Thursday, I saw my Dr. and he removed the feeding tube that had been placed in my stomach back in January. It was with mixed excitement that I went home, happy that the tube is out but trepidation that I might need it again and now it’s gone. But I trust in the Lord and know that He has healed me to this point and will continue to do so. It makes me think of other people, when I was in Houston, I would see young children and teenagers with cancer and sometimes you can’t help but think that it’s unfair. At the same time, you look at rich and famous people who seem to live wonderful and wicked lives without consequences. Then we think, “how unfair is that, the wicked go on living a wonderful life and yet I try to serve the Lord and have a life full of troubles?”
“Malachi 2:17 You have wearied the Lord with your words.
“How have we wearied him?” you ask.
By saying, “All who do evil are good in the eyes of the Lord, and he is pleased with them” or “Where is the God of justice?”
The people of Israel seem to have had a somewhat similar complaint. They went even a step further and call evil, good. Saying that God saw the evil and was, “pleased with them.” They asked where the justice of God is. Let us not fall into the same trap of the devil. Remember Satan’s job is to make bad look good. The devil tries to make the world look tasty and mouthwatering to us, so that we will want just a small taste. Inside we think how refreshing it appears, could I have not just one sip of sin. You see all these other people have their fill of sin and nothing has happened to them.
Don’t be fooled, in Psalms we can find the truth of such thought.
Psalms 73:1 Surely God is good to Israel, to those who are pure in heart.
2 But as for me, my feet had almost slipped; I had nearly lost my foothold.
3 For I envied the arrogant when I saw the prosperity of the wicked.
4 They have no struggles; their bodies are healthy and strong.
5 They are free from common human burdens; they are not plagued by human ills.
6 Therefore pride is their necklace; they clothe themselves with violence.
7 From their callous hearts comes iniquity; their evil imaginations have no limits.
8 They scoff, and speak with malice; with arrogance they threaten oppression.
9 Their mouths lay claim to heaven, and their tongues take possession of the earth.
10 Therefore their people turn to them and drink up waters in abundance.
11 They say, “How would God know? Does the Most High know anything?”
12 This is what the wicked are like—always free of care, they go on amassing wealth.
13 Surely in vain I have kept my heart pure and have washed my hands in innocence.
14 All day long I have been afflicted, and every morning brings new punishments.
15 If I had spoken out like that, I would have betrayed your children.
16 When I tried to understand all this, it troubled me deeply
17 till I entered the sanctuary of God; then I understood their final destiny.
18 Surely you place them on slippery ground; you cast them down to ruin.
19 How suddenly are they destroyed, completely swept away by terrors!
20 They are like a dream when one awakes; when you arise, Lord, you will despise them as fantasies.
Here we can clearly see the justice of God, don’t be envious of the wicked for all they have is today. They live their lives for the moment and then it is gone, they eat, drink and party and well they should for if they do not repent and turn from their sinful ways they will find that they have wasted their lives walking on a slippery path and in the end their destruction will be sudden and terrible. If I may paraphrase the Bible for a moment…What good is it to have a life of pleasure, wealth and fame? To live for one party after another and never seem to have a care in the world. Yet in the end one loses their very soul. What is more precious and valuable than a human’s soul? Let’s not be so foolish as to think that evil people have it so good all the time, what we see on social media is not the whole picture, I can promise you that without Christ in their lives… they truly are not happy. There is a reason they are always running for more, because sin never brings lasting satisfaction. That little taste you were wanting only leaves you thirsty for more. It’s like being shipwreck at sea and taking a little sip of sea water from the ocean. That little sip only makes your thirst for more but it will never quench your thirst.
The truth is that the thirst that resides within the heart of all of us can only be quenched by God. The peace, joy and satisfaction the world seeks can only be found in our Lord. So, don’t be envious of those who do not have God, instead let us seek them out to share the truth of the Gospel. We have what the lost are so desperately seeking, it is only Christ that can fill the void in their lives, let us be the light to the world.
Each one of us will go through significant suffering in our lives. One day, we will all to have to deal with the reality of death. When suffering and when death comes…. who will bear it with us? Who will see us through it?
Jesus will, but only if we ask Him to. He won’t force Himself into our lives, we must invite Him. Then we will have the assurance that we will never be alone in our suffering. More importantly, we will have the assurance that we will spend eternity in a place where suffering will be no more.
Johannes Plenio photo/Unsplash
Anchor In The Storm 