“But you, O God, are my king from of old; you bring salvation upon the earth.”
~ Psalm 74:12
Hi James and Ellen,
When is the last time that you asked your dad and/or ma a why question? Kids always have to ask their dads and mas why questions. You may have asked your dad and/or ma questions like – why do I have to go to bed, why do I have to eat everything on my plate, why do I have to pick up the toys, why . . ., why . . . you may ask your dad and/or ma why does someone get sick, why are people always fighting, why do bad things happen to good people, why . . ., why . . . it is good to know why you have to do or why you cannot do something. Asaph in Psalm 74 had why questions for God. Asaph wanted God to tell him why He had rejected – or abandoned, His specially chosen guys and gals, why God was still angry with His specially chosen guys and gals and why God did not do something to destroy the enemy people group’s guys and gals who were not scared of God. The Asaph who wrote this psalm song – which is called a maskil, is a relative of the Asaph who was in David’s choir. The Asaph family scribed about a dozen psalm songs which became included in the Psalm Book. A maskil is used to describe some of the instructive and meditative psalm songs. A maskil psalm song can be divided into two equal halves. This psalm song begins with eleven verses and ends with eleven verses with the twelfth verse the center line of the psalm song. This psalm song was written by an Asaph who lived after God’s specially chosen guys and gals were taken away by the Babylonian army into captivity in Babylonia. This psalm song tells how God’s place of worship – which was His temple that was located in Jerusalem, was hacked to pieces with axes and hatches by the Babylonian army when they captured Jerusalem. This psalm song also tells how God’s place of worship was completely burned to the ground by the Babylonian army when they captured Jerusalem. This Asaph in his psalm song asks God to remember everything that He had done for His specially chosen guys and gals and to remember how fools mocked Him. This Asaph in his psalm song compares some of the good things that God had been doing for and some of the bad things that the enemy people group’s guys had been doing to God’s specially chosen guys, gals and kids. This Asaph seems to be having a really hard time getting why God just does not come down really hard on the cruel, wicked guys and gals who do not think that God would ever do anything to them. The only hope that this Asaph seems to have is seen in verse 12 “But you, O God, are my king from of old; you bring salvation upon the earth.”
Have you seen God in the good things that have happened to you? Have you seen God in the difficult things that have happened to you? Why do you think that God allows His specially elected guys and gals – such as your grandmaa or grandpaa, to become sick? After your grandmaa taught at a Programa de Educación Bíblica (P.E.B.) retreat last summer that was held in Playa Grande in the Ixcan in Guatemala, your grandmaa experienced the effects of having dengue. Your grandmaa felt really miserable when she had dengue. Your grandmaa’s hair even hurt your grandmaa when she had dengue. Your grandpaa a number of years ago had malaria after your grandpaa made a trip into the Ixcan to visit the P.E.B. students in Xalbal and to leave the next P.E.B. teacher there. Your grandpaa felt really awful when he had malaria. Both dengue and malaria are caused by a mosquito bite. Your grandpaa could ask God why He did not keep the mosquito that was carrying dengue from biting your grandmaa. Your grandpaa could ask God why He did not keep the mosquito that was carrying malaria from biting your grandpaa. Why do you think God allows His specially elected guys, gals and kids to become sick? Why do you think that God allowed a dengue carrying mosquito bite your grandmaa? Why do you think that God allowed a malaria carrying mosquito bite your grandpaa? Do you think God used a dengue carrying mosquito to punish your grandmaa? Do you think God used a malaria carrying mosquito to punish your grandpaa? Do you think that God was punishing your grandmaa and/or grandpaa for having gone into an area where your grandmaa and grandpaa knew that there were dengue and malaria carrying mosquitoes? It is easy to blame God for something bad that happens; it is easy to forget to thank God for something good that happens. No one likes to get really sick but . . . your grandmaa and grandpaa believe that God does not want your grandmaa and grandpaa to worry about getting sick – or even about dying.
The orb that you are living on today is filled with bad happenings that are being instigated by a fallen angel. The orb that you are living on today is being ruled by the fallen angel. The fallen angel is Lucifer or Satan. Satan is God’s enemy. Satan will do anything and everything that God will allow him to do to destroy the guys, gals and kids who have made decisions of faith to be Christ-followers. Satan will try everything that God will allow him to do to stop every single guy, gal and kid who God specially elected to become one of His adopted guys, gals and kids. You are pulling an Asaph – which is a good thing to do, if you were to ask God why He split open a sea, crushed the heads of Leviathan, opened up springs, made days and nights, set planet Earth’s boundaries, set times for summers and winters, established a sun and moon in the sky and then at the same time ask God why He lets guys, gals and kids mock Him, revile or hate Him, afflict or hurt other guys, gals and kids, cause violence and evil on the orb that He created that is known as planet Earth and then why He does not defend His specially chosen guys, gals and kids? God wants to hear your why questions. Never stop asking God why – BUT, always wait for God’s answer to your why. God’s answer will always be – ‘relax – take it easy, do not forget that I have designed your life plans for you.’
Psalm 74 (211)