. Actively stay alert and watch out for Satan. How does a Christian actively stay alert to Satan’s attempts to intrude into his/her life? Keep growing in your relationship with God. Keep listening to and obeying Him. 

 

Peter wrote commanding believers in Christ to stand firm against Satan. What did he mean? Standing firm means resisting and opposing, refuse to be moved from your faith in God—Father, Son, and Spirit. Publicly and conspicuously declare your convictions about Jesus. Don’t let go of those convictions and the faith and salvation God gives you. Be faithful to God remembering He is faithful to you. Remember who He is, what He’s done, and how He’s intervened in your life. How does one remember this in the heat of the battle? By being so closely connected to God that you know Him and cling to Him with your heart, soul, mind, and strength. This close relationship comes by prayer, reading the Bible and studying, and meditating on it. A close relationship with God also comes by worshipping God and fellowshipping with other believers and by listening to preachers and teachers who rightly proclaim the word of God.

 

Standing firm is active opposition and requires daily preparation in anticipation of Satan’s attacks. Satan will attack, undoubtedly. So prepare yourself by growing stronger in, by, and through the LORD. Remember, you are not the only one Satan will or has attacked. All believers worldwide face his relentless attacks. Jesus did not fall to the temptations Satan put before Him. We each can stand firm as Christians knowing we are not battling on our own. God gives us His wisdom, knowledge, understanding, and strength to endure. His hand never leaves His child; no one can snatch us away from Him. Look to your believing brothers and sisters and recognize they, too, battle Satan. He is not choosing only you to attack. 

 

Use the opportunity of attack to grow closer to God. Use it to grow your faith. Use it to testify to onlookers about God’s love for you and them and the salvation God gives through the death of His Son, Jesus. Spin the attack to be a positive experience and let your life proclaim about Jesus.

 

Stay alert! Be always watchful! Stand firm! Actively prepare and fight, then your relationship with God will grow stronger and other people will hear about His love and the salvation He offers.

Stagger Them with Your Power

“Don’t kill them, for my people soon forget such lessons; stagger them with your power, and bring them to their knees, O Lord our shield.” (Psalms 59:11 [NLT])

Who is “them” to David? Saul’s men, who he sent to keep an eye on him.

Who is “them” to you? People, difficulties, anticipated trouble, fear?

Do you need to remember God staggers our enemies with His power? He still staggers Satan with His power. Can you hear God saying to Satan, “You think you know Me? You don’t know just how great and powerful I am. You ain’t seen nothin’ yet!”

Are you still in awe of God or have you forgotten the depth of His love for you? Don’t forget about God. Don’t forget His great power that He’ll use for you. God still loves you. He has a plan. If you wonder how God is going to “fix” this problem, hear Him tell Satan, “You ain’t seen nothin’ yet!” That’s our God. 

Whether we remember Him in our daily lives and crises or not, God is still powerful. He is still majestic. God still knows all things and knows what you are facing.

Worship this God, our God, who David praised before He intervened for him. David was saying through his praises, “Saul, you ain’t seen nothin’ yet. My God is almighty!”

What trouble do you need to give to God in praise, knowing God is almighty? He has already taken care of it. There isn’t anything He has not seen. Let God stagger you with His power.

Perspective

“Let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive His mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it most.” Hebrews 4:16 [NLT]

As believers in Jesus Christ living in a sinful world, we will go through troubling times of persecution, ostracism, torture, and even death. As we go through these difficult times and other times of trial, that upon which we focus determines what we are to become and for what use we are or will be.

If we go through these difficult times kicking and screaming, then our trials and troubles change who we are negatively. We experience no growth because we do not go through them with grace. These trials and troubles make us bitter and angry. We then produce bitter fruit. If we go through troubles and trials with a sweet temperament, we learn and grow from the situation. What is the difference between these two attitudes towards difficulties? The first is self-focused. We might think, “We do not deserve this. We have rights and what you are doing to me is wrong.” These two sentences come from the person who faces difficult times while kicking and screaming. Bitterness, resentment, and anger take root in our hearts, minds, and spirits and we do not reflect the peaceful Spirit of God. If, however, we face difficult times keeping our eyes fixed on Jesus, who faced many trials, persecutions, and crucifixion without shouting His rights, we will go through the times with grace, God’s grace, and will seek what God wants us to learn from the situations. The fruit of our lives will be sweet and fragrant, so people will be drawn to us to learn what is different about us as compared to other people. They will seek to understand how we could go through difficult situations without being angry, depressed, and vengeful.

What is the difference between these two ways of going through trials and troubles? The difference is the perspective of the person. For the growing believer, a strong relationship with God, occurring because of daily Bible reading and meditation on it, Bible verse memorization, and prayers of confession, adoration, thanksgiving, and supplication (C.A.T.S.), creates the strength to persevere through difficult times. Recalling Jesus’ life and how He endured His temptations, persecution, and crucifixion because of His grace and love for all people gives us the strength to go through these hard times. Paul pointed out in Philippians 2,  

You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had. Though He was God, He did not think of equality with God as something to cling to. Instead, He gave up His divine privileges; He took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being. When He appeared in human form, He humbled himself to obedience to God and died a criminal’s death on a cross.

 Philippians 2:5-8 [NLT]

Jesus faced life in human form enduring persecutions, trials, and a crucifixion with a humble attitude. He showed us how to live this kind of life. His example was humility and obedience. These two things emanate from us when we live in God’s grace. What is God’s grace? It is God forgiving us when we don’t deserve it. Grace is God loving us when we are utterly horrible because of our sin. It is His washing us when we are terribly dirty from the world and our interactions in it. Grace is God holding us when we are torn, battered, and bruised and feel unnecessary, unloved, and without a reason to live.

So how do we live in troubling times with grace? We live during those times with perspective. We keep our eyes focused on God knowing He loves us enough to carry us through these times. We understand He will be with us as we persevere in our faith of Him. We realize nothing we have done or will ever do will earn us God’s forgiveness, love, kindness, and peace, but He gives these to us because He is love and His character defines love. Because of this, we can stand firm in our faith in Him. Notice each of these requires keeping our eyes focused on God. When we take our eyes off Him and look at what is happening to us and around us, our human frailties are all we have by which to get us through the bad times. Then Satan stirs up fear, anger, bitterness, and chaos in our hearts, minds, and spirits. As a by-product, when we live by grace through each day, how we live becomes fruit for other people. In other words, we become broken bread from which others can learn, from which they can eat. Our testimony and our teaching about God are wonderful, but when people see the fruit of our lives, they eat of it and learn more about God and His grace because we lived by His grace.

Let’s consider Jesus’ example and keep our eyes focused on God. Let’s keep walking the path He sets before us by following His example, living by grace. Let’s press on, as Paul said.

I want to know Christ and experience the mighty power that raised Him from the dead. I want to suffer with Him, sharing in His death, so that one way or another I will experience the resurrection from the dead! I don’t mean to say that I have already achieved these things or that I have already reached perfection. But I press on to possess that perfection for which Christ Jesus first possessed me. No, dear brothers and sisters, I have not achieved it, but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us. Philippians 3:10-14 [NLT]

Lord, I don’t know what will happen today or tomorrow, but I know who You are. I know You love me, and nothing will ever cause Your love to be taken from me. Many times, I have taken my eyes off You and I have walked in my own ways and not Yours. At those times, I faltered in my steps and I led people astray. Please forgive me my self-centeredness. Lead me to persevere by faith with Your grace. Use me for whatever is for Your glory. Let my life be a testimony of Your love and grace so someone else will know You and grow in their relationship with You. Thank You, Father. Amen.