‘I remain confident of this: I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.’ (v13) Psalm 27:11–14
We need confidence to navigate life effectively, a confidence in God (Jer. 17:7). It is both the assurance we place in the truth and reliability of someone or something, combined with an ability to rely on it, come what may.
It means our glass is always half full! Jesus invites us to live as ‘glass half full’ people, finding God’s goodness in all eventualities of life. I find this both demanding and wearing.
Yet, whilst we have the joy of salvation, we can continuously go in search of a deeper friendship with God. Like all friendships, it can stagnate, comfortable if undemanding.
Or we can risk diving deeper together, dealing with the sharp edges and uncomfortable issues we encounter. The ‘foes’ (v12) that the psalmist mentions are often our own imagined fears.
The Holy Spirit confronts us with our own inconsistencies in our pursuit of God. He also invites us to pause, consider and determine what we will do with the evident fracture in our human make-up.
We might have to patiently wait on God to discover how to address our issues in order to move forward effectively. This takes courage, yet a courage that is wrapped in God’s assurance that our patience will be rewarded. Change is real, never a cosmetic change in need of a regular touch-up.
SCRIPTURE TO CONSIDER: Psa. 118:1–14; Prov. 3:21–35; Eph. 3:7–21; Heb. 13:6–21.
AN ACTION TO TAKE: Is confidence something you struggle with?
A PRAYER TO MAKE: ‘Lord, Your face I will seek. Do not hide Your face from me. Amen.’ (Psa. 27:8b-9a)
Photo by ChrisGoldNY on Flickr
