Undoubtedly, our lives are more complex these days despite technology and multiple 'labor saving' devices that are supposed to make it all easier to manage! We have more things to keep in working order, a wider circle of relationships to tend, and multiple demands on our time. In this busy world, I'll be first to admit that it takes a lot of effort to keep our hearts in tune with God, to nurture our marriages, to raise our kids to revere the things of God- in short, to order our lives in a God-pleasing way that really works.
Life doesn't always 'work' the way we think it should, does it? The more desperate we become, the more we search for sources of solace. But, where will we turn? We love our self-help sources! Prevention magazine promises us that we can live forever if we follow the advice of the various gurus. The church of Oprah meets daily and from her pulpit she dispenses wisdom to millions who are ready to drink up her advice about everything from politics to sex. WebMD allows us to doctor ourselves.
Many people turn to faith in God in times of crisis. She walks out the door and suddenly he wants to go to church. The teenage daughter announces she is pregnant and her parents decide that it's time to reorder weekend priorities to include worship. The mistaken idea is that with faith comes magic answers, instant solutions, and a return to happy land. That's all fine, but it doesn't work! God is the God of miracles but He's not our Magician, nor is He our household Butler who shows up after our party to clean up the messes!
One of my favorite Psalms is also one of the most misunderstood passages in the Bible. Here's the song:
"I lift up my eyes to the hills- where does my help come from?
My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth."
Those who first sang this song in Israel understood the opening line better than we do. We think the Psalmist is rhapsodizing about the glory of the hills that turns our thoughts to God! No, that's not it, at all. The hilltops of ancient Israel were places of idolatry, where shrines stood to the various gods. Want to assure a better crop in the Springtime? Go to the fertility shrine on the hilltop. Need protection from drought? Go to the hilltop where the sun-god could be appeased. The gods (Baals - literally "lords") were notoriously fickle. They were thought to fall asleep on the job! The priests claimed they could awaken them if the right offerings were presented. They forgot to send rain, make the fields grow, and to protect from evil demons.
Only if a person went to the hills regularly to offer their sacrifices, could they hope to keep things in order. The gods needed the people they supposedly cared for. But, it didn't work! The priests were frauds, the orgies in worship of the fertility gods just a distraction from the grim realities of daily life!
Thus, the followers of the One True God, Yahweh, did not look for help from the gods worshipped at the hilltop shrines. They looked to the Maker of the hills. How was He different from the Baals?
The promises that follow make it plain.
"He will not let your foot slip- he who watches over you will not slumber;
indeed, he who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep.
The Lord watches over you-
the Lord is your shade at your right hand;
the sun will not harm you by day, nor the moon by night.
The Lord will keep you from all harm- he will watch over your life;
the Lord will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore."
(Psalm 121, NIV)
Does this mean that faithful Christians will never turn their ankles, never get cancer, never find their marriages troubled? Can we expect that He will exempt us from the up's and down's of the economy? No, and if we read it that way, we may eventually lose faith, concluding that God is fraud, or at least, ignoring us. Or, we may think that we need to dance faster, give more, or raise the volume of our prayers to attract His attention.
What God promises in this Psalm is that even in our times of distress we can count on His Presence, lean on His wisdom, and expect His purposes to prevail! Unlike the fickle gods, He is an ever-watching, always active, and all Powerful Lord for all those who trust with their lives.
Don't turn aside to the gods of the hills. No, of course, we don't worship the Baals any longer, but we do worship Money, Government, Education, and many other gods who prove incapable of seeing us safely home. Look, instead, to the Creator, who is never caught napping. Trust Him now, even in the good times, so that you will know how to walk with Him when the storms come- and they will.
__________________
The beasts of the field,
The birds of the air
Are silent to call out Your name.
The earth has no voice
And I have no choice;
But to magnify God unashamed.
Let the rocks be kept silent
For one more day.
Let the whole world sing out.
Let the people say,
"Almighty, most Holy God;
Faithful through the ages.
Almighty, most Holy Lord;
Glorious, Almighty God."
Well, time marches on
With innocence gone,
And a darkness has covered the earth;
But His Spirit still dwells;
He speaks, "It is well,"
And the hopeless still
Offered new birth.
He will break the leash of death;
It will have no sting.
Let the prisoner go free.
Join the dance and sing,
"Almighty, most Holy God;
Faithful through the ages.
Almighty, most Holy Lord;
Glorious, Almighty God."
Almighty
Watson, Wayne© 1990 Material Music (Admin. by Word Music Group, Inc.) / Word Music, Inc. (a div. of Word Music Group, Inc.)CCLI License No. 810055
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