We are not afflicted with pain and suffering to make us miserable, but to perfect us in spirit, soul, and body. Many of us attempt to take control of our life to avoid pain, but it continues to squeeze out of our grasp. We often abandon our hope in the Lord, and we submit to feelings of powerlessness when our life gets out of control.
The quality of our relationships is diminished by controlling behavior, our health is negatively impacted, and our soul is robbed of fulfillment. Submitting to God’s plan for our life and walking in His Spirit are the only way to bring order to the chaos and rebuild hope in our soul (Ephesians 2:10; Matthew 11:28-29).
When God is with us and in us, we have His anointing to accomplish all that He calls us to do (Philippians 4:13; Acts 10:38). Our grief turns into joyous celebrations provided by God’s healing and salvation in our life (Jeremiah 17:14). He continually calls everyone to return to Him so He can bless us (Jeremiah 3:22).
God even gifts the elders in our church family to have His Spirit, to pray over us, and anoint us with oil in Jesus’ name, so He can raise us up (James 5:14-16). We continually thank Him for holding us in His hand and providing us with abundant peace and security (Isaiah 41:10; Jeremiah 33:6). He is our God and there is no one like Him (1 Samuel 2:2).
God bandages our wounds, encourages us when we are sick, saves us from our stresses, rescues us from the grave, and heals our broken heart (Psalm 41:3, 107:19-21, 147:2-3). We cannot help but to live in praise when we see, hear, and feel His goodness poured out on our life as we walk in His ways (Proverbs 4:20-22; Psalm 107:19-21).
Prayer:
Father God, we worship You because of Your continual blessings in our life. You even remove our illnesses from us (Exodus 23:25). Thank You for meeting all our needs and guarding our comings and goings (Isaiah 58:8). When we maintain our faith in Your faithfulness, You hear our cries and heal us from our suffering (Mark 5:34; Luke 8:50; Psalm 30:2).
Thank You that Jesus bore our sins on the cross so that we can die to sinful desires and live in pursuit of holiness instead (1 peter 2:24). This allows us to enjoy an encouraged life with You as our God, our strength, and our help. We never forget Your benefits, Your forgiveness of our sins, Your healing of our diseases, Your redemption of us from the pit of hell, and Your love and compassion (Psalm 103:2-4).
Thoughts for the Day:
Some individuals feel like outcasts from the society of this world – abandoned, rejected, hopeless, and unloved; however, if we listen carefully to the Lord, do what is right in His eyes, pay attention to His commands, and live according to His precepts, we will enjoy His blessings and healing in our spirit and soul and body, and find freedom from many of sin’s curses.
- Psalm 6:2; Exodus 15:26; Deuteronomy 7:15; Philippians 4:19
