Focus
Stop and thank God for being present with you today. Ask for God’s guidance as you hear God’s voice through scripture and the writer.
Read
To the leader: according to The Gittith. Of Asaph.
1 Sing aloud to God our strength;
shout for joy to the God of Jacob.
10 I am the Lord your God,
who brought you up out of the land of Egypt.
Open your mouth wide, and I will fill it.
11 “But my people did not listen to my voice;
Israel would not submit to me.
12 So I gave them over to their stubborn hearts,
to follow their own counsels.
13 O that my people would listen to me,
that Israel would walk in my ways!
14 Then I would quickly subdue their enemies
and turn my hand against their foes.
15 Those who hate the Lord would cringe before him,
and their doom would last forever.
16 I would feed you with the finest of the wheat,
and with honey from the rock I would satisfy you.”
Reflect
As a parent, have you ever been frustrated with your children? The teenage years can be very challenging for many parents. That’s the period when children try to test the boundaries you’ve established for them to follow. They are searching for their independence and can become argumentative. As a parent, it’s easy to become frustrated. You begin to think, if only my child would listen to me, I could help prevent them from making some of the same mistakes that I’ve made in life.
If only my child would listen, they wouldn’t go through some of the disappointments and heartaches of life. As we look at our own life, how many times have we been that teenager and God is our parent? Today’s scripture is looking at the children of Israel. We could easily insert the people of the United States in these verses. And if we want even to bring it closer to home, there are periods of our own life where we could insert our own name into this scripture text. God’s Word was written to help us get through all situations of life that we may face. God speaks to us through our subconscious in order to help remind us when we aren’t doing things that are pleasing to Him. When will we quit trying to do things our own way and submit to the will of God?
Pray
Dear Lord, open my ears to hear your voice speaking to me. Open my eyes to see the way you are leading me. And open my heart to be more Christlike to those I encounter in my life today. In Jesus name, I pray. Amen.
Go with God.
