This past week my quiet times brought some old songs to mind. It’s interesting how songs and lyrics stay in the quiet halls of our memories …
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In 2 Corinthians 12:6-10 we read about Paul’s thorn in the flesh.
Scripture doesn’t tell us what Paul’s thorn was, although it has been inferred it was an eye ailment.
Whatever it was, it kept Paul reminded of his weakness, of his need to depend on God.
The things that slow us down each day – the responsibilities, the bumps in the road, the problems, the sicknesses, the troubles, the losses – they are here to remind us that He is God and we are not.
He is strong in all things, and we are weak.
“And He has said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.” (verse 9, NASB)
These things are in our lives to constantly remind us of our great need for God, every single day.
What is your “thorn” at this time?
Lord, we need You. Thank You for being all that we need and whatever we may need in this day. Amen.
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The story of Hannah is found in 1 Samuel 1:1-20. She was one of the two wives of Elkanah.
Peninnah had children, and Hannah was childless. Peninnah was irritating, provoking and flat out mean to Hannah. She rubbed it in her face that she had bore their husband children. Hannah was broken and inconsolable, even though her husband loved her deeply.
When Eli finds her in the temple, praying and addresses her, her response is interesting to me. She says:
“… but I have poured out my soul before the Lord” (verse 15, NASB).
Hannah knew where to pour out her heart.
I was reminded of Psalm 62:8:
“Trust in Him at all times, O people; Pour out your heart before Him; God is a refuge for us. Selah.”
Hannah, such an example.
As I kept reading and re-reading, I realized we must trust God before we will pour out our hearts to Him. We must pray, trusting and waiting, for God to respond in His time, as He wills, for He truly knows best.
We can pour out our hearts to Him. He hears, He cares, He remembers, and He will answer.
Do you struggle to trust God? To pour out your heart to Him? To wait for Him to answer? How do you handle this?
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A single verse from a most familiar psalm, separated from the rest of the psalm (they were printed on a page) caused the verse to fall a bit differently.
“Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.” (Psalm 139:23-24, NASB)
As I sat just looking at the words on the page, it hit me deeply that my anxious thoughts can be offensive to God. He is always faithful, always with me, always providing, always protecting, always leading, always doing something in my life.
And yet … I experience times of worry.
The words of these two verses were such a beautiful reminder to my heart and soul – I need not worry. We say it so casually at times, and I don’t want to overlook the truth of this.
God is a covenant making, covenant keeping God. He is committed to our lives because He keeps His Word.
So today, let’s bring any anxious thought to Him. Let’s remember He will be with us in ALL things. He will be faithful to us.
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As we pour out our hearts to Him,
we discover He is all we need and
will be faithful in all things.
Photo 1: by Greg Rosenke on Unsplash
Photo 2: by Kelly Sikkema on Unsplash
I’m good at saying not to worry, but mostly when referring to someone else 😉. I’ve never thought about how our worries offend God. I wouldn’t want to offend anyone I love, so I’ll remember this the next time I find myself worrying.
God’s track record of faithfulness should be more than sufficient to lead me directly to trust, but I am afraid that I land there on a more circuitous path than is right.
I love the music of Alvin Slaughter and Damaris Carbaugh. I’ve had the pleasure of seeing them both perform these songs and it is soul-stirring in the best way.
He’s All I Need is at the top of my Rona (coronavirus) playlist. Jesus is all I need. He satisfies, my needs supply, Jesus is all I need. Amen! I trust him implicitly. When I want to worry, I can’t because all I have to do is look back on my life to see how he takes care of me.
As Damaris sings, he’s been faithful and continues to be faithful to me. Thank you Jesus for loving me. For caring about me and supplying everything I need. You are my dearest friend. Thank you, Heavenly Father. I love you.
I love that phrase, “… God is our refuge.” Knowing that in Him we can find peace, security, comfort, and rest. Such a blessing indeed. Praying you have a great day Ms. Joanne.
Amen. He is faithful. I am celebrating being a 17 years breast cancer survivor. God was with me through the whole cancer journey and is with me in every moment. 🙂
You are right, daily I am reminded of my weakness. Often it is my attitude that reminds me, when I get irritated.
I have always felt sorry for Hannah and thought how unpeaceful their house must have been with Peninnah and her attitude. My guess is that even when Hannah had several children, Peninnah just found other things to torment her about.