Doing the Right Thing, When the Right Thing is Difficult

Psalms 34:12-14 ESV

“What man is there who desires life and loves many days, that he may see good? Keep your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking deceit. Turn away from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it.”

David asks a question to the readers of this Psalm; What man (or woman) is there who desires life and loves many days, that he or she may see good? Or, if you want to live a good long life and thoroughly enjoy it, David has some suggestions that we need to heed to achieve that in our life.

David offers this helpful advice:

1) Keep your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking deceit.

2) Turn away from evil.

3) Do good.

4) Seek peace and pursue it.

Keeping our harmful words to ourselves seems to be one of the hardest things to do. We suffer people’s actions, and we want to strike back. It may be human nature, and a defense mechanism that we have obtained in life, but it is NOT God’s ways.

Turning away from evil should be easier if the words of God are in us and the Spirit of God is thriving in our hearts, but to the casual Christian, it is more difficult. Just to be clear here, God never wants us to be in a casual relationship with Him. He wants every part of us. So, my advice, get closer to God.

Doing good takes effort. I know we all believe that we do good, but can we do more? Just a question.

Seeking peace means in every situation. Peace at home, peace at work, peace in the marketplace, peace at church, peace in traffic, peace with difficult people… Pursuing peace has to come from God within us. What do people see when they encounter us? Do they see God in us or just us? Just a question.

Prayer:
Lord, keep our tongues in check, our attitudes in check, and our eyes in check. Help us to open our eyes and see what You want and need us to see and do every day and in every situation. Help us to make peace in every conversation and in every confrontation. In Your name Lord we plead, Amen!