Rev. Don Campbell
Don’t Fret; Wait on the Lord
When we read, hear, or experience firsthand the wickedness of the world, we often fret, feeling helpless. David wrote: “Fret not yourself because of evildoers; be not envious of wrongdoers! For they will soon fade like the grass and wither like the green herb” (Psalm 37:2-2). He repeats the same thought in verses 8-9: “Refrain from anger, and forsake wrath! Fret not yourself; it tends only to evil. For the evildoers shall be cut off, but those who wait for the Lord shall inherit the land.”
David’s antidote for fretting is to wait on the Lord (vv. 7, 9, 34). “Waiting” is active, not passive, as seen in four phrases: Trust in the Lord (v.3); Delight in the Lord (v.4); Commit your way to the Lord (v.5); Rest in the Lord and wait patiently (v. 7).
David concludes the psalm with these words: The salvation of the righteous is from the Lord; he is their stronghold in the time of trouble. The Lord helps them and delivers them; he delivers them from the wicked and saves them, because they take refuge in him” (vv. 39-40). Dear friends, don’t fret. God is alive and well.
