God cares for His children, just as He cares
for the birds and lilies. As we seek God’s purpose for our life and walk in His
ways, we have His guarantee that He will provide for us (Matthew
6:25-33). He works out all things, even the most
difficult of events, for our ultimate good (Romans 8:28).
We no longer entertain any anxiety in our soul
about our life. We take no thought about the fundamental needs of food and
shelter. Even if we wander in the desert of life, God sends clouds for shade,
fire to keep us warm, manna and quail to eat and shoes and garments, which
never wear out (Exodus).
King David experienced every type of mental
and physical anguish that we do. He worked out his feelings through writing psalms
as his "journal". Now, David’s words provide solace for us too.
David expressed the full gamut of
human pain, as well as the consolation, which the Lord constantly provided
for him. The joy of the Lord was his constant strength, as it is for us (Nehemiah
8:10).
The only time the joy of the Lord flees from
us is when we languish in our illnesses, our sorrow or our petty concerns,
rather than looking to God to see us through them. His grace provides for our
every need and is sufficient for us (2 Corinthians 12:9).
In the dark places of life, we want a friend.
The Body of Christ provides just such comfort for us, as well as Christ who
dwells within our spirit. The presence of Jesus, “Emanuel”, which means “God
with us” (Matthew 1:23), fills each
of us.
God gives us His peace as He comforts our troubled
soul (John 14:27). His hope
prophesies that God is always with us, no matter what circumstance we
encounter (Psalm 139:7-14; Proverbs 18:24).
These difficulties produce His character in
our soul and prove to us that He is worthy of our praise and trust. Jesus is
our bread of life (John 6:35), and He is our all
sufficiency (2 Corinthians 9:8).
He fills every chamber in our body, soul and spirit with His peace, love and
comfort, presence and Spirit.
Prayer:
Father God, our faith increases with every
verse of scripture on which we meditate, and in every moment that we spend in
abiding in Christ within us (Colossians 1:27),
as well as every time we turn to You in our weakness. We surrender the control
of our life to You, we take no thought for what tomorrow may hold, and we
forgive our self for the sins of our past.
Remind us that any negative emotions signal an
area of our life, which we did not yet surrender to Your Lordship in our life.
Help us to clarify our feelings, to locate the root of the negative ones and to
surrender the issues causing them to Your faithfulness. We look to You for your
love, peace and joy, which come to us through the presence of Your Holy Spirit
in our life (Romans 14:17).
Thought for the Day:
God's solace permeates our soul – our mind,
decisions and emotions – to the same level and extent to which we allow Him the
full reign and control over our life.
