<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n The poor writer of Psalm 73 seems to be struggling with some of the same things we struggle with. How do unscrupulous businesses and people become so successful? How can someone with such a cruel heart be so profitable? Why is evil so prevalent in our world? When will the wicked get their just reward?<\/p>\n <\/p>\n If you haven\u2019t asked similar questions, you\u2019ve thought them. While the good people in this world do their best to keep their hearts pure, the wicked are carefree and their wealth increases. While the good people in this world do the good works God set before them, the wicked have no struggles, are prosperous, and seem to have no burdens.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n It seems justified that this brute beast would show up in situations like this, doesn\u2019t it?<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Well, the psalmist doesn\u2019t stop here. There are beautiful words that follow all of this ugliness.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u201cYet I am always with you; you hold me by my right hand. You guide me with your counsel, and afterward you will take me to glory. Whom have I in heaven but you? And earth has nothing I desire besides you. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. Those who are far from you will perish; you destroy all who are unfaithful to you. But as for me, it is good to be near God. I have made the Sovereign Lord my refuge; I will tell of all your deeds.\u201d<\/em> (Psalm 73:23-28 \u2013 NIV) Perhaps you recognize these words from one of my favorite worship songs, “Made Me Glad.” Click here<\/a> if you’d like to listen.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n It doesn\u2019t matter what is happening around us in this world. God has that part covered. Our part is to draw closer to Him. To allow Him to lead and counsel. To depend upon God\u2019s strength. To be completely satisfied in your relationship to God. To run to Him as your refuge. To share His message with others. That\u2019s what we are to do.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Oh, I know that embittered beast will show its head now and again. There\u2019s simply too much evil in the world to keep it from happening. However, I understand that this beast can be tamed by God\u2019s Spirit. I must continually allow the Holy Spirit to transform me into a useful believer. And that is a thing of beauty.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Grace and peace be yours in abundance,<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Donna<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" In my recent Bible reading, I came across these verses of Scripture. \u201cWhen my heart was grieved and my spirit embittered, I was senseless and ignorant; I was a brute beast before you.\u201d (Psalm 73:21-22 \u2013 NIV) I had to chuckle. Sometimes that\u2019s exactly how I feel. Like a brute beast. I do […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_s2mail":"yes","_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[16,17,14],"tags":[3340,119,350,3341],"class_list":["post-3777","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-following-god","category-obeying-god","category-seeking-god","tag-a-brute-beast","tag-holy-spirit","tag-made-me-glad","tag-psalm-73"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/fullmeasureofjoy.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3777","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/fullmeasureofjoy.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/fullmeasureofjoy.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fullmeasureofjoy.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fullmeasureofjoy.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=3777"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/fullmeasureofjoy.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3777\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3780,"href":"https:\/\/fullmeasureofjoy.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3777\/revisions\/3780"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/fullmeasureofjoy.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3777"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fullmeasureofjoy.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=3777"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fullmeasureofjoy.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=3777"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"sunflower-image-Vintage-GraphicsFairy](\"https:\/\/fullmeasureofjoy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/09\/sunflower-image-Vintage-GraphicsFairy-2.png\")
<\/a>I do try to keep this beast under control and unseen, but from time to time, this ungodly character shows up. And not just before God! No, this brute beast has visualized before family and friends as well. When the brute beast is present, it\u2019s pretty ugly.<\/p>\n