Raced to Our Rescue
I would have been killed so many times if You had not been there for me. When I screamed out, "Lord, I'm doomed!" Your fiery love was stirred, and You raced to my rescue. Whenever my busy thoughts were out of control, the soothing comfort of Your presence calmed me down and overwhelmed me with delight. Psalm 94:17-19 TPT
Insight
God will always race to our rescue. When we call out to God, He doesn't hesitate to rush to our side. Even if we don't feel His presence right away, we can trust that God is close to us in our heartbreak (Psalm 34:18). It's important to remember that our emotions don't often reflect our spiritual reality. Our feelings tell us warped stories about God; they will tell us He is far from us and that He doesn't have a loving reason for letting us experience hurt. They will say He is slow to save us, even though His help always comes at the right time (2 Peter 3:9).
God is continually working to rescue our hearts from the power of sin and death, even if it feels like He is letting the darkness win victory after victory over us. The ultimate victory is His. The cross confirms this truth! The overwhelming peace in His presence will always come when we call out to Him. But it will come according to His timing, not our own.
Calling out to the Lord for rescue is not easy. It takes bravery and humility. Due to the broken culture of the Church, we've learned to talk to God in a filtered, inauthentic way. We come to Him and keep our heartbreak hidden away instead of placing it at His feet. We don't allow ourselves to tell Him how we really feel. We don't permit ourselves to be desperate before Him, angry at Him, or doubtful that He even exists. We've learned to present ourselves to our Church family as if everything is fine-and-dandy in our walk with God. We don't admit to those around us when we don't like what God is doing or feel apathetic toward Him. As a result, we come to God in much the same way. We hide our desperation and frustration toward Him behind closed doors, as if our omniscient God doesn't know it exists. The reality is that God is a big boy—He can handle all of our difficult emotions.
God created even the most intolerable emotions with a divine and loving purpose. God uses our desperation to steer us toward dependence on Him; a life lived dependent on God is a life lived to the fullest. When we experience complicated feelings and seasons of life, we realize how little we can carry on our own. We recognize how desperately we need Him. We feel inclined to call out to Him.
Today, call out to the Lord in boldness. Watch Him rescue you in unexpected ways.
Reflection
How has God come to Your rescue in the past? Do you trust Him to rescue you in the here and now?
Do you bring your heartbreak honestly before God? Or do you filter yourself?
Prayer
Abba, thank you for rushing to my rescue. Thank you for always responding when I call for You, for bringing me unexplainable peace in Your presence. Embolden me to call out for You, even when I am tempted to filter myself and come to You as if I have everything together. God, my life is messy, and I cannot navigate it alone. In Your mercy, come near my heart, and calm my anxious thoughts. Empower me to trust that when I pray, You hear me and respond. Let me submit to Your timing, and know that You will save me in due time from every complex emotion and circumstance. Amen.
Port City writer Kate Redenbaugh wrote today's devotional.