I give you thanks, O Lord, with all my heart; I will sing your praises before the gods. I bow before your holy Temple as I worship. I praise your name for your unfailing love and faithfulness; for your promises are backed by all the honor of your name. As soon as I pray, you answer me; you encourage me by giving me strength. Psalm 138:1-3
The Psalmist
lets us in on a little key ingredient to faith; you’ve got to keep going. I’m not talking about really tough times when
you don’t know whether or not you’ve got it in you to take one more
step; in times like that He carries you. Rather, it’s more the times when you just don’t
feel like taking any steps that you’ve
got to keep taking those steps.
·
Did you ever
just not feel like saying that prayer?
·
Have you
ever felt like
it was a waste of time to go to another worship service?
·
Has there
been a time when you felt too
angry to pray?
·
Did you ever
feel like
it was useless to forgive that guy….again?
Hear the Psalmist
again:
As soon as I pray, you answer me; you encourage me by
giving me strength.
Faith isn’t
spooky, doesn’t require a medium or fortune teller, and it certainly isn’t
hiding anywhere. Faith is constantly
available, and the problem isn’t that God has made it only for the superstars,
like Moses, Peter, or Paul; the problem is, frankly, sometimes we just don’t feel like
it. And this is the point at which we
find that faith.
If you have
developed a habit of praying, giving, worshipping, helping others, or any other
spiritual discipline, there will be times when
you don’t feel like it.
Those are the times to put aside feelings
and remember it is a discipline, and the strength God gave you to form that
discipline, will be the same strength that shows up in that discipline. This is so, because of another little key the
Psalmist let slip…it’s not about us, or our feelings;
God’s providence, His care for us, is all resting on the honor of God’s holy
name.
In a discussion
with a dear friend we were talking about this same issue, and I had the thought
that many times I don’t really want to get up as early as I do. Sometimes, even when I manage to drag my
aging carcass out of the bed, stumble to the desk with my first cup of coffee,
and begin to read, I do not feel like writing another devotional (perhaps just like you
sometimes don’t feel like reading another devotional). But, when it has become a habit, you do it
anyway.
And one of
two things happen:
1.
Somewhere in
the process, like the Psalmist, you realize that entering that time of prayer,
or service, or devotion, God has encouraged you, replenished your strength, or
resolve, or grown your faith. The technical
term is providence – the Lord has provided.
The other
possibility is:
2.
You don’t feel
anything but bored, or tired, or angry, or, well…fill in the blank. And, in this case, it isn’t that God can’t
provide what you need; you’ve bumped into the need for a vacation….or a nap…or
a nap on vacation. You get the idea.
Your tank of
human strength has run low, and God wants to replenish all of you, not just
your spiritual side, He wants your mind, emotions, physical being, and
relationships to flourish. And, you’re
not your best self when those feelings begin to control every decision, action, or word that
drops from your tired, bored, angry lips.
There are
times to take a break, step back, and regain strength, or perspective; it’s
time to let God replenish whatever is running on empty.
Don’t be
afraid of that. It’s providential…one of
God’s promises!
Title image Pixabay.com ∞
Unless noted, Scripture quoted from The New Living Translation©
For another post on activating your faith, see Faith Finding the Path to Do Right
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