12/22/2020
God protects us from many things as we navigate life, but none more important than when He keeps us from sin, and the temptation which leads us to it. There is a word for His care, and it is “Providence”. Are our eyes open to the bountiful Providence that exists in our lives, and do we not only recognize it, but thank God for it?
“The Lord will rescue me from every evil deed and bring me safely into his heavenly kingdom. To him be the glory forever and ever. Amen.”
2 Timothy 4:18 ESV
There are times in our lives when we are wrestling with temptation, and just when we are about to fall prey to it we find a sudden strength, or we are otherwise rescued from its hold on us. Can you recall such moments in your life? Well, for every one of them that comes to mind there are thousands upon thousands that are so subtle that they go unnoticed.
“My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth. He will not let your foot be moved; he who keeps you will not slumber. Behold, he who keeps Israel will neither slumber nor sleep. The Lord is your keeper; the Lord is your shade on your right hand. The sun shall not strike you by day, nor the moon by night. The Lord will keep you from all evil; he will keep your life.”
Psalm 121:2-7 ESV
We don’t talk and think about Divine Providence enough today. We acknowledge God’s intercession in our affairs, and lives of faith, when we purposely call on Him, and we thank Him for this, but we rarely contemplate, or give Him credit for, the unseen hand He wields in our everyday lives. The book of Psalms is so full of the care and rescue of God, and a continuous thanksgiving for it that it could easily have been called Providence, and these examples are too plentiful to recount here.
“Though I walk in the midst of trouble, you preserve my life; you stretch out your hand against the wrath of my enemies, and your right hand delivers me. The Lord will fulfill his purpose for me; your steadfast love, O Lord, endures forever. Do not forsake the work of your hands.”
Psalm 138:7-8 ESV
Divine Providence, though not given the attention it deserves today was certainly on the minds of those Christians who shaped us in the past. A good example is the reliance that the authors of the American Declaration of Independence placed on Providence; listen to their words as the founded their hopes on it...
“With a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence we mutually pledge to each other our lives”
Modern scholars often say that these are merely hopeful words used by eloquent men, but they are much more than that, they are the very real expression of faith and trust in God’s care and provision. Today there is a concerted effort to redefine this word, providence. It is used today in reference to such lesser ideas as fate, good luck, or chance happenings, but that was never its intent, and although the word is under attack, God’s Divine Providence remains as true, and as evident, as it has ever been.
So let’s take back its true meaning, and use it to describe God’s hand in our lives today. Let’s begin to add to our daily prayers of thanksgiving those things that God does, and provides for us that we don’t see, or that are part and parcel to His will that haven’t been revealed to us yet. Just as we ask forgiveness for sins committed knowingly, unknowingly, and by absentia, we should also thank God for those things Ge has done for us that we know, don’t know, or that are yet hidden in, and inherent to His will. We should thank Him for His Providence, and the blessings that flow from it.
Prayer:
Father, thank you for your Divine Providence, and all that it represents in our lives. We thank you for the many blessings that we know, don’t know, or that are, as of yet hidden in, and inherent to, your will. We thank you for your Son Jesus Christ, and every mystery that is a part of His life, and His mission to save us, but we thank you too for the realization of your Divine Providence through Him, both seen, and unseen... Holy, Holy, Holy, are you our God who is at work in our lives day and night, and whose hand rescues us from temptation and sin that we remain unaware of. You are our God who provides for us in ways that are too numerous to count, and which often go without our notice. Praised be your name for our answered prayers, but more so yet for your will that is being tirelessly worked out by your Divine Providence. Strengthen our faith Father, and open our eyes to your ever present care for us. Hear our prayers as we bring our troubles and needs before you. Hear us as we pray thanksgiving for all the snares you remove from our path as we walk with you, for your provision, and for your defense against every evil, enemy, and sin. You are merciful Lord, and humble in your nature as your Providence is so often worked in our behalf without mention, and in secret. Wash us in the blood of Christ, and cleanse us of every sin. Make us Christlike as we approach your throne of judgement, and welcome us to your table, and to eternity with you. Let your Divine Providence work out your will for us always, and forever.
Rich Forbes