27th. January. 2021. Daily Devotion.
15 The eyes of the Lord are on the righteous,
and his ears are attentive to their cry;
16 but the face of the Lord is against those who do evil,
to blot out their name from the earth.
17 The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears them;
he delivers them from all their troubles.
18 The Lord is close to the broken-hearted
and saves those who are crushed in spirit.
19 The righteous person may have many troubles,
but the Lord delivers him from them all;
20 he protects all his bones,
not one of them will be broken.
Psalm 24:15-20
Feeling overwhelmed? Most people don’t really need any terrible problem to get down in the dumps sometimes. Disappointment and frustration simply come with the package. We expect deep in our hearts that we will constantly make progress, but reality sets in and sometimes it seems like all we can do is put one foot in front of the other one. Life is a gift, but we all spend our lives looking this gift horse straight in the mouth; because no matter how bad things get, if you can feel overwhelmed, you have to be alive.
Everybody has hard times on occasion. We lose our jobs, our spouse runs off with someone else, we develop a chronic disease, we go bankrupt. But Christ promised us that, not only would we get through any tribulation that life can throw at us, but we can also get through the ultimate tribulation. If He overcame death, what can He not overcome?
If you feel like you can’t pick yourself up, don’t try. Christ will do the picking up; all you have to do is ask.
Morning Prayers. (Inspired by Jane Austen)
Give me grace Almighty Father, so to pray, as to deserve to be heard, to address you with my heart, as with my lips. You are everywhere present; from you no secret can be hidden. May the knowledge of this, teach me to fix my thoughts on you, with reverence and devotion, that I may not pray in vain.
May I now, and on each return of morning, consider how I will spend the day ahead; what thoughts will prevail in my mind? What words will I speak? Will my actions reflect your will, or my own? How far can I acquit myself of evil, and live in the goodness and beauty of my Lord Christ?
Will I think irreverently of you? Will I disobey your commandments? Will I neglect and make excuses for any known duty, or willingly give pain to any human being? Incline me to ask my heart these questions oh! God, throughout the day, to save me from deceiving myself by pride or vanity.
And give me always a thankful sense of the blessings in which I live, of the many comforts of my lot; that I may not deserve to lose them by discontent or indifference. Hear me almighty God, for his sake who has redeemed me, and taught me thus to pray. amen
To Find God’s Beauty in Nature
It is the Holy Spirit who makes us find joy in each flower, the exquisite scent, the delicate colour, the beauty of the Most High in the tiniest of things. Glory and honour to the Spirit, the Giver of Life, who covers the fields with their carpet of flowers, crowns the harvest with gold, and gives to us the joy of gazing at it with our eyes. O be joyful and sing to Him: Alleluia!
There is a certain rhythm in our life cycle of birth, growth, aging and death. With the pandemic, this passing of stages in life has been abruptly changed for so many people. Lord, help us at this time when our brothers and sisters are in pain and dealing with sickness and loss due to the corona virus. Let us know in a deeper gift, that You are with us, now even in this time of uncertainty and illness. We place this prayer in the loving hands of Jesus Christ, Our Lord and Saviour. Amen. ~By a Columban Missionary
