Thursday 8-13-15 (Home in Modesto)
Scripture reading: Jer. 13 –
15 John 15
S=Scripture O=Observation A=Application P=Prayer SOAP for
the soul.
S. Jer 15:16-17
Your words are what sustain me. They bring me great joy and
are my heart's delight, for I bear your name, O LORD God Almighty.
NLT
O. Among other
tortures, Jeremiah suffered imprisonment lowered into a deep well and his body
sank down into the mud. He did not
preach prosperity like the false prophets of his day. He spoke of coming disaster due to the
people’s overt sin and idolatry. The
rulers of Jerusalem felt his message of impending destruction was an act of
treason, spreading propaganda of their enemies.
But in his worse moments God’s Word brought him great joy.
A. I am reminded of Brigadier
General Robinson “Robbie” Risner who in 1965 was shot down over North Vietnam
and held prisoner, tortured and cruelly mistreated for seven years. I recall him saying that he reconstructed the
hymns that he had sung as a youth in church and recalled memory Bible verses
that he had learned in Sunday School and it was this that kept him
mentally sane in isolation and under such pressure.
Although I have never had to endure such
suffering, I remember on occasions when I have been isolated in a lonely place,
I have been surprised to recall whole stanzas of hymns, choruses and Bible
verses that were stored away in my mind as a little child. And there in the lonely darkness of that moment
God’s Holy Word, coupled with wonderful worship songs, have brought me great
joy and have become my heart’s delight… just like my friend and mentor,
Jeremiah.
P. Lord, “Thy Word have I
hidden in my heart…” not only “that I may not sin against You”… but also
as a storehouse of “great joy and heart’s delight” when difficult times press
me to the edge. So I pray… Please keep
me daily in Your Word and fill my heart with Your songs… for these are my
Source of truth and abundant life. Amen.
Ralph
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