Psalm 28

Do not drag me away with the wicked,

with those who do evil,

who speak cordially with their neighbors

but harbor malice in their hearts.

Repay them for their deeds

and for their evil work;

repay them for what their hands have done

and bring back on them what they deserve.

You just can't trust people.

That seems to be the problem here. How often have you known someone who is nice to your face, but trashes you as soon as you walk away? Maybe you've seen someone who claims to be another person's good friend, yet they constantly ridicule them and tear them down when that person is gone.

Or, perhaps, you are the guilty party?

However you know the duplicitous human, you know they can't be trusted. They are unreliable at best and an assaulting enemy at worst. Someone we need protection from.
Now, counter that view of two-faced people with this view of God:

Praise be to the LORD,

for he has heard my cry for mercy.

The LORD is my strength and my shield;

my heart trusts in him, and he helps me.

My heart leaps for joy,

and with my song I praise him.

The LORD is the strength of his people,

a fortress of salvation for his anointed one.

Save your people and bless your inheritance;

be their shepherd and carry them forever.

The people leave you worn out and weakened- God gives you strength, protection and something to trust. In a cynical world where it is probably right to be leery of people, God is stable and reliable. His word is His bond- literally. While you can't trust your neighbor to be honest- or even your family sometimes- God will not leave you hanging, He will never lie.

It is because of this that God is a "Fortress of Salvation." There will be no rug pulled out from under you with God- He will keep His word.

And that alone makes His salvation secure.

Psalm 27

I'm not afraid of the dark or monsters or bogeymen or cockroaches.

But I am afraid of things like failure and financial problems and illness.

So, I have a problem with fear. I really want to be fearless, I want to be bold and not at all anxiety plagued, but lately it seems that I am totally besieged with worries. The crazy thing is, most of my fears are over things I can't control, so what's the point of stressing? More to the point, who can help me overcome these fears?

The LORD is my light and my salvation—

whom shall I fear?

The LORD is the stronghold of my life—

of whom shall I be afraid?

It seems so simple, doesn't it? Just trust in God and all will be well. He'll build a fort- a Helm's Deep, if you will- around us and nothing will get us. But wait- that implies that God comes to us. Read on with the psalmist:

One thing I ask from the LORD,

this only do I seek:

that I may dwell in the house of the LORD

all the days of my life,

to gaze on the beauty of the LORD

and to seek him in his temple.

For in the day of trouble

he will keep me safe in his dwelling;

he will hide me in the shelter of his sacred tent

and set me high upon a rock.

No, if we desire shelter from our fears, we must go to Him, and set up residence in His presence. Perhaps we become inundated with fears and worries when we stray too far from Him, following our own desires instead of His. Only when we recognize how vulnerable we are to the attacking hordes do we long again for the safety and protection of His stronghold- which we left because we wanted 'freedom.' Or because we felt that we were tired of waiting on God while in His presence. You know, the whole: "I'm doing God's will, why haven't I been blessed yet?"

I remain confident of this:

I will see the goodness of the LORD

in the land of the living.

Wait for the LORD;

be strong and take heart

and wait for the LORD.

If we want His protection and His blessing, we must live by His timetable. It's why patience is a virtue. If we want to be fearless, it doesn't mean learning total independence and conquering fears on our own.

Quite the opposite, it means being wholly dependent on God and His protection.

Psalm 26

David comes off as pretty arrogant, doesn't he?

He talks of how good he is, how righteous he is, but we all know better. And so does David. In verse 11, we read:

I lead a blameless life;
deliver me and be merciful to me.

Did you see that? He uses two opposing thoughts- He is innocent, yet in need of mercy and rescue. Why?

What if the idea we need to get here is that we can never be good enough to not need God? We could keep all the rules, do all the right ordinances, toe all the right lines- yet need salvation. Because apart from God, nothing is perfect, we are all fallen.

Human perfection is still less than God's desire for mankind.

The law will not save us, only rescue by the blood of Christ. The difference between righteous and redeemed is bigger than we think.

