Psalm 116:1-9 (NRSV)
Read Psalm 116:1-9 on biblegateway.com
Verse 1I love the Lord, because he has heard my voice and my supplications.
Verse 2Because he inclined his ear to me, therefore I will call on him as long as I live.
Verse 3The snares of death encompassed me; the pangs of Sheol laid hold on me; I suffered distress and anguish.
Verse 4Then I called on the name of the Lord: "O Lord, I pray, save my life!"
Verse 5Gracious is the Lord, and righteous; our God is merciful.
Verse 6The Lord protects the simple; when I was brought low, he saved me.
Verse 7Return, O my soul, to your rest, for the Lord has dealt bountifully with you.
Verse 8For you have delivered my soul from death, my eyes from tears, my feet from stumbling.
Verse 9I walk before the Lord in the land of the living.
Devotion
Yesterday’s devotion noted how Scripture often reminds us how far we are from the character of Jesus. Other passages unite us with the common experience of others. Few will play major league baseball; few will star on Broadway; few will earn PhDs; but all will suffer. Some will suffer chronically, and others periodically. Some suffering is physical and some emotional. But all will suffer.
The psalmist reminds us that we are fragile people, but we are not without help. While other deities remain elusive or distant, our God is near to us and cares for us. God desires to be called on in our suffering: “The Lord protects the simple.”
Not all cries for help receive relief. At least, not as expected. But some do. And when they do, along with the psalmist, we might say, “The Lord has dealt bountifully with me.”
Prayer
This day, O Lord, I speak of my suffering, and I ask that you be near and bring relief. And I will worship and praise you however you respond. Amen.
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