"Put God First Test" - Day #19 - "God is active"

I am in an experiment to show (myself primarily) that a person can put God first, seek first his kingdom, and spend time with God daily.  The experiment seeks to show that if a person does put God first then not only will a crazy job and life not fall apart- it will thrive.

Lord, I dedicate this morning time with you- to you.  Please help me to draw near to you.

Bible Passage:
Psalm 64 - this is what spoke to me in my Psalm of the day -
1 Hear my voice, O God, in my meditation;
         Preserve my life from fear of the enemy.
 2 Hide me from the secret plots of the wicked,
         From the rebellion of the workers of iniquity,
 3 Who sharpen their tongue like a sword,
         And bend their bows to shoot their arrows—bitter words,
 4 That they may shoot in secret at the blameless;
         Suddenly they shoot at him and do not fear.
....
⁷ But God shall shoot at them with an arrow;
         Suddenly they shall be wounded.
 ⁸ So He will make them stumble over their own tongue;
         All who see them shall flee away.
 ⁹ All men shall fear,
         And shall declare the work of God;
         For they shall wisely consider His doing.
¹⁰ The righteous shall be glad in the LORD, and trust in Him.
         And all the upright in heart shall glory.(NKJV)

People say a lot of mean things behind the backs of others.  It hurts when we find out words that have been said about us.  Once again the Psalmist David, who was such a strong man of faith in God, shares a plaguing concern and anxiety he has- about the backstabbing words of others.  You can see that nothing has changed in 3,000 years- people are still cruel and disloyal to each other.  In spite of the fact that David's faith was so strong he still experienced these same people attacks that we all do- no one is immune.

David learned through experience that God is active and monitors the actions of those who shoot arrows (back-stab with evil words) and punishes them.  He says that God will make them stumble over their own tongue.  It goes on to say "all men shall fear"- so this retribution is done publicly as an example to the back-stabber and everyone involved in the situation.

This lesson really shows a few things.  First of all, don't talk about people behind their backs unless it is something that builds them up.  If you do- just know God is active in monitoring what you're doing and he will eventually punish you in the same way you are treating others.  The second lesson I get from this is not to worry about what is said behind my back because God will handle it. There is no point in me getting unsettled in my mind about what someone might be saying.  The last point I'll make is that in the last verse, again, we're told that the way God will handle the people who do this will make the righteous glad- and help them to trust in him more.  Its easy to forget that we go through these times with a purpose that ultimately will help us.  We will be glad in the end and by seeing the Lord work we will trust in him more.  Ultimately it would do us a lot of good if we could just remember to not fret during times like these but to pray- and then trust God no matter what people are saying or doing.

For more reinforcement and encouragement on this topic today go read my favorite Psalm- 37 - it will help you if you are going through a time like this.  You can look up Psalm 37 at www.biblegateway.com.

Let's GO God!


All scriptures quoted in the New King James Version (NKJV) of the Bible which is Copyrighted by Thomas Nelson.  Scriptures obtained from www.biblegateway.com