Precious in the sight of the Lord…

At the international fellowship on Sunday another worker here challenged us with a message from Psalm 11:3-4. The psalmist asks: “what can the righteous do when the foundations are destroyed?” His answer: “The Lord is in His holy temple; the Lord is on His throne.” Notice that this response doesn’t directly tell us what the righteous can do. Rather, it reminds us of a more important truth; that despite the condition of our lives or the chaos of the world around us, God is still present as always, He is still holy, and He is still sovereign.

When rebels attack the capital and all Christian workers are evacuated, some more traumatically than others, the Lord is in His holy temple; the Lord is on His throne. When a man who has worked to reach a specific people group for almost 10 years is kidnapped by those very people, the Lord is in His holy temple; the Lord is on His throne. When the path to accomplishing what God has called me too seems to get longer rather than shorter, the Lord is in His holy temple; the Lord is on His throne. When a much desired and longed for baby girl dies before entering the world, the Lord is in His holy temple; the Lord is on His throne. When the captive is released, the Lord is in His holy temple; the Lord is on His throne! Three Christian workers travel from the capital to the town where they are planting a church; one is a young woman here only for a short time, faithful to follow God even against her parents’ wishes; another is a single woman who has worked here for years and longs to see fruit; the third a husband and father of 2 little girls. This man acted as translator in negotiating the captive’s release and was rejoicing to be able to return to his work in this eastern town. When these three are killed suddenly in a terrible car accident…

Why Lord? Why now? Why them? How can this be good? What about the wife and children? What about the people they were trying to reach with the Gospel? I don’t know. But this I do know: not even a sparrow falls to the ground and dies without the Lord knowing and caring. How much more precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of His saints.

The Lord is still in His holy temple, the Lord is still on His throne.