Devotions

There is so much bad news, so much division and distortion on all sides. Reports of depravity, terror, hatred and political turmoil seem to overload our senses.

In the midst of this restlessness and disorder, I hear God’s Word telling me to rejoice greatly and be glad.   

“Let the saints be joyful in glory; let them sing aloud upon their beds” (Psalm 149:5).

When was the last time you sang joyfully, out loud in your bed, before retiring?

“Let Israel rejoice in him that made him: let the children of Zion be joyful in their King” (Psalm 149:2).

When you can sing and rejoice in a time of great turmoil, you truly possess faith.

DON’T LOSE YOUR PEACE

If we listen to the so-called experts in the media, we may open ourselves to a spirit of unrest and anger. We can get caught up in issues that are not eternal but are soon to pass. I refuse to be caught up in the present political rage. I will go to the voting booth and cast my ballot, not according to my feelings but on the basis of biblical truth. I will vote calmly, without losing my peace or my love for lost humanity.

Most of all, I will obey God’s eternal Word and rejoice and be glad, no matter how fiercely the storms rage around me. We are told to sing and rejoice — and we must do so, knowing our God has promised to lead and protect us through it all.

“Thou art my hiding place; thou shalt preserve me from trouble; thou shalt compass me about with songs of deliverance” (Psalm 32:7).

When I began working on this message, The Wall Street Journal reported that the entire world had come under a great cloud of fear. Immediately, my thoughts turned to those who attend Times Square Church. They show no such fear. Instead, while we all have a great soberness about these times, we also have a deep, abiding joy.

I was led to Psalm 37, written by David:

“The Lord knoweth the days of the upright: and their inheritance shall be forever. They shall not be ashamed in the evil [calamitous] time: and in the days of famine they shall be satisfied” (Psalm 37:18–19, my italics).

Psalm 37 tells us that the Lord rises to action against societies whose sins have outraged heaven.

“The arms [power] of the wicked shall be broken” (37:17).

David’s amazing prophecy for God’s people is being fulfilled before our eyes. Yet this same psalm is also one of great hope. It contains an incredible promise to those who put their trust fully in the Lord.

TIME FOR PAYBACK

There comes a time Isaiah describes as “the day of the Lord’s vengeance, and the year of [payback] for the controversy of Zion” (Isaiah 34:8).

“I have spread out my hands all the day unto a rebellious people, which walketh in a way that was not good, after their own thoughts; a people that provoketh me to anger continually to my face. . . . I will not keep silence, but will recompense” (Isaiah 65:2–3, 6).

We know our God is not asleep. What we see happening to our economy is not only His vengeance but it has to do with the very honor and glory of Almighty God. He will not stand by as His ways are maligned by the wicked.

At the same time the Lord is recompensing the ungodly, He will reward those who trust in Him.

Consider the testimony we have put forth about our glorious Lord. We have said He will provide, calling Him Jehovah Jireh. We have declared His promises to supply for His children. He promises:

“I wrought for my name’s sake, that it should not be polluted before the heathen, in whose sight I brought [Israel] out” (Ezekiel 20:14).

He is saying, in essence, “When I delivered Israel, it wasn’t in some hidden corner. I worked miracles for them before the whole world. Now I want to do the same in your generation.”

Dear saint, are you facing a situation you have not yet committed to God? Are you being called to put your faith out on a limb in the distant unknown? Have you resolved, “Only a miracle from the Lord can deliver me”?

GOD’S PEOPLE WILL NOT BE ASHAMED

We may not figure out how God will work His deliverance; no one in the Bible did. But we do know that just one of His angels can put multitudes to flight. The Lord will never let His people be ashamed!

Right now, He is telling us just as He told Israel, “I called you out of your sins, and I have set you within sight of everyone around you, that I may glorify My name. It was I who called you out, and I will deliver you in the sight of the ungodly, for My name’s sake.” So, will you now walk in what you preach and claim to believe? Will you commit God to His Word for His name to be glorified before multitudes?

May we all adopt the prayer of David for these times:

“Do thou for me, O God the Lord, for thy name’s sake: because thy mercy is good, deliver thou me” (Psalm 109:21, my italics).

God will never put His trusting people to shame. He will keep His Word to you because His own honor is at stake.

As Peter and John walked toward the temple, they came upon a beggar who had been lame from birth. Peter and John had probably passed this man many times, but this time they stopped. The throngs in the marketplace heard Peter tell the beggar, “Look on us. . . . In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth rise up and walk” (Acts 3:4, 6).

Peter was calling on the Lord to act, with God’s own glory at stake. The people in the crowds must have said to each other, “What a foolish preacher. He’s asking a man who’s been crippled all his life to stand up and walk.” I believe those people were ready to laugh Peter and John to scorn.

LEAPING AND DANCING

Then the lame man felt a strange sensation start in his feet. First he wiggled his ankle. Then the feeling moved upward into his calves and his thighs. He raised himself to a crouch and slowly he pushed himself upright and stood. And then to the crowd’s amazement, the man began to leap and dance.

I ask you: What if God hadn’t acted? That was never a concern to Peter, who gladly committed his God to deliver. The Lord will never put to shame those who trust Him!

Today we also are called to place God’s honor, glory and reputation on the line.

GOD’S PLANS SURVIVE

Think about the biblical episodes we read of in Acts. In each one, everything that Christ came to earth and died for was at stake. Yet, all through the Old and New Testaments, God’s plan, purpose and people survived. And in every case, God called His children not only to trust Him but to believe Him to work miracles.

Tell me, would the Lord ask any less of our generation?

Even after the Lord blessed them powerfully, the Israelites turned to idols. While Moses was communing with God in the mountains, the people melted down their jewelry and made a golden calf. We cannot relate to this kind of thing today but the upshot is this: When you pursue God’s blessings without seeking God Himself, you end up in idolatry — because the focus of your pursuit is something earthen. As Paul says:

“They exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator” (Romans 1:25, ESV).

WHAT ARE OUR IDOLS?

Thankfully, today most of us don’t have to plead for water or bread. We can just turn on the tap or go to the grocery store. But we have golden idols of our own, things we seek apart from God: job success, financial security, material comfort. Those aren’t bad things but if we want them more than we want God — if they become the focus of our life’s pursuit — we have built an idol. And God will say to us, “Go ahead, pursue that. Enjoy it. But you won’t find Me present in it.”

I love Moses’ response: “God, kill me in the desert before you lead me to someplace where You aren’t.”

I pray that this becomes the church’s cry as well: “Lord, my life has been so blessed that I’ve let myself get misdirected. My eyes have been on Your unlimited favor, the blessings You give. I want something different. Let my life be defined by Your ultimate favor—to know You for who You are.”

IS GOD ENOUGH?

I want to ask you: Is God enough for you? Does knowing Him satisfy you? Does anything keep you from Him, an idol you’ve put before Him? His first commandment is, “You shall have no other gods before Me” (Exodus 20:3).