When the going gets tough

The righteous get praying!

Here's today's Psalm (52) in a different translation to that which I might normally think of and it makes so much sense, brings so much comfort and draws a line for those who would oppose God and the Church of Christ:

'Why do you celebrate evil, you wicked, while God's goodness is there (always) for you?

In your deceit you plot destruction and talk down others and your tongue is like an assassin's razor. You love evil rather than good and in the company you keep you enjoy the taste of lies on your tongue rather than the word of truth in your heart - for you love the words that hurt, deny and destroy. And this is why God will bring you down; he shall take you, and the company of liars, adulterers, gossips and evil one and will take everything. 

The righteous will see this and trembling in awe, and fear, will be scornful and laughingly proclaim, 'Oh you wicked, deceitful ones, who abandoned God as a refuge and trusted in possessions and lived in wickedness - you have received the fruit for what you have sown!'

But the righteous are like a spreading olive tree in the house of God; they trust in the goodness, love and mercy of God for ever and ever and will always give thanks to Him for what He has done; they will hope in His name for your faithful ones delight, and find life, within it.'

I always find it sad when I see people who claim to be Christian conspiring with others and misrepresenting, telling untruths, enjoying the barbed words of others and celebrating the difficulties and challenges before others. Those who bless wickedness rather than seek to correct it; those whose bums are on the seats of the congregation whilst their hearts belong to satan, the father of all lies.

Thankfully God deals with them, leaving us to praise Him and to live our lives rightly.

Thankfully those who dig pits will indeed fall into them and perish at the works of their own hands.

Thankfully (let me hear a 'Hallelujah') those who love God will help them out of that pit and restore and love them.

As is says in the BBB (Big Black Book)

Let those who have ears, hear :-)

When the going get rough

Regardless of what our calling is, we all have one and the greatest of these is our baptismal calling which having confirmed us as members of the Church calls us to reject rebellion against God and takes us into the world.

In the world we are called to tell, teach and make disciples.
In the home it calls us to be students of the Word and to be diligent (i.e. do it) in prayer. Everywhere we are called to be witnesses to the atoning power of Christ's blood and to live our new life.

Life is a variable and has many peaks and troughs, highs and lows. We all have times of darkness and despair and sunlight and joy; Easy water and wild water which hides rocks and hazards to the soul.

Being Christian is easy when we are living in the pluses but when the minus signs begin to accumulate we tend to cling to that which we know and sadly this is often the opposite of the 'Fruit of the Spirit' in Galatians five. Instead of the 'love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness' we find instead varying degrees of 'division, sadness, despair, impatience, cruelty (in word and deed) and wickedness'.

It seems that when the 'going gets tough' some stop coming,
Some start swearing, kicking and fighting,
Some open a bottle and look to a different spirit,
Some take their eyes off God and look to the world and its distractions,
Some crawl into their caves and refuse to come out.

People often tell me how 'lucky' I am that I am immune from the above options. Would that it was true for when we the going gets tough, we ALL have the potential to select one (or all) of the wrong options. Then I have to tell them that I try not to slip into one (or more) of the wrong choices and that I do this by:

Reading my Bible - Conversing with God (Prayer) - Selecting the right company (Yes, I try to avoid those who will make me worse when I'm wobbling) and keeping my mouth shut (always a tough task, but the potential to say the wrong thing in the wrong way or use the wrong words is something we all have).

And when they ask what I do when things are going well?

Reading my Bible - Conversing with God - Selecting the right company and keeping my mouth shut (still a tough task).

What about you?