04/02/2018
How do you face the trials and hardships that you are in the midst of, or that you see coming? How do you pray each day when you enter your secret place? When you pray with your family do your words encourage them to let God take control of that one day, and not to fret over His provision for tomorrow? Trust is our strength in Him. Having faith that He is sufficient for this day is enough.
“Then the Lord said to Moses, "Behold, I am about to rain bread from heaven for you, and the people shall go out and gather a day's portion every day, that I may test them, whether they will walk in my law or not.”
Exodus 16:4 ESV
If we look at the overwhelming entirety of the troubles in our lives they will bring us worry, anxiety, and fear, but this isn’t how the Lord wishes us to go through life. God desires for us to trust, and be at peace in Him when it comes to the entire problem, our job is to do those things that He tells us, or consume those things He gives us, for this one day.
We never solve problems in their entirety, we solve them a step, or a piece, at a time. Mathematics teaches us this most directly. For example, an Algebraic equation is solved one step at a time, even those that you might race through in your mind are completed in this fashion. Life is like this; we live it a moment, and a day at a time, and when we try to do otherwise we get ahead of ourselves and its complexity overcomes us.
Do you have ways in which you approach big, distasteful, or especially difficult issues in your life? Do these ways involve prayer? Whenever I am about to encounter one of those times, I approach it like this... I tell God in prayer about the big picture, I put the overall issue in His hands, and then I ask Him to guide me in what I should do for one day. Once I have done this I know that I am in God’s will, and that no matter how I perceive that day’s outcome, it is His, and He isn’t finished yet. Then as I begin the next day I ask Him to guide me in that day too, and then the next, and the next, until I have reached a solution He would have me reach. Sometimes when a day contains a particularly hard event that I dread, I will pray “God this is tough, but I know that by this time tomorrow it will be over, and you will have seen me through it. Give me your strength and wisdom, and be with me today.”
A good example is in these daily devotionals that I write each morning. People ask me how I write each day without fail, and where I find my inspiration. I depend on the Lord to give them to me fresh each morning. Some days I sit in my prayer chair, and it is as if I were alone. On days like that I pray “Father, I am here, give me just one word.” And then I will listen, and in a few minutes I will say again “just one word Lord” and I will listen again. It is in this way that one word will come to to me, and when I take my finger and type it into my smart phone, His message flows into me like a wave breaking on the beach, and I can barely keep up as My finger moves across the screen. One word, one prayer, one day at a time. Our God is faithful, and never fails us.
“Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful.”
Hebrews 10:23 ESV
On those days when we are threatened and fearful He goes before us, ever strong, and without fail. Have courage, and take heart in Him because He is there with you. Even if you are wounded, His strength will sustain you, and Victory will be His. This is your day, and this is God in it.
“Be strong and courageous. Do not fear or be in dread of them, for it is the Lord your God who goes with you. He will not leave you or forsake you."”
Deuteronomy 31:6 ESV
And yes there will be days when you think all is lost, and that the problem, or the enemy will devour you... failure seems eminent, but on those days God will cover you and shield you from harm...
“He will cover you with his pinions, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness is a shield and buckler.”
Psalms 91:4 ESV
And in each of our individual days God provides, Jesus guides us, and the Holy Spirit gives us comfort and knowledge. As with any great king, our God sends His Son to lead us in battle, and His general to encourage us in our effort. Each day is its own, and each night we rest protected, and encamped with Jesus Christ.
“For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
Romans 8:38-39 ESV
These are our days, these are our prayers each morning, this is our trust in God our Father, and in every day His Son and Holy Spirit are given new to us. In this day, as in every day, they are sufficient, and never fail us. In this day we trust in God Almighty, and in this way each day ends in His peace, and rest.
“Unless the Lord builds the house, those who build it labor in vain. Unless the Lord watches over the city, the watchman stays awake in vain. It is in vain that you rise up early and go late to rest, eating the bread of anxious toil; for he gives to his beloved sleep.”
Psalms 127:1-2 ESV
Prayer:
Father, I thank you for your provision each day; I thank you for taking the immense problems in my life and breaking them down into pieces that we can comfortably face together each day. I trust in you Holy Father, and you never fail me. I find your command in Jesus, and understanding in the Holy Spirit; your rod and your staff they comfort me, not in the morrow, but today. I place my faith in you for tomorrow. I fear not Father, because you go before me, and you strengthen my hand against all that comes against me. You provide manna to sustain me, and your Word to guide me. This is your will, that I should lean on you, and take one day at a time as I make pilgrimage through it with your Son Jesus. Lift me up when I stumble, heal me when wounded, sustain me when I am hungry, quench my thirst when my mouth is parched, give me shelter amidst the storm, and bolster my faith when it wanes. You are enough for me, and I will lean not on my own understanding, or devices. Each day I listen for your voice, each day I seek your will. Holy and glorious are you Father, and I praise your name today! Tomorrow we will begin anew, but today you give me everything I need. Holy, Holy, Holy are you my God, my provider, my Father.
Rich Forbes