In the LORD I take refuge. How then can you say to me: “Flee like a bird to your mountain. For look, the wicked bend their bows; they set their arrows against the strings to shoot from the shadows at the upright in heart. When the foundations are being destroyed, what can the righteous do?”
The LORD is in his holy temple; the LORD is on his heavenly throne. He observes the sons of men; his eyes examine them. The LORD examines the righteous, but the wicked and those who love violence his soul hates.
On the wicked he will rain fiery coals and burning sulfur; a scorching wind will be their lot. For the LORD is righteous, he loves justice; upright men will see his face.
There was a time in history when evil people rejoiced over cloudy days, thinking that God couldn’t look down from Heaven and see what they did because of the cloud cover. Now we laugh at this kind of thinking, realizing how immature it is.
Today the world seems to think that if there is a God He isn’t watching at all, or if He is He doesn’t care what happens. Also immature.
God is in His Heaven, and He is watching. He sees all the “good” and all the evil, and has promised that in His time He’ll make amends for the injustice we endure. For we know He has said, “It is mine to avenge; I will repay.” (Hebrews 10:30)
But beyond that, He’s actively involved in our daily lives, to the extent that we permit it of course. Sadly, for many of us the running conversation we have with him frequently consists largely of asking for this and that as if it’s His job to go before us, clearing away any obstacle in our path. We ask Him to help find our keys, or a parking space, and perform a host of other tasks more appropriate for our butler than our Creator. Oddly enough He complies, often without thanks or even acknowledgment as if any relationship with us is better than none.
And His effort in our physical world is only the tip of the iceberg. In the unseen spiritual realm who can say how many attacks are thwarted and how many dangers averted by His constant vigilance? Don’t forget that once we’re saved we become aliens behind enemy lines. But even though we walk through the valley of the shadow of death, we fear no evil for He is with us.
And how many times through our thoughtless sinfulness do we give the enemy targets of opportunity that require massive realignments of the spiritual forces arrayed on our behalf, often on a second’s notice? We have no way of knowing.
We do know that we have an enemy who sought our eternal souls and failed, but has vowed to make our lives as miserable as possible while he can.
And we know that we have a Lord Who is our champion, our protector. He’s a shield about us, a constant source of strength in times of trouble, and He loves us so much He can’t take His eyes off us.
Prayer: Thank You Lord, for Your selfless devotion to us, even in the face of our ignorance and ingratitude. Thank you for loving us. We don’t know why You do or how You can, but we’re grateful for everything that comes to us because of You. Amen