Reluctant Retiree

My enemies come against me every day. They seek to discourage and destroy me. I am not talking about physical enemies and battles. I am speaking about enemies like anger, fear, worry, loneliness, hate, judgment, selfishness, and disappointment. My enemies want me to fight them in my own strength, because they know that I am weak.

The psalmist faced his own daily battles, but he found the way to victory. He wrote, “For you equipped me with strength for the battle; you made those who rise against me sink under me. You made my enemies turn their back to me, and those who hated me I destroyed.” The psalmist turned to God when his enemies approached. God gave him strength for the battle and destroyed his enemies.

God stands ready to fight our enemies. He will equip and strengthen us. Our enemies will turn away, because they know that they cannot fight against the Lord’s power. Victory begins with a single step. That step is trusting in God’s power when facing our enemies. Then victory is assured.

I grew up and lived most of my life in Southern California. Therefore I am fully aware of what it feels like to experience an earthquake. There are two types of quakes, one that feels like you are in a boat going over ocean waves. The other type is a sharp jolt or series of jolts. I can’t say that one type of quake feels worse than the other, as they both are frightening. By God’s grace, I was never in a place that was seriously damaged by an earthquake, although severe damage did occur close by. You can prepare for an earthquake, but you can’t fully predict the damage.

Earthquakes can certainly shake us up for a period of time. But emotional and relational quakes seem to disturb us much longer. After all, how do you quickly put behind you such disturbances as a sudden life threatening health diagnosis, a death of a loved one, a broken marriage or a severed relationship? These circumstances shake us to the core and the consequences can be devastating.

We can also prepare for these types of quakes. As with earthquakes, we need to build a strong and firm foundation. Psalm 16:8-9 says, “I have set the Lord always before me; because he is at my right hand, I shall not be shaken. Therefore my heart is glad, and my whole being rejoices; my flesh also dwells secure.” The firmest foundation is one that cannot be damaged or shaken. For the troubles that life brings our way, the strongest foundation is faith in Jesus Christ. When we continually dwell in His presence, putting Him first, He keeps us from being shaken. In fact, instead of damaging us, these emotional earthquakes lead us to joy as we see God protect and strengthen us. Let’s start building a firm foundation for life by beginning a life of faith in Jesus Christ.

We are living in an age of relativism. Many people believe that absolute truth does not exist. Truth is only what you or I believe it to be. Therefore, a moral code for all people does not exist. We are then free to do whatever we think is right. A problem arises in that people cannot be held accountable for hurtful, or even violent, behavior. After all, a universal moral standard does not exist.

I believe that this kind of relativism is responsible for the violent actions we are witnessing around the world today. Voltaire once said that if they can get “you to believe the absurdity, they will get you to do the atrocity.” Atrocities are occurring every day all around us because the prevailing absurdity of belief is that there is no absolute truth.

On the other hand, Jesus said, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” Absolute truth is found in God’s Word and in Jesus Christ. God created all things and sustains all things. He possesses all knowledge and wisdom. Therefore, His Word is to be believed and followed. Anything else is absurdity. God’s truth sets us free.

Who is God? What is He like? Let’s turn to God’s own Word to see what He says about Himself.

Psalm 146:7-10 says, “The Lord sets the prisoners free; the Lord opens the eyes of the blind. The Lord lifts up those who are bowed down; the Lord loves the righteous. The Lord watches over the sojourners; he upholds the widow and the fatherless, but the way of the wicked he brings to ruin. The Lord reigns forever.”

So what does that mean for you and for me. Let’s put ourselves into these verses and see. The Lord sets us free from bondage to sin and evil. The Lord opens our eyes so that we can see the truth. When we are troubled or humiliated, the Lord lifts us up and restores our joy. The Lord loves when we walk with Him. When we are searching for truth amidst our fears, the Lord is near and watches over us. When we feel alone and weak, the Lord draws us near to Him and protects us. He will protect us from the evil that surrounds us, but if we don’t turn from our evil ways we will suffer. He is Lord God Almighty forever.

This is the God that we can trust with our lives. This is the God that we can depend upon.

Circumstances and situations can easily give us a downcast spirit. Bills we can’t pay, illness, relationship hurts, life’s frustrations, and sudden repair needs can drain the energy and joy out of us. It is enough to make us want to sit in our favorite chair and pull a blanket over our heads until it all goes away. Where do we find the cure for our downcast spirit, especially when we see no end to our troubles?

Psalm 9:1-2 says, “I will give thanks to the Lord with my whole heart; I will recount all of your wonderful deeds. I will be glad and exult in you; I will sing praise to your name, O Most High.” Without downplaying the struggles that we face, the cure for a downcast spirit is to give thanks for the things that we do have. We can all find something that we are grateful for, like air to breathe, enough food to keep going, shelter, some level of health, friends, help from others, etc. Thanksgiving changes our attitudes, even when the circumstances don’t change. Continuing to dwell on our bad circumstances just takes us deeper down the path of self-pity and regret.

Giving thanks begins with the acknowledgement that we have been given something good. It may take some effort, but we can find these blessings. I know that each of us has been blessed by God in many ways. He is always good and is good to everyone. We may miss seeing His blessings if we don’t look for them. Of course, having a trusting relationship with God, makes us more aware of these blessings. So if you are having trouble finding God’s work in your life, why not simply ask God to reveal Himself to you?