Devotional Song: ... GO TO THIS LINK ... Please take the time to take in images, song and lyrics from Steven Curtis Chapman singing, Be Still and Know … poignantly singing of how we, as Christians, can have God’s peace when we know that our Lord is our refuge in times of trouble.
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Highlight Verse[s]: Psalm 46: 1, 11 [NLT] ... 1 God is our refuge and strength, always ready to help in times of trouble. … 11 The Lord of Heaven’s Armies is here among us; the God of Israel is our fortress.
… We who believe in the One, true God can rest in peace, KNOWING that He is our refuge and strength.
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Highlight Passage [context]: Psalm 46 [NLT] ... USE THIS LINK ...
… The Psalmist sings of God’s ever presence and ever-caring grace.
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Reference Passage : … Proverbs 3:5-6 [NLT] … 5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. 6 Seek His will in all you do, and He will show you which path to take.
… We can ALWAYS know that He will give us the way to go when we know and trust in Him.
Reference Passage : … Isaiah 26:3, … 41:10 [NLT] … USE THIS LINK …
… The Prophet speaks for God with His assurance of peace and strength when we know and trust him.
Reference Passage : … Roams 8:28, … 31 [NLT] … USE THIS LINK …
… God, thru Paul, reminds us that EVERYTHING we go thru is for our good and His glory and that if God is for us Christians - and He ALWAYS is - NOTHING can stand against us.
Reference Passage : … 1Corinthians 10:13 [NLT] … USE THIS LINK …
… No matter what we face in life, God is with us and will give us the direction to go in, around, or through our troubles.
Reference Passage : … 2Corinthians 12:9-10 [NLT] … USE THIS LINK …
… We can actually brag about our troubles/trials, KNOWING of Christ’s promise to empower us with His strength when we’re feeling weak.
My Devotional Journal: Today's ODB author, Anne Cetas, uses a story of a woman who started a business to show cancer patients they are cared for, just as we Christians should feel in times of trouble. … The ODB author wrote: Debbie, the owner of a housecleaning service, was always searching for more clients to build up her business. On one call she talked with a woman whose response was, “I won’t be able to afford that now; I’m undergoing cancer treatment.” Right then Debbie decided that “no woman undergoing cancer treatment would ever be turned away. They would even be offered a free housecleaning service.” So in 2005 she started a nonprofit organization where companies donated their cleaning services to women battling cancer. One such woman felt a rush of confidence when she came home to a clean house. She said, “For the first time, I actually believed I could beat cancer.”
Going thru what we’re dealing with now, i.e., the corona virus, is no doubt fearful and unsettling to many. However, like the young lady in the ODB story, we, who KNOW God intimately, can focus on and trust in the reality that NOTHING we’re going thru surprises God or diminishes our trust that HE is in control. And, … as long as we know that HE is our refuge (as Psalm 46 and Steven Curtis Chapman sings), we will come thru all of this, KNOWING that it’s all for our our good and His glory.
The reference scriptures above are those truths which I’ve memorized over the years and the words of truth which I go to when I’m challenged by life and my spiritual enemies. And just reciting them back to God, … and knowing in my heart of their truth, … gives me peace and allows me to remember and recognize that God truly is my refuge.
I pray He is for you too.
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My THANKFULNESS: ... Oh Abba Father, ... thank You, Lord, … for always being there with Your empowering grace and the strength of Your truth to lift me up when I’m feeling weak.
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My Prayer Today: Oh Abba Father, ... King Jesus, ... I pray, Lord, that all reading here will trust in Your truth and pray the strength of Your words back to You, knowing that You are are our refuge in these times of trouble. Amen
Blogger Note: Everyday during this year, my daily devotional blogs are influenced by the reading and study of the online devotional blog entitled “Our Daily Bread,” distributed online via email by RBC Ministries. If you GO TO THIS LINK on the date of my blog, you can read/study the ODB blogs; or you can subscribe to the blog via email at that site.</ span>
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