Psalm 4
1Answer me when I call, O God of my right! You gave me room
when I was in distress. Be gracious to me, and hear my prayer. 2How
long, you people, shall my honor suffer shame? How long will you love vain
words, and seek after lies? Selah3But know that the Lord has set
apart the faithful for himself; the Lord hears when I call to him. 4When you are disturbed, do not
sin; ponder it on your beds, and be silent. Selah 5Offer right sacrifices, and put
your trust in the Lord. 6There are many who say, “O that we might
see some good! Let the light of your face shine on us, O Lord!” 7You
have put gladness in my heart more than when their grain and wine abound. 8I will both lie down and sleep in
peace; for you alone, O Lord, make me lie down in safety.
How
many of us have spent a sleepless night, agonizing over something. With thoughts in your head about how bad
things are going or how people are against you or how you will manage to deal
with an issue or with a litany of “what ifs?”
How often is it that we allow our lives to be controlled by fear and
focus on trying to create security, instead of enjoying the gift of life that
God has given us.
Living in fear is not the way that
God calls us to live. Whether it be the
fear of death, of an enemy, or anything else God calls to us and tells us not
to worry and to rest. We are called to
care for our bodies, these gifts that we have been given by God, and part of
that care is in sleeping enough that we may be rested for the day that is
coming. So do not worry all night about
what people may think of you or what tomorrow will bring, but be still and rest
to know that God will be there beside you, caring for you every step of the
way.
And that is what the psalmist was
experiencing at the time. He starts off
with such frustration, asking how long will people be able to slander him and
curse him, how long will people love vain words and false compliments over the
truth. And do we not feel that way
sometimes ourselves, wondering how it could possibly be that we are the only
sane ones in the room, the only ones who can see what is really going on? This is especially difficult when people are
hurling curses upon you and lying about you and dragging your name through the
mud. How many of us have had that
experience, whether in school with bullies or on the job with, well, more
bullies, whether they be co-workers or managers or customers? But what are we told in the psalm? “When you are disturbed, do not sin; ponder
it on your beds and be silent”
Translation – Don’t go around busting heads
or cursing them or in return. As my
fortune cookie said this week, an eye for an eye leads to a blind world. We are all sinners, each of us sins each and every
day of our lives, but that doesn’t mean that we should intentionally go around
sinning and causing chaos. Instead we
are told to relax and put faith in God.
Instead of seeking vengeance, we are to pray for those who persecute us,
that they may come to offer right sacrifices and put their trust in the Lord as
well. Our God calls us to peace and
understanding, to following Him instead of following our desires of vengeance,
which only lead to destruction and sadness anyway. When we follow the path of vengeance, we fall
into the trap of Sin, which forces us to live lives that are unworthy of God
and which lead to only more pain and causes us to lose in the long run, for we
lose our peace that God gives.
When we pray the Lord’s prayer, we
pray that our Father will “Forgive our trespasses as we forgive those who
trespass against us,” not that God forgives us our sins, just as we smack
around those who sin against us.
Forgiveness is what we are called to do.
When we forgive our persecutors, and we pray for them to come back into
a right relationship with us and with God, we are able to have right
relationships as well, especially with God. And when we act in mercy, we are
able to see God’s will more clearly and we are able to serve God better and our
lives are more blessed, because we are living in peace and not wasting our
energy on causing pain.
When we act in this compassion and
we are able to focus on God and the good that God does in the world, we are
able to see the good that we cry to see.
We make the choice every day to live in pain or to live in mercy and
joy. God’s kingdom has already
come. Christ came and died for our Sin
and was raised into new life, and we are joined in that resurrection which we
celebrate every Sunday. We are a people
of rejoicing, a family based on compassion and healing, not destruction. It is this love and compassion that brings
about the ministry of the congregation – the making of prayer shawls and
quilts, the visiting of the sick and the lonely, the devotion to our youth, and
so much more. These are the things that
define us and honor the name of Child of God that He has bestowed upon us. These are the good days that we so long
for. The glory of God does not exist
solely in a past when the pews were filled with people, but they are today as
well, where our numbers may be smaller by our devotion has not shrunk a single
bit. The light of God’s face shines on
us each day, with the blessing of one another.
It is often said that one’s
congregation is their second family.
Sure it includes our first family as well many times, but each of us is
part of one family, one large blessing to each other. We have our little quirks, as all families
do, but in the end we all share in one mission together – To spread of Gospel
of Jesus Christ in word and action, and we all love one another, even when it
can seem to be the hardest thing in the world to do. Love is not easy, but when we love we see the
goodness of God and his face shines upon us and we are given the restful minds
that we need at night so that we may sleep. There is no greater rest than the
calmness of knowing God’s love and that we are His hands in this world, showing
that same love and compassion to all people.
So when we go to bed this night and
all the nights of our lives, and we say our prayers, may we not only say
prayers for our families and friends, but let us say prayers for all those who
persecute us, that they may have fulfilled lives and good relationships, and
then may we lay our heads down on our pillows and know the true grace and rest
that only God can provide.
Amen
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