Praise Devotionals to remind myself...

The Tree
There's a tree in my backyard.  It's an oak tree and the squirrels and birds love it.  I can sit and watch that tree and all the activity surrounding it for hours.  The tree is old.   It's survived all kinds of weather:  drought, heavy winds, hail...  But it stands strong because it has deep roots. That tree was growing long before our house was built.  It was sitting in the middle of a pasture with no sprinkler system watering it, no store-bought fertilizer, no pruning by my over zealous husband who thinks all trees should look like palm trees.  = )   God maintained my oak tree.  He made it grow. 




Jeremiah 17:7-9

 ⁷ "But I will bless any man who trusts in me.
I will show my favor to the one who depends on me.
⁸ He will be like a tree that is planted near water.
It sends out its roots beside a stream.
It is not afraid when heat comes.
Its leaves are always green.
It does not worry when there is no rain.
It always bears fruit."

 

 

This morning I was reading this passage, and I got to thinking about how often God encourages us to be like trees with deep roots.   He wants us to be able to withstand the droughts and high winds and hail that will come into our lives, just like my oak tree.  He wants us to still produce "fruit" even when the storms come.  And He promises that we can do that IF we delight in His law and meditate on it day and night.

Psalm 1 ESV

The Way of the Righteous and the Wicked

1 Blessed is the man
who walks not in the counsel of the wicked,
nor stands in the way of sinners,
nor sits in the seat of scoffers;
² but his delight is in the law of the Lord,
and on his law he meditates day and night.

³ He is like a tree
planted by streams of water
that yields its fruit in its season,
and its leaf does not wither.
In all that he does, he prospers.
⁴ The wicked are not so,
but are like chaff that the wind drives away.

⁵ Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment,
nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous;
⁶ for the Lord knows the way of the righteous,
but the way of the wicked will perish.

This week Larry and I watched a movie about a little boy whose father was killed on 9/11.  The father was this little boy's whole world.  They were not only father and son, they were also best buddies.   The little boy was unique, different in a special way.  Others didn't find his uniqueness appealing so he didn't fit in very well with other kids, but his dad always encouraged him and loved him - he believed in him.  When the dad died, the little boy had no one he felt he could trust.  No one who understood him.  He was lost.

As I watched this story unfold I thought about how thankful I am to have the Everlasting Father to count on when times are difficult.  I love my family and my friends but they may not always be around to help me when I struggle.  People die - just like the little boy's dad.  People move away.  People get their feelings hurt and turn their backs on us.   People get caught up in their own problems and no longer can be bothered with our needs and hurts.  People are human and they will always let us down.  But God, our heavenly, eternal Father, will never leave nor forsake us.  That's where we must learn to put our trust. 

I have found that the more I meditate on His Word, the more I come to trust in His faithfulness and love. Reading through the Old Testament, it becomes very clear how much Jehovah God longed for a relationship with the Israelites.  He was so merciful for so long - through all kinds of horrible behavior and betrayals by the Israelites.  Yet HE was ready to welcome them back if they would simply trust in Him and turn away from idols made with human hands.

Trusting God comes from knowing God, and the only way we can come to know Him better is to listen to His Voice speaking through His Holy Word.  We must take time to have conversations with our Father.  Reading His Word, meditating on what He is saying to us in those words, praying and asking for discernment and wisdom so that we can understand exactly what He wants us to hear from the passage - that's how we communicate.  Sometimes, too, just sitting in my backyard watching the birds and squirrels scamper around my old oak tree, I see how great our Creator God is.  He didn't have to make this world so beautiful and fill it with such amazing and unique creatures, but He did.  Have you ever considered that God created every color we see in the Universe?  Think about your favorite color.  God designed it!  God made hot pink!!!  He made purple and green and blue... I can see so many different designs and colors just in my backyard!   Oh, yes, sitting quietly on my back porch, I draw closer to God, and I learn to trust the Creator who provides for my trees and all the little animals and birds every single day.  I know I can trust Him to provide for me, too.

Here is Paul's prayer for the Ephesians, and for us, too.

Ephesians 3

¹⁶ I pray that he will use His glorious riches to make you strong. May His Holy Spirit give you His power deep down inside you. ¹⁷ Then Christ will live in your hearts because you believe in Him.

And I pray that your love will have deep roots. I pray that it will have a strong foundation. ¹⁸ May you have power with all God's people to understand Christ's love. May you know how wide and long and high and deep it is. ¹⁹ And may you know His love, even though it can't be known completely. Then you will be filled with everything God has for you.
²⁰ God is able to do far more than we could ever ask for or imagine. He does everything by His power that is working in us. ²¹ Give Him glory in the church and in Christ Jesus. Give Him glory through all time and for ever and ever. Amen.

Psalm 52:8-9

But I am like a healthy olive tree.
My roots are deep in the house of God.
I trust in your faithful love
for ever and ever.
⁹ I will praise you forever for what you have done.
I will put my hope in you because you are good.
I will praise you when I'm with your faithful people.

http://youtu.be/nXVwHONoLjE - Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing - Chris Rice