"God, our Vindicator"

"Awake, and rise to my defense! Contend for me, my God and Lord.

Vindicate me in your righteousness, O LORD my God; do not let them gloat over me."

- Psalm 35: 23-24

A minor incident occurred at work today that reminded me (once again) of the amazing goodness and faithfulness of our Lord in all matters - both great and small.

It all began while I was busily working on the pile of invoices in front of me at my desk (like what i always do day in, day out ... seemingly unceasing, the flow of invoices!). One of my colleagues (and friend) then came over to my supervisor and said she could not find some of the processed invoices in the archive cabinet. My supervisor duly followed her into the nearby archive room to search for the 'missing' invoices ... and after a moment's pause, i heard (albeit faintly) my name being mentioned. I'm not sure why, but the thought of me being accused somehow crept into my head ..... whereby i immediately tried to dismiss the thought. Then, the moment came: My supervisor, upon returning back to her seat, leaned over to me and told me the incident in the archive room ..... and said that my failure to file the invoices under the correct state (eg: QLD, VIC, NSW, WA, SA) has led to my friend being unable to track down those invoices in the first instance.

Whoa!!! When i heard that, something in me sorta 'snapped'. Many thoughts raced through my mind - e.g. how should i answer this unjust accusation / how should i confront my friend, etc. Gotta confess i was a little angry and disappointed - albeit only for a while - with my friend. (*Here, you see my carnal self arising from within ... hehe!!!) ... Reason being, i remember very vividly that just the day before, i had deliberately stacked the various completed invoices according to their respective states and was carrying them to the archive room to file them - only to find my friend there filing some other invoices as well. There, she told me to pass the entire stack of mine to her ... and that she would help file them for me - which i gratefully did - and furthermore, left her with instructions as to the way i stacked them.

So, there you have it ... and this was precisely what got into me: How could my friend - who knew that she was the one who filed the invoices wrongly - accuse me of doing it? Boy, was i fuming mad (well, sort of!) ... and i could literally feel some words of defense rising up from within me when my supervisor spoke to me. But somehow (and thanks be to God!) i managed to keep it all under control.

The interesting was that, in the midst of all the inner conflict that was waging within me, i could clearly hear God challenging me whether i would trust Him to vindicate me and whether i would leave this matter into His sovereign hands. I sorta had a mini dialogue with God as to my 'rights' (for i badly wanted to defend myself from this unjust accusation) ... but, by the grace of God, came rather quickly to a conclusion that this was only but a minor issue ... and that i shall not be too bothered by it. Instead, i chose to take on the challenge of God - and place my trust in God - and not try to take matters into my own hands. Whether or not i was vindicated, i left it entirely to God, who knows what's best in every situation (Isaiah 55: 8-9). And when i made that decision, although the war that was waging in the battlefield of my mind was still there ... i could feel it fading away - slowly but surely. :)

Then, something quite remarkable happened that made me really, really glad and appreciative that i had not reacted the way i would have if i were to claim my 'rights' and have it my way (i.e. confront my friend / have a 'showdown' with her, etc.) ..... as well as remind me of the faithfulness my Lord and King: My friend, after completing her task (and totally oblivious to the intense 'warfare' that was waging within me), came to my supervisor and confessed (yes, confessed!) that she was the one who had misplaced the invoices - and not me (*kudos to her for that!!!). At first i could not believe my ears ... but when it sunk in, i thanked God that i had not acted out of impulse and defended myself. I believe i would have been a fool had i done so!!! And not only that, i also would not have been able to witness the amazing faithfulness and vindication of God!!! Instead, by choosing to trust in God and His vindication, that was precisely what i got (and witness first-hand)!!! Simply amazing!!!

Through this simple and minor incident, i was reminded afresh once again of God's faithfulness to His people. And i thank God for this simple lesson learnt - that when wronged, we can trust in His goodness, for, indeed, God is our vindicator!!! And even if nothing happens, we know that "in all things God works together for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose" (Romans 8: 28). Therefore, we can rest and trust in Him - for He is good!!! Amen!!! :)