Deliver me from the hand of my enemies,
And from those who persecute me.
Psalm 31:15b (NKJV)
Thought for Today: Jack awoke on a bright fall morning to unfamiliar voices. As the fog cleared from his brain, he opened his eyes only to see a room with white walls and a white ceiling. On a typical morning, he would arise from bed upon waking and start his morning routine. Today, he had obstacles preventing this, the shackles on his arms and legs. The prior night Jack had experienced yet another bout with his schizophrenia. The police were called as he was destroying his own home, threatening the very ones who loved him so dearly.
What enemies do you face today? We often think of enemies as external, whether it be enemy troops or the neighbors with whom we constantly fight. Yet, maybe our worst enemies are the ones living inside of our very beings. I'm not talking about those that come with mental illness like the voices that Jack hears. Rather, it is the small, quiet voices like self-doubt, fear of failure, regret. Do you face these today? Are you not quite sure how to quell the inner voices that threaten your peace?
The only way for Jack to stay well is to keep taking his anti-psychotic medication. Fortunately, most of us do not need that. Mixed in with all of the quiet voices in our hearts and minds is the still small voice of our gentle Shepherd. Do you want to be delivered from all of your internal enemies? Turn up the volume of the one voice that offers deliverance. How do you do that? Spend time daily in His Word and in communion with our Lord through prayer. As you enable His voice to speak more to your heart, the other voices of fear, self-doubt, regret, and hurt will slowly diminish. This day, will you commit to focusing on the still, small voice of the One who loves you more than anyone else?
Precious Lord, help us this day to spend time in Your Word and in prayer. May you, oh Lord our deliverer, free us from the voices inside of us that threaten our very peace. In the name of Jesus, we pray. Amen.
