Tag Archives: discouragment

Discouraged?

03 Wednesday Aug 2016

Posted by in Mid-Week Medtiation, Psalms

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The LORD is there to rescue all who are discouraged and have given up hope (Psalm 34:18, CEV).

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Petrie Island, Ottawa, ON — photo by David Kitz

Reflection

This week’s I Love the Psalms theme is rescuing.

Here is a personal confession, or maybe it’s just a pet peeve. I get annoyed with people who casually say, “If you need help, I’m there for you.” But when your hour of need arrives these same people are busy or unavailable.

The phrase, “I’m there for you,” makes me nervous. I won’t say it to others because I can’t predict my situation or response when the call for help comes. I may offer help, but I hate to promise something and then renege because I can’t deliver at that time or in the desired way.

Today’s verse from the Psalms reminds us that there is someone we can always count on in trying times:

The LORD is there to rescue all who are discouraged and have given up hope (Psalm 34:18, CEV).

Unlike human help that is fickle or unpredictable, we can count on the LORD. He is always there. Always. He is always there to rescue all who are discouraged and have given up hope. If you are in that situation today, call out to Him. He is there for you!

Response: LORD God, you have helped me in the past during times of frustration and discouragement. You rescued me from drowning in my sorrows. I trust you now. Amen.

Your Turn: Has God “been there for you?” How has He helped you?

The Senior’s Prayer

16 Tuesday Feb 2016

Posted by in Psalm 71, Psalms

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Reading:                                       Psalm 71

Verses 9-18

Do not cast me away when I am old;
do not forsake me when my strength is gone.
For my enemies speak against me;
those who wait to kill me conspire together.
They say, “God has forsaken him;
pursue him and seize him, for no one will rescue him.”
Do not be far from me, my God;

come quickly, God, to help me.
May my accusers perish in shame;
may those who want to harm me
be covered with scorn and disgrace.

As for me, I will always have hope;
I will praise you more and more

My mouth will tell of your righteous deeds,
of your saving acts all day long—
though I know not how to relate them all.
I will come and proclaim your mighty acts, Sovereign LORD;
I will proclaim your righteous deeds, yours alone.
Since my youth, God, you have taught me,
and to this day I declare your marvelous deeds.
Even when I am old and gray, do not forsake me, my God,
till I declare your power to the next generation,
your mighty acts to all who are to come (NIV).

Reflection

I am not officially a senior, but I am inching my way toward that prize, if you can call it that. With each passing year I can more fully identify with the psalmist’s prayer. For those of us in our sixth decade and beyond, great wisdom can be found in this psalm. As physical vitality declines, more and more we come to rely on the strength of God.

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This Old House— photo courtesy of Donald Adam

The psalmist laments, “For my enemies speak against me; those who wait to kill me conspire together.”

Our enemies don’t all strut about on two legs. Some of them creep into our lives in more subtle forms like discouragement, depression, dementia and disease. These are the more common enemies that conspire against us. When they gain the upper hand, our golden years lose their lustre. Against this backdrop the psalmist is defiant. He takes his stand. As for me, I will always have hope; I will praise you more and more…

Having come this far by the grace of God, this is not the time to retreat… till I declare your power to the next generation, your mighty acts to all who are to come.

Response: LORD God, thank you for your presence with me since my youth. Continue to fill my life with joy, meaning and purpose. Day by day, be my help and strength until I see you face to face. Amen.

Your Turn: Do you look forward to your golden years?

Hope for the Downcast Soul

03 Tuesday Feb 2015

Posted by in Psalm 42, Psalms

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Reading:                                       Psalm 42

 (Verses 6-11)

My soul is downcast within me;     

therefore I will remember you from the land of the Jordan,     

the heights of Hermon—from Mount Mizar.

Deep calls to deep in the roar of your waterfalls;

all your waves and breakers have swept over me.

By day the LORD directs his love,     

at night his song is with me—a prayer to the God of my life.

I say to God my Rock,     

“Why have you forgotten me?

Why must I go about mourning, oppressed by the enemy?”

My bones suffer mortal agony as my foes taunt me,

saying to me all day long, “Where is your God?”

Why, my soul, are you downcast?     

Why so disturbed within me?

Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him,     

my Savior and my God.  (NIV)

Reflection

Let’s face the truth. We all go through times when we are downcast. A few minutes ago my wife asked me, “Are you grumpy today?”

I was surprised she noticed. I thought I had been hiding my downcast state quite well. After reflecting a moment I answered, “I guess I am.” Then I began to justify my grumpy mood. “It’s cold, windy and snowing. Again! And my face feels numb and puffy from my visit to the dentist.”

Ice Formation-- Ottawa River -- David Kitz

Ice Formation– Ottawa River — David Kitz

What I didn’t say was that I was discouraged about my writing career. My literary agent may drop me as a client. Every news report I read seems to be filled with gloom and dire predictions. I have a backache, probably from shovelling snow. And did I mention that this winter feels interminable? Along with the psalmist, David, I can say, “My soul is downcast within me.”

But David didn’t stay wallowing in his pity party. He rallied through songs of worship and prayer. Hear his words, “By day the LORD directs his love, at night his song is with me—a prayer to the God of my life.”

When I am discouraged—when you are discouraged—we can both do the same. We can turn to the LORD in song. I can pray to the God of my life—the God who knew me in my mother’s womb—the God who left His throne to rescue me. Why should I be downcast when Jesus cast himself down on my behalf?

Response: LORD God, I thank you for Jesus. I am thankful that he willingly laid down his life so that I could be forgiven and experience new life. I put my hope in my Savior and my God. Hallelujah! Amen.

Your Turn: What do you do when times of discouragement come?