Character is what you are because of your choices, those choices of right and wrong that make you a man, or something less.”
                    –B.N. Rundell  (The Trail to Retaliation) 

       “There is a path before each person that seems right, but it ends in death.”
                    –Proverbs 14:12 (NLT)
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Do not be deceived–there is a way of evil.  We must have God’s word hidden in our hearts to know the right way.  Godly wisdom is there to aid us along the proper pathway. Bob Beasley states, “God’s practical wisdom seated in our hearts by study, meditation, and memorization keeps us from trouble.”  It keeps us from straying.

          2.12 — To deliver you from the way of evil, from the man who speaks perverse things,
            .13 — From those who leave the paths of uprightness to walk in the ways of darkness;
            .14 — Who rejoice in doing evil, and delight in the perversity of the wicked;
            .15 — Whose ways are crooked, and who are devious in their paths.   (NKJV)
          2.12 — Wisdom will save you from the ways of wicked men, from men whose words are perverse,
            .13 — who leave the straight paths to walk in dark ways,
            .14 — who delight in doing wrong and rejoice in the perverseness of evil,
            .15 — whose paths are crooked and who are devious in their ways.  (NIV, 1973)
 
     There are people waiting, lurking to attack, devour and destroy anyone coming their way.  They look for the weak, the unaware, the unstable.  Cults will look at obituaries in the newspapers or go to divorce courts to find the vulnerable, those who are depressed and downcast.  They go to skid row to find the wino, the drunk, the disabled.  There are those, like the “jumping cholla” that wait for you to pass and will jump out and cling to you.
     Call them evil, wicked, perverse, ungodly, unrighteous, they all have the same purpose–to get others to go down to the pit with them.  Misery loves company, so does sin.  The progress of the wicked and evil is always downhill, eventually arriving at the Pit.  Their talk may sound sweet, but it spread about moral disease and death.  They are the opposite of the person that Paul writes about, “Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy–meditate on these things.” (Philippians 4:8, NKJV)
     Lovers of darkness, and I do not understand why.  Walk in the dark, bump into something, stub your toe, there is always something to run into.  There are people who willingly and purposely left the way of truth to walk in darkness–the reason, because their deeds are evil, their heart is dark and cold.  Jude and John warn us in their epistles about these men whose purpose is to deceive.  John, in his gospel, tells us, “And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.  For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed.” (3:19-20, NKJV)  The light keeps us from stumbling; it keeps us safe.  The ways of darkness are of “concealment, evasion, cunning, deceit.  He who walks in them is ever groping.” (Wardlaw)
     William Arnot says, “The doing of evil produces darkness, and darkness produces the evil doing.  Indulged lusts puts out the eye-sight of the conscience; and under the darkened conscience the lusts revel unchecked.”  The wicked rejoice, i.e., “Happy Hour”, but their happiness is short lived.  Paul writes, “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who suppress the truth in unrighteousness.” (Romans 1:18, NKJV)  These people are perverse, (Romans 1:27-32). Woe unto those who follow the perverse, who walk in the pathway of evil and wickedness.  John tells us that “the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.” (1:5, NKJV)
     Listen, my son, my daughter, to wisdom.  Let it be your guide in this journey of life.  Let the light shine and keep you on the right path.  Do not turn to the right or the left, but listen to the words of wisdom.

For evil to stay away, good men must continue to do what is right, even when it is inconvenient or uncomfortable or difficult.”
                    –B. N. Rundell  (Black Hawk)

You feel the night wind. The darkness folds around you. You look up through the leaves to the dark-blue sky and shining stars. You smell the dry sand and the fresh water and the flowers and the spicy desert plants. Every breath you draw is new, untainted.”
                    –Zane Grey  (Wanderer of the Wasteland)

       “Trust in him at all times, O people; pour out your heart before him; God is a refuge for us. Selah”
                    –Psalm 62:8 (ESV)
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The comparison between Yahweh and false gods marks the last portion of Psalm 135.  Yahweh, God, rules over all the earth.  He is not a tribal deity, nor a mythical creature, nor a god made by human minds and hands.

          13 — Your name, O LORD, endures forever, your fame, O LORD, throughout all generations.
          14 — For the LORD will judge His people, and He will have compassion on His servants.
          15 — The idols of the nations are silver and gold, the work of men’s hands.
          16 — They have mouths, but they do not speak; eyes they have, but they do not see;
          17 — They have ears, but they do not hear; nor is there any breath in their mouths.
          18 — Those who make them are like them; so is everyone who trusts in them.
          19 — Bless the LORD, O house of Israel!  Bless the LORD, O house of Aaron!
          20 — Bless the LORD, O house of Levi!  You who fear the LORD, bless the LORD!
          21 — Blessed be the LORD out of Zion, who dwells in Jerusalem!  Praise the LORD!  (NKJV)

