Dwell in God's Sanctuary of Grace!

New Internation Version (NIV) Psalm 73

A psalm of Asaph.

1 Surely God is good to Israel, to those who are pure in heart.

2 But as for me, my feet had almost slipped; I had nearly lost my foothold. 3 For I envied the arrogant when I saw the prosperity of the wicked. 4 They have no struggles; their bodies are healthy and strong.[a] 5 They are free from common human burdens; they are not plagued by human ills. 6 Therefore pride is their necklace; they clothe themselves with violence. 7 From their callous hearts comes iniquity[b]; their evil imaginations have no limits. 8 They scoff, and speak with malice; with arrogance they threaten oppression. 9 Their mouths lay claim to heaven, and their tongues take possession of the earth. 10 Therefore their people turn to them and drink up waters in abundance.[c] 11 They say, “How would God know? Does the Most High know anything?” 12 This is what the wicked are like— always free of care, they go on amassing wealth. 13 Surely in vain I have kept my heart pure and have washed my hands in innocence. 14 All day long I have been afflicted, and every morning brings new punishments. 15 If I had spoken out like that, I would have betrayed your children. 16 When I tried to understand all this, it troubled me deeply 17 till I entered the sanctuary of God; then I understood their final destiny. Friday, September 11 - Psalm 73:1-17

I recently heard that the influential self-help author, blogger and motivational

speaker, Rachel Hollis, is getting a divorce. I am not trying to shame her for that and

I know I need God’s grace just as much as anyone who goes through a divorce. The

problem is the perfectly curated public image that Hollis has sold to the public these

last few years. She only shows or tells what she wants you to see and hear. Even

when she does acknowledge the places in her life that have been far from perfect,

she spins those “failures” into some kind of story of triumph. One critic summed up

Hollis’s message as: "You, and only you, are ultimately responsible for how happy

you are.” That is what SIN does in this world. Sin always sells us an image of a

perfect life on our own, following our own path, being our own hero, etc. Sin

promises that triumph, prosperity, success is inside of us and something that we

can get on our own. But Sin never tells us about the damage, pain, emptiness,

shame and guilt that will eventually come. The only rest from Sin’s “wearisome

task” is found in the “sanctuary” of God’s free gift of forgiveness, mercy and grace.