the Lord is the one
who sustains me."
Psalm 54:4
I don't know about you, but for me the pandemic has put a strain on my spiritual life. I keep up with my daily Bible study, devotional reading, centering prayer, and meditation.
Sunday worship is where there is strain.
Gathering in the church with people I know, having scripture read, prayers prayed, hymns sung, sharing communion, is diminished. Giving adequate thanks to the Lord in the sanctuary is diminished.
A diminished relationship to the Lord is one main consequence of not being able to sufficiently give thanks in God's sanctuary.
Psalm 54 is a prayer beginning as a plea to God for deliverance and vindication from arrogant foes and ruthless people making murderous threats.
The prayer expresses confidence that God is listening and will sustain his life and repay his enemies justly.
The psalm ends with a prayer praising God for deliverance from every trouble because the name of the Lord is good.
God's Grace fills this psalm for me.
For me, God's Grace allows us to speak confidently knowing the Lord listens and hears deeply. This grace helps us to grow in our faith by realizing God has given us an inner strengthening spirit. This inner strengthening spirit assists us in coping with and interpreting diminished feelings wisely and accurately.
I recently read this: "First we pray. Then we wait."
As I lift my prayer, I am confident the Lord hears and understands deeply and will strengthening me while I wait.
I am also confident the Lord hears, understands deeply, and strengthens each of us while we wait.
I'm absolutely sure I'm here because of God's grace and prayers from my church. Until I was faced with the fact that I could die from the brain bleed, I hadn't realized the serious implications. "First we pray, then we wait" applies to my situation, and I have been blessed!!
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