Psalm 147:12-20 (NRSV)
Read Psalm 147:12-20 on biblegateway.com
Verse 12Praise the Lord, O Jerusalem! Praise your God, O Zion!
Verse 13For he strengthens the bars of your gates; he blesses your children within you.
Verse 14He grants peace within your borders; he fills you with the finest of wheat.
Verse 15He sends out his command to the earth; his word runs swiftly.
Verse 16He gives snow like wool; he scatters frost like ashes.
Verse 17He hurls down hail like crumbs- who can stand before his cold?
Verse 18He sends out his word, and melts them; he makes his wind blow, and the waters flow.
Verse 19He declares his word to Jacob, his statutes and ordinances to Israel.
Verse 20He has not dealt thus with any other nation; they do not know his ordinances. Praise the Lord!
Devotion
As a missionary in Mexico, God blesses me with the opportunity to minister to people going both ways through “gates” and across “borders.” This psalm offers to us the opportunity to look at God´s Holy Word as it works on both sides of these man-made barriers. No matter which way they travel, people want protection, peace, prosperity, and blessing. So, what is the problem? Why do these barriers cause so much anger and tension in our societies? The answer is that much of the world has forgotten how God works to overcome every human-made barrier.
With the same power that God commands the forces of nature, God works through all the Scriptures, to bring patience, hope, peace, comfort, and blessings. Whether we are escaping from exile, returning home, or going out into the world, God´s Word sustains our journey and fills it with hope and thankfulness that God is with us.
Prayer
Almighty God, may your Holy Word guide us daily to see that every barrier in our life can be overcome by reaching out and listening to your Word and obeying your statutes and ordinances. Strengthen our faith to see every barrier as you see it—an opportunity to bring light and hope into the world no matter on what side of the barrier we may be. Amen.
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