by Tom
Wacaster
In times of
uncertainty the child of God has a refuge in his heavenly Father. Indeed,
the promises that God gives to His children are so abundant that the saint
could read one promise a day for the entire year and not have touched the hem
of the garment. Psalms 121:7 contains just such a promise:
The Lord
shall preserve thee from all evil: he shall preserve thy soul.
The Lord
shall preserve thy going out and thy coming in from this time forth, and even
for evermore.
Having grown
up during the tense days of the cold war, I have finally reached retirement
age. One thing I have learned is that the uncertainties of the early to mid
60's have not diminished; they have only changed form. Things are
as perilous today as they were in those innocent years of the 50's and
60's. Life remains uncertain, riches take wings, and the earthly wisdom
continues to prove itself to be devilish and from beneath. Random
killings remain a mystery and politicians continue to mystify, whether for the
good or bad. There have been two crazed killers in as many days that
have, once again, shocked our senses and reminded us that life is not
certain. And, again, the pundits and prognosticators are seeking
"clues" as to what motivated these two men, in two separate
incidents, to take the lives of slightly more than a dozen people. Such
random killings are designed to generate fear in the minds of society.
Were it not for the fact that God has promised to watch over His children, the
crazed mad men of our unstable society might be successful in producing that
fear even in the hearts of God's children.
In contrast,
consider the promise set forth by the Psalmist. "The Lord shall
preserve thee from all evil." To a certain degree God does protect
us and shield us from the woes of this world, if for no other reason than the
fact that seeds of godliness keep us aloof from the troubles that plague most
men. I know of no Christian who has been the victim of random shootings.
I am not saying no Christian has ever fallen prey to senseless killings; I am
just saying I know of none. But the promise that "the Lord shall preserve
thee from all evil" finds its fullest application when it comes to
preservation of the soul. Regardless of what might happen in this world,
the Christian has his hope set on what happens after this life. While God
is concerned about our well being this side of eternity, He is more concerned
about the soul, and has promised to keep us from all evil. When
traveling, when going home and coming back, everywhere and at all times, God
will watch over us. What great comfort there is for the troubled soul in
knowing that God cares for us. As one poet put it:
In foreign
realms, and lands remote,
Supported by
thy care,
Through
burning climes they pass unhurt,
And breath
in tainted air.
When by the
dreadful tempest borne,
High on the
broken wave,
They know
thou art not slow to hear,
Nor impotent
to save.
The storm is
laid - the winds retire,
Obedient to
thy will;
The seas
that roars at thy command,
At thy
command is still.
In midst of
dangers, fears, and death,
Thy goodness
we'll adore;
We'll praise
thee for thy mercies past,
And humbly
hope for more.
Our life,
while thou preserv'st that life,
Thy
sacrifice shall be;
And death,
when death shall be our lot,
Shall join
our souls to thee"
There is no
doubt that troublesome times will remain as long as the earth remains; that is
just part of life, and part of curse of sin and evil. But let come what may,
the child of God rests in the promise that "God will keep thy
soul."