I have set the Lord always before me: because he is at my right hand, I shall not be moved – Psalm 16:8
Life is full of ups and downs, twists and turns, joy and grief, life and death, sickness and health. The ideal life would be full of only the good times. But that’s just not reality.
It’s a fact that the bad times and even peer pressure can make us want to be moved, to be shaken, to give up or to give in to not a not very Christian way of life. It can seem easier just to give in – but it’s not easier and the long term is surely not better.
There are things in the Bible that God calls sin. Some things He calls an abomination. These things haven’t changed – what God called sin still is sin. What God called an abomination is still an abomination. God does not change. His Word does not change. People change. People try to change God’s Word to meet their desire to sin or to accept sin as okay. It’s not okay.
Here’s where the *I will not be shaken* part comes in – where the *I shall not be moved* part comes in. When you let the Lord lead you, then you’ll go down the right path – His path. You won’t be moved, you won’t be shaken.
But let’s be honest – with the state of the world today, too many people (and a lot of those are Christians) ask themselves what’s so wrong with going against the Bible, against God’s Word. They try to tell themselves it’s outdated, that this is the 21st century, that life is different that it was back when the Bible was written.
Folks allow themselves to be shaken, to be moved, to say anything goes, to say this and this is okay. After all, what does it hurt? Who does it hurt? Blah, blah, blah….
People want to convince themselves that it’s okay to live this way or that way, to do this or that – things God calls sin. It’s not okay. God didn’t say this is a sin but in a couple of thousand years it won’t be a sin anymore.
But, again, that peer pressure thing… it’s can be a kicker to anyone not firmly rooted in their faith in Christ. Friends, family, TV, movies – all of these can work on convincing a person to be moved, to be shaken, to give in. And really, it’s harder when you’re younger to stay rooted.
I guess maybe it’s because I’ve gotten older… but it just seems to clear and so easy these days not to be shaken or moved. When the times get hard (and they do get hard), I know it’s just temporary. It’s like when the rain comes, sure it can rain a lot or rain for days, but sooner or later the rain will stop and the sun will shine again. When the storm comes and winds get strong, it’s just a matter of time before the winds blow out and all is calm and fine again.
When something comes along that threatens to move me or shake me, I hold firmly to the Word of God, knowing that He will take care of everything. Sure, sometimes I wonder how or when and even why. But I don’t give in and I don’t give up. I don’t get shaken and I don’t get moved…. not by the trials of life nor of the world’s desire to try and shove a life of sin onto Christians.
If you just let God lead, and follow His lead, in all that you do, then you can rest assured that you won’t be shaken and won’t be moved. The things of this world won’t affect you.
And if you find that you have been moved, it’s never too late to make a U-turn and come back. God allows U turns! 🙂 His grace is sufficient! Just start again! I’ve started over in life SO many times. I didn’t get to where I am spiritually without a LOT of U-turns. So if you’ve been shaken and moved in the wrong direction, just turn yourself around and come on Home. 🙂
Someone I used to know once told me that they didn’t do anything without praying about it first. They even prayed about which soda to buy, which way to go when out for a Sunday drive, what to say, etc…. literally everything. They didn’t want to be shaken, and they didn’t want to be moved.
So… set the Lord before you in all that you do, and you shall not be moved! 🙂