Day 243 | Tuesday, 17 November 2020

Day 243 - Audio Version

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Day 243 | Tuesday, 17 November 2020 

Psalm 28 CEB; Devotional from Our Daily Bread for 11/17

 I cry out to you, Lord.
    You are my rock; don’t refuse to hear me.
    If you won’t talk to me,
        I’ll be just like those going down to the pit.
2 Listen to my request for mercy when I cry out to you,
    when I lift up my hands to your holy inner sanctuary.
3 Don’t drag me off with the wicked and those who do evil;
    the type who talk nice to their friends
    while evil thoughts are in their hearts!
4 Pay them back for what they’ve done!
    Pay them back for their evil deeds!
    Pay them back for their handiwork!
    Give back to them exactly what they deserve!
5 Because they have no regard for what the Lord has done,
    no regard for his handiwork,
    God will tear them down and never rebuild!
6 Bless the Lord
    because he has listened to my request for mercy!
7 The Lord is my strength and my shield.
    My heart trusts him.
        I was helped, my heart rejoiced,
            and I thank him with my song.
8 The Lord is his people’s strength;
    he is a fortress of protection for his anointed one.
9 Save your people, God!
    Bless your possession!
    Shepherd them and carry them for all time!

“If Only We Could . . . By:  Anne Cetas The Lord is the strength of his people. Psalm 28:8”

“The weeping Alaskan cedar tree whipped from side to side in the storm’s strong winds. Regie loved the tree that had not only provided shelter from the summer sun but also given her family privacy. Now the fierce storm was tearing the roots from the ground. Quickly, Regie, with her fifteen-year-old son in tow, ran to try to rescue the tree. With her hands and ninety-pound frame firmly planted against it, she and her son tried to keep it from falling over. But they weren’t strong enough.”

“God was King David’s strength when he called out to Him in another kind of storm (Psalm 28:8). Some commentators say he wrote this during a time when his world was falling apart. His own son rose in rebellion against him and tried to take the throne (2 Samuel 15). He felt so vulnerable and weak that he feared God might remain silent, and he would die (Psalm 28:1). “Hear my cry for mercy as I call to you for help,” he said to God (v. 2). God gave David strength to go on, even though his relationship with his son never mended.”
“How we long to prevent bad things from happening! If only we could. But in our weakness, God promises we can always call to Him to be our Rock (vv. 1–2). When we don’t have the strength, He’s our shepherd and will carry us forever (vv. 8–9).”

“When have you felt vulnerable and unable to fix a situation? How did you see God come through for you?”
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“It seems there’s always something for which I need extra strength from You, O God. Help me to remember that without You I can do nothing.”

Today: those who need God’s strength.