Friday Reading: Psalm 42:1-5
Key Verse: Psalm 42:5
5 Why are you cast down, O my soul, and moan within me? Hope in God; for I shall praise Him for the salvation of His face.
Devotion:
It is said that many animals can smell water a long way off; well I don’t think it’s the water they smell but the interaction between water and soil or plants that they can probably smell. They have much better noses that we do! When a deer is thirsty they will seek out water just as we would but with their more simpler minds they focus on the water more than we would. When the psalmist talks about the deer panting after the water he is talking about that more fervent need for water where it focuses on the water. That is the way that we should be focusing on God so that we get distracted less and less by the things around us.
Our bibles tell us that we will all face God one day and we can either be looking forward to it knowing that Christ will present us blameless before Him, or we can look forward to that day with fear knowing that we will be judged. That choice is ours to make before we die. That choice will give us great comfort if we know that Christ will intercede on our behalf and so we can look forward to it with joy as a deer would smelling the water they so desire. But there will also be times when we feel down and dejected and will question our own beliefs...
That is the time that we need to pour out our souls to God in prayer or worship. Nothing will lift our souls more than knowing that we can commune with God before we face Him. We can build up our own relationship with Him by talking with Him and knowing that He is listening and answering too. Being ready for out meeting with Him must be our aim because we do need to be ready for that day. Knowing that we are keeping our souls fit for that day will give us all the more confidence to face Him with earnest love rather than fear.
Points to Ponder:
Do you prepare for meetings?
Are you ready to meet God?
