God is Our Comfort
Have you ever looked around you and wondered, “why is there so much evil, wickedness, and pain in the world?”
In Psalm 94, King David is extremely upset about the state of humanity. People are blaming God for the world’s rampant wickedness as though God did not see it and did not care (verses 1-7). So David reminds his audience that the Lord is Creator, and He knows, sees, and hears all that goes on (verses 8-11).
Because of God, David could say, “When the cares of my heart are many, your consolations cheer my soul.” (Verse 19)
King David’s “cares of the heart” were because of the wickedness and evil he saw—and our world is not much different. But David’s consolation in all the evil he witnessed was his Creator and Savior.
That’s why He could close his psalm by writing, “But the LORD has become my stronghold, and my God the rock of my refuge. He will bring back on them their iniquity and wipe them out for their wickedness, the LORD our God will wipe them out.” (Verses 22-23)
This isn’t the most pleasant psalm to read. It’s full of pain and anger, sorrow and injustice. But, it’s a prayer of hope and perspective which we can learn from.
There is wickedness, injustice, and war all around us. But in the midst of pain and brokenness, we can follow King David’s example and look to God for comfort and peace. God took care of our shame and sin through the death of Jesus Christ, and He will one day take care of all wickedness and evil.
Until then, like David, we can say, “When the cares of my heart are many, your consolations cheer my soul.”
By trusting in God and knowing that He will one day wipe away all wickedness, we can bring Him our hopes, dreams, fears, and concerns and receive His comfort.
So right now, think about the cares you have that need to be given to God. How can knowing God cheer your soul?
Always Faithful
Every season of life has ups and downs, positive and negative situations. On top of that, there are spiritual powers in this world that are trying to get us to lose hope.
In the midst of difficult seasons, or even persecution, it can be easy to forget that God is still present with us. He does not abandon us in the midst of suffering. Rather, He strengthens us and walks with us through the pain.
The church in Thessalonica experienced a very similar situation. As they were praying for the gospel to spread across their region, they encountered suffering and opposition. Paul writes to the members of these churches to not only encourage them, but to remind them of God’s character.
"But the Lord is faithful, he will strengthen you and guard you from the evil one."
2 Thessalonians 3:3
Paul tells them first that the Lord is faithful. This means that God doesn’t change—He is consistent in His character. If He was good and merciful yesterday, He will be good and merciful again today....
“And David consulted with the captains of thousands and hundreds, and with every leader. And David said unto all the congregation of Israel, If it seem good unto you, and that it be of the LORD our God, let us send abroad unto our brethren every where, that are left in all the land of Israel, and with them also to the priests and Levites which are in their cities and suburbs, that they may gather themselves unto us: and let us bring again the ark of our God to us: for we enquired not at it in the days of Saul. And all the congregation said that they would do so: for the thing was right in the eyes of all the people. So David gathered all Israel together, from Shihor of Egypt even unto the entering of Hemath, to bring the ark of God from Kirjath-jearim. And David went up, and all Israel, to Baalah, that is, to Kirjath-jearim, which belonged to Judah, to bring up thence the ark of God the LORD, that dwelleth between the cherubims, whose name is called on it. And they carried the ark of ...
There is More
There are plenty of things we can see: trees, stars, mountains, oceans, people, penguins, our best friend's smile, elephants, skyscrapers, coffee beans, sunsets, and tulips, to name a few.
God created all those things. He made the natural world, as well as the laws that govern it.
But there are also things we cannot see: behind the breath of the wind, beyond the depths of the universe, beneath the foundations of love. Through Christ, all things were created—in heaven and on earth, both visible and invisible (Colossians 1:16).
And while our mortal eyes might not be able to see the wind or infrared light or the Spirit of God, we still experience their effects. Because there’s more than what meets the eye. There’s more beyond this life.
Paul’s friends, the Corinthians, were experiencing great hardship. They were being hunted and persecuted because of what they believed about Jesus—that He was the long-awaited Messiah. Some were even facing death. But Paul encouraged them to ...