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Everywhere we look the headlines are negative, even scary. But God's plan is bigger and better than any bad news we see.
Are we going crazy yet with all the problems going on in Washington? I find myself trying to get away from the news these days. Sadly, though, I gravitate back to it because of my great need to know what's going on. I'm reminded of what the apostle Peter wrote about being watchful: "Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about as a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour" (1 Peter 5:8). So we must watch and be alert! I don't want to be caught off guard from lack of watching what is happening around me, but it can be so depressing.
I'm also reminded of a scripture that says God's people would be worn down. Daniel 7:25 foretold regarding a coming false religious and governing power: "He shall speak words against the Most High, and shall wear out the saints [those set apart] of the Most High" (English Standard Version, emphasis added). That is how an enemy operates! He wears us down so he can destroy us. It sounds like what is going on even today to some degree!
Now who has really been doing this? Who ultimately has been wearing the people down? We think of the powers that be as people-the government, various influential groups and institutions, our relatives, our bosses. But people are just puppets in the hands of the one who is really out to destroy and conquer. It's really Satan, the enemy of God, who is the enemy of all of us! He wears away at us through speaking against the Most High, watering down and destroying God's Word, and doing what he can to make life ever more difficult.
We need to keep the right focus to counteract his ceaseless onslaught.
We should recognize that what is going on around us is what a godless society has chosen. Many do not want God in their lives! They don't want prayer in schools, they don't want the Ten Commandments posted in public places. They just don't want God involved! So they have chosen the way of Satan and elected the people that will best represent them.
The good news is that God retains ultimate control and is only allowing Satan to do what he is doing for the time being. While the world may be the puppet in Satan's hand, the fact of the matter is that Satan is the puppet in God's hands in terms of God fulfilling His overall purpose.
David, whom God had chosen to be king over Israel, also felt overwhelmed and in despair when pursued by the king he had faithfully served, Saul. And Saul wanted him dead! How would you feel if the ruler of your country sent forces to hunt you down and kill you?
David felt overwhelmed when he wrote in Psalm 13: "How long, O Lord? Will You forget me forever? How long will You hide Your face from me?" (Psalm 13:1). Did you know that the two-word phrase "how long" is mentioned 18 times in Psalms? In Psalm 13 alone it's mentioned four times.
David was really in despair. Yet the psalm ends with David restored to his confidence in God: "But I have trusted in Your mercy; my heart shall rejoice in Your salvation. I will sing to the Lord, because He has dealt bountifully with me" (Psalm 13:5-6).
We know that our hope is not in this world's governments. If it were, then we would all be doomed. Our hope is in the great Kingdom to come. Satan will be banished, and a new ruler, who loves and cares deeply for humankind, will take over. That Ruler, Jesus Christ, will reintroduce the Ten Commandments, the mandated laws we must live by. No vote will be taken on these laws. And their enforcement will be for our good, not political gain. The Government of God through Christ, based on love, will truly serve and help the people-not harm them. What a fair and loving world it will be!
In the meantime, we have to live amid the turmoil and watch the decline of our country. It can be overwhelming and discouraging to witness all that's happening around us. So it's vital that we focus on the big picture-that God's intervention and coming Kingdom are just around the corner.
As Paul wrote, "Set your minds on things above, not on things on the earth" (Colossians 3:2). Trust in God, knowing that He is in control, that a new future lies ahead for all of mankind, and that allowing a distressing world for the present is part of His master plan.
David wrote beautiful words of encouragement for you and me: "Wait on the Lord; be of good courage, and He shall strengthen your heart; wait, I say, on the Lord!" (Psalm 27:14). That is how we will survive in this crazy world. Our hope is for the loving, righteous King to soon return!
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