Thursday Reading: Psalm 119:145-147
Key Verse: Psalm 119:146
146 I cried to You; save me, and I shall keep Your testimonies.
Devotion:
How many times have you said to someone that you would do something if they did something for you first? And then compare that to the number of times you have done something for someone before they did something for you... And finally try and think of the number of times that you have done something for someone without any regard for whether they would do anything for you or not! When it comes down to it we are quite selfish in our ways and we demand something in return for anything we are willing to give. The same cannot be counted against God.
If we were not selfish then we would be willing to do things for others without even thinking whether they would do anything for us. We would be willing to go out and do things without thinking of the return we may get. The Psalmist’s words here are not him making a deal with God but rather telling God what he has already decided to do. If we look at what God has already done for us then even in our selfish forms we should have no questions about doing many things for God. It is often when we are in distress we call on the name of our Lord and it is most often when we find we have run out of other options that we call Him for help.
But that is where we are going wrong. We need to be calling on His name before we get ourselves into a pickle. We need to call on Him before we get things wrong, before we think we need His help, before we break His law. God is always here for us and He will continue to listen to our every prayer that we lift up to Him. He will continue to answer those prayers in the best possible way for each one of us – that in itself has got to be a difficult task! Our prayers should not be half hearted but wholly dependent on Him. Our prayers need to come from our heart and not just idle talk. Our prayers need to be open and honest before Him. Then we can and should expect Him to answer each and every one in turn. Why then should we hold back on what we can do for Him?
Points to Ponder:
Do you like helping others?
How much do you think you do for God?
