Skip to main content

Where Do We Go For Help?


Where do we go for help in these very difficult days?

In dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic, we tend to look to our leaders for solutions and we want to trust that they are receiving and paying attention to good advice from the medical and scientific communities.

In dealing with the protests rocking our world, we tend to look to our leaders for solutions and we want to trust that they are sorting through all the issues and are working for the best interests of all who are involved.

But are these trusts well placed?  Well…

In the book of Isaiah, we find this description about leaders:  “your princes are rebels and companions of thieves.  Everyone loves a bribe and runs after gifts.  They do not bring justice to the fatherless, and the widow’s cause does not come to them.”  (Isa 1:23)

And in the book of Ecclesiastes we find this:  “If you see the extortion of the poor, or the perversion of justice and fairness in the government, do not be astonished by the matter.  For the high official is watched by a higher official, and there are higher ones over them!”  (Ecc 5:8)

Both verses touch on corrupt officials robbing people of the fruit of their labor through bribes, gifts, extortion and the perversion of justice.

Does this mean that all leaders are corrupt?  Does this mean that all can be bought?  Does this mean that they all extort bribes and gifts?  Of course not, but it does mean that some are and some do and we shouldn’t be surprised.  .

On the other hand, to hold them to a standard of perfection would be very frustrating and counterproductive.  All leaders are human and will make mistakes.  Yet, whether our leaders are acting corruptly or are just making mistakes, we do need to hold them accountable.

So back to the question with a slight variation to it:  where do we go for help in these difficult days when we know our leaders will fail to some degree or another?

The Scriptures provide some insight to the question:  “It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in man.  It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in princes.”  (Ps 118:8-9) 

Why is it better?

We find a very clear and definitive answer in the book of Numbers:   “God is not man, that he should lie, or a son of man, that he should change his mind. Has he said, and will he not do it? Or has he spoken, and will he not fulfill it”?  (Num 23:19)

God does not lie as men do.  He does not waffle on the issues and change his mind.   There are no promises with God that go unfulfilled.  God doesn’t use a lot of words to say nothing nor does He privately say things that contradict with what He says in public.

When God speaks, He speaks the truth and you can count on Him to do what He says!

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

New Year Trash or Treasure?

You probably know the old saying:  “One man’s trash is another man’s treasure”.  I am not going to try to prove or disprove it, just look at it from a different angle. Cheryl and I were recently walking on a beach in Florida .  A man was walking along with a bag and was picking up trash and putting it in the bag.  Was he picking up things of value? We also saw a different man walking along the same beach with a metal detector.  He would swing it back and forth and would occasionally stop and dig in the sand.  Was he looking for things of value? Both were intent.  Both were focused.  Both were diligent. I’m guessing that the one picking up trash was not looking for things of value.  I’m also guessing that, by picking up trash, he was valuing the beauty of the beach and didn’t want the trash to mar it.  The one with the metal detector, I’m guessing that he was not looking for metallic items of trash but was looking for...
1 comment
Read more

Beyond Understanding - It's a Wonderful Thing!

In my last post, I wrote that that God keeps certain things hidden (Deut 29:29).  In some cases, these hidden things are beyond our understanding.  In response to that, one Psalmist wrote that he did not occupy himself with things too great and too wonderful for him (Ps 131:1).  That’s a healthy response as we, as humans, are finite and cannot completely know everything about an infinite God. A quote attributed to American novelists, Philip Roth, speaks volumes on this:  “All that we don’t know is astonishing.  Even more astonishing is what passes for knowing.” From a more spiritual perspective, one commentator put it this way:  "What God has thought proper to reveal, he has revealed what is essential to the well-being of man, and this revelation is intended not for the present time merely, nor for one people, but for all succeeding generations. The things which he has not revealed concern not man but God alone, and are therefore not to be inquired af...
Post a Comment
Read more

Don't Get Tripped Up

I do enjoy traveling and I keep an eye out for good prices. I also enjoy looking at trends in travel. For a while, the travel industry focused their advertising on taking those trips that might be on your bucket list.   That faded a bit and I started seeing ads about taking the trip of a lifetime. I guess both those campaigns have been waning since I’ve been seeing information about taking an “epic” trip.   Recently I noticed the phrase “unforgettable trip” in advertising.   More recently, I’ve been seeing promotions about taking “sustainable” trips and even “reconnecting to our roots” trips. As I’ve been pondering these advertising campaigns, I thought I’d consider what their ideas encompass and then look at them from a spiritual perspective: 1.   “ Bucket list trips ” are based on a list of the experiences a person might hope to have before they “kick the bucket” (i.e. die).   While I can certainly come up with a bucket list of trips, I’m thinking a bu...
Post a Comment
Read more