Thursday, February 27, 2014

My God of Justice

10 Why, O Lord, do you stand far away?
    Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble?
In arrogance the wicked hotly pursue the poor;
    let them be caught in the schemes that they have devised.
For the wicked boasts of the desires of his soul,
    and the one greedy for gain curses[a] and renounces the Lord.
In the pride of his face[b] the wicked does not seek him;[c]
    all his thoughts are, “There is no God.”
His ways prosper at all times;
    your judgments are on high, out of his sight;
    as for all his foes, he puffs at them.
He says in his heart, “I shall not be moved;
    throughout all generations I shall not meet adversity.”
His mouth is filled with cursing and deceit and oppression;
    under his tongue are mischief and iniquity.
He sits in ambush in the villages;
    in hiding places he murders the innocent.
His eyes stealthily watch for the helpless;
    he lurks in ambush like a lion in his thicket;
he lurks that he may seize the poor;
    he seizes the poor when he draws him into his net.
10 The helpless are crushed, sink down,
    and fall by his might.
11 He says in his heart, “God has forgotten,
    he has hidden his face, he will never see it.”
12 Arise, O Lord; O God, lift up your hand;
    forget not the afflicted.
13 Why does the wicked renounce God
    and say in his heart, “You will not call to account”?
14 But you do see, for you note mischief and vexation,
    that you may take it into your hands;
to you the helpless commits himself;
    you have been the helper of the fatherless.

15 Break the arm of the wicked and evildoer;
    call his wickedness to account till you find none.
16 The Lord is king forever and ever;
    the nations perish from his land.
17 Lord, you hear the desire of the afflicted;
    you will strengthen their heart; you will incline your ear
18 to do justice to the fatherless and the oppressed,
    so that man who is of the earth may strike terror no more.


My God of Justice

God, I thank you for your perfect justice. You are not an unknown vigilante, recklessly carrying out your own kind of justice. You are King of the earth, with all the wisdom and power to carry out perfect justice. 

You have seen all. You have seen the wicked take advantage of the poor. You have seen them lie, choosing to reject your existence, while the evil ones laid traps for the helpless. And you have heard the cries of the helpless. You are the helper of the fatherless. 

You are King-the King of the earth, the King of Justice. You will win.

God, hear the desire of this afflicted heart. Strengthen this weak heart. Incline your ear to do justice on the behalf of Oliver and all of the other fatherless children, the families that are oppressed. Let the evil ones strike terror no more. 

God of Justice, I pray for your action in our situation. Act in accordance to your character. We beg for justice here. And Lord, we rest, knowing that you will bring justice. Whether in this age or the one to come. 

1 comment:

  1. Emily, I am Isaiah Lewis's sister (Jenn Lewis). Ike sent us the link to your page and I cried this morning as I read your posts. Praying for you today as I go about my daily work duties. What a joy to know that Oliver is safe under the watchful eye of our God, yet I can't imagine the difficulty of calming your heart and mind and waiting expectantly on God even though you know that His character and are claiming it and focusing on it! Praying you will have the strength of mind to keep on keeping on. Your testimony of bringing all thoughts to the captivity of Christ was such a blessing, challenge, and humbling to read.

    ReplyDelete