Sunday, 17 May 2020 Psalm 31
“So be strong and courageous, all you who put your hope in the LORD!” -Psalm 31:24 NLT
As the varied seasons in nature, there are seasons in every person’s life- some of the joy; others of distress; some others of quietness; yet others of robust activity! The weaving of life is such that the LORD allows all seasons to be part and parcel of our lives in that His varied work may be manifest in our lives. In this Psalm, David is going through a season of “lows” (valleys) whereby we see his suffering both in the physical and the emotional. Yet the Psalm is an outpouring of his trust in God as much as an outpouring of his distresses. His acknowledgement of God as
His Rock of Refuge (Psa 31:2)
His faithful God (Psa 31:5)
A God of Unfailing Love (Psa 31:16)
A Safe Dwelling (Psa 31:20) -helps us to understand his deep trust in the Almighty God!
Most of us can identify with the Psalmist at one point or other in life. There are times we feel life is at its low with so many things seemingly negative, coming against us, trying to destroy our peace of mind, stealing our joy and making us feel down in the dumps. How do we react during such times? Today, as we go through this Psalm, let it encourage us to adopt the attitude of David in his circumstances so that we may come forth out of this season victoriously through our Lord Jesus! Two things we need to remind ourselves of when we go through tough times:
How great our GOD is!
How small our problems are before Him!
When we realize who GOD is (as David listed above) our faith in Him increases—we come to know Him as our refuge in whom we can hide as a shelter in the time of storm; a faithful God who has helped in the past and will continue to do so in our situation at present; His unfailing love that wouldn’t give us into the hands of our enemies; a safe dwelling from every conspiracy of the enemy. All these assertions raise our faith in the Lord. Verses 13&14 reaffirm it: "You are my God. My times are in Your hands!” There is a deep knowing within the Psalmist and us who trust God that our lives are in His hands- nothing happens without His knowing. What a relief it brings us!
2 Corinthians 2:14 says, “But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumph in Christ, and manifests through us the sweet aroma of the knowledge of Him in every place.” A believer has this trust in God today—God leads us in triumph in Christ Jesus! Every situation surrendered to Him, He teaches us more trust, strengthens our faith and from our lives and testimonies, spreads a sweet aroma of His knowledge to others. Brothers and sisters, may the Lord strengthen you in your faith in God that He is able— above all that you think or imagine in the most difficult of situations or distress— to do more than you think possible! Let us trust Him!
Let us be reminded today of how great a God we worship and in whose hands our lives are (as the lines of the African chorus): “You are the Pillar that holds my life…My Master Jesus…My humble Saviour….You are the Pillar that holds my life!” So be strong and courageous, all you who put your hope in the Lord!” (Psa 31:24)
Thought for the Day: “If God was faithful to you yesterday, you have reason to trust him for tomorrow.” ~Woodrow Kroll
Listen: ‘You are faithful’