"When you pass through the waters, I will be with you." Isaiah 43:2
People are instinctively afraid of misfortune. The billions upon billions of dollars in insurance companies bear mute testimony to that fact.
You and I, however, have an assurance that is higher and wider and deeper than all the puny props that man can build to hold back the floodwaters of adversity. We know that no matter how great the misfortune or how stark the tragedy our God is there -- right in the midst of calamity. Listen to His assuring words: "Fear not, for I have redeemed you ... You are Mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. ... For I am the LORD, your God" (Isaiah 43:1-3).
A devout Christian who had just been informed of the death of his son remarked: "Whenever my tragedy becomes baffling, I lay it against Calvary." There is the real insurance against despair in the midst of misfortune. If the almighty God of heaven loved us so much that He gave His only Son into the "calamity" of Calvary, then surely He will permit no tragedy to come to us that would rob us of the full enjoyment of His Gospel promise. Disappointment and heartbreak, these may come. But not despair! We have a friend who walks beside us in deep water.
PRAYER: Lord, be with me in the day of adversity. Amen.
(Taken from "Words of Promise," copyright 1996 (out of print), Concordia Publishing House. For information on other devotional materials, call 1-800-325-3040.)
Today's Bible Readings: Isaiah 62-64 Romans 12
To Download Devotion MP3 to your computer, right click here and select "Save Link As" or "Save Target As" or "Download Linked File As"