by Selwyn Hughes at crosswalk.com
Psalm 74:1--23
"Rise up, O God, and defend your cause; remember how fools mock you all day long." (v. 22)
How do we develop trust in the goodness of God when so much that is happening in the world seems to contradict it? If God is good, how can He allow disasters? Dr. M. Scott Peck opens his book The Road Less Travelled with these words: "Life is difficult. This is a great truth because once we truly see this truth, we transcend it." I have great difficulty with some of Dr. Scott Peck's statements, but I fully endorse these remarks. Once we accept the fact that life is difficult -- that the mystery of why calamities and suffering occur will never be fully solved while we are here on earth -- then we will stop demanding that a satisfactory answer be found and begin to get on with life. Christians go down different routes regarding this matter of calamities and suffering. One is to close their eyes and pretend the tremendous problems are not there. But integrity requires that we face whatever is true. Reality is grim -- innocent children are abused, starved, massacred -- and countless other forms of atrocity are carried out around the world daily. We must not blind our eyes to these facts and pretend they are untrue because they appear to contradict the concept of God?s goodness. Pretense must never be our refuge. We must be willing to look at these things, unpleasant and horrible though they be, and allow ourselves to be jarred by them. When we face life honestly and allow ourselves to be jolted by what we see, then, and only then, are we ready for God to speak.
Prayer:
Gracious and loving heavenly Father, give me the courage not to bury my head in the sand and pretend there are no problems. Help me stand even when I cannot understand. For Your own dear Name's sake. Amen.
For Further Study
Pss. 73:1--17; 25:8; 34:8
1. What was the psalmist's conclusion about God?
2. What did he struggle with?
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