Christmas At The Movies - Week 4 - Day 4
OPENING PRAYER:
“The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears them; he delivers them from all their troubles. The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.” Psalm 34:17-18, (NIV)
“So do not fear, for I am with you. Do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”
“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 about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.”
“Therefore let everyone who is Godly pray to you while you may be found; surely when the mighty waters rise, they will not reach him. You are my hiding place; you will protect me from trouble and surround me with the songs of deliverance. I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you and watch over you. Do not be like the horse or the mule, which have no understanding but must be controlled by bit and bridle or they will not come to you. Many are the woes of the wicked, but the Lord’s unfailing love surrounds the man who trusts in him. Rejoice in the Lord and be glad, you righteous; sing, all you who are upright in heart!”
REFLECT:
Today’s scriptures from Isaiah and II Corinthians are ones I have committed to memory. The verses from Psalm 32 paint a picture of reliance and surrender to a loving God who is always with us. Psalm 46:1, (NIV), says “God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble.” Having God as our refuge comes through the act of putting our trust in him. Many times, we want God’s help, or we want him to bail us out, but we try to put conditions on him at the same time. When we trust God for the answer, we know that he will provide all the aspects of the very miracle we need. What a great assurance it is, to know that we can put our dependency on God, and he’ll take care of the rest.
This trust was demonstrated to me by the wife of a man who works for me. He came down with COVID and was struggling for a period of over four weeks. He and his wife are both stalwart believers and would testify of their trust in God throughout the ordeal. I would call and text her, sharing with her all the people I had asked to join us in this prayer journey to see through her husband’s healing. She knew that Jesus was in her boat and she was riding out the storm with him no matter where it took her. When her husband was moved to the hospital and became dependent on a ventilator, she rejoiced that she was able to spend an hour with him that day. One Sunday, she explained that his kidneys were failing and that the doctors were going to put him on dialysis. The next day I learned that he had passed away. The whole time through, she had never waivered in her trust in her savior as the provider of all her needs. Although she misses him so, she knows he promoted to heaven and that the glory belongs to Jesus Christ. Lord, give me that resolve to trust you no matter what.
APPLY:
I read a very applicable post on Facebook the other day that is most appropriate when considering how we should trust God in the face of difficult times in our lives:
“When a train goes through a tunnel and it gets dark…you don’t throw away the ticket and jump off. You sit still and trust the engineer.” Trust God today no matter how dark your situation. Because God says, “You are coming out!”
CLOSING PRAYER:
“The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him, and I am helped,” Psalm 28:7, (NIV). Heavenly Father, knowing that our hope is in you, gives us hope for all eternity!