Daily devotion – a bad Friday
Psa 51:7 Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean: wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.
Psa 56:4 In God I will praise his word, in God I have put my trust; I will not fear what flesh can do unto me.
For the many years I worked as a police chaplain my work vehicle was fitted with a police radio. This was for many reasons. For obvious quick communication to all police channels, personal safety, monitoring tragic events moment by moment etc.
I remember vividly driving home late one Friday evening after what had been a very traumatic and difficult week dealing with matters that were littered with a litany of human wreckage. As I was listening to the main channel for the Peel region all I was hearing was one negative call after another, and the need for urgent response for each job. It just seemed as if everyone was fighting, angry, stealing, being violent or carrying out criminal activity.
I sensed the blackness and darkness of the effect of listening to these calls one after the other – it seemed as if there was no escaping the wave and flood of sin that was sweeping our community.
Psa 119:28 My soul melteth for heaviness: strengthen thou me according unto thy word.
Maybe you face a time right now where it seems as if the sun us not shining and only darkness and pain is the air you breath. That there is nothing good happening at all and you are unable to escape the black hole that is your life is being pulled into at this time.
That night driving home it was as if God simply tapped me on the shoulder and said – “Turn it off!” I literally switched off the work radio so that I was not listening anymore to what seemed a hopeless world spiralling out of control.
But just switching off the ‘noise’ of the world and the troubles we are dealing with is not the answer. It’s certainly a start.
The next step however, once I arrived home was the true antidote and cure, for being set free from storm after storm of sin.
I grabbed my Bible, prayed and began to read of the wonder of Jesus Christ and why He came to this world to save sinners like me – to offer hope to all who are lost.
The word of God spoke to me about God’s sovereign rule, His ruling hand on all world events, His power, His grace and His love. I read that Jesus was soon to snatch His Church out of this troubled world and that He would soon return and banish all other governments and establish rule Himself from David’s throne in the city of Jerusalem – He promised He would!
All that my ears and my mind had been subject to that spoke only of sin, violence and hopelessness, was replaced with peace, calm and God’s wonderful grace.
Turn whatever it is that is filling you with only tragedy off, and instead open your Bible and let the Holy Spirit wash away all the dust of the world and fill your hear and mind with the bread of life – the Word of God!
Psa 34:8 O taste and see that the LORD is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him.