Grieving, my soul thinks back; these thoughts cripple, and I sink down. Gaining hope, I remember and wait for this thought: how enduring is God's loyal love; the Eternal has inexhaustible compassion. Here they are every morning new! Your faithfulness God is as broad as the day. Have courage for the Eternal is all that I need. My soul boasts, "hope in God; just wait".
Observation
Where do your eyes turn when all around you is falling apart? Imagine Jeremiah's situation. He is rejected, abused, and even imprisoned for warning the people he loves of God's impending discipline. The fateful day finally arrives and there is nothing to celebrate, every where he looks he sees devastation and his heart cries out to God for mercy. But mercy does not come the next day or the day after. He looks back at the past and only sees struggles, he looks at his present and only sees devastation. Where to look now? Jeremiah looks to who he knows God to be and finds rest in that knowledge as he waits for God. Jeremiah has received terrible affliction in his life, but he has also heard from God personally and knows God is who He say's He is and will do what He say's He will do and He resolves himself to trust and wait for his Helper and Redeemer.
Application
The last month has been filled with tragic news; marriages falling apart, friends deathly ill, children fighting for their lives, children massacred in a school, and a young family in a car accident losing their little boy. How do you deal with such tragedy? How do you keep going when the blows keep on coming? My job is to encourage and pray for those around me, but I confess, sometimes it is difficult for me to find the words to encourage in such terrible heartbreak. It is especially difficult when the one hurting doesn't know the character of God.
The bible is so good to be a lamp to our feet amidst such dark times. We can't look back at the way that things used to be, we can't look at the present and try to reconcile the pain, we can't look forward and rely on specific results, we can only look up to the author and perfecter of our faith; He alone is the light of the world.
Prayer
Father, my heart breaks for the family that lost their little boy, and their baby that fights for life in ICU. My heart breaks for the marriage that was once so beautiful, but now hangs on by a thread, it breaks for Stan and his family and Sam and his family, so much suffering. Please reveal Yourself in an incredible way to all of those who are drinking from this painful cup. May Your Spirit comfort them and lead them onto steady ground, out of the terrifying darkness and into Your marvelous light. Please encourage them Father as they wait for You
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