Weekday mornings we pray at 7:30AM. Sometimes we read David’s Psalms. Today, the reading was Psalm 4. I encourage you to read it.
The question, “how long” in verse 2 became the focus of my attention. Growing up in a Christian tradition heavily informed by the Psalms I often heard these words in relation to God, for instance, Psalm 13:1-2: “How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me? How long must I take counsel in my soul and have sorrow in my heart all the day?” But in verse 2 of Psalm 4 the question is not asked of God, it is asked of us, how long are we going to dishonor God’s glory, how long are we going to worship dumb idols and run after false gods?
It is different when the question is posed to us and not to God. How? Because we have the power to answer it for ourselves, we don’t need to wait on the Lord!
Yesterday I watched “Bank of Dave” on Netflix. I highly recommend it. It is my kind of movie. It is based on true events. It is a story of a community coming together to stand up to powerful institutional forces that care less for ordinary people and more about their own preservation. It is a story of answering boldly the question of, “how long?” In the case of this movie it was after 150 years!
So, today, I reflect, and encourage you to reflect on: “how long?” How long are we going to run after false gods?
