Dear Ones,
Happy Weekend! Hope you wake to an uplifting day? Today is party day here so Al and I will be going to Costco to get the Birthday cake. Your question this week is, who has given you a word of encouragement that changed your outlook and response?
Devotions from Judy’s heart
Where can we go when we feel down and discouraged or troubled by words spoken against us? We can dwell on our situation and get depressed, or we can turn to the Lord and let Him lift our souls. I was reading from Psalm 86 as David was feeling distressed and needy and cries to the Lord all day. He is honest with the Lord about how he feels and then goes on to ask for His mercy and help. He wants God to pay attention and answer him and teach him how he is to walk and live in truth. Then he begins to paise Him with his whole heart and thank Him. He says, “For you are great and work wonders! You alone are God… But you, O Lord, are a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in mercy and loving-kindness and truth.”  He also asks for a sign of his favor and approval of him.

How about us, what do we do when we need an encouraging word or seem overwhelmed by what is happening in our lives. Do we tell the Lord how we feel and then go on to praise Him and maybe ask for a sign of his goodness and how He sees our situation. God sends help in many ways and through many instruments. I had such an encounter the other day on the Paul Bunyan trail. We bumped into a professor that we had casually talked to previously and he stopped and shared that he had been reading my daily devotions. His words to me were confirming and encouraging and I felt like the Lord had sent him and I savored his words.

Maybe we feel overwhelmed today or there are questions we have and situations we don’t know how to respond to; let us bring everything to the Lord. We can tell Him how we feel, and then take the next step as David and begin praising Him. We may be sure He will hear and answer our prayers and will tell us the way to go.

Challenge for today: When feeling bowed down or questioning of what is happening in your life, go first to the Lord and let Him put you back on your feet.

Blessings on your day and prayers and love, Judy