Like Psalms 9 and 10 with a common theme of God’s care of the poor, Psalms 11 and 12 seem to have a common theme: evil. “The world’s going to hell in a handbasket!”

For look! The wicked bend their bow, They make ready their arrow on the string, That they may shoot secretly at the upright in heart. If the foundations are destroyed, What can the righteous do? (Psalm 11.2, 3, NKJV)

Help, LORD, for the godly man ceases! For the faithful disappear from among the sons of men. They speak idly everyone with his neighbor; With flattering lips and a double heart they speak. (Psalm 12.1, 2, NKJV)

What can the righteous do? Psalm 12 offers one solution:

The words of the LORD are pure words, Like silver tried in a furnace of earth, Purified seven times. (Psalm 12.6, NKJV)

In contrast to the idle, flattering, and “double-hearted” speech of most people, God’s words are pure. “Like silver tried in a furnace of earth…” Reading the Bible is not all we should be doing, but it’s certainly foundational. Ignoring God’s Word is like trying to take a long hike up a mountain without eating first!

That’s the metaphor that came to mind because as I draft this blog, I’m in a mountain cabin in Estes Park, Colorado. June needed a change of scenery after being cooped up for a month after her injury. This is my view out the window:

And this is the sunrise glow on Mt Ypsilon when I was walking the dog.

Back to the metaphor: I wouldn’t want to tackle either the small mountain or the big one without fuel. If we think life is tough in a world that’s against what Christians stand for, best we keep our hearts and minds centered on God’s Word.

But He answered and said, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.’ ” (Matthew 4.4, NKJV)