Good Morning Everyone,
Our theme for this month: “Effective prayer”
Our Bible verse for today: “I called on your name, O Lord, from the depths of the pit. You heard my plea; “Do not close your ears to my cry for relief.” You came near when I called you, and you said, “Do not fear.” Lamentations 3:55-57 (NIV)
Our thought for today: “He is there for you.”
As we begin to draw this month of devotional thinking about effective prayer to a close, we need to revisit Lamentations chapter three because as I’ve said already, how we think about God and what we believe to be true about Him, is vitally important and will directly impact how we pray.
As was noted yesterday, when Jeremiah wrote the book of Lamentations he was in the worst of all possible circumstances. His city was in ruins, his people were in captivity, a hostile foreign army patrolled the streets and ruled the nation, and life as Jeremiah knew it had ceased (Think France in World War II during the Nazi occupation).
In the middle of all that, Jeremiah knew that the Lord’s lovingkindness, His great compassion, and His complete faithfulness were not in question. So Jeremiah called out to Him and as we read in Lamentations 3:57, God answered, reassured, and said to him, “Jeremiah, do not fear.”
That’s the God you are praying to. He is the God of Job, working diligently behind the scenes of life to bring about great spiritual victories. He is the God of Paul, always guiding, always protecting, always leading.
He is the God of Romans 8:28 who is faithful and can be trusted: “And we know in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.”
He is the God of Romans 8:38-39: “For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
And He is the God the Apostle Paul enthusiastically proclaimed in Philippians 4:19 when he wrote: “And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus.”
Yes, He is there, He is faithful, He can be trusted, His purposes for you are good, His love never fails, and in His way and in His time, He will meet all of your needs according to His glorious riches in Christ Jesus. That’s the God you are praying to.
God Bless,
Pastor Jim
Oak Hill Baptist Church 