December 9, 2009 – Ringing through the Sky
Scripture: Jeremiah 8: 18 – 19 (NJB)
Incurable sorrow overtakes me, my heart fails me. Hark, from the daughter of my people the cry for help, ringing far and wide throughout the land! ‘Is Yahweh no longer in Zion, her King no longer there?’
Devotion:
You are wondering why I chose this Scripture. Why in the midst of the season of joy did I choose these seemingly joyless verses. Because I know that some of us have little to be joyful about, even at Christmas. Christmas is hard anytime for some people and this has been a rough year for a lot of people.
Sometimes God seems far away and it seems that our cries for help just ring far and wide and nothing happens. The Psalms and the prophets echo with the cry, “When, O, Lord, will you answer?”. I think sometimes we look for something far less than what God wishes to bless us with – we look for the wrong answer to our problem. I think sometimes we miss the blessing because we are too busy in our whining and crying.
Now, don’t get me wrong, I’ve been in the place where I felt like God has just deserted me and it’s not pretty. But like the Psalmist, I come back to the place of remembering God’s promises and how He has been faithful to those promises in the past AND in the present – so why not trust Him for my future? A lot is being said that points to gloom and doom but I believe in a God who promises to restore what the enemy has taken and I believe He is still Jehovah Jireh, the God who provides. He is still Jehovah Rapha, the God who Heals, and He is still Jehovah Nissi, the God who is our Banner and Protector.
In our joys or our sorrows, I believe that God is steadfast. He never fails. He is never far away. We are the ones who abandon Him. He was and is and always shall be!
Blessed are You, O Lord of the Universe! Forgive us when we turn from You and then blame You for leaving us! Forgive us for trying to tell You what we need. Turn our cries for help into cries of praise. Let Your praises go ringing through the sky! Amen
