The Summons That Counts

Psalm 37:1a “Do not fret because of evil men or be envious of those who do wrong;”

Isaiah 43:1-2 “But now, this is what the Lord says – He who created you, O Jacob, He Who formed you, O Israel: ‘Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are Mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire; you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze.’ ”

Psalm 37 may mean the most to me because it promises that God will take care of all the evil stuff, in His own time. All that is required is trust in Him. I need not fret or be paralyzed by what occurs in a fallen world. Instead, there is a great promise for me in Isaiah 43. Fret not, because I am redeemed. Fret not, because I have been summoned by name by a loving Father who will be with me always. I will not be swept over, burned or set ablaze. Turbulent waters may come, but I have been summoned by name by the Lord who created me, formed me and redeemed me.

Yes, I am saddened by the people who do wrong to get ahead, and seemingly “win” as a result. Whether it is the falsification of grades or identity fraud or the use of steroids by top athletes (the list goes on…), how frustrating it is to watch it all unfold in our fallen, flawed world. I know, I know… Stop pointing the finger. I am a sinner capable of all of the above, too, but thankfully I am saved by God’s grace. Because of His grace and no effort of my own, I am not counted among evil people.

Turbulent waters will keep swirling. Raging fires will keep burning. But, I have this hope… and Franklin Graham summed it up best in his tweet yesterday: “The God that delivered Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego from their fiery execution is the same God today – and He is still more than able to save.”

The summons that counts in life is when God calls you by name and you are confident it is for all eternity. He is still more than able to save.