Reading your Bible for Today December 4

December 4: Psalm 127:3-5

KJV Key Verse: Psalm 127:4
4 As arrows are in the hand of a mighty man; so are children of the youth.

Devotion:
Has anyone ever likened you to an arrow? To my recollection I cannot think of any time I have been described like an arrow (apart from reading this)... How would you describe yourself in terms of an arrow? How would you think of your usefulness in the hands of your parents? Too many times in our lives we think of ourselves first and that is about as far as it gets. When we grow up, things don't change too much either! We still consider ourselves in the light of what we see and not as others would look upon us. In essence, we are quite selfish.

But the writer of this Psalm draws parallels between useful tools in battle and siblings. What use is an archer charging into battle without any arrows. I suppose he could beat someone about the head with his bow, but that would not be too effective! What he needs is a quiver full of arrows. They need not be all perfect. They need not be all the same size. When he is far from the enemy, he would probably want a long straight arrow to make sure the flight is straight and true. But up close, he can use anything because the target is large.

There are times when we think we are of no good, times when we think we let our parents down, times when we think we are just a burden – but think again. We may be the “last arrow in the quiver” because we need to be used up close and the battle has only just started. We may like to argue with parents and others, but there will be a time when we are most useful to them. There will be a time when they have to depend on us and we have to make it count!

Our parents aren't the only ones who can use us... God wants to be able to use each one of us. We may think we are useless in His eyes because we never do what we are told. But given the right time and situation, He can use every one of us. We have to be patient enough to stick around! God has a use for each one of us – just maybe we have not yet got to the point that He wants to use us...

Points to Ponder:
What sort of arrow would you describe yourself as?

How do you think God can use you?