Psalm 69:7-9 English Standard Version (ESV)

⁷ For it is for your sake that I have borne reproach,
    that dishonor has covered my face.
⁸ I have become a stranger to my brothers,
    an alien to my mother’s sons.

⁹ For zeal for your house has consumed me,
    and the reproaches of those who reproach you have fallen on me.

Allow me to show you how I was led to Psalm 69.

John 2:17 English Standard Version (ESV) His disciples remembered that it was written, “Zeal for your house will consume me.”

During a contest of opinions with another Christian this scripture came to mind. The reference in John 2 is over hotly contested issues of what the rulers of the temple were doing. In the middle of any heated debate, can we remember what we have learned and how it is relevant to our now moment?

Meditation in our quiet time can lead to remembrances of scripture with ease. Can the same be said while we are in a heated debate? It is in the heat of battle when we need God’s word with relevance more than ever. Jesus defeated Satan’s lies with truth. Can we hear truth in the middle of a heated discussion with a brother in the Lord? Here is one that probably would have been better suited for the moment.

James 4:2-3 English Standard Version (ESV)

² You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel. You do not have, because you do not ask. ³ You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions.

It would have been relevant to our quarrel but that would not have served God’s will to lead me to this devotional series. What I needed more than to be right was to be in God’s will. He provided His answer rightly.

Psalm 69:4-6 English Standard Version (ESV)

⁴ More in number than the hairs of my head
    are those who hate me without cause;
mighty are those who would destroy me,
    those who attack me with lies.
What I did not steal
    must I now restore?
⁵ O God, you know my folly;
    the wrongs I have done are not hidden from you.

⁶ Let not those who hope in you be put to shame through me,
    O Lord God of hosts;
let not those who seek you be brought to dishonor through me,
    O God of Israel.

I see current events in these passages. Do we share those sentiments? There is a price to be paid for the folly of today. Perhaps I am guilty for allowing these things to unfold without doing my part to right the wrong I have seen for decades. It is easy to feel overwhelmed by events beyond our control. What have we done to change the direction of these events?

Verse 6 outlines the hope we all have in our God. Have we prayed to God for change? Have we been specific enough? I confess I have not. Not enough prayer, not enough specific requests. We cannot say what God’s will is during these times if we do not address our concerns in prayer. Have we given up hope in the face of destructive opposition?

Lack of hope is no excuse in failing to pray for change, in ourselves or in the world.

Ephesians 6:13 English Standard Version (ESV) Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm.

How can we stand in the middle of all this destruction and not admit to ourselves we are at war? Are we warriors or victims of horror and fear?

I have not done enough and I pray that no dishonor falls upon any here that believe in God our hope.