Fear and trust: Psalm 27

Psalm 27 is mainly a psalm of petition, and its petitions flow from a profound faith in a caring God. Once again we meet “God the Teacher” and “God the Protector” as we did in Psalm 25. The Psalmist is living in a dangerous world constantly at war with foes and enemies and “an army camped against me.” (v. 3).

We might not be involved in any particular war in a literal sense (although millions of Christians are in such a situation right now), but isn’t it true that in one sense or another we are engaged in a struggle or in combat with the enemies of our peace, our striving for God, and our living in faith? In all of this, God is at our side.

The Psalmist has great confidence in God and in what He can do, and this psalm becomes an urgent appeal for God’s mercy and assistance.

The Lord is my light and my help;

whom shall I fear?

·         These first two lines of the psalm can provide us with food and insight for a lifetime. I am especially drawn to the second line, whom shall I fear? So many times, our peace of mind is disturbed by fears that we have. Meditate on this. Ask the Lord to reveal to you how much of your thinking and acting may be subtly based on fear.  I know someone who had some real difficulties but who was afraid to go and talk to his superiors about them. Finally he got the courage to speak up, and the situation was resolved quickly and decisively. Are you held back by certain fears? This might be a perfect verse for you.

Though an army encamp against me

my heart would not fear.

Though war break out against me

even then would I trust. (v 3)

·         Pray for such trust at every moment of every day. Let go of a situation and trust in God to take care of it for you. A director once said to me, “What are you worried about? This entire situation is on God’s hands and He is going to deal with it at the right time.”

There is one thing I ask of the Lord,

for this I long,

to live in the house of the Lord,

all the days of my life. . . .

For there he keeps me save in his tent

in the day of evil.

He hides me in the shelter of his tent,

on a rock he sets me safe.  (v 4-5)

·         We might not be able to sleep on the sanctuaries of our churches all our days, but what we can do is allow our loving and caring and protecting God to hold us in an eternal embrace. It says in Psalm 57, in the shadow of your wings I take refuge till the storms of destruction pass by. Rest there today if you’d like.

God bless you!

Faith-filled music

This morning I was playing an organ chorale by J.S. Bach based on an old Lutheran hymn “If thou but suffer God to guide thee.” (Wer nur den lieben Gott lasst walten). Here’s the text of the hymn:

If thou but suffer God to guide thee and hope in him through all thy ways,

He’ll give thee strength, whatever betide thee, and bear thee through the evil days.

Who trusts in God’s unchanging love builds on a Rock that naught can move.

It’s an intricate piece of music put together with the inspired craftsmanship of a great and faith-filled composer. There are two major little musical figures (called motifs) that are heard repeatedly through the chorale. Both are highly symbolic, and they are intertwined together. The first motif is FAITH. The second one is the most interesting because it signifies OVERWHELMING JOY.

Put the motifs together with the text and it is as if Bach were saying, “The times are rough. My faith is strong. God is with me and his love never fails. Therefore, despite the trials and difficulties of the moment, I am filled with joy. Thank you, Lord, for the faith that undergirds my joy.”

I thought about these themes as I was playing the music and suddenly realized that the Lord had provided me with excellent material for my daily reflection. And so you have it. Have a nice day.