If you're anything like me, you probably have thoughts of
discouragement from time to time. I don't mean just about life in general -
casual things like meals that don't turn out well, friends that don't keep in
contact, or a financial situation that just won't improve. I'm talking about
the important things - spiritual matters.
You wouldn't be serving faithfully in the ministry where God
has called you if you didn't have a heart and passion for God. Therefore, it
means a lot to you that you do His work well, that you represent Him well to
other people, that your relationship with Him is strong, and that He is pleased
with your labors. You want to do a good job for Him.
Unfortunately, we can't always see what is really happening,
and sometimes our efforts seem futile. We don't understand the big picture of
God's work as it relates to our individual situation, and sometimes it seems
that our part is having no impact. We don't even know if God is going to do an
amazing work through us or whether He wants to give people an opportunity to
hear the truth, even though He knows most will reject it.
Basically, it is easy for us to get discouraged when we
don't see the visible results that we are hoping for. We might wonder if our
efforts matter or whether God even sees what we are doing. Will there ever be
lasting results? Is God paying attention to our hearts and to our labors?
I was recently encouraged along these lines by Psalm 52.
David was fleeing for his life, and Doeg revealed his hiding place to King
Saul. David was certainly a man who tried to do right, and he had served King
Saul faithfully, from playing his harp to calm Saul, to serving as his armor
bearer, to performing great military exploits on his behalf. David had done
nothing to deserve Saul's wrath, but he faced it nonetheless.
In the opening verses of the psalm, David speaks about a
wicked man. Whether he is speaking of Doeg or Saul specifically or about evil
men in general, he describes the mischief, lies, and deceit (vs. 2-4). This man
loves evil more than good (v. 3), and at the moment this man is mighty (v. 1).
Such success, however, is temporary. God sees all. God sees that this man
trusts in his riches and his own strength and his wicked power (v. 7), and God
will respond accordingly. The day of reckoning will come (v. 5).
Just as God is paying attention to the wicked, He is also
paying attention to the righteous. "The goodness of God endureth
continually" (v. 1), and He will show that goodness to the righteous. The
day is coming when they will see vindication (v. 6). David doesn't trust in
himself like the wicked man does; David trusts in God and in His tender mercies
(v. 8). David does see God's blessing to some extent. Even in the midst of his
trials, he describes himself as "a green olive tree in the house of
God" (v. 8). He has seen God act on his behalf (v. 9).
But David's answer hasn't fully come. He is, in fact, in the
midst of one of the most trying times of his entire life. In that difficulty,
his trust is in God. He determines to praise God and wait on Him. He knows that
God's goodness will take care of him. "I will praise thee for ever,
because thou hast done it: and I will wait on thy name; for it is good before
thy saints" (v. 9).
Just as God sees the wicked and responds accordingly, God
also sees the righteous and responds accordingly. The answers and the
deliverance may not come immediately, but there is no doubt that God is paying
attention. There is no doubt that God acts and will act in accordance with His
good character. God always sees His children, and He always does what is right
for them.
The power and prosperity of the wicked are temporary; the
trials and difficulties of the righteous are also temporary. God will turn
things around and will bring the right end result. We may not know exactly what
that will look like or when it will happen, but we can confidently trust God
that it will happen. What you do today matters for eternity. Your heart for God
matters. Your labors for Him matter.
God sees, and He is pleased with every sincere effort and
with every expression of your love for Him. So don't get discouraged over what
doesn't seem to be going well or what doesn't seem to be yielding results. God
is paying attention to what you are doing for Him in the little corner where He
has placed you. He is even now responding to that, and in His time, He will
give the full response of blessing. Trust and wait on the One who is always
paying careful attention.
Love in Christ,
Peggy Holtmember at Open Door Baptist Church in Lebanon, PA
www.pressingontohigherground.blogspot.com
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