"Until Next Time": Sunday Recap

March 8, 2026

Let’s keep it 100: These days, it seems like the world happily rewards corruption while living righteously gets zero shine. 

Here you are, walking by faith and keeping your integrity—dotting I’s and crossing T’s—only to feel like you’re constantly taking L’s while sinners stack W’s. It’s frustrating.

But the Word always meets us right where we are. This week's message in Psalm 73 introduces us to an author who felt the exact same way. If you’ve been feeling that tension in your heart lately, this one is for you.

“Truly God is good to Israel, To such as are pure in heart. But as for me, my feet had almost stumbled; My steps had nearly slipped. For I was envious of the boastful, When I saw the prosperity of the wicked.” ‭‭Psalms‬ ‭73‬:‭1‬-‭3‬ (‭NKJV‬‬)

This scripture is basically a billboard for some of our innermost thoughts. Sometimes, our circumstances depict the exact opposite of what we believe by faith. Questions arise that we are too afraid to ask, and we end up silently wrestling with doubt, envy, and the feeling that life just isn't fair.

The writer of this Psalm totally gets it. Interestingly enough, this wasn't written by David. Meet Asaph. He might be lesser-known, but he definitely wasn't "less than."

 “Moreover David and the captains of the army separated for the service some of the sons of Asaph...who should prophesy with harps, stringed instruments, and cymbals.”  1 Chronicles 25:1 (NKJV)

Asaph was a heavy hitter—a Levite, a worship leader, and a prophetic musician who served in the inner circle of the King. He had a front-row seat to David’s life. 

He watched how David navigated the highs, recovered from the lows, and sought the Lord when his back was against the wall. Asaph’s writing wasn't just inspiration—it was a response to the life he was following. This begs the question: What is your life saying?

“Your story is somebody’s sermon.” — MGLewisJr

People are clocking how you move—how you handle pressure, how you bounce back when life hits, and how you stand when everything else fails. Your life isn't just a series of random events.

“God is too intentional to ever be random.” — MGLewisJr

Even when you’ve been through enough to make you want to "pop off," Scripture reminds us that we are always being observed.

“You are our epistle written in our hearts, known and read by all men;”  2 Corinthians 3:2 (NKJV)

So even in the middle of the tension, we have to be mindful of what our lives are projecting to the world. We are the living proof of God’s Word. 

This doesn’t mean that we won’t have our moments—just as Asaph had his. Psalm 73 is the journey of a gifted, prophetic, worshipper who confesses that he almost lost his faith. He was called and anointed, but still stumbled somewhere along the way.

Faith doesn’t mean you don’t have questions.

Asaph didn’t lose his footing because of hidden sin; he lost it because he was watching the wrong people. He didn't necessarily do anything wrong, but his eyes were in the wrong direction.

Your sight can cause you to deviate from God. For Asaph, the drift started with envy when he saw the prosperity of the wicked. 

When you see people constantly doing wrong who appear to be living stress-free—with all the money, influence, and power— fixating on them can make it easy to believe that God is asleep at the wheel. But the problem isn't God's performance; it's our focus.

“Sometimes, the crisis isn’t that God failed you, it’s the comparison that’s poisoning your perspective.” —MGLewisJr 

You aren't “in sin" in the traditional sense, but the poison of comparison is doing the same work—slowly pulling you away from God’s presence. 

Even if we feel like some things are unfair—which is valid—we have to be careful. We can’t allow a desire for swift justice to pull us even further away from God. Scripture warns us exactly what can happen when we make retribution the main thing.

“Because the sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily, therefore the heart of the sons of men is fully set in them to do evil.” ‭‭Ecclesiastes‬ ‭8‬:‭11‬ (‭NKJV‬‬)

This verse describes how believers—yes, people of God—can end up drifting into a dark place simply because they feel like God isn’t moving fast enough. When judgement doesn’t hit immediately, we tend to think that God isn’t watching.

But here’s the gag: that’s not your business.

How God deals with others is not your concern. In fact, you can miss what God has for you because you’re too busy looking at everyone else. What if God did open a door for you, but you missed it because you were distracted scrutinizing someone else’s life? 

God never gave us the authority to be the punisher of the unrighteous. 

“When the punishment of the Lord upon another becomes your position, you create a problem that will become destructive to your own promise.” —MGLewisJr 

Taking the position of “judge and jury” is dangerous territory. It creates an opportunity for God to breathe life back into the very punishment you once received grace for. 

How would you feel if God reinstated your old consequences while you were busy worrying about His business with someone else? Yikes.

“Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap.” ‭‭Galatians‬ ‭6‬:‭7‬ (‭NKJV‬‬)

You don’t have to waste time worrying about how God will deal with your enemies. When you  understand the law of harvest, you know that they will reap what they sow.

“Just because God is patient doesn’t mean He’s absent. And just because justice is delayed doesn’t mean justice is canceled.” —MGLewisJr 

God knows.

Asaph was having a hard time grasping this reality. In the verses that follow, he laments extensively about this sordid state of affairs—until he finally hits a wall.

