“Even though I walk through the darkest valley. I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.” Psalm 23:4
Psalm 23 as a whole presents an idyllic image, one that is hard to grasp when we ARE in real want and the answer to a prayer is a long time coming. Verse 4, thankfully, meets us in that darkness, when we may wonder, WHERE is God, and has he forgotten us? Corrie Ten Boom, author of The Hiding Place talks about an incident in the concentration camp where she has a terrible cold and has no way to blow her nose. At this point, her sister Betsie bows her head and prays, “Lord, please send Corrie a hankie.” Within an hour, a woman on work duty making clothing shows up and hands Corrie a hankie. “I don’t know why, but while I was working, I kept having a nagging thought “please bring this handkerchief to Corrie Ten Boom.” Corrie laughed at the absurdity - there they were, with death threatening them daily and the Lord provides a handkerchief? But as she later shared, it was through these little daily mercies that she endured the “pit of hell”.
In the storm and in the waiting, God provides reassurances of His presence.
Have you had a similar experience? I remember living through a period of loss and unfulfilled prayer. I was not eating or sleeping. I lost 10 lbs. During that time, I began to journal my prayers to Him, big and little prayers. Big prayers for restoration and little prayers for words of hope, for help focusing, for conversation with a friend. Answers came within hours, days (without my intervention) and it was through this daily provision that I was able to endure. And by the time the “big” prayer was answered, I had changed, because I had experienced His presence so powerfully, that I knew I would be OK no matter what His answer.
Prayer Prompt: Dear Lord, I am facing some difficult things today. Please come beside me and walk with me. I need reassurance of your presence to comfort me. I will not fear any evil if you are with me. Please restore my soul. I can keep walking if I know you see the end, and you are with me. Amen.
Song of the Day: “No One Every Cared for Me Like Jesus.” - Steffany Gretzinger
