Devotions this week based on the Message: “BELIEVE: Week 2: God is Personal God!”
(NOTE: This sermon series and devotional series is based on a book by Randy Frazee entitled, “BELIEVE.”
You may choose to download or purchase the book as a supplement to your worship and devotional emails.)
Sometimes I don’t think he does.
Just glance through the headlines this week:
“Christians on edge in Afghanistan”
“75 dogs die in fire in Georgetown”
“Three die in train derailment in Montana”
“Covid cases continue to affect millions”
And the list goes on.
These headlines may cause us to pause and ask, “God where are you?” “Do you care?”
But it becomes more personal when my life is challenged.
I or someone I love gets CoVid.
I get in a car accident.
I get a serious medical diagnosis.
I lose a loved one.
Does God care about…me?
This is where it gets personal. When hard or challenging events occur in my life, it is tempting and often times reality that I blame God. I make him the cause of all my hardship. I question God. I wonder if he loves me or even knows what I am going through. I abandon God. After all, these situations seem to indicate that God has abandoned me. My thinking leads me to wondering, “Why should I stay with you God if you leave me when I need you most.”
Here’s the irony. When life is going well and I have what I want and life is going the way I want it to, God is perhaps a secondary thought. But the moment that life brings challenges, I believe God is personally responsible and involved in my life…and blame him for causing trouble.
So which is it.
The truth is God is a personal God who loves and cares for you very much. We will explore how we know that this week.
Here is the other truth…Satan is a liar and he gets us to believe lies about God and misjudge how much God cares for us. How so? Here’s how I would summarize it:
Satan leads me to believe this lie: “God doesn’t care about me when I don’t get what I want, or God doesn’t do what I want him to do.”
The problem? I think I can define and mandate HOW God should care for me. As a result when he doesn’t do what I think he should, I conclude, “God doesn’t care.”
For your day today, consider this:
Matthew 10:29 Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground outside your Father’s care. 30 And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. 31 So don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.
Apply: When do you feel/think that God doesn’t care? Evaluate what led you to think that way.
Prayer: Lord, thank you for still caring for me, even when I think or feel that you don’t. AMEN.