Note from Randy: Paul David Tripp’s Everyday Gospel is a wonder. It's brilliantly written, clear, concise, Christ-exalting, true to God’s word, enriching to the mind, encouraging to the heart, and overflowing with gospel grace. Every paragraph has the ring of truth. If you want a daily dose of God’s life-giving wisdom and kindness, this book is for you. Hope you enjoy this excerpt.

Your world is not spinning out of control, careening toward chaos, because we have a King who rules over all the earth.

Does it feel as though your life is out of control? Family drama, violence in the world, the rapid coarsening of the surrounding culture—chaos appears to be all around us. Perhaps you’re dealing with a physical sickness that you can’t seem to get on top of. Maybe you suddenly lost a job or a friendship, or experienced a life-altering accident. Perhaps your daily responsibilities are a burden too heavy to bear. The unexpected, unplanned, and unwanted confront us with how little power and control we actually have. They reveal our delusion of self-sovereignty. When you must face how few things you rule, you either spin off into depression, fear, or panic, or you remember that you can rest, knowing that though your life is out of your control, it is not actually out of control. We have a King who sits on His throne above the earth. He rules with wisdom, holiness, power, and grace. His rule is always right, His plan cannot be thwarted, and His will is done in Heaven and on earth. Nothing escapes His rule. Everything He ordains, He accomplishes. He delivers on every promise He has made. He is King.

Psalm 47 calls us out of our fear and panic and welcomes us to peace and rest of heart:

Clap your hands, all peoples!
Shout to God with loud songs of joy!
For the LORD, the Most High, is to be feared,
a great king over all the earth.
He subdued peoples under us,
and nations under our feet.
He chose our heritage for us,
the pride of Jacob whom he loves.    Selah…
God reigns over the nations;
God sits on his holy throne.
The princes of the peoples gather
as the people of the God of Abraham.
For the shields of the earth belong to God;
he is highly exalted! (Ps. 47:1-4, 8-9)

Psalm 47 tells you that you will never be in a situation, location, or relationship that is not ruled by your Lord. You will never wander outside of His rule. Not only does He rule, but He exercises His sovereign rule over all things for the sake of those whom He has chosen to be the objects of His love. Your world is ruled by one who loves you and exercises His infinite power for your eternal good. This does not mean that you will always understand what happens in your life, but, in the failure of your understanding, you can know that your life is in good hands.

Does your life seem out of control? Run again and again to Psalm 47. Remember, rest, and rejoice. The one who rules loves you and is exercising His kingship for your good and His glory.