“When I thought how to understand this, It was too painful for me—” ‭‭Psalms‬ ‭73‬:‭16‬ (‭NKJV‬‬)

The more he tried to make sense of it, the worse he felt. Asaph’s distress was a direct result of him trying to use logic to remedy his emotions. But there are some things in life your logic can’t heal.

Some of us are hurting–not because God hasn’t created a way out, but because we have a “fix-it” mindset for a spiritual problem. There are seasons in life when information can’t fix it. No matter how many sermons you hear or books you read, there will be times when it’s difficult for you to process what you’re going through. 

But Solomon dropped one of the greatest gems of wisdom for exactly these moments: 

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding;” Proverbs 3:5 (NKJV)

“When it gets heavy, watch where you lean.” –MGLewisJr

Our human understanding has limitations–it will never be sturdy enough to uphold why we trust, love, and obey God. So lean not! To lean, you have to lose your posture–and when you lose your posture, you lose your perspective.

“Our understanding has limitations, but God’s perspective does not.” –MGLewisJr

What we have here is a worshipper trying to reconcile what he believes about God with what he’s seeing in real time. 

Have you ever felt like the intensity of your situation actually turned up the more you worshipped? You’re not alone, because every worshipper has had this kind of cry.

But stay with Asaph’s trajectory, because something shifted. In the middle of his confusion, he stepped into a different environment.

“Until I went into the sanctuary of God; Then I understood their end.” Psalms 73:17 (NKJV)

“Until” is the turning point! Not just for Asaph, but for all of us. It’s the spiritual pivot point where God interrupts confusion with clarity. In the Kingdom, every struggle has an “until”, because when God steps into a situation, it doesn’t stay the same (feel free to pause here for a praise break). 

“Perspective is dangerous when it’s formed outside of God's presence.” –MGLewis 

Asaph had a long list of complaints, until he went into the Sanctuary of God. Notice how the text says, “until I”? Until doesn’t just happen, it’s initiated. You actually control when your until begins.

The Sanctuary is more than a place, it’s where the presence of God intersects the lives of His people. God’s presence can fill places, but He also fills people–so the sanctuary isn’t just somewhere you go, it’s something you carry.

“Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own?” 1 Corinthians 6:19 (NKJV)

Asaph got to the sanctuary and dealt with his outward frustrations from the inside out. He had to stop fixating on the chaos around him and center himself in God’s presence. 

“Clarity concerning the things of God doesn’t come through explanation, it comes through experienced encounters with God.” –MGLewisJr

What you’re going through doesn’t need explanation, it needs presence. Some questions don’t get answered until you get into worship.

“...In Your presence is fullness of joy; At Your right hand are pleasures forevermore.” Psalms 16:11 (NKJV)

Everything you need from God is already inside of you. So what does that do for how you feel?

“God’s presence doesn’t erase what happened, it breaks the influence it had over you.” –MGLewisJr

The sanctuary is where God meets you and remakes you at the same time. The goal isn’t just attendance, it’s transformation.

A church building can host God’s presence but a surrendered life carries it everywhere. When God fills a building, revival can happen–but when He fills a believer, revival spreads.  

We are the sanctuary.

God showed Asaph that the sanctuary births understanding. There are simply some things you will never grasp outside of God’s presence. 

It’s a dangerous phenomenon when people who claim to “hear from God” don’t have direction. We have to stay in His presence to learn His language. If we don’t, the instability that results from “hearing” outside of His presence gives the world the wrong impression about who God is. 

Jesus said it like this: 

“But everyone who hears these sayings of Mine, and does not do them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand.” Matthew  7:26 (NKJV)

The house built on sand may have looked strong and secure, but the foundation was all wrong. It’s okay to bring our grievances to God when we’re in our feelings, but we have to allow Him to fix our foundation while we’re there. Otherwise, we’ll be as unstable as that house, falling apart at every wind of emotion that blows.

Asaph made a powerful admission of being envious of the wicked. But when God showed him the truth, he stopped envying them and started praying for them. You know your foundation is solid when the ones you don’t like move from your “hit list” to your prayer list. 

What looks like victory will actually be destruction if you're not careful.

“Sometimes the people you envy are just people that God is trying to protect you from becoming.” –MGLewisJr

Sometimes God will allow people to “prosper” right in front of you just to show you exactly what not to do. 

“Your next trial might just be somebody’s text book.” –MGLewisJr 

Asaph didn’t find peace when his situation changed–his enemies didn't suddenly disappear. Peace came when his view changed. You don’t see his enemies being avenged in this moment, but you see him being transformed. 

Sometimes the breakthrough in your life comes down to one moment, one encounter, one perspective shift, one step from logic into the presence of God. Maybe instead of asking God to change your situation, you have to ask him to change you first. 

That entire shift can be summed up in one word: until. 

Until is the line drawn by a decision. The moment you decide to move towards God, your until starts changing you.

But there’s a deeper level to this: Some things have grown in the grounds of your heart that you were never prepared to carry. To heal you, God has to un-till the grounds of your heart. 

“The moment the soil of your heart is turned, that’s when manifestation starts growing.” –MGLewisJr

So don't be discouraged by what you see. Shift your gaze to the Lord, and get in His presence so that you can gain understanding and be transformed. And if when that tension starts to build in your heart, just pause and remind yourself:

Until next time.