Bible Reading: Psalm 86:1 – 17
“O turn unto me, and have mercy upon me; give thy strength unto me; give thy strength unto thy servant, and save the son of thy handmaid” – Psalm 86:16
There is need to live in the consciousness of the fact that, if there is no strength from the Lord, vain is whatever we may claim we are banking upon. The world we live in is full of innumerable adversities which, more often than not, have the potential to swallow us up. No matter the forces that have risen against us, as depicted in verse 14, we should never relax our efforts in trusting the Lord.
Calling upon the Lord should not be restricted only to the time of trouble or adversity, but it should be a daily affair. These phrases underscore the point better; “…for I cry unto thee daily” (verse 2), “for unto thee, O Lord do I lift up my soul” (verse 3), “…and plenteous in mercy unto all them that call upon thee” (verse 5), “give ear, O LORD unto my prayer; and attend to the voice of my supplications” (verse 6), “in the day of my trouble I will call upon thee: for thou wilt answer” (verse 7). From all of these, we see that the psalmist offered prayer unto the One who could answer. This is similar to what Jesus Christ did in the days of His flesh, “who in the days of His flesh, when he had offered up prayers and supplications with strong crying and tears unto him that was able to save him from death, and was heard in that he feared” – Hebrews 5:7(KJV). He understands clearly that no one can be compared with God and even gods of all nations cannot match Him, they are mere works of man’s hand. The Scripture says “they that make a graven image are all of them vanity; and their delectable things shall not profit; and they are their own witnesses; they see not, nor know; that they may be ashamed. Who hath formed a god, or molten a graven image that is profitable for nothing” – Isaiah 44:9-10(KJV).
Never at any time surrender to any image. No god has something to offer, only the God that created heaven and earth has the capacity to do wonders and He is God alone. He possesses the right way to live and this comes when we allow Him to infuse into our lives His way. We should, like the Psalmist, determine to walk in the way and truth God has made available to us. Never forget that Jesus Christ is the way, the truth and the Life. Walk with and in Him always.
Prayer: Teach me your way, O LORD, and I will walk in your truth, give me an undivided heart that I may fear your name.
Rev. Julius Oluwole