Psalm 25

Show me your ways, LORD,

teach me your paths.

Guide me in your truth and teach me,

for you are God my Savior,

and my hope is in you all day long.

That right there is the heart of this psalm, and maybe the heart of believing in Christ. We sure do think we know it all about being Christians, and by extension, we think we can save ourselves. We put our hope in following Rick Warren's latest 40 day whatever (Seriously dude, there are other Biblical numbers.), or in the latest program or self help idea. We put our hope in our money and our status, or our careers. We look at the chaos of our world today and cry out for a politician to make it better- but they never will.

But Psalm 25 makes one thing clear: God is our only hope. These other things may work for a season, but in the long run, they will falter. What it comes down to is the kind of relationship with God where you put your hand out for Him and wait for Him to walk you down the long and winding road of life. He knows the way, far better than we or any of our 'guides.'

If we are rescued by anything or anyone but God, it will wind up hollow.

We need to call to God for His wisdom and guidance. Put our hand in his, and trust in Him.

Only Him.

Psalm 24

Confession: I love this psalm.

The wording used, the imagery conveyed, I'd love for Peter Jackson to make a Lord of the Rings style movie of it. Of course, it would be three and half hours long, but it would be gorgeous.

Honestly, that's what I feel when I read this: like a King is being crowned and we get to see it- but only if we're worthy. "Clean hands and pure hearts." It sounds so easy. But it's not. We cover our hands with grime daily, and our hearts are so divided and corrupted by the desires that eventually lead us to the dirty hands. And idols? Sure we may not have a statue we bow to, but we worship plenty of false gods- celebrities, status, money, ourselves.

Just when I start to feel bad about my station in life- God shows up. The conquering King comes in, and I lift my head to see Him. And I realize- He has come from conquering MY enemies. Sin, death, and oppressors of the spiritual and physical varieties- they have fallen to the power of God.

And so, together with God, we celebrate victory.

Psalm 23

OK, really, what else can be said about this psalm.

Arguably the most famous, it is often read at funerals and times of great difficulty. It offers comfort to the hurting, and is beautiful with its pastoral imagery.

Reading it again, I see that it is more than just a 'death' psalm. In fact, it really isn't that at all. It is a 'hope for life' psalm. It tells us that we will have dark times, but that those are in fact NECESSARY to reach the life giving stuff. We must go through "Hell" on earth, but we need not go through it alone.

Though this psalm talks a great deal about darkness and enemies, it is not their presence that steals the psalm. It is the fact that our shepherd- our God- is ever present. He is always there, walking with us through it all.

And at times, fighting off the attackers.

Psalm 22

I think this captures the struggle we all face, but refuse to admit- at least publicly.

Sometimes, it really hurts to love God.

There are times when we feel distant from God because we sin, or because we just don't care. There are times God feels far off because it's been a while since we prayed or read His Word. But this psalm isn't about these. It's about being smack dab in the middle of where God wants you, and you want Him badly, but He seems distant. As if He's ignoring you.

And that goes against everything we've been taught in Sunday School and Church to believe about God. He is ALWAYS there. He will never leave us or forsake us.

So why then would Jesus, with His practically last words, quote this psalm? Why would He choose a psalm that accuses God of forsaking His beloved?

I haven't a clue.

I have guesses, though. Maybe these moment of God 'leaving' us are to remind of what that was like so we can better relate to those who do not know Christ. Maybe it is a test of faith to see if we will really cling to God. Maybe it's to get us to seek God in a different way.

None of that really matters in the context of the psalm. For all we know, David was just having a bad moment when he penned the opening words. What does matter is that by the end of the psalm, David has claimed that God will show up for the poor, the oppressed, the beaten. He believes it so much he talks of how he will celebrate when others see that God is still there and in control.

It's hard to trust God when it seems He isn't paying attention. But then, faith has never supposed to have been easy. If there were a formula or an incantation to get God to do what we wanted when we wanted it, then He would not be the wild God that calls to us in our heart.

God will do what God wants, we just need to trust that He is what He says He is: Good.