Never Left, Never Forsaken

“I have been young, and now am old; yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread.”  Psalm 37:25

Some time ago our Sunday School teacher gave out a homework assignment for the class members to pick out one of our favorite verses in scripture that relate to God’s promises and how we have used that verse in our own faith journey.  There are so many promises that God has made to His children that it is hard to choose which one is more relevant than another, but the above verse is the one that came to my mind.  It fits my life so well.  I was young and now I am old–well, older, and God has never left me or forsaken me even in the most tragic of circumstances or even when I wasn’t completely following His will.

Some folks, particularly those who do not claim Christ as Lord and Savior and thus do not have the Holy Spirit residing in their hearts, tend to blame God for tragedies and unexpected events which occur in their lives.  However, bad things happen to people because we live in a world that has been polluted by sin, and we know that life here is only temporary.  Our real lives will be lived in eternity.

Psalm 37 was written by King David who, probably more than most other Bible personalities, had lived a roller-coaster life riding high on victories, but brought down to some of the most extreme depths in his personal life, mostly by his own bad judgments.  He experienced the mercies of God throughout his life, observing God’s intervention into the lives of His children, leading David to write that he had never seen the children of righteous men and women having to beg for bread.  (If you ever have time, a study of the life of David will bring some keen insights into his relationship with the LORD.)

My grandparents were very poor.  They lived in a small four room house with no indoor bathroom.  They lived on a small railroad pension that my grandfather received from his years of working as a flagman for the L&N Railroad.  My parents, along with my aunts and uncles, saw somewhat more prosperous days, but we were still rather poor as were lots of folks in the 1950’s.  None of my relatives ever had to beg for food.  We always had a roof over our heads, clothes to wear, and a warm bed in which to sleep.  None of my folks ever had to depend on government handouts.  The sole reason is because they all trusted in the Lord to provide for them.  If a need did arise, the church family would come to our aid, or God would provide in some other way.  My folks honored God through worship and service, depending on Him to supply their needs.

When my husband and I married, the preacher prayed and asked God to bless us as much as we could stand.  In other words, don’t give us so much that we forget God, but give us enough to sustain our home and be able to bless others.  God definitely answered that prayer.  We always had every need fulfilled, and a little extra, as well, with which to help others.  Even after my husband lost his job in 1988, and we had a emergency that same day, someone gave us the $200 that we needed.  The Apostle Paul wrote in Philippians 4:19:  “But my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.”  Paul knew what he was talking about.  God never leaves His children destitute.