When there is opposition in our lives, we're usually trying to find a way out of it. When we see a problem, we want to figure out a solution. We figure if we work more or work harder, then a solution will reveal itself.
Verse 114 reminds us that God is our hiding place and our shield. It's interesting to me that using God as a hiding place and a shield creates a passive role for us, and an active one for God. And when it comes to true evil that is opposed to us, I think that's right -- it's God who ultimately defeats evil, and it is God who shields us from the worst that evil would do to us. There are some problems that we cannot find a way out of -- only God can bring us through.
This doesn't free us from all responsibility. We're still called to be active in the world -- Peter's epistle calls us to resist the devil. But it reminds us that ultimate responsibility belongs to God. As the Psalmist tells us in another Psalm, in many ways, we are like a weaned child, curled up in our mother's lap, enjoying the safety that only God can ultimately give.
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