Bible League: Living His Word On the day I called, you answered me; my strength of soul you increased.— Psalm 138:3 ESV Imagine this scenario. You were sick. The disease came out of nowhere. It was totally unexpected; and even worse, it dragged on for months. The doctors couldn't find the true cause. They couldn't figure out the proper course of action. At one point, they were ready to give up on you. They kept looking for another doctor that would take the case off their hands. Meanwhile, you had to sit in your hospital bed day after day and endure it all. Maybe you don't have to imagine such a thing; but one thing you'll never have to imagine is the Lord's strengthening in hard times. Nevertheless, in sickness you hung on. You refused to give in to despair and unbelief. Somehow, someway, you said to yourself that a solution would be found. Somehow, someway, the Lord would come through. Or suppose there was at time when you were in financial trouble. Maybe it was your business that turned south. Maybe you got laid off from your job. Whatever it was, the bills began to pile up. The mortgage was in arrears. Your spouse started to get anxious. You began to consider the extreme options: asking relatives for money or bankruptcy. Even so, you stood firm. You didn't quit. You never once stopped believing that the Lord would come through for you. You kept on speaking positively about the situation. Or can you relate to this one? Has there been a time when you were persecuted for your faith? You made no bones about where you stood on the ultimate religious questions. You stood firm on your Christian principles. You thought others would appreciate that, but you were wrong. They thought you were an extremist. They thought you were intolerant. It hurt, but you held on to your beliefs. You refused to look back. Instead, you looked forward to the next chapter of life. You just went out and found another job, a job where they truly appreciated what you stand for. In each of these cases (real or imagined), the Lord has given you something that has helped you a great deal. He has given you what our verse for today calls "strength of soul"—the spiritual strength to stand firm, stay faithful, and persevere through the trials, troubles, and persecutions of life. There is no limit to the strength of soul the Lord provides. In each case, He provides the strength needed to stand. Stand on the Rock. And whenever it gets really hard, He will increase the strength of soul that you need. Bible in a Year Old Testament ReadingExodus 13, 14, 15 Exodus 13 -- Consecration of the Firstborn; God Leads the People out NIV NLT ESV NAS GWT KJV ASV ERV DRB Exodus 14 -- Pharaoh Pursues; The Red Sea is Parted NIV NLT ESV NAS GWT KJV ASV ERV DRB Exodus 15 -- Song of Moses and Miriam; The Lord Provides Water NIV NLT ESV NAS GWT KJV ASV ERV DRB New Testament Reading Matthew 19:1-15 Matthew 19 -- Divorce; Jesus and the Little Children; the Rich Young Ruler NIV NLT ESV NAS GWT KJV ASV ERV DRB Reading Plan Courtesy of Christian Classics Etherial Library. Tyndale Life Application Daily Devotion Satan replied to the LORD, “Yes, but Job has good reason to fear God. You have always put a wall of protection around him and his home and his property. You have made him prosper in everything he does. Look how rich he is!”Insight Satan attacked Job's motives, saying that Job was blameless and had integrity only because he had no reason to turn against God. Satan wanted to prove that Job worshiped God not out of love but because God had given him so much. Satan accurately analyzed why many people trust God. They are fair-weather believers, following God only when everything is going well or for what they can get. Adversity destroys this kind of superficial faith. But adversity strengthens real faith by causing believers to dig their roots deeper into God in order to withstand storms. Challenge How deep does your faith go? Put the roots of your faith down deep into God so that you can withstand any storm you may face. Morning and Evening by Spurgeon Luke 2:19 But Mary kept all these things, and pondered them in her heart.There was an exercise, on the part of this blessed woman, of three powers of her being: her memory--she kept all these things; her affections--she kept them in her heart; her intellect--she pondered them; so that memory, affection, and understanding, were all exercised about the things which she had heard. Beloved, remember what you have heard of your Lord Jesus, and what he has done for you; make your heart the golden pot of manna to preserve the memorial of the heavenly bread whereon you have fed in days gone by. Let your memory treasure up everything about Christ which you have either felt, or known, or believed, and then let your fond affections hold him fast for evermore. Love the person of your Lord! Bring forth the alabaster box of your heart, even though it be broken, and let all the precious ointment of your affection come streaming on his pierced feet. Let your intellect be exercised concerning the Lord Jesus. Meditate upon what you read: stop not at the surface; dive into the depths. Be not as the swallow which toucheth the brook with her wing, but as the fish which penetrates the lowest wave. Abide with your Lord: let him not be to you as a wayfaring man, that tarrieth for a night, but constrain him, saying, "Abide with us, for the day is far spent." Hold him, and do not let him go. The word "ponder," means to weigh. Make ready the balances of judgment. Oh, but where are the scales that can weigh the Lord Christ? "He taketh up the isles as a very little thing:"--who shall take him up? "He weigheth the mountains in scales"--in what scales shall we weigh him? Be it so, if your understanding cannot comprehend, let your affections apprehend; and if your spirit cannot compass the Lord Jesus in the grasp of understanding, let it embrace him in the arms of affection. Daily Light on the Daily Path Deuteronomy 30:19 "I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that I have set before you life and death, the blessing and the curse. So choose life in order that you may live, you and your descendants,Ezekiel 18:32 "For I have no pleasure in the death of anyone who dies," declares the Lord GOD. "Therefore, repent and live." John 15:22 "If I had not come and spoken to them, they would not have sin, but now they have no excuse for their sin. Luke 12:47 "And that slave who knew his master's will and did not get ready or act in accord with his will, will receive many lashes, Romans 6:23 For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. John 3:36 "He who believes in the Son has eternal life; but he who does not obey the Son will not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him." Romans6:16 Do you not know that when you present yourselves to someone as slaves for obedience, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin resulting in death, or of obedience resulting in righteousness? John 12:26 "If anyone serves Me, he must follow Me; and where I am, there My servant will be also; if anyone serves Me, the Father will honor him. New American Standard Bible Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, Calif. All rights reserved. For Permission to Quote Information visit http://www.lockman.org. |
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