"Brief Devotions For Busy Lives" by Rev. Dr. Mary Johnson: Psalm 57:2-5

 February 17

"I cry out to God Most High, to God who will fulfill his purpose for me. He will send help from heaven to rescue me, disgracing those who hound me. My God will send forth his unfailing love and faithfulness. I am surrounded by fierce lions who greedily devour human prey— whose teeth pierce like spears and arrows, and whose tongues cut like swords. Be exalted, O God, above the highest heavens! May your glory shine over all the earth." -David in Psalm 57:2-5 (NLT)

Gossip and hurtful words are terrible things to endure. Have you eve been the victim of false accusations, slander, or gossip? If so you can identify with David who wrote Psalm 57 at a time in his life when he was being pursued by evil men who were lying and gossiping about him. At times any of us can be surrounded by people who gossip about us or criticize us. Verbal cruelty can damage us as badly as physical abuse. Proverbs also says "Telling lies about others is as harmful as hitting them with an ax, wounding them with a sword, or shooting them with a sharp arrow." (25:18) Gossip is often more harmful and lasting than physical wounds. Lying is vicious. Its effects can be as permanent as those of a stab wound.

Rather than answering with hateful words, we, like David and Jesus, can talk with God about the problem. Their firm faith in God contrasted sharply with their enemies' loud lying and boasting. When confronted with verbal attacks, the best defense is often simply to be quiet and praise God, as we place our confidence in his love and faithfulness. In times of rejection or suffering, it is important to avoid isolating, turning inward to self-pity, or outward to revenge. We need to look upward to God. This psalm was probably written when David was hiding in a cave from Saul. Instead of spending sleepless nights worrying about his situation, David used those dark hours to pray and sing to God about his problem. His example shows us how to turn times of stress into times of blessing by praising God's faithfulness instead of focusing on worldly failures, falsehoods, and fickleness. Praising God can turn both lies and problems to blessings! Try it today. It works!

Prayer: God, May I praise you in stressful seasons. Amen.

Meditation For The Day: God's power exposes the lies of falsehood.

Brief Devotions For Busy Lives: Daily Winter Renewal Paperback – November 25, 2017, by Rev. Dr. Mary Johnson (Author)