He Knows my Soul!

You have known my soul in adversities,
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Psalm 31:7b

Thought for Today: Sue and Jean were great friends, talking on the phone several times a day and getting together for coffee at least once a week.  Life was going well for both young professionals moving up in their careers.  They had so much to talk about, all the excitement of moving up in the corporate world as well as their hopes and dreams of finding a Mr. Right and settling down.  Their friendship continued to flourish until Jean became seriously ill and lost her job.  

It is easy to talk with someone and to understand where he or she is coming from when you share similar experiences, especially good ones.  Keeping within our comfort zone, we don't mind knowing the soul of another as long as it is not messy.  Our human nature drives us to seek relationships that aren't draining on our time and energy.  Once the relationship heads in that direction, we sadly tend to move on to something more comfortable.

As David writes in this verse, our Lord knows our soul in adversities.  He is not looking for a relationship with low maintenance, perfect people.  He wants to be intertwined in the messiness of our daily lives, all of it, the joy, the sorrow, the pain and the brokenness.  When I gaze upon the wreckage that I call my soul, I don't know why He would choose to want to know me, in the midst of my struggles.  Yet, His perfect love sees beyond my pain, beyond my sin, beyond my past and sees His precious child.  How can we even fathom such love?  Yet, it is real and it is true.  As you go through struggles this day, may you embrace God's love for you.  May you see that regardless of where you are at, in the deepest pit of despair or the darkest point of sin, He loves you and so wants to meet you where you are.

Heavenly Father, may we bask in the presence of Your love in all the parts of our lives, the good, the bad and the ugly.  For you, oh Lord, seek to know us, want to heal us and redeem us.  Thank You for Your unwavering love.  

You have considered my trouble

I will be glad and rejoice in Your mercy,
For You have considered my trouble;
Psalm 31:7(a)

Thought for Today: A little boy named Ben had lost his ball in a field one day. Many people went by but no one would stop to help him, at least until Dr. Turnbolt, a very prosperous and busy surgeon, came by.  Without even being asked, he took several minutes to help find the little boy's lost ball.  Then, to Ben's amazement, Dr. Turnbolt asked him if he would like to play catch.   They played in the bright sunshine for over one hour that day.

If you think about all of the difficulties that you have gone through in life and perhaps are going through right now, how many people genuinely care about your circumstances and are willing to lend an ear or perhaps a hand?  If you are honest with yourself, you will admit that it is very few.  All of us, in the busyness of life, do not stop often enough to show mercy to another, to lend a hand or just listen. What is so amazing about our Lord is that He is willing to consider our troubles even though He is the master of the universe.  One would think that He would be too busy to care, that our difficulties are too small when compared with many other terrible things going on in this world.  Yet, He does care because He loves us so much.

Today, as you go about your business, take some time to reflect upon the mercy shown to you by our Lord.  Is there someone in your life who needs to be shown mercy?   In gratitude for the mercy shown to you, reach out to that person and show him or her that you care and that God does care, even when in the depths of difficult circumstances.

Heavenly Father, this day may we be grateful for all the mercy that You have shown to us. Thank you for caring for us, for loving us and for sending Your only son, Jesus, to save us from our sins.  

Between a Rock and a Hard Place

For thou art my rock and my fortress; therefore for thy name's sake lead me, and guide me.
Psalm 31:3 (KJV)

Thought for Today: I was reading recently the story of a 92 year old man, John Trippon, who is one of the few remaining soldiers left from the D-Day invasion of Normandy, France on June 6, 1944. The Germans had built bunkers on top of the cliffs on the beach, making landing troops incredibly difficult.  John recounts how he made his way to the shore, only to sink into a 20 foot pit made by German shells that had landed in the water.  He had to shed all of his gear, including his gun, grenades and ammunition in order to be able to swim.  When John arrived on the shore it was littered with bodies. He made his way to a the face of a cliff, which was so steep that the Germans could not shoot down at the troops standing next to the cliff.

Perhaps today you are struggling, having made your way out of the deep water of difficult circumstances only to find yourself in the midst of a new set of difficult circumstances.  You may lack energy to fight this next battle due to having to use all of your resources to make your way out of the pit of your last set of circumstances.  What can you do?  Run to the rock, our fortress, Jesus Christ.  In Him, you can find protection, safety and strength.  Within this fortress, the fiery arrows of the enemy of your soul cannot penetrate.

It is likely that you know the rest of the story.  John recalls how shelling from the ships took out the enemy fortifications and the soldiers were then able to scale the cliffs, eventually securing the beach and pushing forward toward victory.  In the same way, we too can move forward from difficult circumstances and experience victory. Had the soldiers not sought the protection of the edge of the cliffs, they surely would have died.  If we don't see the protection of our Lord, we too shall never experience victory over our difficulties.  My prayer today is that you would run, as fast as you can, from any difficulties to the protection and peace of our Lord.

Heavenly Father, help us to see that only you can be our fortress, our strength, our protection.