The Lord is still my Shepherd

In my 53 years of life, I cannot remember a more uncertain time than right now. Depending on your age, the same is most likely true for you. Who knows what the future of our world, our nation, and our individual lives will be? What direction will our country go spiritually, morally, and economically? What will marriage look like? Where is the stock market headed? What will be the value of our homes? What about the many who are out of work and under a burden of tremendous debt? What about the war and danger and unrest in many parts of the world? Yes, make no mistake about it; these are uncertain times.

But though this is a truth that no one can deny, the fact is, as human beings we always live in uncertain times. No matter how smoothly things might seem to be going in our lives, our nation, and our world, things can instantly change. Those who remember December 7, 1941, can attest to this. With regard to the uncertainty of life, the book of James states this so very clearly. Now listen, you who say, “‘Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.’ Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. Instead, you ought to say, ‘If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that.’” (James 3:13-15)

In terms of our day-to-day existence, there will always be uncertainty. One who was well aware of this was David. Talk about uncertainty – at one point in his life, he was despised by most everyone; King Saul had sent men to kill him; and he was hiding out in caves. In the face of all uncertainty, what did David do? The answer is found in the words of David in Psalm 31. In the face of uncertainty, he says – “But I trust in You, O LORD; I say, ‘You are my God. My times are in Your hands.’” (Psalm 31:14-15) How correct David was. The Lord would not only protect David; He would cause him to be king, a forerunner of Christ; and the author of such beautiful words as Psalm 23 – “The LORD is my shepherd…”

As we consider the uncertainty of our lives there is great comfort and hope in knowing that our lives are also in the hands of the Lord. Lest there be any fear or uncertainty regarding this, let us note that those hands of the Lord that hold each one of us are nail-pierced hands. They are the hands of love and salvation. Knowing this, let us live in uncertain times with the same confidence and certainty as David, saying of our own lives – “But I trust in You, O LORD; I say, ‘You are my God. My times are in Your hands.’”