Woebegone
Psalm 32: 10 – 11 (NIV)
Many are the woes of the wicked, but the Lord’s unfailing love surrounds the man who trusts in him. Rejoice in the Lord and be glad, you righteous; sing, all you who are upright in heart!
The psalmist, who is King David, expects rejoicing and singing to breakout from the good news he has just delivered. And why shouldn’t he? There is a lot of great news in those few words. First of all, David tells us that although the wicked will have many woes, many sorrows; that his life will be fraught with troubles and he will have to endure constant problems, the righteous will not have to endure any of that. David is contrasting the life of the wicked with the life of the righteous. The righteous are not supposed to live the same life as the wicked. The fruit of their life is not that of the wicked. Therefore, the righteous do not have to constantly face one problem after another.
The person who loves the Lord and has put her trust in Him shall be surrounded by the loving arms of the Father, the arms which nurture and protect. All the problems and woes that rain into the life of the ungodly is shed by the sheltering arms of the Lord. He envelopes His children in love and love never fails.
Don’t expect your life to look like everyone else’s. It is not supposed to. When you see hard times coming or hear some kind of gloom and doom prediction, just break into song and rejoice. Praise God that you are not expected to participate in any of it. In the midst of your praise, pray for all of those people who don’t know the Lord or don’t know of their redemption. Pray for the Christians who don’t have a revelation of Jesus’ victory and their own deliverance because of it.
David tells us to rejoice and be glad. You are encased in the love of God where no harm can befall you, where the woes of the world cannot enter. Bless the Lord and be happy. Bless the Lord and do not worry.
