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By: Hal Brady, Hal Brady Ministries

Not long ago I preached a message on the subject “When All Is Falling Apart.”  It would seem that idea is not too far from the truth this very day.  So many questions about recent political events and so few answers.  So in fearful uncertain times, what can we do?

First, we can believe in the presence of God. Writing in his book “The Lord is My Shepherd,” David Gibson says, “Psalm 23 teaches that if we belong to Christ, we are in a world of active initiative, of strength, of leadership and protection; it is a relationship of the very best and most secure intentional care.”

The psalmist out of his own experience (psalm 11) stated that he could take refuge in God for two reasons.  One he remembered the past acts of God.

A songwriter wrote a gospel song on a prayer he heard an older man pray years ago.  The lyrics are, “Lord, we know what you’re gonna do, ‘cause we see what you’ve already done.”  The second reason the psalmist could take refuge in God was because he was confident of God’s purpose for God’s people in the present.

Our Christian faith teaches that history is “His Story.”  That God is a vital part of history, shaping its ends.  Thus, our ultimate faith is not in the ability of humankind, but in the providence and power of a present God.

Second, we can maintain our conviction that the best is more powerful than the worst!  This is a claim that has historical truth.  As you know, the Christian faith is rooted in the Old Testament story of a people who were sustained by their religion when the worst was a reality.  A frail little girl was paralyzed.  Her mother was told that the girl would never walk.

Never is a long time, and the mother and the little girl refused to stop trying.  Together, they worked painfully until she could stumble along, then walk and finally run.  In 1960 Wilma Rudolph set an Olympic record as the fastest female woman in the world.  The very worst so often brings out the very best in us.

Third, we can keep right on seeking the good!  The good is defined as righteousness.  When the worst happened to the apostle Peter he kept right on knocking at the door.  The late Dr. Joseph Sizoo called it “Peter’s finest hour.”  So when the worst happens to us, we’ll keep right on knocking at the door of the good.  Because God is our refuge, we will do the best things in the worst times and therein is our hope.