Thoughts for the Day

* Philistine captives

Be gracious to me, O God, for people trample on me;
all day long foes oppress me;
my enemies trample on me all day long,
for many fight against me.
O Most High, when I am afraid,
I put my trust in you.
In God, whose word I praise,
in God I trust; I am not afraid;
what can flesh do to me.....

This I know, that God is for me.
In God, whose word I praise,
in the Lord, whose word I praise,
in God I trust; I am not afraid.
What can a mere mortal do to me?

My vows to you I must perform, O God;
I will render thank-offerings to you.
For you have delivered my soul from death,
and my feet from falling,
so that I may walk before God
in the light of life.

(Lectionary, New Revised Standard Version)

Thoughts

I'm 5 foot 1 inches (1.55 metres) high and the men in front of me were all 6 foot 5 inches (1.96 metres) at least, and broad shouldered with it. The green lawn in front of the old manor house seemed filled with veritable giants. They were all firemen who had come for a few days to hone their team building skills, and my task was to deal with the subject of trust. We were going to look at the theory later but started with a practical exercise. Working in pairs could they fall backwards trusting that their partner (whom they didn't know) would catch them? Some simply couldn't let go and fall back. It became better when couples were paired with people that they knew.

Today's Psalm written by David is about a time when he had been captured by the Philistines in Gath. He was alone and completely desperate. King Saul has been seeking to take his life, and now in escaping him he has fallen into the hands of the Philistines. In panic he turns to God.

As with the firemen it's easier to trust someone we know. For David it's God that he knows, so it's God that he trusts. When things get difficult for us our instinctive reaction must be to turn to God and utter the words of David: 'In God I trust; I am not afraid.'

Heavenly Father,
You have been with us since our first moments,
and You know us through and through.
Help us to turn to You as the first point of call,
whenever we are in trouble,
and to put all our trust in You
no matter what difficulty we face.
Amen.