Many of us have over the years experienced adversity of one kind or another, prompting that classic response..why me Lord? David wrote this Psalm when he was an old man, he had plenty of time to reflect over his life. In the world today wisdom isn’t much valued…Part of the shame of this is that there is a definite distinction between wisdom and knowledge…the first being God given and the latter acquired. It is not my intention to spend time lingering in the adversity of the day and as we walk with God there no need to do that. David had been there. Although he had been anointed king as a teenager, he spent the better part of his twenties running from the ungodly King Saul. David had many occasions to reflect on the problem of personal injustice. The first nine verses spoke to the wisdom he had gleaned from years of walking with God.

Psalm 37

1 Do not fret because of the wicked;
do not be envious of wrongdoers,

2 

for they will soon fade like the grass,
and wither like the green herb.

3 

Trust in the Lord, and do good;
so you will live in the land, and enjoy security.

4 

Take delight in the Lord,
and he will give you the desires of your heart.

5 

Commit your way to the Lord;
trust in him, and he will act.

6 

He will make your vindication shine like the light,
and the justice of your cause like the noonday.

7 Be still before the Lord, and wait patiently for him;
do not fret over those who prosper in their way,
over those who carry out evil devices.

8 

Refrain from anger, and forsake wrath.
Do not fret—it leads only to evil.

9 

For the wicked shall be cut off,
but those who wait for the Lord shall inherit the land.

(New Revised Standard Version)

For convince I have inserted those first 9 verses. The first 22 verses are Godly advice for those who are in adversity not to envy the prosperity of the wicked, because it is superficial, and of short duration but today we will stay with the first 9. Now part of the message here is to put your confidence in God, and live to his glory, as this is the sure way to be happy in this life, and in that which is to come.

Gleaning from the above verses we find a list of actions we can take to make each day better. Do not worry, trust in the Lord, do good, please Him… avoid evil, take heart, there will be vindication. Put aside anger, turn from wrath. It is noted that those of evil intent will be cast aside but those who live for Christ  will prevail. A bit of a personal note here. I have always believed that there are miracles occurring around us every day. Some years back the group  Alabama had a song,  Angels Among Us…and I believe that to be true also. What I think is we are so busy living our life, our way that we allow God’s way to be obscured by the way of the world. Sometimes that little voice we hear is put off to be our  conscience, a little cricket sitting on our shoulder. Have you ever considered the possibility that it might be an angel or even….God? So…to the point here.My devotional this morning was written by John Blasé and it was about being anxious, which I will claim to be the cousin of adversity which could be the driver of anxiousness.  From the John Blasé  article I share this with you. 

“The 2019 You Version  shared that the most shared, highlighted, and bookmarked verse of the year on its online and mobile Bible app was Philippians 4:6, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.” The verse that didn’t make “verse of the year” but follows it is—“And the peace of God . . . will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” (v. 7). That’s quite the reassurance!”

I was a bit unsure about the topic I had picked for this week, I started to search for a topic on Sunday evening…Today’s devotional took the worry away. I believe there might have been angel on my shoulder during my devotional time. I hope you will read Psalm 37 in its entirety because as I have written often…content is important and the truth lies in the wholeness of a thing. Let God be part of all your tomorrows and your life will be better. 

Life is Good

jk