Daily Devotionals
Daily Devotional: Psalms 52:1-9
Ps 52:1-9
Why do you boast of evil, you mighty man? Why do you boast all day long, you who are a disgrace in the eyes of God? Your tongue plots destruction; it is like a sharpened razor, you who practice deceit. You love evil rather than good, falsehood rather than speaking the truth. Selah You love every harmful word, O you deceitful tongue! Surely God will bring you down to everlasting ruin: He will snatch you up and tear you from your tent; he will uproot you from the land of the living. Selah The righteous will see and fear; they will laugh at him, saying, "Here now is the man who did not make God his stronghold but trusted in his great wealth and grew strong by destroying others!" But I am like an olive tree flourishing in the house of God; I trust in God's unfailing love for ever and ever. I will praise you forever for what you have done; in your name I will hope, for your name is good. I will praise you in the presence of your saints.
I was really lucky! What a coincidence! That was a fortunate turn of events! I did that one right! All my hard work finally paid off, I finally achieved success!
These too often are our responses when things go well in our lives. This is after we have prayed for God to help us and give us whatever goal we are seeking. It is easy for us to trust God to help us when we face a problem or when we set out on our journey (actual trip or the trip of life). We are faced with problems or challenges, so we pray. We ask God to “guard, guide, and direct us” and then we begin.
It requires much greater faith for us to thank God when he has provided for us than it does for us to beg him when we are in need. God is not Santa Claus. He does not and will not be at our constant call to give us whatever we want. But when we ask in genuine faith, he does hear us and he will respond to us. While he may say “no” on occasion, he does indeed bless us much more than we deserve.
As his children, when we are successful, it is because he has given us success. He heals the sick. He provides the money to pay our bills. He gives us comfort when our hearts are broken, and we lean on him. He gives us strength to get through that procedure. He gives us wisdom and guidance to raise our teenagers without killing one of them. God answers our prayers! We must see it, acknowledge it, and then thank him regularly for his answers – whether it was what we want or not.
O Lord God, I thank you for your constant care in my life. Thank you for putting me where I am and the many opportunities you have given me in so many realms of life. Thank you for the skilled doctors you have connected us with as Dianne has faced her cancer and thank you for guiding them in their work. I also thank you for the times I have failed and for the lessons these times taught me. Increase my faith and help me remember to always be thankful to you. In Jesus’ name.
Robert
