Daily Devotionals
Daily Devotional: Psalms 34:19-22
Ps 34:19-22
Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivers him out of them all. He keeps all his bones; not one of them is broken. Affliction will slay the wicked, and those who hate the righteous will be condemned. The Lord redeems the life of his servants; none of those who take refuge in him will be condemned. (ESV)
2 Cor 12:8-9
Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this, that it should leave me. But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore, I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. (ESV)
For God to deliver us from our affliction does not always mean that he takes it away from us. In the case of Paul who begged the Lord three times to remove the “thorn” that had been given him, he was told that he had to learn to live with it. But God told him that by grace, he would give him the strength to bear it. He was also told that by doing this, he would learn to know the power of God in him.
This is why he could write to the Philippians and tell them that he had faced a lot of varied circumstances in his life but that he could do all things through Christ who gave him strength. He told the Ephesians that this strength came through the Holy Spirit whom God had given to live in him. Whatever he faced in life, he had learned that when he was weak in himself, he was strong in Christ.
We all face problems. We all get sick at times. We all face death as we see those that we love pass from this earth, or as we face it ourselves. There will be times that it is difficult to be faithful to God because of the circumstances we face. It may be others making fun of us or spreading rumors about us, or it may be we face strong temptations that could so easily trap us. We must trust God!
The Lord will take care of his own because he has already invested the life and death of his Son for us. The Lord will give us strength to overcome any trial or temptation we face because Jesus has already won the battle with Satan on our behalf. He will provide a way out for us, but we may have to endure a while. We must put our total trust in God and then live for him the best we can.
O Lord God, thank you for loving me and providing a way out of my trials. Thank you for giving me strength to overcome when I am tempted. Forgive me for not taking the right way or using your strength at times. Help me be more committed each day, to be more determined to live for you, and to allow your Spirit to work in me and grow his fruit in my life. Thank you for allowing me to live a godly and peaceful life, even in an ungodly society. I pray in the name of Jesus.
Robert
