Devotion – Sunday, 17 January
Dear Readers and Listeners, Friends in Jesus Christ,
Our watchword for today is taken from the Book of Nehemiah Chapter Eight, verse ten, “(And) be not grieved and depressed for the joy of the Lord is your strength and stronghold.” We are told that Nehemiah was the governor in Judah and together with the priest, Ezra, rebuilt the temple and the city with the returned exiles from Babylon. Once, when the work was finished, they congregated together and started to study the word of the Lord that Ezra read to them. It is told that a wooden pulpit was made, raised above the people, so that all could see the priest and book of Scripture. When Ezra opened the Book of the Law of the Lord, the people stood up to listen to the Scripture, (Nehemiah 8 verse 4 to 5). Through the teaching of Ezra and Nehemiah the people were convinced regarding the Word of the Lord, and their disobedience; and they mourned and confessed their wrong doings. The people were very sad, but the priests calmed them down and said that God had seen their tears and their suffering, and He wanted to give them new joy and new stability in the land. The Israelites studied the Word of the Lord with new vigour and committed to the instructions that He gave His servant Moses. New joy and fear of the Lord filled the people, and they received new courage to continue rebuilding the desolated lands and cities. God’s laws, spoken by His prophets and written down in Scripture, are lights to our feet (Psalm 119: 105) and give us clarity on the road we have to follow. Time and time again in the history of the world, we learn that returning to the Word of God restores people to peace and harmony. The histories written up in Scripture are stories to encourage and inspire us to keep on fearing the Lord and obeying His Words, despite the outward situations. He is the only source of strength, He is our stronghold. We are living in such restless times, we are constantly under threat of disease and our mental, physical and emotional resources are running on empty. Let us take heart and look up and know that God will break through. Our states of grief and depression will be lifted, and we will live life again with joy and thankfulness.
We have seen during this past year that no one is exempted from global situations. It impacts everybody. These impacts change due to times and seasons, space and place, but all suffer together in various ways. The after effects of events on earth are felt years after the occurrences. Being a Christian does not exempt us from suffering with and in the world. It is in our suffering that we can share hope with a world that is full of anguish. The way that we react and deal with the current situation can make a positive impact on those around us. The Apostle Paul, in his Second Letter to the Corinthians writes in Chapter Six, verses four and ten, “I have great boldness and free and fearless confidence and cheerful courage toward you; my pride in you is great. With all our tribulations, and in spite of it, I am overflowing with joy. Godly grief produces a repentance that leads to deliverance, but worldly grief brings hopeless sorrow,” (Amplified Bible). We are not to look away from the seriousness of the situations around us. However, we are encouraged not to fall into a downward spiral of sadness, for the Lord will intervene. He will bring healing and restoration. We are urged to continue to see the blessings and the small miracles along the way. We live in perilous times, but God will break through and care for the world and her children. We can stay hopeful and look for the coming deliverance from sickness and disease for this world, crying and straining under sorrow and anxiety.
Father, we pray that you will hear our prayers and see our tears and keep us directed towards you. Let us see your deliverance, Father. This we pray in the Name of our Lord Jesus Christ, Amen.
