July 7, 2018 - - Psalm 32:6 - - How do you withstand trying times?
/Therefore let everyone who is godly
offer prayer to you at a time when you may be found;
surely in the rush of great waters,
they shall not reach him.
Psalm 32:6 ESV
What are the odds that you'd miss your favourite TV program? You can pre-record it and watch at your leisure.
What are the odds you'd miss a meal? Even at those times you were not hungry beforehand when you began preparing the meal, smelling the wonderful aromas of the cooking food it was at that moment you began to realize how hungry you really were.
Our daily appointment with God--the times of prayer and reading the Bible--these are more precious and important than any TV program or movie or gaming you might do.
Our daily appointment with God--the times of prayer and reading the Bible--feeds our soul. As we read the Bible and talk with God the hunger of our souls is laid bare and our thirstiness exposed. As we spend time in His presence our hunger is satiated and our thirst for Him quenched.
When the rush of great waters sweep over you--
the diagnosis of cancer
the betrayal of a friend
the hours of waiting with your child in the ER
the unexpected financial crunch
the season when God Himself seems distant
the loneliness which never quite fully recedes
whatever is the great rush of waterery trials for you
it is at that very moment that sustaining grace of Jesus,
poured into your soul by the Spirit
through your regular, intimate times of prayer and bible reading, this sustaining grace will
lift your eyes to Your Father in heaven
Who hears your groaning
Who forgives your sin
Who guides you even when you don't know the way forward
Who reminds us to live is Christ and to die is gain.
Spirit of Truth make me aware of my great hunger and thirst for the things of God. Direct me, Spirit of God, to the riches of Scripture and the blessing of quiet times in the Presence of God. God, Who in times of peace, whispers Your love into my soul and in times of the pounding rush of great waters Thunders above the noise speaking to my heart and mind such assurances that remind me my soul is anchored securely in all that Jesus Christ has accomplished--blessed be Your Name. Amen.
