Daily Devotions
(The LORD said) “And call upon Me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you shall glorify Me.” Psalm 50:15
Anyone who has had, or been around, children, understands the bedtime ritual. Although the order of events may differ from family to family and child to child, most of the following are present:
1. The parent says, “It’s time for bed,” but the child doesn’t hear or pretends to not hear.
2. The child hears the summons and begins to negotiate. Depending on circumstance and situation the parent will hear, “But my friends don’t go to bed until midnight” or “Let me just finish my book … this TV show … this Lego project … etc. etc.”
3. Next the parent’s authority will be challenged. At an early age the child learns not to be direct and say, “No, I’m not going to bed now.” Instead, he will try, “But you’re not going to bed” or “My brother doesn’t have to go to bed yet.”
4. The final step is amnesia. The child pretends to have forgotten that stages one, two and three have happened. He goes back to the beginning and starts the process all over.
Yes, that’s the way it is in many homes. But it’s not that way in the home of a 10-year-old boy in Brockton, Massachusetts. That boy, who remains unnamed, made a call to 911. In that call he told the dispatcher he wanted to turn in his mother who was trying to force him to go to bed.
While I give the lad points for original thinking, the local constabulary felt differently. According to the records, they dispatched an officer to the boy’s home. There the policeman explained to the lad when it is right and when it is wrong to call 911.
Now I share this story with you to make a point.
The point is this: that while the police department in Brockton, Massachusetts, doesn’t want people to call them for matters trivial, your Lord has no such distinction.
God wants us to call upon Him. Period.
The passage above talks about coming to the Lord in the day of trouble. But there are other verses in Scripture where we are encouraged to go to the Father with “whatsoever.” Now I haven’t done a study of whatsoever in the original language, but I have to believe it is pretty all-encompassing.
God wants to hear about the big and the small, the laughter and the tears, the tragedy and the glory of His children’s lives. He wants to know about the agony of our hearts and the rejoicing of our souls. He wants to be included in anything and everything that happens to us.
Amazing, isn’t it?
Even as the Creator of the universe cares about the sparrows, which fall to the ground, He also cares about the hairs on my head and the events of my life. And if anyone wonders why does God care, he would find his answer in Bethlehem’s manger, Calvary’s cross, and the borrowed tomb. There Jesus rebuilt the bridge between heaven and earth, which had been destroyed by sin. Now by His great and glorious resurrection, we are allowed to come to our Lord who will listen.
THE PRAYER: Dear Lord, in the day of trouble and the day without it, may I come to you. Then, praying in the Name of Jesus, may I be glad You have heard me and will respond in the way that is best. In the Savior’s Name I ask it. Amen.