Under Attack - January 13 Readings: Psalm 140

We are going to "enter the year with praise." Our January readings and devotionals will all focus on the goodness and grace of God. Get a journal or notebook to write down your thoughts every day. Our passages are shorter - please don't rush through them. Take time to meditate and consider why God is worthy of your praise.

Enter 2020 with the praise of God on your lips!

Today's Praise Passage:  Psalm 140

Rescue me, Lord, from evil men.
Keep me safe from violent men
2 who plan evil in their hearts.
They stir up wars all day long.
3 They make their tongues
as sharp as a snake’s bite;
viper’s venom is under their lips.Selah
 4 Protect me, Lord,
from the power of the wicked.
Keep me safe from violent men
who plan to make me stumble.
5 The proud hide a trap with ropes for me;
they spread a net along the path
and set snares for me.Selah
 6 I say to the Lord, “You are my God.”
Listen, Lord, to my cry for help.
7 Lord, my Lord, my strong Savior,
you shield my head on the day of battle.
8 Lord, do not grant the desires of the wicked;
do not let them achieve their goals.
Otherwise, they will become proud.Selah
 9 When those who surround me rise up,
may the trouble their lips cause overwhelm them.
10 Let hot coals fall on them.
Let them be thrown into the fire,
into the abyss, never again to rise.
11 Do not let a slanderer stay in the land.
Let evil relentlessly hunt down a violent man.
 12 I know that the Lord upholds
the just cause of the poor,
justice for the needy.
13 Surely the righteous will praise your name;
the upright will live in your presence.

Through the Bible Reading: Genesis 27-28, Matthew 9:27–38, Psalm 9, Proverbs 2:9-11

Some of our readers want a little more "meaty" devotional, so I am including a link to the through Through the Bible in One Year readings we did last year. 

Devotional: Under Attack 

I know better, but still, I get it wrong!

I seek God and walk in obedience to him and my expectation is that because of my faithfulness, my obedience, my service to God, everything is going to go well. People will like me, support me, encourage me. And yet there is something I have noticed consistently throughout my decades of Christian service. The more I walk in fidelity to God the more likely someone is to criticize me.

I can remember several times when God did amazing works of grace in our lives, in our family, or in our church - demonstrating his love, favor, and power. Every single time someone had a word of criticism, someone took offense, someone found a cloud in the silver lining of God's grace.

That is not to say that I am above criticism, but it is odd that the criticism I receive tends to amp up and ramp up the closer I walk with Christ and the more I serve him.

And this ought not to surprise me.

Psalm 140 is one of several by David in which he calls out to God. We do not know if the trigger for this psalm was Saul's attacks on him, or later betrayals by Absalom or others. David did not deserve Saul's animosity. He'd served the king faithfully and even refused to take vengeance when he had the chance. Still, Saul attacked him. People questioned his motives or his sanity. David was always under attack by someone.

Friends, Jesus never sinned a single time in his life and they crucified him in the most heinous way. The Apostles served the Lord with passion and purity and all but John, who died in lonely exile, faced painful martyrs' deaths. And Jesus promised the world would treat us as it treated him.

The question for you is not WHETHER you will be criticized and mistreated but HOW you will respond. When people attack you, when they call you names, when they question your motives and besmirch your character, will you give up on what God has called you to do? Will you get discouraged and quit? Or will you remain faithful to God?

In this Psalm, David calls out to the One who was his refuge, who rescued and protected him, who upheld his cause against those who sought to destroy him.

We should always listen to critics - maybe there is a nugget of wisdom in their words from which we can gain truth to help us grow in Christ. But we must not be enslaved by our critics and we must not be derailed by them. The more you serve Jesus the more the enemy will send those, inside the church and out, to run you down and try to stop the work of God in you. Remember that you have a source of strength in these times.

Father, help me to listen to my critics and learn from them, but strengthen me to listen first to you. May I never be turned aside from the work you are doing in my life by the whisperings of those who oppose you and your work in me. 

Think and Pray:

Meditate on this passage and write down:

1. The character qualities of God for which you can praise him. 

2. The gracious acts of God for which you can give thanks to him. 

Have you been attacked, betrayed, and criticized?
Think through these painful moments and be honest about your own sin.
Remember also that the Lord is a strength to the weak. If you are attacked for righteousness he will lift you up, protect you, and empower you.