Psalm 10

 1Why, Lord, do you stand far off? Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble?
2In his arrogance the wicked man hunts down the weak, who are caught in the schemes he devises. 
3He boasts about the cravings of his heart; he blesses the greedy and reviles the Lord.
4In his pride the wicked man does not seek him;in all his thoughts there is no room for God. 5His ways are always prosperous; your laws are rejected by ^b him; he sneers at all his enemies. 6He says to himself, “Nothing will ever shake me.” He swears, “No one will ever do me harm.”
7His mouth is full of lies and threats; trouble and evil are under his tongue. 
8He lies in wait near the villages; from ambush he murders the innocent. His eyes watch in secret for his victims;
9like a lion in cover he lies in wait. He lies in wait to catch the helpless; he catches the helpless and drags them off in his net.
10His victims are crushed, they collapse; they fa ll under his strength.
11He says to himself, “God will never notice; he covers his face and never sees.”
12Arise, Lord! Lift up your hand, O God.  Do not forget the helpless.
13Why does the wicked man revile God? Why does he say to himself, “He won’t call me to account”? 
14But you, God, see the trouble of the afflicted;you consider their grief and take it in hand.The victims commit themselves to you;you are the helper of the fatherless.
15Break the arm of the wicked man; call the evildoer to account for his wickedness that would not otherwise be found out.
16The Lord is King for ever and ever; the nations will perish from his land.
17You, Lord, hear the desire of the afflicted; you encourage them, and you listen to their cry,
18defending the fatherless and the oppressed, so that mere earthly mortals will never again strike terror.

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Thoughts: Jesus said, "In this world you will have trouble" ("tribulation" KJV).  The Psalmist feels far from God at first.  Specifically, he is being afflicted by a wicked person who is full of pride and arrogance.  
     I just watched the 2023 movie "Napoleon."  He clearly was one of the most brilliant yet most arrogant people in history.  Napoleon was not a church goer, but he restored the worship of the Roman Catholic church in France- which had been wiped out by the Enlightenment thinking of the French Revolution.  Napoleon had asked that the pope be "arrested" when the pope opposed his invasion of Rome.  The Pope was kidnapped but Napoleon released him after he ceded the papal lands to him.  Later he placed the crown of France on his wife's head and then his own head, not allowing the church to crown him (which was the common practice throughout Europe since Charlemagne 900 years prior).  In contrast to him, the Duke of Wellington was a church goer in the Anglican faith- even though in his later years he confessed that he could not hear the sermon.  I could imagine this Psalm was said much by the people who were conquered by Napoleon.  Napoleon (as Hitler later would) tried to use the church only to increase his popularity and stabilize his power.   However, as the Psalmist said, [only] the Lord is king forever (vs. 16).  

        How does this Psalm apply to the need to reach others for Christ?  God is the One who hears the desires of the afflicted. He is the One who helps those who cannot help themselves (the fatherless, the oppressed, but really ALL of us).  We all at some point (even Napoleon in his double defeats), are afflicted and deposed from the throne of life.  We all realize we are NOT king of the universe.  But there is One who IS who can help us.  Christianity is not about our helping ourselves- and earning our way.  It is about an outside Helper who lifts up our hearts when they are discouraged and in the dust.  People need to know there is a helper in times of affliction- that they are not alone- or simply dependent on the experts (doctors, financiers, political leaders).  

Prayer:  Lord, you hear the desire of the afflicted and listen to their cry.  Hear my cry this day.  Have mercy on me.  And, let me tell others that YOU are the One who can help us when no one else can.