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Daily Devotion: November 26, 2019

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Psalm 121:4-5  "Behold, he that keepeth Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep. (5)  The LORD is thy keeper: the LORD is thy shade upon thy right hand."

I have to admit, there are days when I am tired in the afternoons and I sit down in my recliner. Before I realize it, I have been asleep for sometimes 30 minutes. I also admit it feels good to be able to relax and doze. But then, sometimes my afternoon nap causes me to toss and turn at night. While I'm tossing and turning, guess what gear my mind goes into? That's right. My mind goes into high gear and I cannot seem to stop thinking about things over which I have no control.

What does that have to do with this morning's devotion? I'm glad you asked. 😊

First, God never gets tired. He doe not need an afternoon nap in order to regroup and renew His strength. He never tosses and turns at night because of fretting over matters of life. Remember when Jesus was in the boat with His disciples. The storm arose and the disciples were frightened. Was Jesus concerned about the storm? No, He was quietly resting in the back part of the ship. God is greater than any storm of life. Be assured of that. Jesus, the man, was asleep in the ship. God never sleeps. So in the middle of the night when we are tossing and turning, He is on His throne in full control. He says to us, "Give it to me."

He is our shade. Some of us remember the days when there was no air conditioning. On a hot summer day, we would head to the biggest tree to find the widest area of shade. If there was a nice breeze, we could find great relief from the heat of the day. When life throws its difficulties at us and we begin to feel the heat of trying to just get through each day, God tells us to go to Him. He will give us shade (protection) from the heat. He will give us the much needed relief. Instead of causing ourselves grief by trying to figure all things out ourselves, let us be self-disciplined to "take it to the Lord and leave it there." He can handle it and give us mercy and grace to help in time of our need.

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