11 Teach me Your way, O Lord, and lead me in a smooth path, because of my enemies 12 Do not deliver me to the will of my adversaries; for false witnesses have risen against me, and such as breathe out violence. 13 I would have lost heart, unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of the Lord In the land of the living. 14 Wait on the Lord, be of good courage, and He shall strengthen your heart; wait, I say, on the Lord! —Psalm 27:11-14

Many today seem blind to the concept of right and wrong. “Christian” leaders scoff at the church’s use of “2,000-year-old letters.” Abortion is seen as a “right” rather than a hideous crime against our Creator God. People tolerate evil within some religions whose “god” is a monster, and others accept anything (except Christianity) under the guise of “tolerance.”

David experienced desperation like what we often feel, but he reminds us that there’s a path for believers to follow, and the Lord will show us the way in His Word. David asks God to lead him in a “smooth path.” The Hebrew word for “smooth,” miyshor, means level or straight, as in “just.” David asks God to teach him how to walk the narrow path of justice and equity found in the Word. He writes, “I would have lost heart, unless. . . .” As we look back on our lives since becoming believers, we realize, like David, that God was faithful to us through everything.

Remember this: In a world that continues to spiral out of control, the Lord is with us! Everything may seem to be falling into irreversible immorality and spiritual chaos, but hold onto these truths: 1) As a Christian, you have victory in Jesus to stay pure and pleasing to the Lord. 2) As a believer, you have victory over drugs and alcohol through Christ. 3) In a world filled with spiritual delusion and deception, we’ve been promised that true believers can’t be deceived because they have the same Spirit who raised Christ from the dead living within them, teaching them all things.

Like David, we’re to wait on the Lord and be of good courage! God promises that He will strengthen our hearts through the hardest of times. Even in the worst scenarios taking place, when Christians are being killed for their faith, remember this: these bodies can’t inherit eternal life. The soul goes into eternity, where it will never grow old or get ill, and it will never die. Nothing can separate us from the love of God nor snatch us out of our Father’s hands. The great enemy, Death, has been defeated and is nullified by our faith in Christ. Maintain your hope! Jesus is on the way, and the things He promised that await us in heaven are ours because of Him.

Excerpt from “Beside Still Waters” now available on Amazon.

BARRY STAGNER