From: September 11, 2023
“Give your burdens to the Lord, and he will take care of you. He will not permit the godly to slip and fall.” (Psalm 55:22 NLT).
Who carries your burdens? Are you trying to carry them alone? Why would you keep laboring under such a weight when the Lord offers to take care of you? Cast your burdens on the Lord. Pull them off your back and put them on His. For He is able to carry them and you. And when the storms of life come to blow you away, He will not permit you to be moved, nor shaken. After the storm, He will strengthen you to continue to stand.
Remember the invitation of Christ Jesus: “Come to Me, all of you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest” (Matt. 11:28). We can find rest in our Lord Jesus Christ.
PRAYER: Dear Father, we give our burdens to You today. For You are able to carry them and we are not. Replace our anxiety with Your peace. Give us Your rest. Strengthen us to always stand for You. In Jesus’ name, amen.
From: September 11, 2022
CHRIST’S STRENGTH IN MY WEAKNESS
Paul told the Corinthians that he had learned to glory in his weaknesses, for it was in weakness that he had experienced the power of Christ at work in and through him. He had learned that real strength comes out of weakness which, distrustful of itself, gives itself up to God.
The weak learn to lean on God. Just as the Israelites in the wilderness learned to gather enough manna for the day, so we can learn to depend on Christ’s power for the troubles of today. The Lord will empower us to face each day when we call on Him, for the Scripture says, “As thy days, so shall thy strength be” (Deut. 33:25).
Do you already own the strength and resources to accomplish the dreams God has given you? Then, your dreams are too small and your labors are too self-dependent. Yet God calls us to things too big for us to do without Him.
Paul’s pedigree included admitting his personal weakness and total reliance on Christ’s power. He never claimed to be a hero. He lifted up Christ as the Hero!
Do you feel weak today? Good. Don’t see it as an excuse for inaction, but rather as the perfect opportunity to call on Christ’s power! For when we are weak, then in Christ, we are strong.
PRAYER: Dear Father, give us this day our daily bread. Give us strength for today. Empower us to do Thy will. Give us both the will and the power to accomplish that which You have ordained for us. And we will give You all the glory. For it is in Jesus’ name that we pray, amen.
From: September 11, 2016
On this 15th anniversary of 911, it is good to be reminded that God hears our heartfelt prayers. This Davidic psalm speaks of the spiritual discipline of praying three times a day. Just as we eat three meals a day to sustain our bodies with bread, so we should commune with the Bread of Life in prayer to feed our souls. David started with “evening” prayers because the Jewish day began at sunset. He arose at daybreak to morning prayers and paused at noon for midday prayers. Prayer times marked his days more than meal times. Do you have a spiritual discipline of daily prayer times?
From: September 11, 2015
I can’t read this verse without singing it as Handel imagined in his oratorio, Messiah. He put Isaiah’s words to music in 1741 AD, 17 centuries after Christ’s coming. Isaiah wrote the words of this prophecy around 740 BC, nearly 8 centuries before Christ’s coming. Not many song-writing duos have lived so far apart, in time that is. Yet time has little meaning to the “Everlasting” one. Isaiah prophesied a Son to be born to the house of David whose names would be “Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, and Prince of Peace.” Which of these names means most to you today?
From: September 11, 2014
Isaiah is filled with many words of judgment and destruction, yet it also overflows with future hope. Isaiah prophesies the overthrow of the Northern Kingdom, “the “land of Zebulun and Naphtali,” by the Assyrians. This prophesy concerning Israel came true during Isaiah’s lifetime. But the prophecy of the future “glory” that would fill the land of Galilee wouldn’t be fulfilled until 700 years later when Jesus of Nazareth walked the earth (Matt. 4:16). More Messianic prophecies are found in Isaiah than any other Old Testament book.