Endurance

Psalm 55:8-14, 16-19, 21 (NLT)

8 How quickly I would escape—
far from this wild storm of hatred.

9 Confuse them, Lord, and frustrate their plans,
for I see violence and conflict in the city.
10 Its walls are patrolled day and night against invaders,
but the real danger is wickedness within the city.
11 Everything is falling apart;
threats and cheating are rampant in the streets.

12 It is not an enemy who taunts me—
I could bear that.
It is not my foes who so arrogantly insult me—
I could have hidden from them.
13 Instead, it is you—my equal,
my companion and close friend.
14 What good fellowship we once enjoyed
as we walked together to the house of God.

16 But I will call on God,
and the Lord will rescue me.
17 Morning, noon, and night
I cry out in my distress,
and the Lord hears my voice.
18 He ransoms me and keeps me safe
from the battle waged against me,
though many still oppose me.
19 God, who has ruled forever,
will hear me and humble them.
Interlude

21 His words are as smooth as butter,
but in his heart is war.
His words are as soothing as lotion,
but underneath are daggers!

How interesting that David - in the midst of a constant threat from outside sources - wrote about what can happen when people that are supposed to be "on the same team" hurt and betray on another. You expect these things to happen outside the workplace, church, sports team or even the home. But we're often caught by surprise when it comes from our safe place.

In the scripture above, David is writing about being betrayed by a friend. In my life, though, it reminds me to look within myself and be careful not to hurt those who count on me. It's especially precarious because I'm a pastor's wife. It shouldn't be, but it is. My prayer is that I can truly be a blessing to people within our church, and not to ever cause hurt. Reading this passage illuminates to me how hurtful it can be when the pain comes from within.

I thank God for David and all of the psalmists who refused to be "religiously correct" and wrote very pointedly about real life.

The Circle of Life

Today, I had to run to Sam's to pick up some pictures. The boys were starving, so we grabbed a few pieces of pizza and sat down at one of the tables.

Because their slices are so big a gooey, I made the boys wait for me to cut theirs up before they devoured it.

As I was cutting, I looked over and there was the sweetest couple sitting at another table. They looked to be in their late 70s. The lady was in a wheelchair. The man (I'm assuming her husband) was cutting her pizza into tiny bites so she could eat it.

It's so ironic to me that sometimes we end life the same way we begin it.