Daily Devotion July 6

July 6: Hebrews 12:7-11 KJV Key Verse: Hebrews 12:9 9 Furthermore we have had fathers of our flesh which corrected us, and we gave them reverence : shall we not much rather be in subjection unto the Father of spirits, and live ? Devotion: How do you cope when things all seem to be against you? Do you wish you could be as strong as other people and rise up to the challenges of life and breeze through them? I used to think I would be a better person if I were able to just get on with things and get over them, but God has given me a compassionate heart which allows me to feel more of the issues other people have which in turn allows me to deal with issues compassionately. Yes I do get things wrong and I do get too involved with some things, but I have learned that unless I am willing to get involved I cannot help as God intended me to help. So does this mean I am much stronger now and can cope with more? No. It means I have learned when to ask God for more help to cope with the strife as it comes in. I’m sure we can all remember being told God will not allow anything into our lives we cannot endure, but that does not seem to help much when we are the ones facing the trouble! Much of the learning process is going to be us listening to God when He tells us off for doing something else wrong once again! Do not crawl up in a ball or hide your head under the sand when God is trying to tell you something; stand up tall and listen. When we show our elders respect and listen to their instruction we tend to learn things and grow stronger. Why then should we not stop and listen to God when He tries to teach us? Just because He is God and we cannot see Him does not mean we should ignore Him! Trust God but also listen to Him… If we are going to find the peace we think God is going to give to us, then we had better start listening to Him as He directs us toward that peace and away from the danger. We may not like God telling us to go in the other direction but He is telling us that for a reason – the peace is in the other direction! We may have to learn how to get there before we are turned round. We may have to learn by getting into deep water first. Trust God and learn to go toward the blessings and peace. Points to Ponder: How many times have you failed to find the peace by yourself? Will you trust God’s instructions?