Strength

When the angel Gabriel came to Mary, she was greatly troubled. Imagine her shock and dismay as the angel suddenly appeared and said, “Greetings, O favored one, the Lord is with you!” (Luke 1:28). Mary’s fear was visibly evident as Gabriel continued,

Are you in a battle today? Call upon Yahweh Tsebaoth.

Sooner or later, everyone needs a safe place, a protected place—cover from a blasting storm. When the sleet of illness pelts your life, when the downpour of grief drenches your heart, when the winds of anxiety threaten to knock you down, you need a secret place, a hiding place to escape from those things threatening to knock the props from your life. You need the shelter of the Most High!

We all need a place of refuge. Life hits us hard and uproots what we thought was secure. Our strength is broken down. If we are fortunate, we huddle with others, but even then, no person can save us from the storm. Only One can.

Sometimes, things we have done in the past come back to haunt us. That’s what happened to Jacob. Years earlier, Jacob had stolen his brother’s birthright and their father’s blessing. Now it was time for an accounting. Esau, Jacob’s twin brother, was coming to meet him.

Have you ever been tested? Severely tested? If you answered that question, “Yes,” you can relate to Abraham in today’s passage. And, even if you haven’t experienced it yet, you will also see in this passage that God is always at work, and he always provides.

What’s on your mind? What do you find yourself thinking about? What are the default thoughts that occupy your mental energy?

Contentment. Where does it come from? There is no one better to ask than the apostle Paul. He was familiar with life’s extremes with challenging circumstances.

I am writing this devo from a packed airplane. It was snowing, windy, and cold when we took off, but we’ll land in seventy-degree weather. After speaking at a church, I’ll get back on a plane and return to the cold. Life is a bit like my travels over the next couple of days. Some circumstances bring the blowing cold; others bring the warm sunshine.