Where do you turn to find hope and help to keep you going in troublesome times? One of my most frequented retreats is the book of Psalms; I’ve been spending considerable time there lately. Personal health issues, concern for the direction of our country, and the everyday challenges each of us faces keep me coming back for another look at God from the Psalmist’s point of view.
As you know, I’ve been exploring “What is there to love about God?” for several weeks. This is the (twelfth) edition and I’m glad to report there is hope and help for you if you need an encouraging word.
There is a wonderful nugget of truth for us in Psalm 146. I stumbled across it the other day when looking for something to calm my fears. Here are the first six verses to remind us that no problem is bigger than our Lord, the God of Jacob.
” Praise the Lord! Praise the Lord, O my soul! I will praise God while I live, I will sing praises to my God while I have my being. Do not trust in princes, in mortal man in whom there is no salvation. His spirit departs, he returns to the earth; in that very day his thoughts perish. How blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the Lord his God; who made heaven and earth, the sea and all that is in them.”
Often a king of Israel would face a threat from a more powerful nation and seek an alliance with another king to persuade a potential invader to think twice before attacking. Without knowing the background, it seems probable that such a situation inspired this psalm. “Do not trust in princes, in mortal man in whom there is no salvation.” What is the meaning of this?
This is not a prohibition to trusting others. Trust is foundational to our marriage and other relationships. The ability to trust our church leaders, teachers, police, and elected officials is critical to building a community or nation that is healthy and strong. We must have trustworthy who will do what is in the best interest of those they serve. Our country is desperately vulnerable today because leadership has betrayed us, bowing the knee to money and power.
Even if we have the most godly leadership, we should not put our ultimate trust in it because ” in mortal man..there is no salvation.” Many of us are hoping for a radical change in policy and character resulting from the presidential and congressional elections in November. However, whoever is elected will be imperfect and transitory. Hopefully, they will be better than those we have now, but they will be mortal also. Human leaders, good and bad, pass away.
As individuals and citizens of our great nation, we must look to an eternal Leader. God will not die. He stands in and above the history we are experiencing. He is the Alpha and Omega, He knows the beginning and the end.
Our nation has a God-size problem. No human leader can fix what is wrong with the heart of America. A new administration may bring better financial times and do things that make us safer but only God can heal a heart that has betrayed Him. We need to return to God or we will continue to spiral downward to a mere shadow of what was once a great nation of light and hope.
“Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob.” There is a personal message in this for all of us. It is the height of foolishness to put our trust in wealth, success, or anything else to keep us eternally safe. Only your soul and God are eternal. Our bodies age and die. Our money and possessions pass on to someone else. The God of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and our Lord Jesus loves us and has a plan for us. If we trust Him as our Savior we have eternal life right now and nothing or no one can destroy that or take that away from us. God will see us through whatever challenge we face and use our troubles to help us grow to be more like Jesus.
Life has a way of distracting us, stealthily pulling us away from God and the hope and peace He offers. This happens almost daily and somehow God reminds me that I need to repent for putting my hope in wealth, health, money, or another person. When I return to the “God of Jacob” I find myself to be much more at peace and contented to let Him be God.
Do you have a problem that needs a God-sized answer? Why not take it to the God of Jacob?