By blessing the Lord we are identifying Him as the source of all blessings and being grateful for all that He has given.  Compare that with the gods made by human minds and hands.  The God we serve is mighty and all-powerful for He created all things; yet He is also compassionate and loving–nothing can separate us from the love of God.  God is our secure foundation and we have nothing to fear with Him by our side–bless the Lord!
     His name, His character, endures forever!  Stephen Lawson proclaims, “His is forever the same, never diminishing, never changing.  His divine person is renowned through all generations, immutable and fixed.”  Compare that with dumb idols.  They tarnish, they become corrupt.  They cannot hear, but less speak and take action.   And get this truth–“they are lifeless, and those who make them will be like them, that is dead.” (Lawson)
     G. Campbell Morgan tells us, “The makers of idols become like that which they make–a man becomes like his god, approximates in character and conduct that to which he yields him homage.  The difference between true and false religion is that, in the former, worship is to the One who is forever greater than ourselves, and the others worship their creation, which is forever less than themselves.”  People today may not serve the image of Baal, Molech, or Ashtoreth.  They may not bow down to Zeus, Isis, or the vast pantheon of mythical gods.  But they serve gods they have made–the god of mammon, the god of technology, the god of consumerism.  Man, not the gods, build great and elaborate monoliths to these gods, but what good does is serve them.  In fact, because of the failure of the gods, many have proclaimed that there is no god, and for sure show themselves to be fools.
     The psalmist finishes with another call to worship and proclaim loudly in praise to the Lord of lords.  All believers should praise the Lord, if for no other reason, just because He is.  All who know and fear Him are called to praise Him.  Praise the God who is mighty over all creation, history, and the laws of nature.  We should be filled with praise for God at all times.  That is why Paul implores us to thank Him in every situation, to work for Him, to do all things for His glory and in His name.  Since God never changes, our worship should never change except possibly to get better and more intimate.  
     Stephen Lawson gives some ways to praise God.  First, praise Him fervently.  Our worship of God should be wholehearted.  “Lukewarmness is a tragic sin.  Our praise should be intense and passionate.”  Secondly, we are to praise God continually.  In good times and in the bad we should acknowledge our great God.  In troubles, tragedy, or in the great blessings that come our way, we should be praising Him.  Thirdly, we should praise God publicly.  That includes gathering with people in public places of worship, but also in our daily walk in the marketplace, the work place, the school, or just walking along the avenue.  Fourthly, our praise should ring forth privately.  In the quiet moment, alone with God we should be praising Him.  Finally, we should praise God intelligently.  “All worship is a response to who God is and what He has done.  The more truth we learn, the more we should worship Him.”

“Yes, Jesus is the Truth, the Way,               That leads you into rest,
Believe in Him without delay,
And you are fully blest.”

Just remember, son, God don’t never leave you.”
                    –B.N. Rundell  (The Trail to Redemption)

        “Yes, the Lord has done great things for us, and we are overjoyed.”

                    –Psalm 126:3  (CEB)
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     “Many of our problems arise when we forget to remember,” states Alistair Begg.  We tell our children not to play with the stove, the burners are hot.  It does us good to see that they follow instructions, but once in a while they forget.  I remember my middle granddaughter, Kylee, putting her hand on the top of the stove without thinking or remembering; she will not forget again.  We might tell them, “don’t play with matches, you’ll get burned.”  If they don’t listen soon there will be burned fingers (or worse) to take care of.
     Jesus often used the phrase, “he who has ears to hear, let him hear.”  In other words, pay attention–listen! then remember what you have heard.  Yes, experience is a great teacher, but as I used to tell my students–remember that experience gives the test first, then teaches the lesson.  That is why it is important to learn the Scriptures, to hear what the Spirit is saying through them, to remember what is being said, then put it into practice.  All of us, from young to old, have some kind of experience that we can draw upon.  Hopefully, we have learned from them.  So much of the time, however, we are like the Israelites.

          “Now therefore, stand still, that I may reason with you before the LORD concerning all the righteous acts of the LORD which He did to you and your fathers:  When Jacob had gone into Egypt, and your fathers cried out to the LORD, then the LORD sent Moses and Aaron, who brought your fathers out of Egypt and made them dwell in this place.  And when they forgot the LORD their God…”  –1 Samuel 12:7-9 (NKJV)

Did you note that last phrase?  Look at it, underline it–“they forgot the LORD their God.”  Forgetting often brings dire consequences.  It could just be a blister on the fingers or it could spell disaster upon a person, family, or even a nation.  Never are we to forget our God.  Deuteronomy 8:11 gives us a warning, “Beware that you do not forget the LORD your God by not keeping His commandments, His judgments, and His statutes which I command you today.” (NKJV)  Do not be like what became so typical of the Israelites after the death of Joshua.  Note the words of Judges 3:7, “So the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the LORD.  They forgot the LORD their God…” (NKJV)  Instead of remembering God they turned to false gods, idols.  What is it that takes our mind away from God?  What so easily makes us forget who He is and all that He has done?
     Remembering God is not to be a mere function, but a lifestyle.  Something that we know is sure, that we depend upon.  Alistair Begg writes, in regard to remembering our Creator that, “It means to dwell upon the very ‘Godness’ of God.  The Israelites failed to remember Him; in fact, they chose to forget, for it was inconvenient for them to consider God in all His holiness and all His might.”  Convenience, that is a problem.  It is not “convenient” to get up to attend church.  It is not “convenient” to pay tithes and be a good steward.  It is not “convenient” to not go along with the crowd.
     One of the great tragedies of the church is that most do not know who God is or do not want to remember.  People shun the term “theology” which simply means the study of God.  Doctrine is forsaken, for doctrine makes us responsible and that would not be “convenient” in many cases.  Oh, they might like the love and grace part of His attributes, but throw in wrath and holiness…oh my.  Add His sovereignty into the mix, and, well, that’s as much as they can stand.
     Part of our problem is that we forget that we are children of God.  We forget the road we are traveling on.  We forget to pick up our cross.  Often we blatantly push thoughts of God aside and choose to forget Him.  “Whenever we deviate from the narrow path, whenever we seek to slip out from underneath our almighty King’s jurisdiction, we are failing to remember who God is and what He has done for us.” (Begg)  We forget the words that the writer of Hebrews penned under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit that “God is a consuming fire” (12:29) or the words that God gave to Moses for “God is a jealous God.” (Exodus 34:14)  
     It would do us good to remember the lyrics from a song once popular.  “Hasn’t He always come through for you?  He’s the same now as then…and He’ll do it again…” (Dawn Thomas)  It would do us good to remember the works of God in the past in our lives.  It would do us good to remember that He is the God who is always there.