Back in the 1980s, when drug use in America was quite high, there was a famous PSA released to combat this epidemic. It features a man holding an egg in a kitchen near a frying pan. The egg, he says, is our brain, while the frying pan represents drugs. He then cracks the egg and throws it into the pan, instantly frying the egg. This egg, he says, “is your brain on drugs.”
There are several issues with this ad campaign, the most pressing being the association made between drug use and a tasty egg breakfast (a later edition would show an actress smashing the egg with the pan instead, a directorial choice equal parts effective and absurd). But there is a basic truth to it as well. Our bodies and souls were designed to run when fueled correctly, and common sense tells us that drug use greatly impacts our functioning.

There’s a similar logic in play in Psalm 73 (text linked here, but I’d encourage you to read it in its entirety). The Psalm is a tale of two visions, both diametrically opposed to one another. The first (v. 3-15) is a vision of the prosperity of the wicked reigning, succeeding, oppressing, and generally doing very well for themselves. Asaph, the author of the psalm, doesn’t identify anyone specific here. He could have been talking about community leaders, religious leaders, merchants, or even his own “friends” and family.

Regardless, those who with arrogance derided God, oppressed the poor, sought after their own ends, and had the hearts and ears of the community were living their best lives now. This would have been in seeming contradiction to what Asaph knew about the way of the righteous and wicked from Psalm 1. All of this would lead him to doubt himself, and ultimately to doubt God’s justice, both very relatable attitudes.

In the second vision (v. 18-20), the unexpected fall of the wicked is observed from within the sanctuary of God. Asaph has his heart and mind changed from one of distress and unbelief to res and trust in God. It all happens rather quickly. The wicked slip suddenly, or are swept away. They are remembered no more, just like when we wake from a nightmare. Everything seems right again.

And what made the difference?

Well structurally, the turning point is found in the middle of the Psalm: “but when I thought how to understand this, it seemed to me a wearisome task, until I went into the sanctuary of God, then I discerned their end” (v. 16-17). Asaph went into God’s sanctuary and it changed the way he saw things. For Israelites reading this in Old Testament times, the implication would be very clear. This wasn’t just about going to church. Rather, God’s very presence resided in the sanctuary. It was only in spending time with God that Asaph could see the big picture.

Which leads me back to frying eggs.

Asaph’s brain without rest, without time spent in the presence of God, led his mind and heart to some dark places. Places where the wicked reigned supreme without end. Places where a God of justice ignored the arrogance of the oppressor. Places where Asaph began to doubt whether living righteously was worth it. His egg was fried.
Asaph’s brain on rest, with time spent with God, is a completely different story. Here he sees that God will triumph in the end, that the wicked will fall, that God does justice, and that God has “got him” in the thick and thin. He can now confess that God is with him always, and even holds his hand. Asaph is at peace.

We would be wise to recognize that our own brains work the very same way.

Have you been caught up in all the bad things going on in the world these days? Does “the wrong seem oft so strong?” And has this thrown you off balance? While a little lament is often in order, it could also be a sign that your own egg is fried and that you need some rest. Not just any rest, but the kind of rest which allows you to hold God’s hand. The kind which changes the way we see the world. And the kind of rest which a loving heavenly Father delights to give. All of which might allow us to sing:

This is my Father’s world:
O let me ne’er forget
That though the wrong seems oft so strong,
God is the Ruler yet.
This is my Father’s world:
Why should my heart be sad?
The Lord is King: let the heavens ring!
God reigns; let earth be glad!

Dr. Mesimer

P.S. We shouldn’t be too hard on Asaph by the way. While some repentance was necessary, he also did not have the clarity of access to the apocalyptic literature of the Old and New Testament where God more clearly discloses His plans for justice. Plus, he could have only grasped dimly what we now see clearly: Christ’s ultimate triumph over evil at the cross.