Justice Versus Vengeance

"Lord, hear a just cause; pay attention to my cry; listen to my prayer- from lips free of deceit. Let my vindication come from you, for you see what is right."  Psalm 17:1-2 HCSB

Almost every day the media reports shootings, bombings, protests, cars crashing into crowds of people and other forms of terrorism where we feel completely helpless.  Almost every day.....all around the world.  People of every race, nation, gender, and religion are so desperate to have their own personal causes heard that they are willing to go to whatever extreme, including taking other human lives, to guarantee that they have a voice.  People who are so desperate to be seen as worthy and right in their causes that they refuse to see the evil that has taken hold.  Certain groups of people truly fear for their lives because of the color of their skin, or because of what they do for a living, or because of how they choose to live their lives.  And my heart breaks at the pain and fear that others feel, and my soul is tempted to give into despair at the state of the human race in this day and age.  Especially right now in the midst of a very dramatic and tense Presidential Election that seems to have no ideal outcome.

Ultimately we aren't dealing with a need for more gun control or stiffer immigration policies, or legislation on hate; although I know people from both sides that will argue that these are exactly what we need.  I personally think that these are just bandaides that we are trying to put on a gaping and bleeding wound....and that wound is sin.  Our problem isn't racism or guns or immigration problems....it's a heart problem....it's a sin problem, and we all are vulnerable to giving in to it because at the root of this sin problem is selfishness and pride.  We feel that we don't need to take the time to listen and really try to understand where the other side is coming from because we feel that our side is the only one that matters.  We feel right in our causes, but do we ask God to examine our hearts and expose our true motives?

In the last week as I studied and meditated on Psalm 17, God has shown me that our circumstances are not new to Him. He has continually dealt with evil, and pride and selfish motives, along with His people's fears and pleadings for justice and mercy.  The  life of King David has shown me that God hears our cries and knows that we want justice for our causes....the key is to seek His justice and not our own vengeance.  Because that is what we are dealing with; groups of people who want their causes to be heard yet aren't willing to go to Him, instead seeking justice and vengeance on their own...in their own strength and power and wisdom.  And this is why we are seeing evil raise it's ugly head and seemingly gain an advantage in the world.  

But through this Psalm and David's life I see how God wants His people to react.  Psalm 17 is more of a pleading prayer than a praise, and I think that's ok....David shows us that there are times to sing praises, and times to cry out in prayer.  His is a plea for justice; and if anyone had a cause to scream "Unfair!!!" it would be David.  In the midst of false accusations and persecution, being hunted down by his own father-in-law, whom he had protected and fought for, David faced an outer, physical battle with Saul and his men, but he also fought an inner battle where he had to face fear.  Both of these battles urged David to make a choice....seek justice and vengeance on his own or fall on God's mercy, allowing Him to fight David's cause and right the wrongs done to him.  

David asks God to recognize his integrity and his heart. During this time of crisis, when his very life is in danger, David wants God to know that he is praying with no hidden motives or known deceit.  He had confidence that God would hear his plea because his cause was just.  And David did not want vindication over his enemy if it didn't come from God.  David teaches us through his prayer that we can give all of our struggles and pain, all of our fears, all of the ways that we feel we have been persecuted and mistreated and we can give them to God to take care of. We don't need to protest how unfairly we have been treated because God knows our cause and He will be the One to mete out justice to our enemies, we don't need to lift a finger.  Instead we can rely on Him to give us wisdom and discernment and to judge the motives of our own hearts.  David's emphasis was on God's justice and not his own vindication.  Maybe if we all focused on that then the world would be a less scary and hostile place. 
 #EveryLifeMatters  #VengeanceBelongsToTheLord #Psalm17 #LessonsFromDavid

Being Courageous

There are a lot of things in life that require courage; experiences that we might miss because sometimes it’s just easier not to take the chance than to risk failure.  Some of the courageous things in my life that I have done include public speaking, running for an office in the State FFA Association, living & working in a big city back East, driving in Denver, roping a calf, scary amusement park rides, skiing (both cross country & downhill, although cross country has become a passion & downhill is something I only do if I have to), riding a difficult horse and writing.  There are also innumerable things that I have not had the courage to try, some that I wish I would have, some I still might, and some I never will! 

       By far the most courageous undertaking that I have experienced has been motherhood.  Motherhood requires courage each and every day, several times a day & quite often through sleepless nights.  When I first became a mother, over 11 years ago when Hannah was born, I was scared to death!  And there was no turning back.  I remember holding her and thinking, “I’m going to break her, what in the world were the doctor & nurses thinking when they let me bring her home?”  It took several months for me to be comfortable enough in my role as Hannah’s mommy that I no longer held my breath each time I held her in my arms.  But it was also the most natural thing in the world, like I was created for this role.  I never longed for anything more than being a wife & mother, & with the birth of this precious little soul I finally felt like I was who I was suppose to be.    

  She is almost 12 years old now & I can’t believe how the years have flown.  Although I no longer feel like I am going to break her, I still pray for courage daily in my role as her mommy. I have had to learn how to deal with physical hurts & emotional hurts, how to let some things go & to allow her to be herself.  I’ve had to dig down deep for that courage as I allow her a little more freedom & responsibility here and there.  It’s so scary, but totally worth it in order to be her mother & see the beautiful, confident & godly young lady that she is becoming.    

And now I find myself searching for courage again in my role as mommy to Baby Kade. What a person can forget in 11 years!!  I forgot the long nights, when you pray for a few hours of sleep; & then when the baby actually sleeps for longer stretches of time, you lay there awake, fearful that he’s not breathing!  And the daily stresses of caring for a baby: am I nursing him often enough, is he getting enough milk, is he growing properly, shouldn’t he be crawling yet, once he starts crawling & pulling himself up on things is he going to have stitches before he’s 9 mths old? The list of worries could be endless if we let it - injury, illness, or other kinds of physical harm, dealing with their hurt feelings caused by other kids, the pain of being left out, the fear of what the future holds in store for each of them.  

And each day that I rise I have a choice in regards to my role as a mother (and a wife); do I choose worry & fear or do I choose courage and faith?  I thank the Lord that I don’t have to do this mothering thing alone, because I would allow the hard parts of it overwhelm me.  But because I get my courage and my wisdom from Him, I know that nothing that I do is beyond Him or out of His control.  I think about a song that we sang the first year that Hannah was in Vacation Bible School, it was taken from Joshua 1:9 “Be strong & courageous, do not be terrified, do not be discouraged for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go!” This makes me one Courageous Mommy!!!