The Strength Of My Heart
“My flesh and my heart fail;
But God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.”
A few years ago, I chanced upon a phone wallpaper that featured the above verse. Having found the design to be nice, I downloaded it without much thought. In moments of discouragement, I would look at the wallpaper and find comfort. I never read the context of the verse till this recent time.
Asaph is being attributed as the songwriter. In 1 Chronicles 6:31, 32 & 39, he is mentioned as one of the Levite musicians ministering before the tabernacle during king David’s reign. The lyrics contained his observations and emotions.
While he recognised God’s goodness toward Israel, he could not reconcile that with the treatment of the wicked in his midst. He perceived the wicked as living in prosperity, peace and material richness. There seemed to be no trouble befalling upon them. Oppression and violence was a common place. They had no regard for a higher being.
For Aspah as a Levite, he did not own any land and was sustained by all tithes and offerings brought to the sanctuary (see Numbers 18:20-21). He was following God, being chastened and ridding his heart of anything that did not please Him. Seeing the wicked having an easier life, he became envious.
Doesn’t obedience bring blessings, and wickedness warrant curses? That wasn’t the case - at least in what he was seeing, till he sought God and gained a new and true perspective about the eventual end of the wicked.
I recalled a time when a man in his 50s (a total stranger) interjected a conversation that I was having with my friends about God. He encountered a victim of sex trafficking horrendously scarred physically and emotionally. Her predators were nowhere to be found. Perceiving justice unmet and the local church’s inaction, he started identifying as an atheist and came to the conclusion that there is no god. He challenged our Christian beliefs with this narrative.
When the scales of justice is not balanced / in unfair circumstances, it is easy for our feet to almost stumble and our steps to nearly slip. But, God assures that the wicked shall receive their due.
There are no easy answers to the problem of pain / suffering / injustices. Facing such times, we need only to continually draw near to God and follow Him - this is our part. He is the strength of our hearts and our portion forever. We can trust in His goodness.
Psalms 73:28 (NKJV)
“But it is good for me to draw near to God;
I have put my trust in the Lord GOD,
That I may declare all Your works.”
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