‘The eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and His ears are attentive to their cry;
but the face of the Lord is against those who do evil, to blot out their name from the earth.’
[Psalm 34:15-16]
I love the second part of verse 15 there: ‘His ears are attentive to their cry’. Not only does He hear us when we cry out to Him, but He’s awaiting our cries to Him. He keeps an eye and an ear out for you to ensure that you are safe and not in trouble. This is an incredible privilege, and much more enticing than the second part of that passage. I can’t imagine having the Lord ‘against’ me. He is an all-powerful God and that is somewhat terrifying. However, it is incredible to have such a loyal, loving God on our side. He wants to stand up to those who do evil, those who may be bullying you. He wants to keep the righteous safe.
‘The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears them; He delivers them from all their troubles.
The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.
The righteous person may have many troubles, but the Lord delivers him from them all.’
[Psalm 34:17-19]
He delivers the righteous from ALL their troubles. That’s pretty amazing. I love the second verse, that He is close to the brokenhearted. The Message version says ‘If your heart is broken, you’ll find God right there…’ I love that phrasing too. When we’re brokenhearted and down & out, we tend to feel all alone, but that’s exactly where we’ll find God. He is strong in our weakness.
And that last verse…people may think that once you’re a Christian/a Christ follower, you’re with God and nothing can harm or hurt or trouble you. But that is 100% wrong. Sometimes, being a Christ follower causes more problems than not–at least in the way that you will be persecuted more for your beliefs, etc. It’s definitely worth it, but it’s important to know that Christians are not just immune from difficulties and trials. However, it’s also very important to note that last part of the verse/that last word: ‘the Lord rescues him from them ALL.’ He saves, rescues, and delivers us from ALL of our troubles. As the Message puts it: ‘God is there EVERY time.’ He won’t abandon you. The Christian lifestyle may get difficult, but the important thing is that we can survive it all because we have God by our side. He’ll deliver us from the trouble every single time.
Look to Him when you’re in trouble. He’s waiting for your call. He wants you to ask Him for help. Never feel alone, because He pulls close to you when you’re hurting, and He is always there for you.
Have a lovely day, all! I won’t be posting for about a week and half as I will be on spring break–so have a lovely week, as well!
love,
erinn victoria