Seize the Moment – Day 1235
A Pressure Release Valve!
Good morning! This is Pastor Jerry Ingalls from New Castle First Baptist Church and today is Friday, August 4.
Oftentimes, it feels like Christians must be superhuman in how we handle our emotions in difficult circumstances. But we can’t stuff all those emotions; we need a pressure release valve for them! A powerful example of this comes from Psalm 109, one of the most visceral of the imprecatory psalms. Verses 8-11 give us a snapshot of the psalmist invoking the vengeance of the Lord upon his enemies:
Let his days be few; let another take his office. Let his children be fatherless and his wife a widow. Let his children wander about and beg; and let them seek sustenance far from their ruined homes. Let the creditor seize all that he has, and let strangers plunder the product of his labor.
What are Christians to do with such psalms? We have been taught vengeance belongs to the Lord, as Paul exhorted in Romans 12:19-21:
Never take your own revenge, beloved, but leave room for the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord. “But if your enemy is hungry, feed him, and if he is thirsty, give him a drink; for in so doing you will heap burning coals on his head.” Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
If you are going to fulfill the Word of the Lord, you must have a pressure release valve to deal with all your real human emotions that are triggered by the evil that is prevalent in the world today, from the bullying in schools to the heinous crimes on the streets. Christianity is not a call to stuff your emotions, but to cast them all on the Lord because He cares (1 Peter 5:7).
Seize the moment and pray Psalm 109, meditating upon the justice of God – pray to God, trusting that He will bring about His justice at the right time (Ecclesiastes 3:16-17).
God bless you!
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YOUTUBE:
If you prefer a video, Pastor Jerry reads his devotion on YouTube as well. Click HERE to visit the page.