Psalm 53:1a – The fool says in his heart, "There is no God." (NIV)

Nehemiah 8:10b – Do not grieve, for the joy of the Lord is your strength. (NIV)

The other night, I had been crying for several minutes, totally depressed and sad about my friend, Susan, moving away, back to Ontario, 2,600 miles away. Then, I decided to pick up a devotional book which this same friend had borrowed and had just given back: God Calling. For January 21 it said, "Be calm. Never fear. Sing unto the Lord. Be glad all the time. Rejoice exceedingly. Joy in Me. Rest in Me. Never be afraid. Pray more. Do not get worried. I am thy Helper. Underneath are the Everlasting Arms. You cannot get below that. Rest in them, as a tired child rests."

This lifted me somewhat and filled me with a small amount of hope. Then, I turned on the radio, and what was the song? The joy of the Lord is my strength! I couldn't believe it. Not two seconds later, the phone rang. It was Connie, my friend of 19 years, calling me from Ontario. She said she had debated whether to call or not, but she did. She had recently found our telephone number on the Internet and called me. I will never forget that feeling of relief, encouragement, and happiness that I felt when she called. It was indeed "God calling" to save me from my misery and pain. It was God Who knew that I needed a friend right then and there. Connie is a friend from the past, someone who is dear to me, yet we hadn't kept in touch over the previous four years. So, I was filled with a flood of joy because, though I was losing one friend, at the same time, I was renewing a relationship with another friend. God is so good to me.

At Bible study, we were discussing about how sometimes people question God's existence. I see evidence of His existence every day. How can someone not believe in God? Aren't you so glad that God knows exactly what is going on in our lives!

Prayer: Father God, how we love You and praise You for being there when we need You. We always call You Father, because You are always there for us, just like a good earthly father. Thank You that You know everything about us, whether we're sad or happy. You know all the details about every aspect of our lives. Thank You for the gift of faith, to believe in You, even though we can't see You. But we do see evidence of You, Lord, every day, in the wonderful things that You do for us. Thank You, Lord, for wrapping Your arms around us and bringing us comfort in those everlasting arms. We can truly rest in You and have the joy of the Lord. Thank You for hearing our prayers and for Your love. In Jesus' name, we pray, Amen.

Forward this devotional     Share on Facebook

About the author:

Karen Knuff <knuff.karen@gmail.com>
Maple Ridge, British Columbia, Canada
Send your feedback to the author