God Is Bigger Than The Boogie Man

God is Bigger Than the Boogie Man

Psalm 10

(September 16, 2001)

Introduction

I had an idea of what I wanted to talk about today, but all that changed Tuesday.

I, like you, began that day like I begin most days. Getting showered and dressed, and driving to work, when I heard the news.

I pulled into the church parking lot and went back to the classrooms to see if the school had heard, and as I entered the youth room, all the students were listening to the radio, hearing the latest news.

Then I went to work at Herberger’s, and everybody there had heard the news. The store was very quiet that day, with very little customer traffic.

I suppose most were glued to the TV and radio, listening to the events, that may have a body count greater than Pearl Harbor and the Titanic combined.

And all of us were touched by it.

We held a memorial service here on Friday, as President Bush requested for churches, and two firefighters, a sergeant from the Air Force, and others joined us as we prayed and sang.

And what struck me hardest about that time was seeing the fire truck pull into the parking lot, and watching these two men come in, with black bands around their badges in mourning of their lost comrades in New York.

I was touched by their sense of brotherhood, and honored that they would be present.

I hope they, the military represented, and the police force, represented by Kandis Schwab, wife of Police Chief Ken Schwab, were honored as well.

Also this week, I had the opportunity to speak at the city-wide prayer service held at First Baptist Church on Thursday.

It was a blessing to see the people there, and also to see that one of the radio companies was broadcasting the service over two of their stations.

And the theme that kept repeating itself through my mind was that people needed to know that God was still in control, and that we can cry out to Him in the midst of this horrible tragedy.

So this morning, I want us to take a look at how King David reacted to horrible circumstances.

If you were at the service Thursday night, or heard it on the radio, you will recognize the outline, but I am using a different psalm, so don’t think you have heard all this before, at least Thursday night.

King David was no stranger to adversity. He faced danger and adversity throughout his whole life.

As a shepherd boy he had to face dangers from the lion and the bear. As a young man he faced the giant Goliath, knowing that failure to kill him would mean defeat for the entire army of Israel.

Before becoming king, he was hunted like an animal by Saul, who was intent on killing him.

And it didn’t get much better after he became king.

In fact, it seemed to get worse. His children were constantly fighting and bickering amongst each other, and one was murdered by another after raping a half-sister.

And if that wasn’t enough, his own son Absolom tried to have him killed so he could take over the kingdom.

David was no stranger to trials and suffering.

And he was no stranger to God. His relationship with God was such that He could cry out in disbelief and wonder.

Turn with me, please to Psalm 10. If you are using the Bibles in the seats, it is on page 386.

We will not read the whole passage now, as we will work through it as we go through the message.

The first thing I want to cover this morning is that…

I. It’s okay to ask, “Why?” (vv. 1-11)

Read along as we look at verses 1-11:

Why, O LORD, do you stand far off?

Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble?

2 In his arrogance the wicked man hunts down the weak, who are caught in the schemes he devises.

3 He boasts of the cravings of his heart;

he blesses the greedy and reviles the LORD.

4 In his pride the wicked does not seek him; in all his thoughts there is no room for God.

5 His ways are always prosperous; he is haughty and your laws are far from him;

he sneers at all his enemies.

6 He says to himself, "Nothing will shake me; I’ll always be happy and never have trouble."

7 His mouth is full of curses and lies and threats; trouble and evil are under his tongue.

8 He lies in wait near the villages; from ambush he murders the innocent,

watching in secret for his victims.

9 He lies in wait like a lion in cover; he lies in wait to catch the helpless; he catches the helpless and drags them off in his net.