I was delighted to find a $100 gift card for Macy’s when I
looked in a drawer for something else. My husband, Bill, gave me that card for
Christmas a couple years ago. Then Covid struck, and I never spent it. So off
we went on a shopping spree, and I found a spring coat for $130. I handed the
checkout clerk my gift card and credit card, and she said I owed $120 on my
credit card.
“Oh,” I said. “The gift card is for $100.” She looked at her
register again and informed me the gift card had only $10 left on it. Then I
remembered. I bought shoes with that card and forgot to mark the remaining balance on
the card’s envelope.
It gets better. The little square envelope containing the
gift card also held a Macy’s credit card. I had searched and searched for that
card. I finally considered it lost and got a new one.
I then bought a pair of slacks and walked to the exit. Bill
had stayed in the car. Only problem was, I couldn’t find the exit that led to
that parking lot. I asked a clerk, and she led me to doors that led to steps. I
had not come in doors with steps. She continued to lead me around this maze of
a store, and I finally got out and happily dropped into our car. According to my
watch, I had walked .8 of a mile that morning. And I’m sure .79 was at Macy’s.
Life can be complicated. And that’s just a silly example.
How about the complications that come from facing inoperable cancer or
recovering from major injuries or fleeing from bombs with nowhere to go?
I’ve been reading David’s psalms. Can you imagine growing up
a shepherd boy and then being anointed to be king? Can you imagine killing a
giant and then being appointed to play a lyre to sooth King Saul’s anxiety
attacks? Can you imagine how, after all that, you would feel when the king
turned on you and threatened your life?
Of the 73 psalms attributed to David, 13 can be linked to
incidents in his life. For four years, this anointed shepherd boy, this
anointed king, was on the run from a jealous King Saul. And David waited 15
years to become king of Judah and seven more to reign over all of Israel. Talk
about a journey in faithfulness.
In the psalms, David denounced his enemies and prayed for
their demise. But even though God did not immediately answer, David praised
God. During those long, challenging years, David praised God for His creation,
for His protection and for His provision. He celebrated a God who was there for
Him.
Psalm 22 begins with David asking why God dumped him miles
from nowhere. He laments the “herds of bulls” that come at him, “horns lowered,
nostrils flaring.” But he then praises God, not for what He does but for who He
is:
“Shout Hallelejah, you God worshipers; give glory, you sons
of Jacob; adore him, you daughters of Israel. He has never let you down, never
looked the other way when you were being kicked around . . . . He has been
right there, listening” (Psalm 22:23-24 The Message).
And that same God is listening to us. Just as I could not
find my way out of Macy’s, we may not find our way out of the maze of life as
quickly as we want. But whether God answers now or then, here or there, He
is with us, and that is enough. We praise Him not for what He does but for who
He is as Lord of the universe.
