Though the Lord is on high, he looks upon the lowly, but the
proud he knows from afar. Though I walk in the midst of trouble,
you preserve my life; you stretch out your hand against the anger
of my foes, with your right hand you save me. The Lord will
fulfill his purpose for me; your love, O Lord, endures forever—
do not abandon the works of your hands.
—Psalm 138:6–8
Have you ever read a passage from a book and suddenly a line or word or phrase leaps right off the page and grabs you? Often the eye skims over the surface of the page, and the words fail to register on the mind and heart. You may be thinking of something else, or you find other passages more compelling. You read but do not absorb. Then, at another time, you reread the passage; and for no apparent reason, that same passage becomes electric, and now you see it and feel it for the first time ever.

That happened to me with this verse: “Though I walk in the midst of trouble, you preserve my life.” With twelve short words, I finally felt the universal truth the words expressed and how it applied to a crucial moment in my own life.
It would be easy to say that when trouble befell me, I met the challenge and conquered the foe. I could have claimed victory for myself, but my heart told me that the victory wasn’t mine at all. I had walked in the midst of very real trouble, but the trouble never wounded me in a mortal way. I walked through the greatest conflict of my life as if I were an observer rather than one of the battling soldiers. This verse finally revealed to me why I survived. It was not my will that saved at all; realizing the revelation of this truth has made all the difference.
—Eric Kampmann, Signposts
댓글