Storms

As hurricane Irene approached the eastern coast of the U.S., the media were concerned the category 3 storm would inflict catastrophic damage from North Carolina to New England.  My quiet time passage for August 26, the day before the hurricane was to hit, was Psalm 107.  Verse 29 reads, “He made the storm be still and the waves of the sea were hushed” (ESV).  Reminded of God’s awesome power, I prayed, Lord, You have many people who love You in that region, please calm the storm and hush the waves, spare our country the enormous damage that large hurricane might inflict.  

​Thousands and maybe hundreds of thousands of people prayed to God about Irene.  Not surprising, her winds significantly decreased and what could have been the costliest disaster on record actually was much tamer than predicted. Irene goodnight.  
 
Meditation
Psalm 109:4—In return for my love they accuse me, but I give myself to prayer.(ESV)
 
The Bible is packed with stories and reminders that God is involved in our lives and cares about what happens on our planet.  One of the most prominent figures in Scripture to illustrate this is King David. Twenty seven of the 66 books of the Bible reference David.  He is mentioned by name 974 times.   In Psalm 109, David described what he did when wicked people lied about him, accused him, and responded to his good-hearted love with evil behavior. Instead of letting people-instigated storms overwhelm him, he redoubled his time in prayer.  Approximately 88 times the Bible portrays David engaging God in prayer.  

When David wrote he gave himself to prayer, what he meant was that he invested more time talking to his heavenly Father.  Trouble is a great reason to go to God!    Are you worried sick by impending disaster?  Share your heart with your all-loving Savior.  It amazes me how many steps we take to fix problems before we recognize that we ought to ask the Lord for His assistance.  Isn’t that sick!  

Don’t think that God is too busy to deal with your challenges or that you are unworthy of His attention.  That is defeatist thinking and it does not square with Scripture.  Jesus said in Matthew 11:28, “Come to Me, all of you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.”  How can we come to the One who is in heaven, except through prayer and who is coming—those burdened!  We wrongly focus on conditions when we should instead draw on faith!  “I assure you: Anything you ask the Father in My name, He will give you. Until now you have asked for nothing in My name.  Ask and you will receive, that your joy may be complete” (John 16:23b,24).  
 
Inspiration
So many of us limit our praying because we are not reckless in our confidence in God.—Oswald Chambers in If You Will Ask
 
©2011 Daniel York  ARR. Reveration is the weekly devotional ministry of First Cause.  If you would like to receive these devotionals go to www.firstcause.org and click on the “Click here to receive weekly devotionals” box.  Unlimited permission to copy this devotional without altering text or profiteering is allowed subject to inclusion of this copyright notice.      
 
Ecclesiastes 12:10-The Teacher sought to find delightful sayings and to accurately write words of truth.  (Holman CSB)