Irvin Wasswa- Tylertown Campus Pastor LHBC
Psalm 62:1-8
For God alone my soul waits in silence;
from him comes my salvation.
2 He alone is my rock and my salvation,
my fortress; I shall not be greatly shaken.
3 How long will all of you attack a man
to batter him,
like a leaning wall, a tottering fence?
4 They only plan to thrust him down from his high position.
They take pleasure in falsehood.
They bless with their mouths,
but inwardly they curse. Selah
5 For God alone, O my soul, wait in silence,
for my hope is from him.
6 He only is my rock and my salvation,
my fortress; I shall not be shaken.
7 On God rests my salvation and my glory;
my mighty rock, my refuge is God.
8 Trust in him at all times, O people;
pour out your heart before him;
God is a refuge for us. Selah
If you turn on the news today, or turn on your phone, you can’t help but to see and hear about COVID-19, the mysterious virus which has turned our world upside down. Due to the unknown nature of the disease, we have seen many affected in our world, and many others finding themselves in a state of fear and anxiety about the future. You would agree with me that these are some troubling times. They truly are! There is some good news though: As Christians we know the God who is over the trouble. That statement is not trivial, it is truth. In knowing the God of the universe we are able to respond to troubled times like these a little differently.
Psalm 62 provides some encouragement for believers as a whole, but I believe the psalm gives us a blueprint on how we are to respond in times of trouble. How do we do that?
First off in times of trouble we ought to choose to Remember the Lord. In vs. 1-4 King David who is the writer of the Psalm highlights the despair he finds himself facing, but then beginning in vs. 5 he lists all of who God is. See, in the moment of despair and distress, David could have chosen to wallow in discouragement, instead he chose to remember the Lord.
Here is the deal church, in these days we ought to choose to do the same thing! Remember the Lord! Listen the Lord is our firm rock, which is our steady foundation in stormy times such as these. The Lord is our salvation through the shed blood of Jesus Christ. Listen, the Lord is our protector who keeps us safe and secure in Him. Our refuge is in Him. Remember the Lord. He is always faithful. He has never changed and doesn’t plan on doing so either. In these days, choose to remember the Lord by keeping your eyes on Him. Why? Because of this reality: When our eyes begin to wander, our faith begins to waver. When you are not looking to the Lord and choose to forget him, your faith in Him begins to waver. So today, choose to remember the Lord.
Secondly our response has to be for us to choose to Resolve to Trust in the Lord, King David in verse 8 gives us the big takeaway, the big response in light of remembering the Lord: Choose to Trust Him. As mentioned earlier, God has not changed. Malachi 3:8-9 tells us that God does not and doesn’t plan on changing. Hallelujah! With knowing that, we can trust in Him at ALL TIMES. Our trust does not have to be circumstantial because God’s goodness isn’t circumstantial. Even in the midst of a pandemic we can trust that this did not take God by surprise, that He is in control and that He still sees and cares for you and I.
Our resolve to trust in the Lord is two-fold in that we express our trust in “pouring out our heart to Him in prayer” and “resting in His promises. When we resolve to seek the Lord in prayer what we are doing is choosing to not take matters into our own hands but rather lay them down at the Lord’s feet. So choose to pray! Lastly when we resolve to trust in the Lord, we are able to rest in the Lord’s promises. David tells us that the Lord is a refuge for us meaning that God is a place of safety and protection. Perhaps you feel vulnerable today, in Christ you do not have to walk in vulnerability because the Lord is a shelter for us in scary times such as these!
What the Lord is trying to preach to us in the Psalm is that in times like these we need to run to Him. That ought to be our response. He loves you, He cares for you and sees you and your family where they are. Though we may not know the future, we know the One who knows and holds the future. Let your response today be to choose to run to the Lord during these troubling times.
PRAYER FOR TODAY:
Dear heavenly Father Lord, thank you for your love for me! Help me to choose to respond in these troubled times by remembering who You are, and running to You in prayer. Give me the faith to trust in you at all times. Give me the faith to rest in your promises, and provide me the boldness to step in and serve you in this time. In Jesus’ name, Amen!
MEMORY VERSE OF THE WEEK:
2 Timothy 1:7
for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.