You Hold
My Right Hand
Truly God is good
to the upright, to those who are pure in heart. But as for me, my feet had
almost stumbled; my steps had nearly slipped. For I was envious of the
arrogant; I saw the prosperity of the wicked.
For they have no
pain; their bodies are sound and sleek. They are not in trouble as others are;
they are not plagued like other people. Therefore pride is their necklace;
violence covers them like a garment. Their eyes swell out with fatness; their
hearts overflow with follies. They scoff and speak with malice; loftily they
threaten oppression. They set their mouths against heaven, and their tongues
range over the earth.
Therefore the
people turn and praise them, and find no fault in them. And they say, “How can
God know? Is there knowledge in the Most High?” Such are the wicked; always at
ease, they increase in riches. All in vain I have kept my heart clean and
washed my hands in innocence. For all day long I have been plagued, and am
punished every morning.
If I had said, “I
will talk on in this way,” I would have been untrue to the circle of your
children. But when I thought how to understand this, it seemed to me a
wearisome task, until I went into the sanctuary of God; then I perceived their
end. Truly you set them in slippery places; you made them fall to ruin. How
they are destroyed in a moment, swept away utterly by terrors! They are like a
dream when one awakes; on awaking you despise their phantoms.
When my soul was
embittered, when I was pricked in heart, I was stupid and ignorant; I was like
a brute beast toward you. Nevertheless I am continually with you; you hold my
right hand. You guide me with your counsel, and afterward you will receive me
with honor. Whom have I in heaven but you? And there
is nothing on earth that I desire other than you. My flesh and my heart may
fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.
Indeed, those who
are far from you will perish; you put an end to those who are false to you. But
for me it is good to be near God; I have made the Lord GOD my refuge, to tell
of all your works.
Psalm 73:1-28
One of the joys of
being with children is holding their little hands. We do it to keep them safe
while crossing the street, or to keep them from getting lost in a crowd. And
whenever they stumble and lose their footing, we grab their hands tighter to
keep them from falling.
That’s what God
does for us. Inevitably there are stones and cracks that trip us up on the
sidewalks of life. We all face a variety of issues that threaten to make us
stumble. The next time you stumble, remember that the powerful hand of God is
holding your hand and walking you through life – all the way home!
Let God do the holding of your hand
and you do the trusting.
Our Daily Bread – November 25, 2008