Keeping score
This morning, as I open again to psalm #73, I am struck with the fact that Asaph didn’t just look at the awful stuff the people around him were doing, he didn’t just “see”, but rather, he was keeping score, he made a list.
They were arrogant
They were prosperous
They seem to live with no problems at all
They’re fat!
Troubles and everyday problems just don’t seem to fall their way.
They are amazingly prideful. (Hey, God, I thought You hated that!)
And they are violent brutes.
Their heart is full of evil intentions
They’re scoffers
They talk garbage
They are bullies
And they blaspheme God and all that is holy
They say “God isn’t even looking.”
They just keep living high off the land, without a care in the world.
The last time I mused, I said the writer’s “seeing” became a see-saw.
But no, it wasn’t a simple child’s-play glance, but rather, he was looking at those around him with a microscope, and keeping a record.
It reminds me of our tendency to keep score when someone has offended us. Perhaps they did me wrong in a couple of things, but I’ve been watching them closely, so let me pull out my list of their fourteen faults.
God, why aren’t you zapping them? Have you not noticed how they are? I’ve got the list right here!