Observation: Psalm 70 is one of several urgent requests for rescue from God. I kind of think of them as "911 Psalms." In it, the writer asks for God's immediate help and deliverance from an oppressive enemy.
Application: It has been a terrifying week. A place of worship has become the latest in a long line of horrific shootings in our country. On top of that, today is the 79th anniversary of Kristallnacht, an awful attack on synagogues and Jewish businesses across Germany in 1938. These are events that hit us where we live: we realize on days like this that even holy spaces are not immune to evil and calamity. The Enemy can find a way in, and when that happens, God is our only refuge.
As I reflect on "enemies" today, it's all too easy to think about a bitter, deranged individual, or even a bitter and deranged mob. But in the vast majority of my life, the enemy who does most to oppress and attack me is the enemy I carry within. I'm a sinner. I pass up opportunities to love my neighbor as myself seven days a week. I lash out in anger at those close to me, and I contribute to a culture of toxic masculinity and violent, divisive rage, even by remaining silent when this culture claims its victims. The evil I need deliverance from today, is the evil I know all too well.
Prayer: Lord, Deliver us. Deliver us from the dangers of violence in our world, and deliver us from the violence in our own spirits. May our enemies--especially our inner enemies--be subdued, and do us no more harm. Amen.
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