Psalm 94:12-15
How blessed the man you train, God,
the woman you instruct in your Word,
Providing a circle of quiet within the clamor of evil,
while a jail is being built for the wicked.
God will never walk away from his people,
never desert his precious people.
Rest assured that justice is on its way
and every good heart put right.
The
Living Bible copyright © 1971 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by
permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois
60188. All rights reserved.
For
more than a decade, I served as my paternal grandmother’s primary
caregiver/guardian. I handled her business affairs, paid her bills,
balanced her checkbook, ran her errands, and more. As my late friend
Mich (a gerontologist) often reminded me, there was a whole lot more
that went into “caregiving” than paperwork and running errands. For
some of her later years, Greg and I were also the frequent caregivers
for my little great-nephew, Timothy. So we became members of the
“Sandwich Generation”…those who balance the care of younger persons and
older persons – and try to maintain some semblance of a “normal” life in
between.
Today, I am 57 years old…and I feel like I have learned
a lot in more than five decades…about life in general – but more
importantly, about God’s love and care. There is no “manual” for a lot
of what happens to us in life. We can seek the counsel of others who
have “been there, done that”…but there are a lot of times when we have
to seemingly “fly by the seat of our pants”.
I distinctly
remember one day when I left my grandmother’s house feeling particularly
frustrated, confused and overwhelmed. I pulled into a parking space at
the grocery store and thought, “Who can I call or talk to about this?
Who will understand and be able to help me figure out what to do next?”
I drew a complete blank. So I sat in the car and asked God to show me
what to do. And the next thought I had was, “What would *I* tell
someone else who was going through this same thing?”
This was
my answer. I asked God to show me how to sort things out…to calm my
fears and frustrations and to clearly outline what I would indeed
suggest to someone else. And He did all of this for me. This was not
the last time I would have to have this sort of “conversation”…and I am
sure there will be many to follow.
In the last few years, I have
learned some incredibly valuable lessons. If you are a younger person
reading this message, maybe I can spare you some time, confusion and
frustration by sharing my “life lesson” here. The words of this
scripture passage are incredibly profound. Think of the water circling a
bath tub drain. It spirals downward – and sometimes even makes a loud
sucking noise as the liquid is pulled from the tub and into the tiny
pipe. That is just how we feel sometimes as the “clamor of evil” and
the forces of troubles and challenges in our lives pull at us from every
side. Our temptation is to panic…to throw up our hands and just let
the noisy current haul us away. And if we aren’t careful, this is
exactly what can happen!
But God stands ready to rescue us. He
provides a “circle of quiet” that can keep us calm, even as our very
lives seem to be “spiraling toward the drain”. He will never desert
us…God will never allow us to face more than we can handle with His help.
Notice I did not say that we would only be allowed what we can handle
by ourselves. But with God to walk alongside us, our strength and
capacity to manage things we thought were impossible increases
exponentially. And God always has the right answers.
I honestly
do not know how people get through life without a relationship with God
and His Holy Spirit. I cannot imagine how lonely and frustrating life
must be for those who are totally dependent on their own thoughts and
abilities…and those of other mere mortals. Don’t misunderstand me. God
has sent a lot of wonderful mentors and role models my way…friends to
whom I frequently turn for advice and “vent”. God gave me an amazing,
incredible husband who stands ever ready to help me with anything and
everything. I rely on these people greatly. But they are
God-ordained…Heaven sent…and this makes all the difference!
I
passed the street on which my grandmother used to live today, and for a
fleeting moment, I thought “I should go and visit Mam-ma Polly.” Then I
remembered that Mam-ma lives with Jesus now. But God still uses her
frequently to remind me of past lessons…and to show me which direction
to take. I see His hand in my life every day – in situations large and
small. And as I have grown in my faith and experiences, I have gotten
better at recognizing Him!
My prayer for you today is that you
would be in tune with God…that He would be your “go-to-Guy”…and that you
would realize it! I pray that you rest in the LORD even when there is
the noisy “clamor of evil” around you…that you trust Him to always be by
your side – and to mete out justice according to His will…and that you
would always recognize His voice. You are precious to God…He loves you
and wants to give you rest in Him. Do you know Him well enough to let
Him do exactly that?
©2014 Debbie Robus
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