Have you ever had a week where it just did not turn out how you thought it would?
This has been one of those weeks. In fact, it has been one of those years - one thing after another. COVID hit, things shut down, violent protest broke out - just one thing after another. Then this week, everyone has been holding there breath during the election. It probably happens every presidential election, but I have learned much since the first election I watched when Obama first became president. When I was young, I relied on my parents' beliefs and their desire for president. But now that I am an adult, I have taken them as my own. (I hinted at what I believe in my post "I Love America".) We hoped and prayed that the right president would get in. It seemed that surely Trump would get in for four more years, but things do not always happen as we hope or as we think best. However, no matter what happens, God is still on the throne. He is on the throne no matter who is president, no matter who gets sick with COVID, no matter what trials we may face.
We heard a message not too long ago on Jesus Christ, the Only Potentate. It was a great message. No matter who is on the earthly politcal throne, so to speak, Jesus is still on the throne. He is king forever, and He always stays the same.
Jesus Christ being the same and being the great King seems to be a theme these past couple of weeks. This week, for unseen circumstances, my church had to do a live stream service. It was not what we were expecting for this week, but it happened. My dad, the good pastor that he was, knew he needed to say a word of encouragement to his people. He said that no matter who gets elected, God is still in control. God is still working. We Christians cannot let things of this world stop us from obeying the Great Commission. He is still calling missionaries and church planters. The missionary church planter that preached for us last night preached a great message on 2 Peter 3:8,9. God is not willing that any should perish. He is patiently waiting to come until more souls get saved. The preacher also took us to 2 Chronicles and the reign of Joash. Joash was not the greatest king and the kingdom was not following God. (Sounds like today.) Yet God called prophets to preach to the people. God is still calling prophets today. He is still calling us to preach the Gospel to the lost. We are to obey the commission no matter what goes on around us, for we serve a God Who is still on the throne.
It does not matter if we have a good president, evil president, Republican president, or Democratic president. God is still on the throne. To live in fear and worry just because our next president may be one who does not have the best for America in mind shows a lack of faith in the God Who is still on the throne. Truly, it is during the most difficult of circumstances that God can do the most miraculous. We need to be a people who live like God is still on the throne. Yet, can we truly live like that if He is not on the throne of our hearts? Is He on the throne of your heart today?
The other week a couple of us in my family were talking about the verse where the writer said that he had never seen the righteous forsaken. We could not remember where it was at, and we did not look it up that day. This morning I was reading in Psalms. (As a side note: Did you know that Psalms is a book about praise to God. The chapters I have been reading in Psalms have especially talked of giving praise to God with one's mouth, blessing the Lord, and tasting God's goodness. Yet, this happened in a time where the Psalmist was going through a rough time. It seemed that the evil were in authority and prospering, but David realized that it was the righteous who was truly blessed. He praised and thanked God for this. I made a note in my Bible - Praise him no matter what happens for praise focuses on Who He is and He is always the same.) I read a verse that says "they that seek the LORD shall not want any good thing." It reminded me of the verse on never seeing the righteous forsaken. I looked it up and then realized it was where I would be reading today. Psalms 37:25 says, "I have been young, and now am old; yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread." No matter what happens or who has been in government, God has always provided for his people. He is the same and will continue to do so. I have never seen the righteous forsaken while He's been on the throne. And like Proverbs says, it will be righteousness that exalts our nation. We need a revival of righteousness in America today, and it starts with us. It starts in the heart when we give God the throne. God can do great things in the heart completely given to Him.
Whenever you are feeling worried or like nothing is going your way, remember the song, "He's Still on the Throne":
