WISDOM FROM THE PSALMS FOR 6/11/13

Psalm 31:6

I have hated them that regard lying vanities: but I trust in the Lord.

Elijah looked at the worshipers of Baal with despair. How could they follow such a loathsome god? Where was their integrity? He could not understand how anyone could turn from the love of the one true God to worship something so evil. The priests of Baal paraded around in fancy robes, and they thrilled their followers with petty magician's tricks. They had lost sight of religion through pageantry and vanity. Elijah would show them the error of their ways, or at least God would. When God and Elijah were finished, no one could doubt who the real God was.

Elijah's story from First Kings is the perfect example of what happens to people who lose sight of God and turn instead to worldly things. Vanity kills faith and undermines humility. Look to the Lord in all things, and you will never have to worry.

Prayer: Lord, I am sometimes tempted by the flashy things I see. I forget truth, and I chase after fantasy. Break through my blindness with Your divine light, Almighty God. Amen.