Sunday 27 January 2008

Background

These words seem all too easy to read, but what do they actuallymean?

Today is Holocaust MemorialDay - when the world remembers the systematic destructionof millions of Jews, homosexuals, disabled people, Gypsies andother minorities by Nazi Germany. The scale is so enormous that itsomehow seems unreal, and that's why we need days like today toremind us that this did happen, that it was done by people, andthat the capacity of humankind for this kind of evil must never beforgotten.

So on days like this, how do we deal with Bible passages like thisone? It is so full of hope, and so certain of God's power to rescueGod's people from their troubles, that perhaps it almost seemsabsurd on a day like today. It seems all too easy to say "I shallnot fear" when there is nothing present and real to fear. But howeasy is it to be truly confident in God's love and providence whenfacing fear, death and destruction?

Well, despite these optimistic words, David (to whom this psalm isattributed) was no stranger to trouble. Frequently we hear himcrying out to God in a desperate state, surrounded by his enemies.But here he reminds us of a future hope - of living in the house ofthe Lord all his days.

But it's not just a future state. The psalmist believes that hewill truly see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.This is real hope - that we will come through our troubles and thatGod will be the one carrying us.

Now, this clearly doesn't mean that we won't have troubles, so whatdoes it mean?

This seems to be one of the hardest questions that life asks offaith. If our faith is real, it must deal with the real issues ofliving, suffering and dying. We don't have to be afraid ofadmitting that we don't have all the answers, but that doesn't meanwe can ignore the questions.

To Ponder

When bad things happen to us or our loved-ones,how does it make us feel about God?

To what extent can we hold God to account for thethings that happen in our lives?