Psalm 37 is the exchange of the righteous’ reward while the wicked pass away.
On a Personal Level
One thing that immediately comes to mind as a mother when I read this passage is the post I wrote on rewarding children for their work around the house—and why not extend that into their character training, pending it isn’t an issue in their maturing process?
Just read this passage and see how God rewards the righteous and punishes the wicked. It’s plain as day; black and white.
He doesn’t just tell us about reward; He offers it everyday. Every time the sun rises and we have breath in our lungs. When He gives us peace in dire circumstances; when He offers us just a slice of His plan to let us know He’s still there and He’s still working. It’s all a gift. It’s all a reward for running the race that can be so hard to run at times.
He tells us, “It will be worth it.”
But the meek shall inherit the earth, and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace. Psalm 37:11
He encourages us to trust Him (vs 3) and is our strength (vs 39).
On a Global Level
Imagine how David felt in the face of his enemies. God gave Him comfort because of his faithfulness to his Lord. We don’t have the same urgent threats on our life as David did, but we do face other challenges as our nation has changed and allowed more and more things to become acceptable. This is a war, not because people are free to choose, but because pastors and other people of Christian faith are forced to say it’s acceptable when it goes against what God has said.
There is much we can learn in light of our circumstances and one of them is that vengeance is the Lord’s. We have no place in taking that role from God. Even David refused to touch one of God’s anointed when he was presented with an opportunity to kill Saul. It wasn’t his place. He simply waited on God to deliver him. And guess what? He did.
Today we are called to love our enemies and pray for those who persecute us. (Matthew 5:44) So we certainly have a duty to fulfill. And what we deem as persecution here in the States isn’t close to what they are facing in Iraq. But we can stand in the gap and pray for our fellow Christians as well as those who are persecuting them.
Prepare to Stretch
I am looking forward to digging into this passage because I want to trek into areas of my faith I’m not prone to trek. To open a new possibility of growth and understand God.
Typically I venture into areas of growth I am already familiar with and continue to build upon. Not bad, necessarily, but not terribly stretching either.
Get the Resource
If you want to purchase the resource to go with our study, you can buy the e-version here. This is a daily study and today we went over Day 1. If you prefer the paperback, that is also available, though it will take time to ship and arrive.